Death on the road: You and I are next!
Dec 06, 2004
SIR— We keep reading with horror and despair of the number of road accidents that mercilessly and prematurely rob the country of people.
SIR— We keep reading with horror and despair of the number of road accidents that mercilessly and prematurely rob the country of people.
What I have observed through the years is the recklessness of drivers of matatus and coaches. They always seem to be in a great rush to get from A to B as though their lives depend it. Whether it is greed or adrenaline which urges them to accelerate to unbelievable speeds and overtake at the worst possible timing is debatable.
But the chances of these drivers reading newspapers or listening to the radio and registering the concerns of the public are highly unlikely. Leaked information indicates that these drivers compete with each other to maximise individual income by spending as little time on the road as possible through speed.
The World Health Organisation recent 2004 report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention has recommended that a number of measures are put in place to address these issues. We have witnessed the resent mandatory use of seat-belts, drunken driving and the ban on using mobile phone which will hopefully see a reduction in casualties.
However, we know the real danger is on the highways in and out of town. The deaths on the Mbarara and Jinja highways keep rising, causing you to see that speed, humps and potholes on highways are major causes. Vehicle conditions, especially the matatus which are poorly reconditioned for cheap export, are another major factor, causing one to doubt the effectiveness of seat-belts.
What measures do insurance companies take to ensure that road users are well covered in case of accidents?
How do the public service vehicle drivers get licences. Are they all licensed and aware of the Highway Code? Are there measures in place to withdraw licences from reckless drivers? Does the public have the power to complain about dangerous driving?
Is there a system in place to penalise PSV owners for loss of life? Is the Government educating children and the public about road safety? Is the message reaching the most dangerous drivers and the community? Do we have appropriate road signs in place? Are danger spots clearly marked with warnings? Have speed limits been put in place and are they observed?
Without these issues being addressed and other urgent and firm action taken, death on the road will continue to compete with malaria and AIDS as the biggest killers.
Common sense has failed to prevail and even the law has failed to work, leaving you and me as the next road accident victim.
Rosma Buzabalyawo
Kampala
What I have observed through the years is the recklessness of drivers of matatus and coaches. They always seem to be in a great rush to get from A to B as though their lives depend it. Whether it is greed or adrenaline which urges them to accelerate to unbelievable speeds and overtake at the worst possible timing is debatable.
But the chances of these drivers reading newspapers or listening to the radio and registering the concerns of the public are highly unlikely. Leaked information indicates that these drivers compete with each other to maximise individual income by spending as little time on the road as possible through speed.
The World Health Organisation recent 2004 report on Road Traffic Injury Prevention has recommended that a number of measures are put in place to address these issues. We have witnessed the resent mandatory use of seat-belts, drunken driving and the ban on using mobile phone which will hopefully see a reduction in casualties.
However, we know the real danger is on the highways in and out of town. The deaths on the Mbarara and Jinja highways keep rising, causing you to see that speed, humps and potholes on highways are major causes. Vehicle conditions, especially the matatus which are poorly reconditioned for cheap export, are another major factor, causing one to doubt the effectiveness of seat-belts.
What measures do insurance companies take to ensure that road users are well covered in case of accidents?
How do the public service vehicle drivers get licences. Are they all licensed and aware of the Highway Code? Are there measures in place to withdraw licences from reckless drivers? Does the public have the power to complain about dangerous driving?
Is there a system in place to penalise PSV owners for loss of life? Is the Government educating children and the public about road safety? Is the message reaching the most dangerous drivers and the community? Do we have appropriate road signs in place? Are danger spots clearly marked with warnings? Have speed limits been put in place and are they observed?
Without these issues being addressed and other urgent and firm action taken, death on the road will continue to compete with malaria and AIDS as the biggest killers.
Common sense has failed to prevail and even the law has failed to work, leaving you and me as the next road accident victim.
Rosma Buzabalyawo
Kampala