A ‘solution’ to end the road lawlessness

Methananda SAMARAJEEWA

ACCIDENTS: I believe there is an effective and a simple solution to reduce the number of road accidents in Sri Lanka.

When I returned to Sri Lanka as a ‘retiree’ , having spent 35 years in UK, I was shocked and horrified to learn from an article in your newspaper, (21st August 2004), that every nine hours, two persons are killed on our roads mainly due to the carelessness of drivers at the wheel.

Almost immediately, I suggested this ‘solution’ to the then Inspector General of Police (IGP), on 31st August 2004 and again to the new IGP who replaced him in September 2004, but despite their interest in what I had to say, they both claimed they had no powers to implement any new regulations until the laws are changed by the Government, hence no further action was taken.

The horrific accidents we witnessed on TV-News programmes recently which claimed so many innocent lives have again prompted me to do something positive and hence the decision to send this note to you, hoping more people would be given a chance to express their opinion and if a consensus could be reached, then we would have a bit more clout to pressurize the authorities to do something about it.

The following, is a summary of my ‘solution’ I presented to the two IGPs, and please feel free to publish either the whole or an edited version as you wish.

The solution (summary)

In my opinion, the root of nearly all the accidents and traffic problems here in Sri Lanka could be attributed to two inherent qualities of majority of our drivers, ‘Arrogance and Selfishness’.

The traditional methods of punishing the offenders by enforcing spot fines and taking them to court ‘after the event’ so to speak, have neither done anything to change the culprits’ attitudes, nor reduced the number of accidents on our roads.

Therefore, what we need is a rational idea to hit the offenders really hard where it hurts them most, at the time of committing the offence, so that they wouldn’t dare re-offend as long as they remember.

The punishment

The one and only thing these impatient drivers value most while they are behind the wheel seems to be Time. Without pointing a finger at any particular group, all drivers are equally guilty of this. The most effective punishment therefore would be to deny them of this very thing they value most.... just Delay the offenders.

Random Police patrols should be set up at vulnerable spots such as Pedestrian Crossings, Road Junctions and No-overtaking Zones and the police officers could monitor the traffic from inside an unmarked police vehicle.

Any driver caught breaking the law either by over-speeding, overtaking when they shouldn’t or simply being selfish and arrogant without due care and consideration to other road users, should be pulled up and stopped.

Habitual ‘tooters’ of the horn for no apparent reason and the three-wheeler drivers who believe they are above the law could also be included in this category.

Depending on the seriousness of the offence the police should ‘Detain’ the driver for 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 minute intervals by the side of the road, preferably with a flashing light mounted on the offending vehicle while displaying a coloured flag indicating how long he’s been held up for, and also stamp his driving licence accordingly so a record is kept for future reference.

All the vehicles he’s just been overtaking to get here by pushing and shoving a few minutes ago, are now going past him while he’s stationary! Nothing could be more humiliating, can it? If he’s a man with any conscience, he won’t be rushing again for a while, that’s for sure! If there are persistent re-offenders, their licences could be revoked after the third serious offence.

If the offending vehicle happens to be a bus, still stick to the above procedure but let the passengers have the option of getting the money reimbursed, (total fare), and catch another bus if they so wish, or ask them to stay-put and continue the rest of the trip in the same bus but reassure them that despite the inconvenience they would now have a much better chance of reaching their destination in one piece.

Traffic Police who strictly adhere to the rules and produce good results should be given some kind of incentive by offering them financial rewards or merits which would go towards future promotions etc. No money transactions here, therefore no temptations to accept any bribes either.

When this campaign is implemented, it could also be given some TV coverage, at least during the first few weeks, showing what stupid and selfish things people do, so the news would reach the majority of the road users up and down the country as a warning to all, as it could be their town the police might be patrolling next.

I have no doubt that the above could be modified and new ideas and suggestions incorporated to improve it further by listening to your readers and consulting the experts in this field of traffic control.

My wish however is to see that the authorities give this a fair hearing and try it out, at least for a period of three months before passing any judgement.