Statistics have shown that the mandatory use of seatbelts and penalizing of those who do not use them have resulted in a substantial drop in the rate of injuries and other risks associated with road accidents.
It is high time we seriously considered the introduction of a similar law banning the use of mobile phones by drivers.
Action should be taken immediately to force motorists to stop this dangerous habit.
Such a move, in my opinion, is of greater importance than the use of seatbelts given the serious consequences of talking on the phone while driving.
Drivers using mobile phones, regardless of the speed at which the car is moving, have been found to be driving in a confused state.
The distraction caused by both driving and talking on the phone results in reducing the driver’s ability to concentrate and respond to things and situations on the road.
Some, especially many of our youth, have gone too far using mobile phones and driving. Nothing deters them and they do not hesitate to use their mobile at the most critical times.
Some talk while waiting at traffic lights and when the light changes to green, they are often so absorbed in conversation that they fail to realize the light has changed or to hear the honking horns behind them.
Some insist on using the phone on expressways or when crossing a bridge or flyover. There are even those who drive holding a mobile in one hand while the other grasps an infant sitting on their lap.
Our streets are full enough of reckless and irresponsible drivers. We don’t need to add more chaos and cause more road accidents.
Our country already has one of the highest rates of traffic fatalities in the world.
Our streets and highways have been turned into killing fields, with our youth accounting for a large number of the killed and injured.
This dangerous behavior must be stopped as must the continuous drain on human and financial resources. Let us put an end to the suffering of families grieving over the death of their members in the prime of their lives.
Several countries have already realized the danger and banned the use of mobile phones by drivers. It is now our turn to do the same. We have endured enough needless suffering.
- Arab News From the Local Press 7 August 2003
