Road safety expo raises awareness
Katlego Motsamai | Thursday May 31, 2018 10:33
The topic of road safety is crucial for the lives of Batswana and the initiative is in line with the purposes and goals of the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011 to 2020. A question of what is the greatest danger was posed to panellists as they argued on the subject.
The greatest danger on the road is ignorance, according to a representative from Tsela Riders, Spike Sinombe. “The other day I got into a car and drove around Gaborone, the moment I saw a cyclist I slowed down about a 100 metres before I passed the cyclist,” he narrates.
“I looked at the body language, tensions, intersections for him to turn, I waited for that cyclist until he turned. He looked at me and smiled. The reason I was able to slow down is because I’m in power, and I’m not ignorant. That thing I drive called a car is dangerous. It is made out of steel, fabrications of metal and wire, once it knocks out a cyclist that’s a life drawn, that’s injuring for life. Ignorance is all it takes to kill on roads.”
We need to equip ourselves with emotional intelligence most of the accidents are caused by the emotions that we have. It is all about how you relate to others on the road and how you feel, he said.
Botswana Police Service representative Ernest Kelebone argued that people rush into getting a licenses without necessarily knowing how to drive. “A driver is the most dangerous aspect on the road and statistics shows that 90% of road accidents are caused by human error and five percent by the vehicle itself. A vehicle was never designed to kill, we need drivers who are well trained and acquainted with defensive driving skills.”
The Road Master Driving Academy’s Elias Master Kebarileng came up with a topic of behaviour on the road. He noted speed as one key element that poses danger. He argued that speed is not necessarily measured by the speed limit that has been set. “If you’re driving in a road congested with pedestrians it will be wrong to choose the speed of 120km/h just because the speed limit of that area is 120km/h. You have to choose a lower speed that will enable you to stop should an emergency arise.”
Motovac representative, Nqobizitha Dube explained that for one to understand driving it is by first understanding what a car is, understand your car, understand the brakes, and understand the clutches, gear box, the steering wheel.
“The most important part of the car is the tyres, they are in control of your steering, breaking, acceleration and absorbing all the bumps that the road may throw at you, having good quality tyres is essential to your driving experience,” he explained.
“When you wake up every morning look at your vehicle and take a trip around it. Ask yourself, ‘Was this designed to transport human beings or to kill them?’”