Technology To Weed Out Bad PPV Drivers

KINGSTON, Jamaica -- Commuters should welcome the announcement that the police has teamed with some private owners of public transport vehicles to introduce a new technology to assist the police in weeding bad drivers from the system. Minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Transport, Works and Housing, Dr Morais Guy, is expected to launch the new sophisticated information system, the Public Transport Management System (PTMS) at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston, on Thursday, October 10, at 10:00am. The PTMS should be a very useful tool in regulating the sector, especially in terms of monitoring the performance of drivers who continue to accumulate tickets without angst, and who move from owner to owner without revealing their past record. It is the result of a partnership between public transportation umbrella group, the Public Passenger Vehicle Modernization Council (PPVMC), and AlyJaz Business Solutions Limited, a US firm which has committed to providing some 35 taxis and bus associations islandwide, with computer equipment to become a part of the PTMS network. According to PPVMC spokesman, Raymond Gabbidon, “the problems in the sector (driver related and most others) can only be solved with the participation of the primary stakeholders and through the use of modern computerized technology.” Dr Guy identified the system in his July 2012 sectoral debate presentation, when he announced that his ministry was in discussions with the PPVMC on the use of the regulatory system, as a public/private sector partnership. “There is definitely a need for partnerships to be established to effectively serve the various stakeholders,” he said. The Observer understands that the new system will involve both the PPVMC and the police.