By Halshane Burke
Thousands of motorists converged on the Corporate Area Traffic Court on today as they attempted to settle outstanding traffic tickets.
Today is the final day for the reprieve on the payment of outstanding tickets.
The lines of motorists attempting to avoid incurring demerit points snaked from the court building along Melbourne road, spilled onto South Camp Road and resulted in a traffic snarl along the major thoroughfare.
Today's crowd appeared to dwarf all other days combined since the reprieve was granted, with some motorists indicating that that were out from as early as 3:00 a.m. seeking to clear outstanding tickets.
But many of the motorists will not get to see a judge today. Instead what they have is a print out of their traffic ticket which will be stamped by the court administrator so if they are stopped by the police, they will not be arrested.
The Court Administration Division says it has added more manpower in an attempt to speed up the process of dealing with all who have turned up for court.
When questioned about the process of clearing up the tickets and avoiding demerit points, Director of Communication in the Division, Kadeish Fletcher, said motorists are attending court for a judicial process and the judge will determine the eventual penalty.
She noted that some people are also surprised when their licence is suspended, for example, as they thought the reprieve meant they were simply coming to pay a fine.
But she maintained that the traffic ticket is a criminal offence for which a plea has to be entered, and for which the judge decides the punishment based on the charges.
The new Road Traffic Act and regulations come into effect tomorrow (Wednesday, February 1) and among other things, will introduce increased penalties for offences as well as an electronic ticket management system.
The police have already indicated that they are equipped to execute the various provisions to bring order to the transport landscape.
