Will stricter penalties save lives?

Following its months-long ‘drafting,’ the new traffic-code bill finally heads for changes in Parliament

By Alexandra Kassimi - Kathimerini

It was two years in the making, but the revised traffic code, soon to be tabled in Parliament, calls for stiffer fines for traffic violations that could endanger lives and at the same time abolishes exemptions from wearing seat belts, such as for taxi drivers.

For the past few months, the bill has been under negotiation with the various agencies and associations involved and an in-depth examinations by the seven ministries concerned – the Transport Ministry considered for months whether to impose a 1,200-euro fine for drunk driving or 700 euros for running a red light.

Initially, fines were set five times higher than the current rates, but now have settled at double. Invoking a provision included in both the old and the new code that allowed for a 50 percent reduction on fines paid within 10 days of the offense, the Transport Ministry announced figures that were double the original fines, which were almost never paid. That is, the police officer who administers the fine writes down only half the amount due, since that is what everyone pays, except those cases that are disputed and end up in court. Nevertheless, the fines remain high and several protests have been made, even within the government itself. Transport experts maintain that strict fines do not bring about the desired result if their payment is not enforced. Traffic police claim that higher fines pit them against the public and were strongly opposed to a suggestion that part of the revenue from the fines be paid into their own social security fund. Transport Minister Michalis Liapis responded that the precise amount of the fines would be set by Parliament and that he was open to suggestions.

The parliamentary debate on the bill is expected to produce a traffic code that is quite different from what the Transport Ministry leadership has been working on for the past few months, since it will be up to the House to decide everything, including how the revenue is to be used, an issue that has been the subject of dispute at ministerial level. Experience in the rest of Europe shows that heavy fines alone are not enough. In no other European country are fines so high, while in some cases they are linked to the person’s income. The only exception is France, where the war on traffic accidents has taken the form of not only heavy fines but intensive policing. One of the most important changes in the new code removes the option of getting back car license plates that have been confiscated for a violation, upon the payment of three times the fine. This move is obviously an attempt to counter charges that this particular provision was simply a moneymaker. Much opposition has also been raised over enforcement of wearing – both by drivers and passengers – seat belts in taxis. Taxi drivers claim that someone sitting in a car eight to 10 hours a day cannot be expected to “belt up” but they do not expect this provision to make it through Parliament.

Heavy fines will not force drivers to obey the code, claims Panos Papadakos, a civil engineer and traffic expert and the former head of the Association of Greek Transport Experts. “Imposing heavy fines should go hand in hand with enforcement and a plan to ensure that violators are apprehended. Systematic policing is the only way to ensure stricter rules are observed. The problem in Greece is that these changes are not based on scientific research.”