Since the beginning of this year, numbers of fatal accidents on our roads have terribly increased. Recently, a DPM was involved in an accident that left him injured.
Human error has been cited as a major cause of accidents. Since human errors can only be reduced through teaching, we may as well look at the other causes of accidents if we are to reduce them overall.
On our highways, we have a maximum speed but we don’t have a minimum. It is the reason you find tractors moving at almost zero speed but rightfully on the road. If another driver is fatigued, chances of ramming into such a vehicle are high. Other vehicles like the 50 cc motor cycles are also on the highway moving distances that will cause the rider fatigue due to monotony.
 Such motor cycles should be used for short errands only. Pedestrians are also allowed on our highways. Human traffic on the highway should be minimised. This is made worse by trading centres all along the roads we refer to as highways.
On a recent visit to Gulu, I passed over 30 trucks that had broken down between Kampala and Gulu. While several of them had left enough room for others to maneuver, others because of the mechanical defects had remained in the middle of the road. Gulu highway is one of those high speed roads in Uganda.
The number of vehicles on our streets is increasing, so is the population. The land on which we are (with our roads) is what it was 30 years ago. The competition for space requires improvement on the infrastructure to meet the demand.
When we look for markets in eastern DR Congo, Southern Sudan, we should also remember that time is money. Traders are in a hurry to reach their markets. There are road defects that cause accidents but the best we do is mark it as a black spot instead of rectifying the problem. Other road defects include the several portholes which sometimes force motorist to go out of their way or sudden braking.
There are very many of our vehicles which are not in the best mechanical condition. Their owners have not taken the trouble to regularly inspect and rectify any defects during operation. As a result, tyre blowout, brake failure, steering malfunction occurred.
To reduce on our road carnage we could start by teaching pupils road safety education, driver training should be re emphasised, road safety campaigns should be taken to a higher level with government funding and create emergency assistance to traffic victims. We should also create a road safety research institution.
If we start with simpler things like correct road markings and road signs, we shall definitely reduce on the fatalities. Learning correct use of lights and having the lights well focused will also go a long way in reducing accidents. If we improved on the lighting (preferably solar) system on the highways, visibility will improve thus causing a reduction in accidents. The mechanical condition of vehicles should be periodically ascertained to reduce on accidents. Ban on importation of some vehicle parts like used or poor quality tyres should be enforced. There are several ways we can reduce the fatalities but we must start somewhere.
Subscribe to this comment's feed
written by Rev Amos Kasibante, February 17, 2010
-
- +1
-
-
written by Rev Amos Kasibante, February 17, 2010
-
- +1
-
-
written by ndembo, February 20, 2010
-
- +1
-
-
