Education & Youth Engagement Are the Keys to Safe Road for Everyone

Just a month ago, two students were killed at Dhaka as two buses were racing for passengers, which sparked an outrage across the country, leading to a student movement. Their movement became an epidemic with students from one school after another joining the fray; the students even defied pouring rain, kept on protesting for consecutive days for safe roads for everyone, regulated traffic, proper licensing of drivers and the end of corruption in transport, which brought traffic to a standstill at the capital for a week.

Thousands of students not only stopped vehicles on the road and checked the driving license of their drivers, they even didn’t spare the VIPs, the police and even the judges. Unfit public transport vehicles, driven by children as old as 14, with utmost carelessness, were intercepted by the students and handed over to the police for a penalty.  It’s not only that the students cracked down on illegal drivers, they also disciplined the traffic movement by dividing the city roads into different lanes. For the first time in the history of its existence, Dhaka got emergency corridors for ambulances and no one tried trespassing. Buses, heavy vehicles, private cars, taxis, auto-rickshaws and cycle rickshaws, everyone got their designated lanes. The disciplined traffic movement not only earned the students fame and respect but also immense support from the common people of the city. Their slogans were quite innovative & unique too. At places, they held placards saying – “Road Closed, State Under Repair!” The protesters have also shown a sparkle of genius in using literary slogans. The most beautiful among them is ‘Jodi tumi voy pao, tobe tumi shesh | Jodi tumi rukhe daraao, tobe tumi Bangladesh (Frightened, you crumble; if you rise up, you’re Bangladesh!).

However, on the other side of the coin, it was a disappointment to have witnessed slang & vulgar slogans/play-cards against the police, the government and the entire system from these future nation-builders of the nation. There were also instances of disrespect and humiliation with the commuters, drivers, govt officials & senior citizens.

Probably some political or interest seeking groups might have tried to take the advantage of this movement. Intentionally or even unintentionally, some spread rumours too. Having said all this, the government could have addressed this movement much better; this would not have come even that far/worse, had the Government acted proactive & smart immediately after the accident (that resulted in the movement). These were the kids of only 14-15 years of age; handling them with care & affection would have been the best option. The aggression (of the students’ league associated with the ruling party) against the mass students was condemnable & unfortunate. The police remained mute spectators and showed their utmost servility to the ruling party’s students were in action! Many students were even expelled from the school for participating in the movement.

According to the National Committee to Protect Shipping, Roads and Railways, a private research group, more than 4,200 pedestrians were killed in road accidents last year, a 25 percent increase from 2016. Another report by the Bangladesh Passengers Welfare Association said that last year alone, road accidents claimed 7,400 lives and leftover 16,000 injured. On average, 64 people die every day from injuries suffered in traffic accidents, a government-supervised survey reveals.

Frequent traffic accidents are taking place because of reckless driving, lack of awareness by pedestrians, lack of monitoring by the law enforcement agencies & regulatory bodies, long-time driving without break, employing unskilled drivers and lack of traffic responsibility of passengers.

How can a ruling party minister be the President of the Bangladesh Road Transport Workers Federation? Longstanding impunity is largely responsible for leading transport workers into believing that the authorities are there to protect their interests and not those of commuters and therefore untouchable by the law. There has been hardly any change in the mentality of drivers and their assistants. These people seem to be suffering from the notion that they are above the law and that authorities are there to protect their interests and not those of commuters. These accidents are occurring every single day and authorities simply cannot adopt a laidback attitude to such murderous behavior.

Transport workers on the road essentially lack self-discipline, healthy food habits and rest/sleep. They are overworked, only resting on a ferry or in a jam, but many are reputedly into drugs to keep awake and apparently to feel good. Despite a strong directive from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on June 25 to enforce five-hour driving limit for the transport drivers on highways, as well as provide alternative drivers, restrooms, and service centers at specific locations along the highways, the situation has hardly improved. Some drivers are expert in driving with one hand (two fingers actually) while talking on the mobile phone. Clearly there is lack of minimum education among majority of drivers to the level of being able to read and write, and most importantly appreciate life. Road Safety should be taught from school.

