ROAD SAFETY

How many vehicle users believe that the safety of the other person on the road is important to their own safety? Well, according to Motor Vehicles Inspector, Adarsh Kumar G. Nair, few people have such a sense as one can judge by the use of high beam light by most of the vehicle users even on illuminated roads.

The fact that the high beam from your vehicle is blinding the other driver from the opposite direction is of least concern, he said. Blinded by the high beam, the driver coming head on may just collide with your vehicle, he added.

As most of the roads in the State still do not have a divider, the head-on collision during night is mostly facilitated by the high beams or by careless overtaking.

The roads speak to us always, said Mr. Nair. There are so many signs on the roads that one is supposed to learn while getting a driver's licence. But, seldom do drivers make use of these signs to know how to have the right sense of the roads.

According to World Health Statistics of 2008, the status report of the road traffic injuries indicated that it may become the fifth leading cause of death by 2030, overtaking complications of diabetes and HIV/AIDS.

The fatalities on the road have emerged as a major public health concern because of the deaths, disabilities and hospitalisations that have raised socio-economic concerns across the world.

More so in India, as it has overtaken China to take the top position in the most number of deaths in road accidents.

Of the total 13 lakh killed worldwide in the world, 1.4 lakh were killed in India.

Use of mobiles while driving has become a major cause of concern in road accidents, but people continue to use mobiles unless the Motor Vehicles Act comes up with higher fines and penal action. The eyes, the ear and the mouth are all functioning from a singular point in the brain while using a mobile when driving, explains Mr. Nair.

Hence, the reflexes are most likely to be affected in an emergency, he added.

Speed is something that people do not understand while on the road, said Mr. Nair. Even the national highway roads in the State have a maximum permissible speed of 70 km/hr for private cars. There are a lot of roads that cut into the highways or other major roads, hence the driver's alertness and swiftness to use the brakes is important, he said.

Even then, one has to keep in mind that the vehicles have a brake time distance to stop.

Though people have become aware of seat belts, people still use it to avoid fines rather than saving their own lives, said Mr. Nair.

Similar is the case of helmets, he added.