Highway robbery

TransJamaican Highway (TJH) has stepped up its efforts to tackle toll evasion, a problem that continues to escalate, according to Managing Director Ivan Anderson.

Anderson told The Gleaner that in the past year alone, TJH has documented 680 instances of motorists bypassing the toll, leading to an estimated revenue loss of $250,000. A significant portion of these cases involve repeat offenders, particularly along the Portmore-Marcus Garvey Drive leg of the highway.

“We are currently working with the police. We provide the police with the information, in terms of the licence plate and some video evidence of the incidents as they take place, and the police will go and try and identify these persons, go to the residence of these persons, and charge them for the offences,” Anderson said.

He noted that a common tactic involves motorists tailgating larger vehicles, like buses, to slip through before the toll barrier closes. In some extreme cases, individuals have been caught evading the toll up to 20 times.

“We are putting in place a much more vigorous programme, along with the police, to routinely identify them as they pass and allow the police to stop them on the roadway,” he stated.

SPECIAL UNIT

So widespread is the practice that Assistant Commissioner of Police Dr Gary McKenzie, head of the Public Safety and Traffic Enforcement Branch of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, said the police had to put in place a special team on the highway to address it.

“Because of the prevalence of it, we have had to set up a special team, because where we had to arrest people and take them to court … That is something which we had to develop some special expertise over time [to tackle],” McKenzie told The Gleaner.

He reminded the public that toll plazas are equipped with surveillance cameras that capture violations.

“I don’t know why people believe that they can get away. Most of the time, the police will find them, and when they are found, a lot of times they’ve had to endure the stress of finding the monies to pay,” he said.

Under the Toll Roads Act of 2002, motorists who refuse or fail to pay the toll can be fined up to $10,000 or face up to 30 days in prison. Those who damage or remove barriers can face fines of up to $200,000 or a six-month jail term.

McKenzie revealed that since 2021, the police have prosecuted 79 individuals for toll evasion, involving nearly 500 cases. One individual was charged with 22 separate offences in 2022 alone.

He added that many offenders try to exploit peak traffic times, assuming they can slip through undetected.

“People tend to be more risky or take the risk at times when there are greater numbers of vehicles. So even though the toll [booths] ... are monitored by marshalls and, in some instances, especially during peak hours, the police may be there as well, they tend to take their chances at that time,” he said.

Beyond the financial implications, McKenzie warned that toll evasion poses serious safety and infrastructure risks.

“What they do is that they hit down the barrier, and when they do that, it causes the barrier to be in a state of disrepair or it malfunctions, so it cause damage to the facility,” he said. “There is a tendency for them to speed away ... and if you speed away, you tend to be distracted by what is happening … . It is dangerous.”

sashana.small@gleanerjm.com