A driver’s job should not be an employment opportunity gifted by nepotism because human life is involved.

Recently, Bangladesh’s cabinet approved the draft of a new road safety law. Although it does not include death penalty (Maximum 5 years jail for causing death by rash driving), the new law includes stricter punishments than the existing law for violation of different traffic rules. Making laws won’t give any expected outcome if the Law Enforcing Agencies & Govt. Officials don’t implement the laws and the passengers develop awareness & respect for law.

One accident not only murders an individual but a whole family & its dream as well in the context of the socio-economy of our community.

The chilling story of Rezaul Karim, the man allegedly pushed off a minibus by the helper and then squashed to death by the driver of the minibus he was riding, sends shivers down the spine! Rajib Hossain, a third-year student of Government Titumir College, lost his hand (eventually died) after it got stuck between two speeding buses trying to overtake each other in the capital. After reckless driving claimed the lives of two college students in the capital on July 29, Meanwhile, a government minister with ties to transport unions, triggered fresh outrage by saying, “A road crash has claimed 33 lives in India’s Maharashtra; but do they talk about it the way we do?” The people associated with the transport industries started from the drivers, helpers, and transport owners to decision-makers- what most of them lack is Compassion. Making money is just OK, but not by compromising people’s lives.

On a different note, Bulgaria’s ministers of public works, transport and interior affairs resigned recently after heavy criticism directed at the government over a deadly tourist bus crash. But, here in Bangladesh, power & position matter more than human lives. If I see this from a bird’s eye view, I feel, that changing the mindset is very important & we need to incorporate lessons in the education system that makes people more human; not a money-making machine.

Around 40% of Bangladesh’s population are youth and the majority of the road accident victims are youths & students. So, the youths do have a certain role here.

We need to impart road safety education to our youth. The dream of Safe Road for Everyone is in the hands of youth and they should practice road safety and propagate road safety among others. They can do so by holding street shows, creating awareness and most importantly by responsible behavior. They should also discourage disobedience of traffic rules by explaining the perils in doing so. They should not preach, rather they should ask the offenders why are they committing an offense? Seldom, would there be a genuine answer for this act and the offender would immediately realize his folly and fall in line.

Finally, I will say, during the massive movement after two students were killed due to two bus racing, the entire world has witnessed the energy of our students & youth; we just need to channel it through the right direction!

Chowdhury Kaiser Mohammad Riyadh is a YOURS Advocate, Self-help Educator & a Global Youth Ambassador. He is the Co-founder of World Happiness & Peace Foundation. He is also an adviser to Asian Education Network & Global Network for Sustainable Development (GNSD).

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A DAY WITHOUT FATALITIES ON EUROPE’S ROADS? That’s the aim of Project EDWARD each year. Launched in 2016, the project is supported by drivers across the continent, plus very generous public and private sector partners. 2018’s day of action is Wednesday 19 September. The long-term aim is to spearhead significant and sustained reduction in death and serious injury on roads across the world.

Many cyclists and pedestrians increase their risk levels by choosing to ignore the rules or look for risky short cuts.  In the days leading up to the Project EDWARD day, we want all road users to think – even for a few short minutes – about the risks they face, the risks they may pose to others and how they can go about reducing those risks.

TISPOL’s target is that no one should die on the roads of Europe on Wednesday 19 September. And as we pause to reflect on how we use the roads, we believe that Project EDWARD can make a significant contribution towards further sizeable and sustained reductions in road death and serious injury.

So whether you represent a national government, a private organisation, a public agency, a charity, a school, college or university, or whether you simply care as an individual, please join us and make the pledge to support Project EDWARD, and do your bit to reduce risk and improve safety for the people who use our roads.

Project EDWARD is supported by all 30 TISPOL member countries (TISPOL is the European Traffic Police Network), and a growing number of well-known brands and road safety organisations have pledged to work with TISPOL to promote the messages of EDWARD as far and wide as possible.   We hope that, with support from colleagues and partners across Europe, Project EDWARD will be a high-profile way of reminding everyone that there is a great deal of hard work going on across Europe towards 2020 casualty reduction goals – and beyond that, too.

