The Transport Minister yesterday said that the assault of a taxi driver could have been avoided if his cab had been fitted with GPS.

In a statement released by the Ministry of Transport, Dr. Ewart Brown raised his concerns about the assault of an elderly taxi driver on Monday night.

Dr. Brown said he wanted to express his ?absolute disgust at the actions of the two individuals who assaulted one of our elderly taxi ambassadors.?

He said that taxi drivers must cope with the threat of robbery and violence every time they get behind the wheel but he was grateful for the ?valuable service? that the taxi drivers provide across the Island community.

However, Dr. Brown said that the threat of violence against taxi drivers, many of whom are elderly, was a reason why a digital dispatching system was needed in Bermuda.

?This threat is one of the reasons we are pushing so hard for the introduction of a digital dispatching system, which takes advantage of Global Positioning Technology,? Dr. Brown said.

The new digital tracking system would have a panic button on board, for use in drivers emergencies.

Dr. Brown added: ?A taxi driver in distress can press (the panic button) to summon help.?

The Transport Minister said that once the panic button was pressed, numerous people would be notified with the location of the cab and, be able to come to the driver?s aid. ?The dispatching company and all other taxis are notified that a driver is in distress. The Police Service can also be notified and are given the exact location of the taxi,? Dr. Brown said.

On Monday night the taxi was stolen in Devonshire and apparently taken to Paget but Dr. Brown said that GPS could have speeded up the search.

?The digital dispatching system using GPS would have assisted the dispatching company as well as authorities in locating the taxi and apprehending the offenders in a timely fashion.?

He said himself and the rest of the Ministry of Transport ?would continue to do our part and find ways to try and reform the industry?.

He also said that this time the driver of the cab was lucky, that things could always get much worse. ?Although the driver was not seriously injured, the end-result could have been much worse,? Dr. Brown said.

He said that he wanted to work with the taxi industry to ?ensure that these occurrences do not become the norm?.

The stolen taxi, the taxi driver who had reported the robbery and the two robbery suspects were found by Police near Tribe Road No. 5 and Ord Road in Paget. The suspects claimed they were assaulted by a group of men and stripped of their clothing.

One suspect was found naked from the waist down while the other was found unconscious and naked from the waist down nearby.