Accidents happen everyday, everywhere, all the time. Sometimes it may cause insignificant damage and sometimes it can be fatal. Isn’t this what all of us are taught? But somehow I feel we forgot to pen down the effects it may have on the onlookers. The shock wave that hits us the moment we realize what if it had been me or worse – my family?
The numbness which death can leave on anyone, is indescribable. Death with all its unpredictability and suddenness can be both calming as well as chaotic. The scene which I happened to witness today is probably a good example.
I cannot describe exactly what I felt, but there was definitely a sorry feeling for the old guy who lay limp on the road, a loath-cum-pity feeling for the guy who felt attending his office meeting and catching a signal was probably more important than letting an old man cross the road in his bicycle. I am not going to debate on who was responsible for this incident, but I am sure there was either a lack of safety or a rush to the head which resulted in this fatal mishap.
I’ve seen a lot of people complain when I tell them to follow some basic traffic safety norms – like stop at the red light (at least do not honk from behind), wear the seat-belt (or helmet). I am always more amazed at the response – wearing helmet only makes me sweat more/ spoils my hair, the buckle of the seat-belt is unreachable etc. A hire-a-day driver I knew never wore his seat-belt, not until he had witnessed one fatal accident too many. That’s how people learn their lessons; sadly there always needs to be a victim to drive the point home!
I am not trying to say I am always one hundred percent right. I am probably equally guilty of breaking a few basic rules myself – speeding for one, overtaking in a corner for another. So I am not going to preach now. I am pondering… Looking back, at some of the silly things I did behind the wheel on the pretext of venting my anger or taking a quick call, I realize now, how lucky I’ve been – not to get into bad situations!
I can see a little bit better as to how fleeting this life can be. A person’s hard-work, commitment and knowledge will all amount to nothing in front of the laws of Physics (or Biology)! Someone’s love and life, some family’s bread winner can be taken away in that split moment when you feel that sudden adrenaline rush to accelerate or probably duck for a moment to answer a quick text.
I normally don’t do this, but if you are still trying to make some sense out of whatever I have mentioned above, go ahead and watch this gut-wrenching video mash-up (mostly commercials). In case you are wondering if this post is yet another sermon on traffic safety, I say why not?
We’re probably only safe as long as the other drivers out there respect traffic and road safety as well! Consider this post as a pebble thrown in the pond. Maybe my words will come to your mind in the right time and help save a life! Who knows? You can never be too sure when you don’t know if you are riding the beast or the beast is riding in you!
Comments
Everyone should have this social responsiblity, I am sharing this.
Harish Kumar Thank you!
Palak Mathur liked this on Facebook.
Deepak Raj liked this on Facebook.
Rajalakshmy Mohan liked this on Facebook.
Very true Rajesh
Kanakavalli Srinivasan liked this on Facebook.
In everyday traffic the safety belt is still the number one lifesaver, in spite of the airbag. The belt is the prerequisite for ensuring that the airbag can protect effectively. Without a belt, the airbags would be nowhere near as effective.
When I heard that Reverend Wilkerson had died in a car crash I looked up the articles on the news and was surprised to see that he evidently swerved into an oncoming logging truck and was not wearing a seat belt. I really found this strange. Of course there are a number of reasons that this could have transpired he could have become distracted while driving, tried to avoid a small animal in the road, been startled by something or even experienced a sudden medical problem that caused him to lose control of the car. Looking at the pictures on a local Texas television station of the car which is unrecognizable as to its make and model it is no wonder that he did not survive the crash. His wife was probably saved by her seat belt, she is recovering in hospital and I join with their family, friends, co-workers and those that he ministered to for her complete recovery.
Kanakavalli Srinivasan liked this on Facebook.
Rajalakshmy Mohan liked this on Facebook.
Deepak Raj liked this on Facebook.
Palak Mathur liked this on Facebook.
Nithya Ramadurai liked this on Facebook.
Pavithra Rajesh liked this on Facebook.
Vijee Srini liked this on Facebook.
Mux Narasimhan liked this on Facebook.
We need to look at how to have systemic way to solve for this. In every direction vehicles come, everyone is moving about like in a jungle by pure intuition, and holding their hearts in their hands. This to me is many a road in the eternal rush hour; and every visit I make to Chennai I only see more. While it might look like a rant from someone looking from outside in, the issues are real. Unless, there is a systematic attempt to solve it, there is no end. The individual for sure needs to watch out and be careful; but the system needs to have checks and balances to:
1. Provide for safe passage to motorists, bikers, pedestrians etc
2. Provide for proper execution of traffic laws
3. Honor lanes – my pet peeve is that no one sticks to a lane and sometime vehicles come from opposite sides; which increases the chance of head on collisions highly
4. Fair law – as in accountability from people who make mistakes and fair compensation to affected parties.
5. More road safety awareness and outreach
6. Demand by the citizens that their government at all levels takes road safety very very seriously – to the extent of checking how this issue is thought of in pre-voting campaigns and how it is actually handled post election.
5 & 6 do keep happening. I remember there was an avaaz campaign recently. I think enforcement has to improve. Some points which I feel contribute to poor driving experience:
1. Most signals don’t work (even at peak times). Becomes an easy excuse to break laws.
2. Not much help to affected parties. I’ve been a victim of this because I was on a car and the mistake was from someone coming on a bike. Even traffic police assume the person on car doesn’t need compensation!
3. Not enough checks done while taking license i.e. tests are only to prove who’s the boss and is done only for namesake.
4. No such concept called defensive driving.
5. My biggest gripe of all is even educated Indians fret while wearing seat belt/ helmet. Movies encourage this as well!
Narayan Srinivasan liked this on Facebook.