President Louis Mussington addresses road safety issues following two-wheeler accidents

MARIGOT: President Louis Mussington wishes to express his deepest condolences to the families bereaved by road accidents. Too many young people, especially on two-wheelers, have lost their lives in recent months on the roads of St. Martin.

Just Monday, May 30, a young man died on the road while riding a motorcycle. Last week, it was a young woman, mother of a little girl, who lost her life.

If law enforcement agencies and the justice system have a major role to play in terms of prevention and reinforcement of roadside checks to the point of severely punishing risky behavior, each road user must take charge of his or her own behavior and adopt a responsible attitude. Respecting the rules of conduct on the public highway is essential.

The fact is that road deaths in St. Martin are essentially due to risky behavior, especially among two-wheeler drivers. How can we get used to the idea that young people can lose their lives in this way, bringing grief to families who will be in pain forever? Every year in St. Martin, people under 24 years old are the main victims of road accidents.

Faced with this alarming fact, every citizen must become aware of the need to be careful on the road and to respect the rules of driving: respect the authorized speed, wear a helmet, wear a seatbelt, etc. Without this urgent and collective awareness, we will continue to mourn a child, a brother, a friend. This is intolerable.

I therefore appeal to all those who drive on our roads, especially young people, to be careful, to drive quietly, not to take unnecessary risks, to protect yourself and to protect those who, like you, use the public highway.

We must act quickly. This is why the Collectivity supports the SXM road safety association which makes young drivers aware of the dangers of the road. But we must go further! Thus, I will ask the delegated prefect Vincent BERTON and the commander of the gendarmerie of the Northern Islands Maxime WINTZER to set up sustained control operations especially focused on the control of two-wheelers. Our territorial police force is of course involved in these operations, alongside the gendarmerie forces, and in the area of road safety.

I also ask parents to make their children aware of the need to wear helmets and to respect good behavior on the road. The collective education that we must implement to reverse the trend is an action to be carried out all together. It is only in a collective and committed spirit that we will succeed in changing behaviors in a sustainable way. Thank you all for your commitment to this cause that concerns our children.

The post President Louis Mussington addresses road safety issues following two-wheeler accidents appeared first on Faxinfo.

Source: Faxinfo https://www.faxinfo.sx/2022/06/01/president-louis-mussington-addresses-road-safety-issues-following-two-wheeler-accidents/