THERE will be more police patrolling Slovakia’s roads, appearing even in places where they normally have not had much of a presence, and issuing stricter fines for undisciplined drivers.
This is how Police Corps President Tibor Gašpar described the new programme to be launched on Slovak roads in response to the tragic weekend of June 6-8, during which 13 people died on Slovak roads, the Sme daily reported.
The police will not publicise all the measures they are planning to take, Gašpar told the June 9 press conference, as reported by Sme.
“One of the basic [measures] will be the increased number of police officers of all services on our roads, in a migratory manner,” the Police Corps president said, as quoted by Sme. During the summer season the police are planning a number of specialised actions on the roads.
The new programme should last until the situation stabilises, he added.
Gašpar continued that the police will probably be more stringent in evaluating traffic offenses, noting that increased fines have had an immediate effect in the past.
As many as 117 people have died on Slovak roads so far this year, a significantly higher number compared with last year, when the death toll reached 65 by early June, according to Sme. Last year, 2013, was rather favourable concerning mortality on the roads, with 223 victims of road accidents, down by 73 compared to 2012.
On June 6, a major bus accident occurred on the D1 highway when a bus carrying a class of students from one of Trnava’s secondary schools on their way back from a school trip crashed. Four girls were killed in the accident, while several of their classmates and teachers suffered serious injuries. The investigation of the accident has not yet concluded, but preliminary findings suggest that the accident was most likely caused by failure on the part of the driver rather than a technical problem of the vehicle, Sme wrote.
Source: Sme
Compiled by Michaela Terenzani from press reports.
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information
presented in its Flash News postings.
