A fatal road traffic accident along the westbound lane of the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway yesterday morning claimed the life of one man and left hundreds of motorists stuck in gridlock for close to five hours.
Students heading to school, employees making their way to work and people on their way to do business from as far east as Piarco, central and south Trinidad were forced to endure long hours in their private cars and public transport on the way to Port-of-Spain. Some people, exasperated with the situation, returned home.
The accident hampered the smooth flow of traffic headed West from 5.20 am to around 10.30 am, as the scene was cordoned off to allow forensic officers to retrieve the remains of Krishna Ramgas, 66, who was run over by several vehicles.
Police said that around 5.20 am, a driver, who lives at La Resource South, D’Abadie, was proceeding west in his Nissan Navara when he struck Ramgas who was attempting to cross the busy highway.
It was alleged the driver had been in the right lane of the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway in the vicinity of the Maritime Overpass, when his right wing mirror made contact with Ramgas, causing him to fall.
The bare-backed man, clad in only khaki pants, was allegedly seen walking west in the right lane and following his fall and several other vehicles ran over him.
On social media, many posted their condolences to the victim but also complained about the “stress” and “annoyance” caused by the standstill traffic.
Raquel Brown, who took to social media, said, “The powers that be need to do better with regard to removing bodies in a more efficient manner! Having a person on a roadway waiting for the DMO etc for HOURS is unacceptable!”
According to Rebekah Guerrero, “Better has to be done!!! A single accident cannot be the cause of gridlock traffic for HOURS and in SEVERAL parts of the country far from where it even happened. After being stuck in traffic for over an hour and not making it to even 1/4 of my commute to the office, I was forced to return home.
“Additionally, I am beginning to think we need to build tall walls in the medians (like there are in some parts of the US). Yesterday, I saw a man climb over the median to run across the highway and there was a pedestrian crossing a few feet away. These people are putting innocent people at risk, who will then have to live with the guilt and trauma of manslaughter, which could have been avoided.
Jean-anne Jean added on social media, “May the soul of the deceased rest in peace and condolences to his family. What a sad situation, folks were in traffic for hours and that delay is absolutely unacceptable, we have to do better in this country. We need to do better, oh gosh man. That accident happened after 5 am and folks are now able to pass to get to work or school, how is this delay even acceptable? Folks from the East and South were badly affected. Why are we somewhat backwards in this country?”
Jameel Hosein said, “Over 3 hours to reach pos this morning from South ... ridiculous ...”
Only on Monday, a study conducted by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) found that the average commuter in T&T spends at least a month in traffic a year.
The results of the study, released to the media, also suggested that the cost of traffic congestion is over $2 billion a year.
It said, “The direct economic cost of traffic in Trinidad and Tobago is an estimated TT$2.26 billion per year or 1.37 per cent of GDP; with the average commuter spending an average 793 hours, cumulatively 33 days—one month of the year in traffic delays.”
Extending condolences to the victim’s family, the T&T Police Service (TTPS) appealed to the public to maintain caution and vigilance when traversing the nation’s highways.
