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The Eleutheran | Mar/Apr 2017

Road Traffic System Changes

Baha Mar Certificate of Occupancy Handed Over

Continued from pg. 10 that the registration process can be timely. Customers are asked to pre-register online which is said to speed up the process. Customers can visit the following link online (https://tms.roadtraffic.gov. bs/RegisterUser), to create an account and pre-register. The following list of documents are needed to properly register: Citizens are asked to bring in their Passports (Voter’s Card if you do not have a Passport), NIB Smart Card, and Driver’s License when coming in to conduct Road Traffic Business. Non-citizens must present their Passport, Driver’s License, and Immigration Status (Home Owners/Work Permit/Permanent Residence/Residence Card). More information is available on the Road Traffic Department’s website at http://roadtraffic.gov.bs/. Karen Mortimer - Trainer (Consultant with Deloitte & Touche), Charlene Johnson - GH Some quick reference information Office Staff Member (Office Assistant), Cassandra Sands - RS Office Staff Member (Execu- (also found at http://roadtraffic.gov.bs/): tive Officer), Darelle Ferguson - Trainer, June Thompson - RS Office Staff Member, Barbara To renew your Driver’s Licence onJohnson - GH Office Staff Member (Supervisor). line, follow the steps below:

have them in the system, we shouldn’t have any issues moving forward.” Citing some of the benefits of the new system, Controller, Ross Smith stated, “Major changes are that we move from a paper driven system to an electronic system, where we can save all this information and not have to ask people for the same information every year. You ask them for that information once, and we shouldn’t have to do that the next year. The other thing that we don’t often talk about is that in the second year persons don’t have to come in and request a new driver’s license. You can go online and request that driver’s license, pay for it online and just pick it up here.” “For your car registration, that would be different. You will have to come in, but again, in the second year that process will be very short, because there is only the inspection, scanning in one or two documents, depending on what it is and you could be out in 5 to 7 minutes. Right now, it’s a matter of getting everyone registered in the system... We have it staggered over a 12 month period. We still register persons during their birth

month until we’ve completed everybody. So by next year March, we would have finished all the people in Eleuthera,” he added. Training across all five stations in Eleuthera took place over the course of two days, beginning Monday, March 6th, 2017, with stations up and running and ready for new registrants on March 8th. Road Traffic Department staff from New Providence continued to be present at Eleuthera stations following the training for two weeks, in support of local staff. Controller, Mr. Smith, explained that they would also return again to make sure local stations had the support they needed. The recurring problem with having driver’s licenses printed are also hoped to be, “A thing of the past,” said Mr. Smith. The new system would now allow driver’s to be able to receive new/renewed licenses by next day at all Road Traffic Department stations in The Eleutheras. Local Road Traffic Department stations are asking customers to please be patient as they implement the new system, mentioning

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Visit http://roadtraffic.gov.bs/ Click Log In at the top right of the screen Enter User Name and Password emailed to you after registering at your local RTD Office Once logged in click on the pad and pencil icon to activate the Renew Licence Page Select the RTD Office where you would like to pick-up your Driver’s Licence Enter the duration of the Licence Enter the Payment Details and click on the “Process Payment” button Cost to renew your Driver’s Licence: Year(s) of Renewal Cost One (1) yrs $20 Three (3) yrs $60 Five (5) yrs$100

The cost to licence and inspect a vehicle varies depending on vehicle specifics.

By Eric Rose, BIS : NASSAU, The Bahamas -Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Rt. Hon. Perry Christie, said, on March 21, 2017, that the handing over of the Certificate of Occupancy for Baha Mar resort marked “an important day of progress” for Baha Mar and The Bahamas. “Today Baha Mar is being transferred to a worldclass company, one that successfully manages prestigious hotels across the world, including three successful resorts in the Caribbean -- one in Antigua, one in Barbuda and one in the U.S. Virgin Islands,” Prime Minister Christie said at the handing over event that took place on the Baha Mar resort property. Prime Minister Christie added that the new owner had actually increased capital, marketing and pre-opening investment from $200 million to $250 million. “We are grateful for such a strong level of experience and investment to usher in new opportunities for the Bahamian people,” he said. Prime Minister Christie pointed out that during the past weekend he had remarked on the progress leading up to the April 21st opening of the Baha Mar resort. He noted that he said that he would be on the property for the event that current day because “this is real.” “Everyone who is here today can feel the excitement and the activity,” he said. “I, for myself, have seen new employees who are coming in for training and moving forward, all on course to make this project a big success.” Prime Minister Christie said that he had been advised that 650 Bahamians have already been hired by Baha Mar, and 1,500 employees will be hired by April 21st. He pointed out that Baha Mar, like Atlantis, will open in phases, with more job opportunities at every phase. “No one knows better than me how these jobs can change lives,” Prime Minister Christie said. “These new opportunities are going to bring meaningful change for a lot of Bahamian families and that’s what it’s all about. “That’s why we worked so hard to make sure that Baha Mar was delivered to successful and to safe hands.” The Prime Minister beamed at “the hope and excitement and anticipation on the faces of the people who are being employed here -- these are new employees, many of them working for the first time in this kind of an environment,” he said. “It is a defining life experience for them and they will take up ownership of this particular hotel resort complex, and they are going to make it one of the finest resort complexes in the entire world. That is their intention.”

A SPICE MEDIA GROUP (SMG) PUBLICATION Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera, The Bahamas. CONSULTING EDITOR

MAN. DIR. / CO-Pub

Dr. V. J. Bryan, PhD,

Theresa Burrows

(Research/Write) vbryan@smgbusiness.com

Columnists

Andrew Burrows, Ronald Sanders

Man. Editor / Co-Pub

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Elizabeth Bryan, BBA (Photo/Writer) editor@TheEleutheran.com asst copy editor

Saiydah Bryan

contributing writers

Sherelle Wallace

In-house Writers - articles written and edited by The Eleutheran Team. These may be investigative, informational, Sports, Education, Business etc.

Current Issue Mar/Apr. 2017 Size: 40 Pages;

Stamped: March 21, 2017 9:25 PM

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