Shadow Minister of Transport Jamahl Simmons is proposing a new road safety plan to get tough with those who flout traffic laws.

Mr. Simmons said he is in the planning stages of launching PEACE (Promoting Education, Accountability, Consequences and Enforcement) and in the next few weeks will take the plan to the public for feedback after it earns UBP approval.

?Some tough decisions need to be taken, the number of vehicles on our roads is growing,? he said. ?We would like to this to be the people?s plan and would like a buy-in from the community.?

Mr. Simmons has been working on PEACE for some time and feels the issue of road safety is vital in the light of the recent spate of road traffic fatalities.

The issue is not being adequately addressed, he argued.

?The problem is not being addressed because people don?t know how to address it,? he said. ?People want action not words.?

Many of the UPB ideas for reforming road safety laws were contained in the Reply to Throne Speech, he said, and have been communicated in Parliament.

Some of the specific recommendations of the new plan would include expanding Project Ride and expanding driver education in general.

?Not every person that gets on a bike is obliged to undergo the training provided by Project Ride,? Mr. Simmons said.

?Some public schools require students to take Project Ride, such as Berkeley, but it could be expanded to make it mandatory requirement.?

Accountability could be improved, Mr. Simmons suggested, by implementing a graduated licensing scheme or a point system for licences ? where driver privileges could be expanded or removed based on a driver?s record.

Sentences are too weak for people committing offences such drinking and driving, he added, and the consequences of their actions need to be better addressed with harsher penalties.

Enforcement can be met by increased Police manpower, which Mr. Simmons contends is perhaps the most critical issue in maintaining peace and stability.

?Police act as a deterrent and people naturally slow down when the Police are in the public eye,? Mr. Simmons said.

He is also proposing increasing the budget for the Police and said his plan could be budgeted for through existing Government resources.