Police cracks down on bad driving
Dec 17, 2003
On Saturday, December 6, six people died, and six others were seriously injured in an accident in Masese on the Jinja-Tororo Highway
Crime Watch
By John Kamya
On Saturday, December 6, six people died, and six others were seriously injured in an accident in Masese on the Jinja-Tororo Highway.
On the following Sunday, eight died instantly during an accident in Kyamugula on Kampala-Kagadi Road. About 50 people were seriously injured.
On December 9, eight people died in an accident at Mabira Forest and 13 people were seriously injured!
Today, rarely a day can pass by without a report of a major road accident. It is so sad as we enter the festive season that is meant for merry making, meeting loved ones and celebration, to see people dying in the heat of the excitement.
Drivers are loading their vehicles like there is no tomorrow, and then driving at such speed that one may think they were flying.
Drivers of buses, popularly known as coaches, want to load twice the capacity of their buses. They also want to make as many rounds a day as possible.
The small taxis are no deferent, and even the lorries want to ferry passengers.
What is surprising is that the passengers do not seem to have any problem with the speed or the loading. If they are concerned, they do not speak out.
To ensure that people pass through this season alive, the police have come up with road safety measures to check on the misuse of the road and curb on the carnage.
“We have stationed our officers at the source (the Bus Park) to check all buses before they depart for their journeys.
This is to ensure that they respect the route charts which spells out the departure time, load the right number of people as well as luggage,†said Gabriel Tibayungwa, the Regional Traffic Officer for Kampala Extra. Tibayungwa added that other check points have been placed at certain points on the main routes.
These include Matugga, Wobulenzi, Bombo, and other routes on Kampala-Gulu Road, Kyengera, Mpigi, Buwama, and other routes on Kampala-Masaka Road, and Namanve, Lugazi, and other routes along and near Jinja Road.
He said the officers are instructed to remove any passengers and luggage if the bus is overloaded. They will also make sure that buses are prohibited to travel at night.
Other measures include speed checks and making sure that lorries do not carry passengers.
The National Traffic Liaison Officer, Johnson Wadada, said that a campaign to sensitise passengers on their rights and roles has been put in place.
In addition to speaking to them verbally, literature will be distributed to passengers in various languages detailing their roles and rights.
This way, they will help in making sure the driver does not endanger their lives by speeding or reckless driving.
Passengers are advised not to board an overloaded vehicle.
Secondly, they should look at the conditions of the vehicle while boarding such as tyres, lights and the vehicle’s body. If it is in bad condition, please do not board it.
When riding in a vehicle and the driver is speeding, driving dangerously, drinking, or seems to be under the influence of drugs and alcohol, tell the driver to stop and get off the vehicle.
Remember it is your life being put at risk.
“Passengers should also avoid excessive excitement. If it is unsafe, let them not travel,†said Tibayungwa.
Because there is a terrorist scare in the country, passengers need to be conscious of suspicious characters.
Do not allow anyone to leave luggage unattended. Do not accept any luggage from someone who requests you to keep it for them.
At the Bus Park, authorities have instituted checks on all luggage to make sure there are no explosives being boarded onto vehicles.
The Police have also alerted its personnel all over the country to step up road safety enforcement to minimise accidents. Taxi drivers are particularly warned not to overload their vehicles and to stop speeding. We all need to live to see Christmas and the New Year.
By John Kamya
On Saturday, December 6, six people died, and six others were seriously injured in an accident in Masese on the Jinja-Tororo Highway.
On the following Sunday, eight died instantly during an accident in Kyamugula on Kampala-Kagadi Road. About 50 people were seriously injured.
On December 9, eight people died in an accident at Mabira Forest and 13 people were seriously injured!
Today, rarely a day can pass by without a report of a major road accident. It is so sad as we enter the festive season that is meant for merry making, meeting loved ones and celebration, to see people dying in the heat of the excitement.
Drivers are loading their vehicles like there is no tomorrow, and then driving at such speed that one may think they were flying.
Drivers of buses, popularly known as coaches, want to load twice the capacity of their buses. They also want to make as many rounds a day as possible.
The small taxis are no deferent, and even the lorries want to ferry passengers.
What is surprising is that the passengers do not seem to have any problem with the speed or the loading. If they are concerned, they do not speak out.
To ensure that people pass through this season alive, the police have come up with road safety measures to check on the misuse of the road and curb on the carnage.
“We have stationed our officers at the source (the Bus Park) to check all buses before they depart for their journeys.
This is to ensure that they respect the route charts which spells out the departure time, load the right number of people as well as luggage,†said Gabriel Tibayungwa, the Regional Traffic Officer for Kampala Extra. Tibayungwa added that other check points have been placed at certain points on the main routes.
These include Matugga, Wobulenzi, Bombo, and other routes on Kampala-Gulu Road, Kyengera, Mpigi, Buwama, and other routes on Kampala-Masaka Road, and Namanve, Lugazi, and other routes along and near Jinja Road.
He said the officers are instructed to remove any passengers and luggage if the bus is overloaded. They will also make sure that buses are prohibited to travel at night.
Other measures include speed checks and making sure that lorries do not carry passengers.
The National Traffic Liaison Officer, Johnson Wadada, said that a campaign to sensitise passengers on their rights and roles has been put in place.
In addition to speaking to them verbally, literature will be distributed to passengers in various languages detailing their roles and rights.
This way, they will help in making sure the driver does not endanger their lives by speeding or reckless driving.
Passengers are advised not to board an overloaded vehicle.
Secondly, they should look at the conditions of the vehicle while boarding such as tyres, lights and the vehicle’s body. If it is in bad condition, please do not board it.
When riding in a vehicle and the driver is speeding, driving dangerously, drinking, or seems to be under the influence of drugs and alcohol, tell the driver to stop and get off the vehicle.
Remember it is your life being put at risk.
“Passengers should also avoid excessive excitement. If it is unsafe, let them not travel,†said Tibayungwa.
Because there is a terrorist scare in the country, passengers need to be conscious of suspicious characters.
Do not allow anyone to leave luggage unattended. Do not accept any luggage from someone who requests you to keep it for them.
At the Bus Park, authorities have instituted checks on all luggage to make sure there are no explosives being boarded onto vehicles.
The Police have also alerted its personnel all over the country to step up road safety enforcement to minimise accidents. Taxi drivers are particularly warned not to overload their vehicles and to stop speeding. We all need to live to see Christmas and the New Year.