MOH To Improve COVID Compliance Among Taxi Operators

Minister of Health, Dr. Christopher Tufton says he intends to work with Transport Minister, Robert Montague, to improve the compliance of taxi operators as it relates to COVID-19 protocols.

The Minister was responding to concerns raised by President of the Jamaica Association of Transport Owners and Operators (JATOO), Louis Barton, at the weekly virtual COVID Conversations press conference on Thursday, October 22.

Barton, who was a guest at the press briefing, said that while some operators are complying with the protocols, including sanitizing their vehicles and wearing masks, many remain delinquent.

“The problem is how we get our members to comply. We, as an association, can only appeal to our members to do the right thing, but some of our members will follow us, some won’t, but there are no negative rewards for not doing what is necessary,” he noted.

Barton said the association is seeking some guidelines as to the way forward in addressing the delinquency of the taxi operators.

He pointed out that there are 35,000 licensed taxi operators, who each transport about 80 passengers daily, and 35 different transport associations.

Dr. Tufton said that the taxi drivers are “an important part of economic activity and an important interface with the general populace”.

“They are also part of the frontline of the COVID response, so we will work with you and work with our Minister of Transport to try and find some solutions to some of those concerns,” he said.

“We need that kind of collaboration; there are no ifs, ands or buts about it,” the Minister stressed.

As it relates to the disregard of the health protocols by taxi operators, Minister Tufton indicated that the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General’s Office are working on more specific fines for breaches.