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What's the law about travelling with infants in taxis in the Bahamas?

We will be travelling this Spring, with our 5 month old, and needed to know if his car seat had to be taken along for the taxi ride between the airport and hotel.

He will be flying on our lap, and we do not anticipate travelling while we are on the island, so we'd best avoid lugging the car seat, if possible.

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  • Would this be from "Lynden Pindling International Airport, NAS? Seems the most likely though there are several airports in the Bahamas.
    – hippietrail
    Commented Mar 26, 2012 at 16:03
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    NAS would be correct. I did find that the taxi ride is for about US$35 and takes about 35 minutes. Just not sure about any laws surrounding child seats, or even if taxis there are equipped for mounting them
    – rs79
    Commented Mar 26, 2012 at 19:32

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From this page about the driving laws:

It is the law that all drivers and their passengers wear seat belts while riding in a vehicle in The Bahamas.

  • A child weighing less than twenty pounds shall face the rear of the vehicle secured in an infant seat fitted to the rear seat.
  • A child twenty pounds and less than forty pounds - convertible car seat fitted to the rear seat.
  • A child over forty pounds or up to 4 ft. 9 in. tall shall be secured in a booster car seat fitted in the rear seat.
  • A child taller than 4 ft. 9 in. and between 8 and 12 years old shall be required to use a seat belt

Then from TripAdvisor:

Taken directly from the Bahamas Law Database. If you are renting a car the agency should have child seats available.

42C.

  • (1) Subject to section 42B, no person shall drive a motor vehicle or permit a person to ride as a passenger in that motor vehicle unless that person or that passenger is secured by a seat belt.

Mandatory use of seat belts.

  • (2) Subject to section 42B, no person shall ride as a passenger in any motor vehicle on any road unless he is secured by a seat belt.

  • (3) Where any passenger mentioned under this section is under the age of five years, such passenger shall be secured in a child passenger seat positioned in the rear passenger seat of the motor vehicle.

  • (4) Any driver of a motor vehicle who drives without a seat belt or allows a passenger in such vehicle to ride without a seat belt commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of three hundred dollars.

  • (5) Any passenger other than the passenger referred to in subsection (3) who rides in a motor vehicle and is not secured by a seat belt commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of one hundred dollars.

  • (6) Every person is guilty of an offence against this section who being the person driving the motor vehicle at the time of the breach, permits a child to ride without a seat belt or secured in a child passenger seat and such person shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine of five hundred dollars.

The same site insists that "A taxi from the airport will not have a car seat available. That is certain. ".

For a different viewpoint, depending on how much you want to risk it:

we were just there last year for several months: children were hanging out of car windows, etc. Even if the above was actually made into a law (which wasn't clear...?), it's not being enforced.

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    thanks for the info. reading into it, the laws of physics do apply, even if those of the country don't ;)...so we'll end up carrying the seat..now onto the airlines policy (..yuck!)
    – rs79
    Commented Mar 27, 2012 at 12:10

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