Police Commissioner Verne Garde has firmly rejected claims that the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF) operates under a traffic ticket quota system, as enforcement activity across the island intensifies.
Addressing growing public speculation, Garde made it clear that no such policy exists within the organisation. “We have absolutely no quota system in Saint Lucia as it relates to crime or anything else,” he stated. “Traffic is also one of the areas that we have no quota system.”
The commissioner explained that traffic enforcement forms part of the routine duties of police officers and is not driven by targets or directives from his office. “Every officer in the organisation is trained to manage a basic traffic incident and you would find that on a day-to-day basis, officers would be required to do that. So there’s no quota placed by my office on the relevant staff to do that at all,” he said.
Garde noted that the recent spike in traffic stops and ticketing stems from trends observed in 2024, when authorities recorded a noticeable surge in traffic offences islandwide.
He described a “bulge” in violations, particularly in the northern, central and southern regions, attributing many offences to motorists operating without the required documentation or compliance. “When we came from 2024, we saw that glitch, that bulge in the amount of offences because unfortunately there were a lot of persons driving out there without the proper resources,” he explained.
According to the commissioner, the increased enforcement has already begun to produce measurable results. He revealed that officers have interfaced with nearly 14,000 individuals, contributing to a decline in offences as compliance improves. “As we are moving on, the numbers are declining because you would find that the police would have already interfaced with almost 14,000 people, for example, so the offences would have lessened,” Garde stated.
He further attributed the heightened police presence on the roads to improved morale and motivation within the force, rather than any internal mandate to issue a specific number of tickets. “It is an indicator of the motivation of staff in the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force to do what they’re supposed to do,” he said. “You find that because the staff are more motivated, they want to see Saint Lucia as a safer place, they want to see the roads as safer roads and consequently they are interfacing with persons that may try to break the law.”
Garde maintained that the increased enforcement is part of a broader road safety strategy aimed at curbing dangerous driving behaviours and strengthening compliance with traffic laws. “It’s an improvement in morale and confidence in the officers that have culminated in more tickets being issued and not a quota,” he affirmed.
The commissioner’s remarks come as authorities continue stepped-up traffic operations, urging motorists to adhere to road regulations in a collective effort to make Saint Lucia’s roads safer for all.
