It’s not just moving traffic that requires attention, but parking laws must also be implemented
KARACHI: Disobeying traffic rules and breaching road regulations has become an everyday occurrence in our country. Recently, the joyous occasion of Eid turned into a day of mourning for the parents of two young men who died in the DHA area of Karachi. The cause of the accident, according to the father of one of the injured, was a drunken man driving a double-cabin vehicle on a one-way road. Unfortunate incidents like the one just mentioned seem to be increasing; yet, no one pays heed as people continue to disregard traffic laws. On an additional note, VIP movements, which result in long, unnecessary traffic jams, need to be banned and laws should be universally applicable to all people, regardless of their economic or social status. We need to stop being indifferent to the bias prevalent in our country, which favours those who rule us. There can be emergency situations during these needless jams and it’s high time we stopped granting undue favours to this segment of our population. If we can’t voice our disapproval to such discriminatory practices, then we have no right to complain.
It’s not just moving traffic that requires attention, but parking laws must also be implemented. Unlawful parking practices are causing more issues than ever before. There is a blatant disrespect for no-parking zones, causing major inconvenience to the public. The City District Government of Karachi Parking Plaza is a good initiative and more such buildings need to be constructed in order to overcome traffic problems. There should be a complete ban on illegal parking on main roads and congested areas, which should be strictly enforced by the traffic police. The provincial home department, which has powers to impose such a ban, needs to be more active in this regard as, under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code, it has the power to do so. Bikers and rickshaw drivers should be allotted the far left lane to drive and if they wish to turn right, they should use the indicators of their cars to alert others. For all those who change their lanes unnecessarily, fines of Rs5,000 should be imposed. As an incentive for the traffic police, the government can pay a certain percentage of the fines to them. This will ensure that they carry out their duty efficiently.
Another initiative that can be taken by the government is to build a monorail. The Mumbai Monorail, for example, has dramatically improved public transport in that city. Similarly, in Dubai, the Palm Monorail is doing a tremendous job of not only providing the public with a view of the place, but also helping boost Dubai’s economy. The current public transport system in Karachi mostly centred on the use of buses, is increasing traffic congestion. A policy should be adopted which allows buses, trucks and larger vehicles to run only on certain roads of the city. Perhaps the situation can be ameliorated if the traffic police devoted to serve the VIPs, turns its attention towards performing their real duties. It is time to wake up, Pakistan. Let’s fix our cities.
Samar Ansari
Published in The Express Tribune, August 5th, 2015.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
