The number of traffic accidents on the 20th day of Ramadan was unbelievably high for a single day. According to the official spokesman of Taif health affairs, eight people died on the Taif streets and 15 others were injured. On the same day, another horrendous accident in the same city claimed the lives of two Saudi boys who were burned to death after their car crashed into the back of a truck.
This figure is from just one city. Imagine the numbers if we take into account the fatalities and injuries from the other cities of the Kingdom on that given day. Such accidents and the number of victims, dead and injured, in just a day send an alarming signal to society.
These numbers, if added over a period, would prove to be much more than the number of people lost in wars or natural disasters. Wars are limited in time. And the protagonists eventually take the path to recovery as was the case following the two world wars. Germany and Japan were ravaged after the World War II and the nationals from these countries returned to normalcy with a will to do better. Man, on the other hand, cannot control natural disasters; it is God’s will that such calamities claim lives.
But what is happening on Saudi streets can be best described as suicide. These accidents are becoming the norm of our streets, whether in cities or villages. I am trying very hard to understand why this is so. Are there not enough schools to train our drivers? Our drivers are no different from any other human beings from other societies.
The difference lies in a society’s propensity to obey traffic laws. On Saudi roads the laws are repeatedly broken. The official statistics from the traffic department is horrifying. Statistics show that we have one of the highest rates of fatalities in the world.In one day, 25 people are killed in car accidents and over 200 injured. The total number of car accidents is over 32,000 in a year.
Why are we wasting our human resources? Looking at the statistics, I can only think that our society is in a crisis. The responsibility, however, is not on the government only but also on society, individuals and establishments. Everybody can help by following traffic laws and being responsible on the road. If we accomplish this then we can be sure of putting an end to this street war.
