There is no doubt that India is going through a widespread social and cultural change. This change has unfortunately stretched the limits of what public services and non-governmental organizations can handle. The appalling disregard for rules and inability of implementing the well-defined and long existing traffic laws has turned the roads into a jungle, where survival-of-the-fittest has become the unspoken mantra.
According to the 2013 Accident data published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Two Wheelers and Cars account for 48.5 percent of around the total of 500,000 accidents reported in the country. Office commuting hours – 9 AM to 12 and 6 PM to 9 PM – have the highest number of accidents, and the highest number of victims are in the range of 25-65 years.
These statistics are horrific and it is time that we take our and others’ safety on the road seriously. Why do we need to take this seriously? Because 78 percent of these accidents are the driver’s fault. And the kicker is, it is not because the driver is drugged, drunk, or because of bad roads – drivers are just flouting some everyday traffic rules. Doesn’t really matter if it’s two wheelers trying to squeeze through between two adjacent buses or overconfident car drivers who think they are driving on a racetrack. The price of flouting the rules here is too high, and you can easily be the next victim of someone else’s folly.
Nissan’s Safety Driving Forum initiative to sensitize drivers that began in 2012 seems to be a step in the right direction. For a country like India, profound and quick change can happen only with a shift in people’s mindset and their complete participation, which, of course, is not easy. Nissan’s effort to reach out to people is the kind of grassroots movement that all auto companies including two-wheeler sellers need to initiate to bring about a lasting change in driving habits.
While wearing seat belts and helmets can minimize the damage from an accident, a safety mindset can do much more to avert an accident. Life on the roads will be much easy for all if we follow the traffic rules and keep this golden rule in our mind: “Treat others the way you want others to treat you!”
Some books on how to drive safely and prepare new drivers for the road.
Crash-Proof Your Kids: Make Your Teen a Safer, Smarter Driver
Author: Timothy C. Smith
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, 2006
ISBN: 0743277112, 9780743277112
Pages: 292 2006
In Crashproof Your Kids, certified driving instructor Timothy Smith has shared the combined wisdom of multiple experts to build up the Crashproof Plan: a set of exercises planned to develop driving awareness, behavior, and skills.
Road Rage and Aggressive Driving: Steering Clear of Highway Warfare [Kindle Edition]
Author: Leon James
Publisher: Prometheus Books (30 September 2000)
ASIN: B002IPGWQQ
Traffic psychology educators Dr. Leon James and Dr. Diane Nahl trace the aggressive driving problem to its roots in childhood when child passengers imbibe their parents’ aggressiveness towards other motorists and their cynicism towards regulations and the law. By the time teenagers begin to drive they’ve been exposed to years of media portrayals of the fun and excitement of aggressive driving with no serious consequences. The authors argue that road rage and aggressive driving are common traffic emotions experienced by the vast majority of drivers.
Driving You Safely: Tips and Advice for Sane, Sensible, and Safe Driving [Kindle Edition]
Author: James Link Sold by: Amazon Digital South Asia Services, Inc. ASIN: B00MKBY7S8
Although the book appears to talk with the US traffic rules in mind and uses terms that many Indian drivers may not be familiar with, some basic advice such as “Pick a Lane and stay there” is universal and applies to roads across the world.
RoadWise: Don’t Die By Accident [Kindle Edition]
Author: Tony Balis
Sold by: Amazon Digital South Asia Services, Inc.
ASIN: B00Q3NAVYI
There is an urgent, world-wide need not only for increased safety on our highways, but also for a more humanistic approach to the challenges of driving. RoadWise is the first driving book to fully understand that these needs are inescapably bound together and that it is now time for all of us – not just new drivers – to reconsider our habits, instincts and discipline on the road. “After 100 years on the highway,” Tony Balis writes, “humanity is forgetting not only how utterly dangerous it is to drive, but also that our freedom to do so is unceasingly bonded with a responsibility to and respect for each other.”
Drive safe and please avoid unforced errors.
References
Road Accidents in India 2013, Government of India Ministry of Road Transport & Highways Transport Research Wing, New Delhi, http://morth.nic.in/showfile.asp?lid=1465
*Some book descriptions are used from the book’s Amazon page.
This post is part of Nissan’s safe Driving campaign “Safety begins with Me” in association with IndiBlogger.