By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The statistics of the Traffic Police show that during the first four months of this year, from January to April, were sanctioned 14,000 drivers for parking in a restricted zone, and that in many of those cases the license plates or even the vehicles were seized.
Illegal parking is just one of the violations that have led the Traffic Police to make more than 25,000 vehicle seizures during that period.
Among the confiscated vehicles that are still in the traffic police storehouse, are 4,539 motorcycles, 420 cars, and 41 trucks.
Police also seized 19,935 plates from 10,966 cars, 7,026 motorcycles and 922 trucks.
According to German Marín, General Director of the Traffic Police, the vehicles were confiscated from drivers who "were drunk driving, speeding or do not even have a driver’s license.”
Transit police say only the owners can request vehicle recovery and only after paying a fine.
On May 23, as A.M. Costa Rica reported, the Traffic Police informed that
during the same period, ( from January to April), have been fined 5,128 drivers for violations of the Traffic
Law.
There have been an average of four
violations a day, or 470 drivers, for
carrying children under 12 years old
without the safety device.
According to the Traffic Law, the fine in
these cases is approximately $370, plus
four negative points on the driver's
license.
Marín said that it is
regrettable that adults put children's
lives at risk by not using safety devices. "Recently a child was saved from dying or
having serious injuries due to an accident
because he had the right device for his
age, weight, and height," Marin said. “We
must understand that these are not luxury
accessories, they are security measures."
Marin added that many of the drivers'
excuses for failure to have a safety
device are that they don’t have the money
or because the driver thinks he will take
a short trip where there is no accident
risk.
In addition, the police report that of
those 470 cases, there were 50 motorcycle
driver infractions for transporting
children under 5 years of age.
The law prohibits a child under the age of
5 from traveling by motorcycle precisely
because of the inability of such small
persons to adequately support themselves
on the motorcycle or the adult who
transports them.
In the case of this fault, the fine is the
same, $370, plus four points are
accumulated against the the driver's
license.
Regarding the use of the safety belt, the
transit police reported that during the
same period, were recorded 1,670 sanctions
for drivers not wearing the safety belt,
or allowing other people who traveled in
the car not to wear it. In this case, the
fine is approximately $185 but there is no
penalty of points on the driver's license.
With respect to motorcyclists, were issued 1,640
tickets for not wearing a helmet or
wearing it badly. In addition, 919 fines
were registered because the motorcyclist's
companion did not wear a helmet or wore it
improperly. In both cases the fine
is approximately $185, and there is no
penalty for points that are recorded in
the driver's license.
Finally, officers registered 429 fines for
drivers using their cell phones while
driving. In this case the same fine, $185,
is issued and there are no penalty points
recorded on the driver's license.
The penalty points are applied against the
driver for committing faults and are
recorded in a database of the Road Safety
Council. When the driver renews the
license, other sanctions related to the
number of registered faults will be
applied.
---------------------------- What are the punishments for drunk driving, speeding or driving without a license in your country? We would like to know your
thoughts on this story. Send your comments
to: news@amcostarica.com
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