Driving in a bustling city like Karachi can be a daunting experience for many. The general regard for traffic rules, road safety measures, and basic driving etiquette is moving further and further away from our daily commutes. Moreover, it is quite appalling to see the deteriorating conditions of the roads in the city to be hazardous to drivers and pedestrians alike.
Karachi is ranked as one of the top metropolitan cities with the most traffic accidents. Every other day I come across news about people being killed in road accidents either due to the negligence of drivers or failing to follow basic traffic rules. Major thoroughfares have the highest occurrence of accidents which lead to serious injuries or fatalities. What astonishes me the most is the fact that people can stop these road misfortunes from happening if we start focusing on the gravity of road safety measures that need to be implemented. Areas such as the National Highway, Quaidabad, Shara e Faisal, Rashid Minhas Road, Ayesha Manzil, to name a few, are mostly the centre of the news for casualties due to unsafe driving conditions or carelessness of the drivers. Not only that, even the traffic police are too casual to set law and order on the roads.
There is a dire need for educating the masses including children about road safety measures. On one side it is indeed heartening to hear of public-private partnerships that aim to address road safety concerns holistically.
SYED OVAIS AKHTAR
KARACHI
