Remembering Judy Forde: A Tribute to a Public Transport Icon in Barbados

Former founding member of the Association of Public Transport Operators (APTO) Judy Forde was on Monday remembered as an icon in public transport in Barbados.

Forde, a national face in the sector for more than four decades, passed away Saturday night after a lengthy illness.

It was she and another veteran, Morris Lee, who were instrumental in forming an official group to fight for the rights of minibus owners and operators in the late 1980s.

Lee fondly remembered his colleague and friend.

“I would have known Judy for over 40 years. We met as a result of a vested interest in the public service vehicle (PSV) sector. I saw her as an icon,” he told the DAILY NATION.

Lee said Forde was bold enough to stand up for the rights of the sector at a time when most Barbadians thought it to be overrun with indiscipline shown by drivers and conductors on the roads across the country.

“She fought for the rights of the sector, irrespective of which Government was in place at the time, or who was the Minister of Transport and Works.

“She made it her life’s work trying to not paint everyone in the sector with the same brush. She was a woman of integrity,” he added.

Duty-free concessions

Lee said Forde was also a beacon of light in trying to gain duty-free concessions for PSVs, at a time when tour operators and taxi drivers were allowed such concessions, but public service operators were still on the outside.

“Some of those operators were able to achieve duty-free concessions in a short space of time, compared with how long Judy fought for them,” the veteran PSV man said.

He noted that Forde had the ear of late Prime Minister Owen Arthur in the 1990s, at a time when

minibuses had the numerical advantage on the roads, and ZRs were the new kids on the block.

Lee said Forde was quite a no-nonsense woman.

“She was unafraid to speak to owners, drivers or conductors about what was happening on the road, especially if it involved breaking traffic laws. Once she witnessed it, she would call the owners to let them know what was happening. She knew that breaking the law could make the sector look bad.”

Lee, himself a board member of APTO when he and Forde worked together, said she had a consciousness that was unmatched.

He said Forde was instrumental in bringing all PSV entities like the Route Taxi Association and the Minibus Association under one umbrella, which led to the eventual forming of APTO.

“She had some very fervent discussions with Prime Minister Owen Arthur at that time, because as Minister of Finance he also understood the importance of how duty-free concessions could help the industry. At that time, PSV operators were dealing with up to 200 per cent payment in duties and taxes to get their vehicles into Barbados.”

Lee concluded: “I regret not getting to speak to her before she died.”

(BA)