We want everyone to feel part of this and to know that small actions lead to big improvements.

VISIT PROJECT EDWARD

South by Southwest is a conference and music festival that brings together experts from diverse backgrounds to foster innovation. Our friends at the FIA Foundation have applied to speak at the event. The proposed presentation is about the importance of safe, sustainable, child-friendly cities, reflecting the global work of our Child Health Initiative. We call on our youth network to log in and vote for the initiative.

Kids Before Cars: Safe, Sustainable Urbanization

Safe, healthy cities start with safe, healthy streets. In an increasingly urbanized and motorized world, prioritizing people over cars, and children over high speeds saves lives and money. Cities that are safe for children are safe for everyone – but right now road traffic injuries are the leading killer of adolescents worldwide. Unsafe roads prevent access to education, healthcare and economic opportunities that can lift families out poverty. The health, economic, and social consequences are dire. Roads are the veins through which the health of our society flows, but we are clogging them with traffic jams.

It does not have to be this way. We can achieve a world with zero road fatalities, creating safe and healthy journeys for all children through data driven, cost-effective choices.

Takeaways from the event

1. Starting with children is not only a proven, practical, apolitical way to make cities safe for everyone, but it is also a moral imperative.
2. Road traffic injuries are the leading killer of adolescents around the world, a public health epidemic with far reaching consequences.
3. Managing speeds through simple, cost-effective measures serves as a ‘vaccination’ against child road traffic injuries and fatalities.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR THIS PANEL AT SXSW

As young people ourselves, we are always super aware that we don’t want to be party poopers. There’s nothing more annoying than Buzz Killington entering the party where people are having fun and well…killing people’s buzz! That certainly isn’t our vibe but rather, as road safety ambassadors, role models and champions, it is our duty to observe the state of play; especially when a new trend is just downright stupid and dangerous.

The viral challenge started when social media celebrity, Shiggy posted a video to Instagram showing himself dancing in the street to Drake’s song. The video went viral, and thousands of people, including celebrities, started filming and posting their own homemade music videos.

Singer Ciara and her husband, NFL star Russell Wilson, shot their video in Cape Town, South Africa. Will Smith did his own “In My Feelings” dance on top of a bridge in Budapest. And that’s just a start. A search of the hashtag #InMyFeelingsChallenge on Instagram pulls up over 200,000 posts. People have started posting the ‘fails’ online already, and while they have been tagged as “funny”, there is another serious side to this trend. How long before the challenge claims its first life?

But the challenge soon morphed into something more extreme. Not only are people dancing to “In My Feelings,” but they are jumping out of moving cars and busting a move in the middle of a street. People are trying to top others’ videos, and are getting hurt in the process.

While some people appeared to successfully hop out of a slow-moving car and dance alongside it, others have been injured trying to replicate the stunt. Some people recorded themselves falling out of the moving car. Others danced alongside their cars on a busy street, running the risk of getting hit by oncoming vehicles. A few have even posted videos of themselves getting hit while dancing in the street.

The challenge has promoted some police departments in the U.S. and worldwide to issue warnings. In Methuen, Massachusetts, Police Chief Joseph Solomon called the challenge “super dangerous” and urged people not to try it, CBS Boston reports.

Recently our friends at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) got into the act and issued a warning against the challenge as well. The NTSB shared a link to its statement via Twitter, saying “We have some thoughts about the #InMyFeelings challenge. #Distraction in any mode is dangerous & can be deadly.”

“In transportation, distraction kills. Drivers and operators in all modes of transportation must keep their hands, eyes, and minds focused on operating their vehicle,” the warning on NTSB’s website says.

We mirror these views. If you’re doing the #InMyFeelings challenge, forget about the moving car. Many celebrities have done the dancing challenge in safe places, like on a stage and not in moving traffic.

As always, we say enjoy your music but stay safe!

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