Drug and alcohol tests for Barbados public transport drivers

Barbados is set to amend its Road Traffic Act to require random drug and alcohol testing of individuals who drive public service vehicles (PSV) and articulated vehicles.

Sharmane Roland-Bowen, the President of the Barbados Road Safety Association (BRSA), has urged owners of these types of vehicles to inform their drivers and employees of the impending legislation and to ensure that they do not use drugs or alcohol whist driving.

She praised lawmakers for making the safety of commuters a top priority, adding that she had received complaints from PSV passengers about drivers stopping to buy alcoholic beverages, and then consuming them while driving. She said that drinking even one alcoholic beverage is one too many for those trusted with the safety of others.

She said, “So I am happy that random alcohol and drug testing has been included in the legislation and while we are not alone targeting the PSV drivers, the fact is, it is no secret that some of them disrespect their passengers by drinking and totally disregard their responsibility to get them to their destination safely. What that tells the passenger is that they don’t care about their lives, they only care about their money.”

The BRSA president also praised a provision in the legislation that raised the minimum age of individuals licensed to drive PSVs to 25 years old. She thought that this requirement would help make certain that individuals driving PSVs had enough maturity to take the responsibility.