Enforcement and Awareness on Road Safety

A spurt in road accidents in Assam over the past couple of weeks has pressed the alarm bell on winter road safety. Making enforcement of road safety norms along the highways and other busy roads a daily routine for the Transport department and traffic police can put a brake on fatalities. Over speeding and reckless driving continuing to be major contributors to fatal road accidents in the state is reflective of not only gaps in the enforcement but also reluctance on the part of a large section of road users to change their behaviour. It is essential that the driving schools imbibe safe driving to learners while imparting driver training, but there is no effective oversight mechanism to ascertain if driving schools have ensured it. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways notified a new set of driving license rules effective from June 1 next. It also clarified that exemption from mandatory driving tests at the Regional Transport Office for issuance of the license will be only to holders of certificates issued by Accredited Driver Training Centres (ADTC). The notification issued by the ministry states that holders of certificates from other driving schools that have less stringent requirements as compared to ATDCs are not exempted from driving tests at RTOs. MorTH and the state governments taking necessary steps for upgrading other driving schools to ATDC standards will significantly improve the quality of driving training. Instead of looking at issuing driving licenses from the perspective of fast-tracking the process, more emphasis needs to be placed on improving the standards of driving training. The government creating the infrastructure for conducting the standardized driving tests at multiple sites can reduce the queue at RTO. There is, however, a visible disconnect between the objective of rules on driving schools and the perception of license holders on road safety norms. There is an apparent rush on the part of the applicant to get the license at the earliest without being sure if he or she has learnt every single aspect of safe road driving. Linking this awareness to vehicle sales can bring about changes to this situation. Record auto sales during the festival period are a pointer that more vehicles are going to hit the road this winter as people gear up for year-end and New Year celebrations. The interaction between vehicle showrooms and buyers brings the opportunity for transport authorities to push road safety awareness among the buyers of new vehicles. Special sessions arranged by retailers at their showrooms on safe driving will refresh the lessons on road safety learnt during driving learning. The after-sale service during the warranty period for maintenance brings back the buyers to the automobile dealer. Time spent by vehicle owners and drivers at the dealer’s showroom to avail themselves of the service can be meaningfully utilized to take them through innovative training sessions on road safety norms and safe driving to remind them of their responsibilities, about the dangers of over speeding, wrong lane crossing, and incorrect usage of indicator lights, etc. While an experienced driver may find such refresher training sessions of no use, a responsible driver will spare time to find out if he or she had been ignoring some important safe driving tips. Such responsibility can come only when one realizes that safe driving is not just for personal safety or the safety of passengers but for every single road user. Lessons on the basics of road safety were rightfully imparted during school and college days—safe road use by pedestrians, safe riding of bicycles, motorized vehicles, etc. will keep ringing throughout life, provided lessons are innovative and interesting and are not just a few dull pages of textbooks. Training on driving simulators, road signs, and first aid training in the smart classrooms of schools and colleges can make such learnings interesting and at the same time imbibe the importance of road safety among students. Roadworthiness is another key factor in road safety, but the dilapidated condition of highways and roads in different parts of the state has not received the due attention of the MoRTH and the state government. A bad road puts even the most experienced and alert driver to a safety challenge, and the important lesson to keep in mind is to be watchful for bad driving by people with poor driving skills on such roads. Wrong-side driving is a menace that needs to be curbed with strong punitive measures urgently. Wrong-sided driving is a regular sight on Guwahati roads and most highway stretches near a small town, village, or roadside markets. The rise in the number of people indulging in wrong-side driving is another key indicator of poor enforcement. As visibility drops due to fog during winter, the slightest negligence on the part of a driver can result in road fatalities. State Transport Department enforcement with an awareness drive in accident-prone areas can make road travel safer during winter.