As I have already posted, all of us are deeply sorry this happened to them. It shouldnt happen anywhere, but unfortunately in this real world we live in bad things can and do happen to good people.
As Hussyband mentioned, the police are angry about this incident. These cowards as Hussyband described them, now have identifying marks including a busted windscreen and mashed up head. Along with the description of the vehicle, the Lilliput wording on the side and the actual picture of the vehicle, contrary to what some may think, the police will be working extremely hard to catch these thugs.
I was woken up this morning by a driver friend of mine about the robbery and the word has been out in Negril for everyone to look for this vehicle. Both the police and other drivers have been looking for them. Because the vehicle had Lilliput markings on it, its "route" is about 25 minutes outside of MoBay on the north coast, about 2 hours from Negril. They will have had to travel quite a ways to get back to their home area and there will be many people who will see them and many who are directly looking for them.
Now this brings up a point that I feel does need to be reiterated in light of what has happened. As me, Lisa and others have posted many times in the past, here is an old quote from an old thread that holds relevance today:
This is important for visitors to the island to understand. While some compare the local route taxi system to the mass transit system in their own home towns, this is not the case. While in the absolute and most basic of definitions it may be true, towns such as Kingston and MoBay do have true mass transit buses with set fares and regular pick ups and stops. The route taxi system was put in place in those rural areas where mass transit buses simply are not an option. The route taxi system tries to fill the gap between mass transit and having no transit at all. It can be a complicated system even for those who use it everyday.Originally Posted by Bnewb
But unless you have lived here a long time, or have grown up here and have years of daily experience with the route taxi system, problems can and will occur. Even those living here can get into problem situations when getting into any route taxi that they do not personally know the driver. Lisa and I have seen thousands of Jamaican women refuse taxi after taxi until one comes by that they know personally and feel safe entering. This is the norm. These women do not just get into any route taxi, but are selective in their drivers. Many men do the exact same thing. Better to be safe than sorry...
For those who do know the system, having the "Lilliput" markings on the side of the car tells everyone who is experienced with the route taxi system that this driver is hours away from his route. This in itself means something is not right. The vehicle could be stolen or the driver is simply up to no good. They are two hours away from their local route. Locals who have daily experience with the route taxi system and do not know the driver would never get into this vehicle.
The first transportation system designed with visitors to the island in mind was JUTA. Since then, there have been many other union/associations of drivers set up to specifically serve the needs of visitors to the island including JCal, Maxi and the various parish associations now being created. The drivers have been trained and certified by the Jamaica Tourist Board and their vehicles do have the logo of the association that they belong to and they all have red license plates.
I hope that something positive can come out of Hussyband and his wife's terrifying experience. While in Jamaica, please leave the route taxi system to those it was designed for, the local populace.
And please take advantage of the thousands of drivers island wide who operate specifically for you, visitors to our island. Many, if not most of these drivers now offer complimentary cellphones for your use to call them when you need a ride. And should you not have a cellphone, ask the establishment to call a driver for you. And if you are around me or Lisa, we are always more than willing to help you obtain a safe ride.
