Pandemic anxiety could result in devastating road accident numbers
The Covid-19 pandemic, and subsequent lockdown measures, has brought road carnage into sharp focus.
A REPORT issued by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2010 indicated the country has one of the world’s poorest road safety records, with an average of 40 people fatally injured and 20 left permanently disabled.
These numbers continue to rise with each passing decade.
Keith Cunningham, head of Driver Assess said there needs to be a shift from focusing on the functionality of driving, to driver behaviour, if this risk is going to be tackled.
“The majority of accidents are as a result of driver behaviour. Yet most road safety measures implemented to curtail the rising numbers seek to penalise bad driving, rather than minimising the risk by addressing the behaviour behind the wheel before it becomes problematic,” he said.
ALSO READ: Safety tips: Don’t become a smash-and-grab target
The Covid-19 pandemic, and subsequent lockdown measures, brought the road carnage into sharp focus.
The Easter weekend, a time notorious for road fatalities (309 in 2018, and 126 in 2019), saw 28 people killed on South African roads this year.
This is not simply because there were fewer cars on the road, but fewer drivers behaving irrationally.
“With the re-opening of the economy, we are seeing more drivers on the road, but the concern is that heightened anxieties caused by the pandemic could result in more irrational road behaviour,” explained Cunningham.
“People are emotional beings and South Africans, in particular, tend to get aggressive on the roads. Our high-risk drivers have around 10 aggressive exchanges a day – this is things like jumping a red robot, tailgating or even swearing at a fellow driver. This amounts to around 45 billion heated exchanges on the road annually, costing citizens their lives and the country billions. The global pandemic will likely further compound this trend.”
Cunningham said, “Even as passengers, young drivers are not passive. They’ve learnt patterns and behaviours from parents or other drivers, and are likely to emulate these. By identifying any potential threats early on, we’re going to introduce a much safer type of driver onto South African roads. At the heart of it, emotions drive people, and people drive cars. We need to address these emotions to ensure we drive on safer roads.”
Caxton Local Media Covid-19 reporting
Dear reader,
As your local news provider, we have the duty of keeping you factually informed on Covid-19 developments. As you may have noticed, mis- and disinformation (also known as “fake news”) is circulating online. Caxton Local Media is determined to filter through the masses of information doing the rounds and to separate truth from untruth in order to keep you adequately informed. Local newsrooms follow a strict pre-publication fact-checking protocol. A national task team has been established to assist in bringing you credible news reports on Covid-19.
Readers with any comments or queries may contact National Group Editor Irma Green (irma@caxton.co.za) or Legal Adviser Helene Eloff (helene@caxton.co.za).
Do you want to receive news alerts via Telegram? Send us a message (not an sms) with your name and surname to 060 532 5535.
You can also join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
PLEASE NOTE: If you have signed up for our news alerts you need to save the Berea Mail Telegram number as a contact to your phone, otherwise you will not receive our alerts
Here’s where you can download Telegram on Android or Apple.
