Over 1,700 Derelict Vehicles Tagged For Removal Since 2017

A Saint Lucia Solid Waste Management Authority (SLSWMA) derelict vehicle initiative has issued 1,713 notices for removing such vehicles since 2017, and the campaign is ongoing. As of October 2024, 463 vehicles still have to be removed, according to Emlyn Jean, SLSWMA Information and Communication Manager. Jean explained that field officers conduct daily monitoring to identify abandoned vehicles under the derelict vehicle removal programme. The officers place notices on the vehicles, giving owners seven days to take action before the authority steps in to remove them. Since its inception in 2017, the authority has created an electronic data collection platform to enhance record-keeping. The shift from paper-based methods has allowed officers to use mobile devices in the field to record and update information, making the process more efficient. “It has made it a lot easier in terms of management because you can actually pull up the information right away…whereas earlier, we literally had to go through piles of paper,” Jean explained. The SLSWMA official highlighted the importance of public cooperation in removing derelict vehicles. “The presence of the police sometimes helps these situations…people really don’t want to find out that when they come home from work, it’s gone,” Jean told...