All motorized
two-wheelers in Goa are called bikes. Irrespective of make, engine capacity,
condition of road, or driver’s ability, they are driven as fast as their
unserviced condition allows them to be driven. Since they can be manipulated
through the four-wheelers, there’s an unwritten but popularly followed rule
that they can overtake from the left, right, centre, through dividers and via
pavements. When they come out from by lanes, the rushing main-road traffic must
beware and brake if required. If you thought the main road traffic had right of
way, you have another think coming.
When a ‘biker’
sees a way to overtake a vehicle, something in his brain tells him he must take
it. This is true about tourists who rent the bikes and Goan owners, too. Must
be something in our tambdi maati. In
the event there’s a bigger vehicle coming the other way, the adrenalin
encourages him/her to race passionately towards it in fourth gear. Quite often,
our ‘biker’ gets his/her way, broadly or narrowly missing obstacles like
on-coming trucks/tankers. The thrill of having ‘achieved success’ is
exhilarating. Chances are that the biker will do it again. Been there, done
that, stupid years ago. Won’t let anyone do it, ever, if I can help it. Metal
fenders kissing anything at high speed is the kiss of death. I was lucky. It
has taken life or limb of people; the chance isn’t worth taking.
The 15-year-old
(may her soul RIP) who recently died of crushed injuries to her crushed organs
was at fault. She couldn’t have had a licence. Nor the sense to follow road-safety
rules. A day later, on Mandovi Bridge, the car in front of us ran over a helmet
that had tumbled its way. The car wasn’t going fast. The helmet was broken to
pieces, its thermocole insides split, advertising its poor quality. Thankfully,
the biker’s head wasn’t in it. Because he hadn’t strapped it on. Many bikers
use straps to connect their helmets to their wrists or bike handles.
To change this
culture, to prevent gory loss of valuable young lives, we need to involve
students of class VI to IX. Children at this age are capable of handling the
responsibility of guiding traffic outside their institutions before and after
school-timings. The Road Safety Patrol (RSP) in Mumbai used to (perhaps still
does) do a brilliant job of sorting out the mess their parents and other adults
made. The students can wear clearly seen and identifiable lapels/badges/cords,
red and green flags for signalling and whistles. A brief course in traffic handling will pay
its dividends immediately. It will take the load off the cops. Better, in the
years to come, these students will be responsible drivers.
Regarding protective head-gear. Who
gives the licences to manufacture poor quality stuff? Helmets, like plastic
bags and bottles and medical equipment, must be only of good quality.
There is a
connection between bad road behaviour and physical activity. If children, young
‘uns and adults, too, have a means of expending energy elsewhere, they are less
likely to be aggressive on roads. So walk, cycle, take the stairs, work out the
cardio-vascular or meditate and dissipate that energy. (This is my belief, if
anyone thinks otherwise, sue me.)
Those who complain
in my presence about parking woes and traffic snarls get my dose of questions
and responses: why do you use your car/bike? Take a bus. Are the buses
uncomfortable? The autos/taxis expensive? Make a noise, hold a morcha/dharna,
crib to the ministers, throw tantrums, get public transport workable, have more
village level shuttles… or shut up. Most people I know, when I begin this rant,
change the topic. Which means they really don’t want a change. Which means it
doesn’t matter if the traffic is bad and drivers worse. Which means a
15-year-old’s death is just another headline, not a big deal. Except to the
tanker/truck driver who is beaten by villagers, taken into custody and
interrogated by the State. He is at the other end of the spectrum who, along
with his bus-driving brethren, believes the road is their baapaalo. Since we can’t
have an RSP along highways inhabited by large gaadyo, we could perhaps have a VRSP (Village RSP) in Goa? Employ
retirees. Let the rumour spread that irresponsible driving won’t be tolerated
in our pot-holed, speed-breaker punctuated road.
Else GMC must get
ready with an efficient cadaver organ-transplant program. Would make an
effective statement in a medical tourism brochure. And an extremely sad one.
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