ST CATHERINE, Jamaica – Commuters in Spanish Town have expressed frustration with striking transport operators whose actions left them stranded at bus stops and taxi stands across the old capital on Monday.

A number of commuters, who had to rely on private charter taxi to get to their destinations, expressed that they did not see the need for a strike.

“Me nuh see what the strike fah, them fi pay them ticket. Me nuh see where it make a difference, people need fi go a work, me nuh see where it make a difference, me nuh see why them a strike,” one woman said.

Another commuter opined that the operators of public passenger vehicles are to blame for the current situation with the outstanding tickets, and the threat of having drivers’ licenses suspended. He said the onus is on the drivers to ensure that their tickets are paid to avoid further punishment.

“How me see it, a them give police and transport authority work because if them do what them fi do and keep them vehicle straight you won’t have them problem yah,” the man said.

“Because when you out a road and a drive and a do all kinds of foolishness you ago get ticket and when you get the ticket go and pay it. So it nuh make sense weh yah do, you a try suffer we with wah gwaan right now,” he added.

The commuter went on to state that as for the state-owned Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) buses there aren’t enough to pick up the slack that the absence of the public passenger vehicles has created.

The protesting taxi and bus operators on the other hand defended their decision to withdraw their services. One bus driver in Spanish Town said that adding the suspension of drivers’ licenses to the tickets is a fight from the government.

He said this is the reason he has removed his bus from the route, and will keep doing so for five days, and more if the issues aren’t addressed.

“There’s no way we can have 10 ticket and the government a fight against we say them a go take weh we license. So we withdraw for five days and if we don’t get no answer it ago be more,” the bus driver said.

When asked how he accumulated 10 tickets, the driver admitted that it was through his own recklessness.

“Because sometime we nuh want wait in a no traffic so we overtake the line of traffic,” he revealed.

Another bus driver also admitted that he has been in the wrong before while operating his vehicle on the road, but blames the ticketing system for issues he has experience.

“The system slack. And sometime we get unnecessary ticket. Me nah seh we nuh do foolishness sometimes on the road, like me a go up Molynes Road and the policeman stop me say him a give me a seatbelt ticket because me never have on me seatbelt fi true and when the police punch in the information in the system, the ticket nah come out and when him punch it in again a three ticket end up come out. Three a di one ticket at the same time,” the bus driver lamented.

On Sunday, there were reports of a potential all-island transportation strike, in response to a June 5 meeting which included stakeholders and the Island Traffic Authority.

READ: All island transportation strike reportedly looming

The meeting was about potentially triggering the reinstatement of driver’s license suspensions due to accumulated demerit points.

In response to the recommendation, public transport operators have threatened to withdraw their service effective Monday, for five days.

Transport Minister Daryl Vaz has since called the strike “premature and unnecessary” as he says a meeting to discuss the public passenger operators’ issues with the suspension of licenses has been set for Tuesday.