Ruddy Raymond on Saturday became the country’s latest accident victim when a canter truck suddenly swerved into the path of a speeding minibus on the busy Providence Public, East Bank Demerara
Barely a day passes without reports of another serious accident somewhere in Guyana.
The carnage on the nation’s roadways continues unabated despite repeated warnings, enforcement campaigns and promises of reform.
The latest figures are concerning. According to the Guyana Police Force, 137 persons died in 124 fatal accidents in 2025, an increase from the 132 deaths recorded in 2024. Fatal accidents also rose from 117 to 124 over the same period.
The police said that serious accidents were down from 303 in 2024 to 286 last year. Accidents where damage occurred were down from 1,467 in 2024 to 1,288 last year.
These statistics should concern every policymaker, law enforcement official and citizen. They should be looked at as not just numbers but as lives cut short, families destroyed and people living with permanent disabilities.
The most frequently cited cause of fatal accidents remains speeding. Ministry of Home Affairs statistics for the first half of last year showed that speeding accounted for 48 of 54 fatal accidents recorded up to mid-June. The police have been repeating the same warning for years. In 2015, speeding was identified as the major contributory factor in nearly half of all fatal accidents. More than a decade later, little appears to have changed.
But one does not need official statistics to recognise the problem.
A drive along the East Bank Demerara public road, the East Coast corridor, the Rupert Craig Highway, the Berbice roadways or the Linden-Soesdyke Highway reveals motorists treating public roads as race tracks. Dangerous overtaking, lane-hopping, tailgating, excessive speeds and the disregard of traffic signals have become commonplace. The culture of impatience and aggression on the roads has worsened.
Yet it would be too easy to place all the responsibility on drivers alone.
Guyana today is undergoing the largest infrastructure expansion in its history. Major road projects are taking place simultaneously across the country. New highways are being built, existing roads widened and bridges constructed. These works are necessary and in many cases long overdue. However, they have also introduced new hazards.
Construction zones frequently appear with inadequate warning signs, poor lighting, unclear lane markings and confusing traffic diversions. Motorists often encounter abrupt changes in road conditions with little notice. In some areas, road shoulders disappear altogether as works progress. At night, these conditions become even more dangerous.
And then there is the continuous growth in vehicle population which has contributed to the problem. The country’s road network was never designed for the volume of traffic now using it. Traffic congestion has become routine along major corridors, particularly during peak hours. As frustration mounts, risky driving behaviour follows. Many working hours are lost in stalled traffic.
Government therefore cannot absolve itself of responsibility. While billions of dollars are being spent on infrastructure, equal emphasis must be placed on road safety. Every major road project should include strong traffic management plans, proper signage, lighting, barriers and public education. Road safety cannot be treated as an afterthought once construction begins.
The Guyana Police Force also faces difficult questions.
Enforcement drives are often highly visible for a few weeks following a major tragedy before attention shifts elsewhere. Sustained enforcement is what is required. The public has heard repeated announcements about speeding campaigns, radar guns and traffic exercises. Yet the fatality figures remain high. The inevitable conclusion is that current measures are not producing the needed results.
Equally important is accountability. Too often serious traffic offences are treated casually. Dangerous driving, reckless overtaking and excessive speeding must attract penalties severe enough to alter behaviour. A culture has developed in which many drivers appear to believe that the rules apply to everyone except themselves.
And of course there are those who just call a ‘big one’ and the infraction goes away and the police officer is left looking like a fool.
While driver behaviour remains central, concerns have also been raised about infrastructure and engineering. Writing in a letter earlier this year, risk consultant Colonel Brian Chin argued that “structural risks remain” and called for improved signage, speed management measures and engineering interventions at high-risk locations.
The government has set itself the ambitious goal of reducing annual road fatalities to 53 by 2030. Yet with 137 deaths recorded last year and a steady stream of fatal crashes continuing into 2026, that target increasingly appears out of reach unless enforcement is strengthened, road engineering deficiencies are addressed and motorists themselves abandon the dangerous culture of speeding and recklessness that has turned too many of Guyana’s roads into corridors of grief.
“We should only see 53 deaths per year on the roads by 2030. We have six years more to get to that number, there is a lot of work ahead to achieve this, we cannot do this alone…it relies on a change in culture, change in behaviour, greater levels of awareness amongst the population,” former Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn had said in November 2024 according to the Department of Public Information.
Ambitious, yes. Achievable? Only time will tell.
The next fatality is already waiting somewhere along a stretch of road. The question is whether the authorities will act decisively before it occurs or merely respond after another life has been lost.
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