Traffic hazard on Maracas Beach

THE EDITOR: I am a regular visitor to Maracas beach and have always used the car park and paid my ten dollar parking fee believing that this contribution went towards the upkeep of the facility. It seemed like a good deal, as there must be very few places in the world left where a family could spend a day in such beautiful surroundings for the cost of only ten dollars. It has always bothered me however, that so many visitors to the beach parked on both sides of the road to avoid the parking fee (presumably) and creating traffic jams in the process.

Notwithstanding the deplorable state of the car park, visitors have now taken to parking on the beach. Not only are they competing for prime space with other persons sitting/walking on the beach, this practice has brought a new traffic hazard to beach users (many of whom are children). Some drivers leave car doors open with music blasting, disturbing the peace, and the litter problem has unfortunately worsened. I am appealing to TIDCO to address this issue. I am not sure what has changed recently to allow all this vehicular traffic access to the beach, but I do hope a stop is put to it soon. The beach has lost much of its appeal to me. After all, who wants to smell diesel fumes while eating their bake and shark!! If the deplorable state of the parking facility (which to my mind is currently a health hazard) is due to insufficient funds, may I suggest the posting of police officers at the beach to dispense parking tickets to all visitors parked inappropriately. Or even better, that the cars be “wrecked” to the nearby police station, with affected persons having to pay two hundred dollars to redeem their vehicle. Think of all the added revenue! Come on TIDCO, do something now to put an end to this new trend and please, please upgrade the car park so that it is a place fit for the preparation and sale of food.

A GHENT
Santa Cruz