Every single day we are introduced to something new in traffic accidents. The accidents are not only bloody and horrible but many of them could have been prevented. Many now consider driving as no more than a picnic. Driving in whatever fashion is simply a way to pass time. The recklessness and irresponsibility we see on our streets and roads have reached an unbelievable level. It is now quite common to see people driving while sipping tea, while playing with the radio or tape recorder and of course while talking on mobile phones! People’s lives evidently count for nothing.
The passion for mobile telephones gripping the Kingdom is inexplicable; scarcely a car is on the road without at least one person — often the driver — using one. No one can beat us when it comes to unusual positions while driving. This has become our specialty. Don’t be surprised to see a driver with one foot on the dashboard while the other alternates between accelerator and brake. Another uses an elbow — or even two — to position the steering wheel while in one hand is a soft drink and in the other a sandwich. If hands and elbows are occupied, there is then surely nothing wrong or dangerous in gripping the mobile between neck and shoulder.
These are among some of the unusual things I have seen on our roads; I swear that I have witnessed everything mentioned above. We celebrated Ramadan and Eid with appalling numbers of road deaths, especially during the last ten days of the month.
Police records indicate accidents caused by drivers who had not slept for two or three days. Imagine being among 50 passengers on a bus, driven by someone who had not slept for more than 48 hours. It happened to some unfortunate pilgrims on their way to Makkah; the bus overturned, killing some and injuring others. The cause was found to be the driver who had not slept for 72 hours. Another sleep-deprived driver sent by his company on a long journey was the cause of another tragedy in the last days of Ramadan.
The least that can be said of these irresponsible drivers — and their employers — is that they are no different from terrorists or suicide bombers. There can be no excuse for allowing such behavior and it is long past time for the authorities to intervene and remove the killers from our roads. What happens is no less than murder. The least the highway police could do is stop drivers whose eyes have turned red for lack of sleep, give them a bed and call for a replacement driver.
Arab News From the Local Press 15 December 2002
