Minimise Road Mishaps

Nepal has one of the highest death rates caused by road accidents in the world. Every day, as we scroll through the news portals and feeds, we get to witness lots of news of road accidents. Despite the increase in road accidents in recent years, no attempts have been made to scout the situations and find the remedies for the problem. Hundreds of traffic police personnel are deployed at the core areas of the country to manage the traffic. Traffic rules and regulations have also been implemented. In spite of that, the number of road accidents is increasing alarmingly.

Digging in, speeding, overtaking, lack of concentration, using mobile phones while driving, poor road conditions, and drinking and driving are the root causes of such mishaps. Most of the roads in Nepal are narrow and are almost full of potholes with no construction being done. In some places, constructions are done but with no proper lanes and without pedestrian pathways. No roads seem to have been designed as per road safety standards. The number of vehicles moving along the roads has steadily gone up while the road length still remains the same.

Negligence on the part of drivers is another factor behind road accidents. Exceeding the speed limit to reach destinations faster also causes road disasters. Overloading passengers by public vehicles has been problematic, too. Drinking and driving have also given rise to accidents taking away many lives. Paradoxically, sometimes accidents also kill or injure pedestrians due to unmanaged traffic signals. Drivers fail to obey the traffic signals putting others in danger of accidents. The main traffic areas do not have proper traffic lights. Irregular traffic lights are just creating confusion among drivers and escalating the risk of accidents. 

Many roads prohibit passing. But, the carelessness of drivers passing through the proscribed area and the lack of proper signals has given rise to vehicles collision. Improper passing, turning, and overtaking by drivers are mostly seen these days. Despite the presence of traffic police, drivers are found violating the rules. A careful driver has the big responsibility to test the vehicle’s fitness from time to time as a mechanical defect in the vehicles creates accidents. Taking some fine and leaving the vehicles not meeting safety test protocols has become more troublesome. 

Officials are sometimes found allowing unworthy drivers to proceed with the journey which is why most of the drivers aren’t afraid of contravening the rules. The practice of offering bribes for passing a driver’s license test and other licensing irregularities is also responsible for growing road accidents. It is not that we do not have any rules aimed at preventing road accidents. The traffic police keep on taking several initiatives to control road mishaps. But, people believe that laws and regulations are for benefit of others and only follow rules when they see traffic police monitoring around. 

The rules of paying compensation have somehow reduced the traffic rules violation. So, monitoring the violators through CCTV cameras and punishing them could be a good initiative to maintain road safety. Damaged road has been a major issue in accidents, so improving the road condition reduces the problem of road accident by half. Managing traffic lights could make drivers disciplined and allow pedestrians to cross the street safely. Besides all these, the greatest approach to avoiding road accidents is to make sure that you are following all the safety and driving or walking with great caution. Everyone must follow the traffic rules strictly and be a responsible citizen.