Traffic Law Reforms
Stalled At Riteve
At midday yesterday a
taxi driver in downtown
Heredia hit a woman and
her child in full view
of witnesses. The taxi
driver, though insisting
before the television
cameras was not drunk,
was found to have a
blood alcohol level of
3.93. 0.49 is the legal
limit in Costa Rica.
Fortunately the woman
and child were not hurt
in yesterday's incident,
however, many more were
not, as the death toll
on the roads this year
has surpassed the 300
mark, the majority of
the accidents involving
drinking and driving and
speeding.
The carnage continues as
long as the legislators
stall on the reforms to
the "Ley de Tránsito"
(traffic laws) that
proposes to get tough,
especially with drunk
drivers, who can expect
to lose their license to
spending time in jail.
The reform to the
traffic laws also
proposes to increase
fines, up to 20 times
the current in some
cases, for speeding,
careless driving.
Although the Ministra de
Obras Públicas y
Transportes (MOPT)
presented the reforms
proposal mid last year,
the process has been
slow and the latest
stumbling block facing
the Comisión de Asuntos
Jurídicos is the subject
of Riteve, the annual
vehicular inspection.
Costa Ricans had been
promised a Christmas
gift from a promise of a
number of deputies that
the Tránsito reforms
would be passed before
the end of the year.
However, that
possibility seems
unlikely now.
Mayi Antillón, head of
the Partido Liberación
Nacional (PLN) - ruling
party - in the
legislature explains
that the Poder Ejecutive
(government) has decided
not to send the proposal
to the full legislative
floor until the Comisión
reaches a consensus on
the issue of the Riteve
monopoly.
The block stems from a
motion by Movimiento
Libertario party, Mario
Quirós, proposing to
break the monopoly held
by Riteve on vehicular
inspections and asking
the Ministerio de Obras
Públicas y Transportes (MOPT)
to, in a time period of
six months, open the
bidding for companies
who want to offer
vehicular inspections.
The Quirós proposal has
been met with suspicion
by a number of
legislators, who
consider that the
government will have to
out millions in
indemnization of Riteve,
a Costa Rican - Spanish
consortium, if the
contract is broken.
Quirós explained that
his proposal is not to
through out the Riteve
contract now, but, not
to renew it when
contract expires in 2012
and allowing the MOPT
time to establish a new
system.
The good news, however,
came from the head of
the Comisión, PLN member
Alexander Mora, who is
expectful that the Poder
Ejecutivo will convene
the project for the
second week in December
so that it can be
approved before the
Christmas recess.
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