Unending road crashes
Road crashes have become the gravest risk to public safety, causing a large number of deaths every day. Reportedly 420 people have been killed in road crashes in the last 20 days. The latest in this long line took place when at least 13 day labourers died as the vehicle they were riding collided head-on with a speeding truck in Chuadanga. The driver of the errant truck, according to an eyewitness account, was sleepy.
Of late, the number of road accidents, particularly on highways, has reached an alarming proportion. Unfit vehicles with missing headlights, tail-lights, side-view mirrors are allowed to roam the streets. Irresponsible driving and dangerous overtaking are also some of the major reasons behind the menace that our roads have been plagued with. And motorists appear to enjoy a culture of impunity, as the number of drivers brought to book for road crashes remains markedly low.
To begin with, the authorities should enforce a zero tolerance policy on unfit vehicles, reckless driving and fake licenses. Internationally accepted road safety mechanisms need to be adopted and the legal system has to be strengthened to make sure the guilty are handed down quick and exemplary punishment. Also, the government needs to introduce inexpensive and quality public transport so that the poor do not rely on improvised vehicles, as in the case of the victims of Kushtia tragedy. A ban on these vehicles needs to be strictly enforced while the authorities replace them with safer and affordable means of public transportation. It is high time the authorities understood that enough blood has been shed and 420 deaths in 20 days is way too high a figure to remain in slumber about an issue of public safety. Wake up, please!
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