Demerit point system may miss October start as Vaz cites ticket backlog

Jamaica’s planned demerit point system for motorists may not begin on October 1 as earlier signalled, Transport Minister Daryl Vaz said at Wednesday’s post-Cabinet press briefing, arguing that more time is needed for a workable traffic-management framework.

Vaz said implementation work has started, but multi-stakeholder consultations have exposed what he described as near-impossible timelines given available resources. He pointed to a large stock of unpaid traffic tickets, heavy paperwork and incomplete digitisation of court records as central obstacles.

Court Administration Division figures cited in the report show about 1.2 million outstanding traffic tickets between January 1, 2018 and January 1, 2026, valued at roughly $4.5 billion. Police data indicate 438,711 tickets were issued in the first six months of 2026, with higher volumes of speeding tickets, breathalyser tests and warrant executions than in the same period last year. Authorities say the deeper problem is compliance. Vaz argued that even an amnesty would not fix the mindset issue the demerit regime is meant to address.

Under the proposed system, motorists accumulate points with tickets: 10 to 13 points can trigger defensive-driving or speeding-related training; 14 to 19 may bring retesting and disqualification; 20 or more can lead to immediate licence suspension by a judge. Points generally expire after 15 months if the licence is not suspended.

Separately, the Transport Operators Development Sustainable Services group, led by president Edge Newman, called for an urgent review of the Road Traffic and Transport Authority Act, saying operators are being forced to work under two ineffective statutes.

The government also defended the July 1 appointment of Danville Walker as Petrojam managing director after opposition energy spokesman Philip Paulwell raised conflict-of-interest concerns in Parliament on Tuesday. Walker had resigned as senior vice president at West Indies Petroleum before taking the post. Energy officials said potential conflicts had been resolved and that the appointment followed proper process.

Education Minister Dr Dana Morris Dixon announced an extra $755 million for public schools, saying average funding is up about 55 per cent, with priority for primary and special-needs institutions. A first tranche has already gone out, with further payments due in September and December. She restated that no child should be barred from school for unpaid fees and urged schools to use the money, and ministry welfare grants, to ease hardship.

In the courts, attorney Sylvester Hemmings signalled another bail bid for former Stocks and Securities Limited wealth adviser Gene Panton. Justice Simone Wolffe directed a written application, with defence submissions by end-September and the Crown’s reply by end-October. Panton has been in custody since February 2023 on a 22-count indictment and now faces a February 1 trial date after an earlier May fixture was vacated.

Other items in the newscast included Manchester Mayor Donovan Mitchell’s move to block night events at two Mandeville spots on Perth and Villa roads over noise and sanitation complaints; Cannabis Licensing Authority reforms aimed at traditional cultivators; June inflation of 0.8 per cent and point-to-point inflation of 6.7 per cent; LIAT’s inaugural Guadeloupe–Montego Bay flight; and scheduled increases in petrol, diesel, kerosene and cooking-gas prices.