Speed kills, and so does other drugs such as cocaine, heroin and LSD. The thing Mr Arrive Alive does not seem to grasp is the fact that it is the difference in speed, that kills.
Speed in this case being the velocity in which a vehicle moves relative to another object.
After recent events in the news, particularly a member of the SAPS being arrested for exceeding the national speed limit, it got me thinking.
First of all readers, I am a true petrol head and received numerous speeding tickets in my life, albeit none in the last 18 months and I have done my fair share of more than double the national speed limit. The question then, why no speeding tickets? Simple science answers it actually. In order to truly arrive at your destination relatively faster, driving over the speed limit for short bursts just to be stopped by the next out of sync red light, does not make you go faster, maybe a minute max.
Why still then see people willingly go way faster than what is actually allowed? Is it a means of escapism after a hard week at work? Or is it simply that we are talking about a need that is not currently being met. A certain genius Mr Maslow discovered a hierarchy of needs, the highest of them being self-actualisation i.e. being all that one can be. For some people, actually going fast is one of them. Dear marketers, entrepreneurs, government and whoever else has the IQ to see that there is no need to speed on the roads.
I know of numerous organisations running track days for bikes, but only recently have I seen events where cars are also allowed.
The solution is simple.
1) Recognise the need for speed. It does not bite . Create more opportunities for motorists and bikers alike to go a bit faster legally and safely. It is simple. Pay an entrance fee which covers the marshals and medics, and Bob is your uncle.
2)Increase the standard of SA motorist skill by changing the requirements for getting a license. K53’s looking around more than on the road does not help. Start teaching the youth from a young age, and they will not wander off track. Basic skills, intermediate skills, advanced skills, license. Nothing on earth is as frustrating (and dangerous) than a first time out learner driver on a main road.
Therefore please whoever has the power to change a critical demand in this country, address the need, improve the skill and work together for a safer and better national road network. Compliments to those who actually make a visible impact in improving road safety and those who risk their lives in creating a safer tomorrow.
