Contributing Author Dickson Igwe
Virgin Islands taxi drivers and the absence of viable public transportation
First of two stories on the crucial need for a comprehensive public transportation service in the Virgin Islands
Yours truly enjoys reading the news stories and commentaries of native, expatriate, and staff writers in the Virgin Islands press. He finds them rich with information, and very instructive, and they are part of his modus Vivendi of sources frequently quoted in his weekly narratives.
And so, on a bright and magnificent Saturday morning in paradise, as he rustled through the pages of the national newspapers, sitting on his favourite rock on Mount Healthy, he read a few lines from the excellently informed William Walker. His was a contribution in the BVI Beacon of February 2, 2012: ‘’Public service changes considered.’’ In the article, the BVI Beacon Contributor described the St. Thomas, United States Virgin islands’ transportation system as ‘’ an example of private enterprise matched to a government sponsored service.’’
Walker further described how short taxi trips in that territory ‘’ are only $1; the longer ones are $2.’’ Bear in mind that the St. Thomas safari bus transportation model is complemented by a government owned bus service which is not as frequent as the taxi operation. Walker further described the well understood model of a BVI public transportation system and dynamic which is still practically nonexistent, as a dedicated effort by local taxi drivers to ensure ‘’ the system does not run at all.’’ It is obvious Mr. Walker appreciates the importance of an efficient and competitively priced public transportation system to the social and economic welfare, and development, of the Virgin Islands, and all countries for that matter! Good public transportation is part of any modern society’s fabric.
Now, this Pilgrim writes, some of his most important stories by epiphany. He may simply be lying on a hammock on a pristine and white sand beach, at a romantic location somewhere in the Leewards; or languishing in the sky about to drop into John F Kennedy airport; even sitting on a crowded train on London’s Underground rail system observing the changing demographics of Britain’s largest city. Or similarly, sitting on the front seat, on top a red London double-decker, rumbling past Speaker’s Corner, Hyde Park, on a Sunday evening: that certainly gets the thinking juices flowing. Once he got the pinch while soaking his weary body in a pool in Port of Spain, Trinidad, he was instantly revitalized, and then swiftly got out and sprinted to his hotel room to spend the rest of the day typing away at a laptop.
Photo courtesy lalover.com
Sometimes he even gets the urge to write a rendition on the enchanting Caribbean travelling on a ferry on a brilliant and sunny late afternoon, returning from Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas, to his home in Tortola, a frequently pleasant trip, and with a pelican giving him a personal escort. Once he was even pulverized by droppings from that selfsame specie of winged creature while passing by, and watching intensely, an astonishing sunset over St. John. Yes life in these Virgin Tropics is a blessing, notwithstanding life’s boomerangs and curve balls.
However, most of his stories emanate from the mundane: for example, the boring normality of a regular working day. And so it was, early on a weekday afternoon, he was standing in line at Riteway Supermarket, Pasea, Road Town, the checkout desk, when opportunity came slamming into him.
A familiar taxi driver, and friend, entered the store smiling expansively, his dark Ray Band type sunglasses giving him the look of a ‘Tropical Bohemian,’ this guy was a rendition of ‘equatorial cool.’ Now, this Observer, getting that well known urge, assertively accosted him with the rhetorical question: why after all these decades, has the Virgin Islands taxi fraternity been unable to provide the country with a decent, regular, and pleasant public transportation system?
The taxi driver, well known to this Layman, smiled even more widely, and then he went on a ‘sing song and jive’ telling of the limitations of providing a public transportation service and dynamic in these Antilles. Chuckling funnily, grinning nervously, as he proffered his thesis, while simultaneously, and even paradoxically stating his full agreement with the need for a comprehensive public transportation service in these Antilles. And giving this Observer a ‘heap of bull’ about taking the idea in hand, and offering his assistance in investigating the matter, and ensuring something is done about getting the problem fixed once and for all. And to the delight of a number of shoppers standing by ears wide open, listening intently. One wondered how come he hadn’t run for high office!
Before this chance meeting with his Bohemian taxi buddy, days before, at UP’s Cineplex, yours truly had the honour of meeting with another big name in the taxi world, and a Virgin Islands radio personality at that, who soberly explained the challenges of providing a public transportation service, which came from complexities of routing and scheduling, to problems of fare determination, and even taxi politics. He left this Pilgrim in the lurch, with a look of profound sympathy that stated: ‘this public transportation thing is not as easy as it sounds partna.’ He did encourage this writer to continue on his public transportation odyssey, however!
Then on Valentine’s Day, he met with another taxi owner, and this time a very good friend, who understood this Pilgrim’s agitations and vexations on this topic, and further informed him that with over 500 taxis in the country, there was absolutely no reason why his colleagues couldn’t ‘’ do this thing for the people’’ using his exact words.
Let’s return to Riteway Pasea on that cool and sunny February afternoon in 2012AD, and my enigmatic taxi driver buddy. After he ended his rendition of ‘John bull’ and waltzed away, a customer who said he didn’t mind me quoting him, Captain Joe of Patouche, a yacht charter business, stated categorically and vocally, to the equally pleasant surprise of all who were in earshot, that the problem with the inability of the taxi business to provide a healthy public transportation system was one of affluence. He said the Virgin Islands taxi drivers were rich, and therefore more interested in providing a service to the overnight tourist and cruise ship passenger, where the big money was to be made, than helping Joe Public get from A to B conveniently. Bingo! A light was turned on in this Discoverer’s mind.
And of course the yacht charter captain was right! He even agreed with this public transportation enthusiast that the establishment of an efficient and effective public transportation model would benefit tourism, as many tourists look at this feature of a destination as vital to their enjoyment of their vacation. A good public transportation model adds value to the tourism product and is good for the environment, something environment savvy tourists appreciate these days. And not everyone, even the supposedly wealthy tourist, wants to pay $20 to get from Road Town to Nanny Cay. A cost effective public transportation system is a critical part of a country’s physical and social infrastructure, and it is simply nonexistent in these Antilles.
To be continued
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