Several motorists flouting new traffic law: survey

NOT WEARING SEAT BELT, USING MOBILE PHONE, SPEEDING AMONG MAJOR VIOLATIONS

By Peter Townson & Sarmad Qazi

A FIELD survey conducted by Gulf Times has found that a good number of motorists are not complying with the new traffic rules, but it could not be ascertained if it was due to ignorance or defiance.

Among the major violations noticed by a team of Gulf Times reporters were not wearing of seat belts, using mobile phones while driving, and speeding.

Out of a large number of motorists observed over a period of an hour in the morning business hours, about one-third of the drivers, along with front-seated passengers, were found to be not wearing seat belts.

Although the mandatory use of seat belts has been in place since 2003, the resolve by some motorists to not wear it at any cost was even more visible in the evening hours. Ironically, most of those who were not found buckled in were driving expensive cars.

Almost the same number of drivers were seen talking on mobile phones during the morning business hours but the number of people talking on phones was comparatively less in the evening. Of the total offenders, more than half were found to be female drivers.

However, the general response to the new traffic law seemed to be positive with most motorists adhering to the rules and thereby improving road safety.

Worryingly though, two SUVs were spotted with children under the age of ten standing on the front seat. One car had a young boy standing with his back to the windscreen, while in the other, three were standing beside each other.

There were a couple of cases of “aggressive” overtaking from the right hand side. Some vehicles were found to have tinted windows too.

A cross section of the motorists told Gulf Times that the authorities should be applauded for issuing the new traffic law which came into force on October 2. But they said more has to be done to implement the law so that the offenders do not get away with it.

“One Australian expatriate commented: “Road safety is not going to be improved overnight. But gradually, safety-conscious people will remain the same and continue to drive sensibly and safely, but those who offended will continue to offend and get away with it.”

This does seem to be a significant problem – one which becomes a lot more obvious as licences bills and the roads become busier during the evening. There are more motorists speeding on the busy roads and the recklessness that the traffic laws are aiming to stamp out comes out in the open.

An Asian woman, who drives extensively being an executive, admitted using her mobile phone on roads not regularly patrolled by traffic cops. Others agreed that without increased police and high-tech monitoring, the new traffic law would probably slow down near speed-detecting cameras and reduce the cases of jumping signals, but the offences that make the country’s roads unsafe will continue to haunt the law-abiding residents.

(Gulf Times journalists conducted their observations from various locations on the C Ring and D Ring roads.)