Developing
Countries and Traffic Management.
Government of
India is celebrating month for traffic awareness under Traffic Campaign Jeevan
Raksha, Sadak Suraksha. I, personally feel that this initiative will
help in generation of traffic responsibilities in every citizen of this country
whether he or she is a pedestrian, cyclist, pillion Riders, passengers or drivers.
When we are referring about developing countries, I would like to refer to our
own motherland India. India having such a large population using different
modes of transport as well as pedestrians. Many are not even literate enough to
read traffic signs which are there. In this context comparison to developed
world traffic management is a very big issue in the developing world as well as
a big challenge which several governments in the developing world are facing.
As a saying state that every problem has a solution to
it. But how well it will be drafted, executed and implemented is the biggest
challenge in the field of traffic management.
The report States
that world over 12 lakh people are killed and over 1 crore people are injured because
of the traffic accidents. Thus, it is a very alarming and serious issue. It is
not a problem for only traffic department but honestly, if someone loses his or
her dear and near ones, every one’s life can also be shattered. Even in India,
the report states that over 1.5 Lakh people are killed and if we refer to the
capital of India over 1,500 people are killed being involved in any of the
traffic accidents.
The problem here is that are we blaming on the
infrastructure provided to us? In my view point we should not. In the
developing countries we have to blame people, the drivers and the pedestrians
who are not even aware that obeying traffic rules is their moral responsibility
which they have to abide by. Few people in developing countries have a wrong
perception that paying the challan/fine is not a big issue for them since they
have money and can pay challan/fine very easily and few feels that because the
population is so large the traffic department police personals are very few, so
maybe I cannot be caught red handed.
The situation here
arises do we have to abide the traffic rules because we fear challans or the
punishment which we will be getting. In the developing world since the heavy
transport is also on the road along with the light weight transport so, how to
manage it is the biggest question.
We can state that there is less infrastructure provided
in the developing countries if we are referring to our own Nation that is India.
Personally I, think that infrastructure which we have and the initiative by the
central government can lead to positive and fruitful results when everyone of
us as a citizen start thinking on this line that I have to be a positive
contributor towards management of traffic. There should have not been a need of
a traffic police if people were their own traffic police i.e., checking
themselves on their own rather than waiting for some government’s strict
guidelines. This can be regarded as self-traffic management. In this
dimension we can have moral traffic management. Traffic department can
have citizens volunteer trained under guidance of traffic department who can
counsel public and can make them aware of the traffic discipline as a part of
traffic management. It has to be in a direction where this responsibility
should be inculcated from the very childhood through various school and college
campaigns, awareness programs and educating young mind and drafting a
curriculum by education department based on traffic management which must be a
compulsory subject. This can be education traffic management.
Many case studies can be studied where the parent or the guardian
himself or herself was responsible to inculcate the habit of breaking all the
traffic rules in their own child. It is alarming but it is sympathetic also
because maybe for a few years the child is not suffering because of this
indiscipline, referring to examples like not wearing helmet, driving two-wheeler
without licence and still under age, involvement in rash driving or over
speeding. For this purpose, for few period of time some important document of
parents should be taken in the custody and should be returned back after many
efforts done by parents. This will be psychological traffic management.
Now, let us go back to the time where the traffic
department in Delhi was headed by Dr. Kiran Bedi as one of the heads. She was
given the name of even Crane Bedi, where she started managing the
traffic situation really well. Even if a VIP car was parked in the wrong
parking zone, she, used to tow the vehicle because she felt and even quoted
that if the traffic is not abided by everyone and is not running smoothly without
proper traffic management than maybe everything will be delayed. Many of us
have also experienced ourselves that economy will also suffer this way. This
can be stated as economic dimensional approach to traffic management
while levying heavy tax on the traffic violators.
In India many people have a very laid-back attitude that
they can leave the house late but have to reach their destination on time. This
last-minute Rush where over speeding and rash driving becomes a common habit
and also a very big reason for accidents. Sometimes because of no professional
training, the drivers do not have even control on their vehicles in this regard
few short-term degree and diploma courses should be introduced which will be
framed keeping in mind educational traffic management and should become
compulsory to attain a driver’s license specially for commercial drivers.
In 2016
the Supreme Court issued an order to ban sale of alcohol within
500 meters of state and national highways keeping in
view that the heavy transport drivers and even the people who are going on
holidays or joy rides because of easy accessibility of alcohol and under its influence
lose control over vehicle which leads to heavy casualty and even damage to
public property. Even when someone is moving on highways specially, they are
driving heavy vehicles lack of sleep also becomes a reason for accidents. So,
few laws should be passed under judicial traffic management laws in
which regular checking of traffic lights, regular painting of essential traffic
lines like zebra crossing, stop line and many more. Regular cutting of the road
side plants should be undertaken on the regular bases.
So, central as well as state governments, permanent
executive, judiciary and citizens should work hand in hand towards bringing a
revolutionary change for traffic management. If, we work on the art of traffic
management we will manage our lives well and contribute towards the path of
growth, development and nation building.
Written by: Dr. Jaya Kumar
