Dubai
In the past two weeks, I noticed five incidents that were clear examples of bad road habits and ignorance of rules that ensure safety. The UAE is known to be one of the countries with the strictest rules. These mistakes cannot only be blamed on the children involved, but also the parents, who carelessly and without concern, buy them these products and leave it to the child’s discretion of use.
The first incident was that of carelessness. Although it is dangerous for children to use sunroofs in a moving car, many instances can be spotted across the country. The picture clearly shows that the parent in the vehicle is totally aware and yet does not care about the safety of the child. The abuse of the sunroof can be spotted mainly near the public attractions, like the beaches, parks and other open-air areas.
The second incident also involved children in cars. This time there were small children jumping from the seats to the boot in a four-wheel drive vehicle. The children were doing this for fun, even though there was enough space for them. Any sudden braking of the vehicle could result in the children being thrown forward, which could result in serious injuries.
The third incident was that of the usage of the banned “hoverboards”. I spotted three siblings using the boards, the eldest one also using his phone to message while on the board and clearly not looking where he was going. This incident took place in a public parking lot that had a lot of vehicles moving in and out and any accident could result being potentially lethal.
The fourth incident points out to not only personal ignorance but also public nuisance. Four teenagers, of which none looked like as though they had a driving licence, were riding scooters that were banned a couple of years ago by the municipality. These scooters are considered illegal and cannot be registered. Not only were the riders underage, they had not donned helmets and were driving in such a reckless way that not only put them in danger, but also the other motorists and pedestrians, too. These scooters, being around 50cc, were also loud and thus a public nuisance due to the engine being abused.
The fifth incident was that of smoking. This is a common sight on all roads as many motorists smoke and do so with their hands kept out of the window in a haphazard manner. Any passing motorbike could be obstructed, leading to not only the motorcyclist’s distraction but also causing damage to the driver.
In my point of view, the road accidents and deaths that happened cannot be blamed only on technological errors and failures. Though these reasons do exist, the careless attitude of the motorists also needs to be blamed, when it comes to public safety.
— The reader is a student based in Dubai.
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