No helmet but no ticket for Psomiadis
Transport Ministry officials were foiled yesterday in their attempt to issue Thessaloniki’s flamboyant prefect Panayiotis Psomiadis with a traffic ticket after a photo of the politician riding a motorcycle without wearing a helmet appeared in a newspaper. Sources said that a high-ranking official at the ministry ordered the traffic police in Thessaloniki to fine Psomiadis 350 euros and chalk up five penalty points on his license for failing to wear a crash helmet. However, the highway code only allows tickets to be issued after the event when traffic cameras have recorded vehicles speeding or using bus lanes. This means that Psomiadis would have to be sued and a judge would have to decide to penalize and fine him. Psomiadis has admitted in the past that he does not like to wear a helmet because it messes up his hair.
