I am not a “forgive and forget,” kind of guy, or a “forgive them for they know not what they do,” kind of guy either, or especially when it comes to unsafe road users. I’m also no saint, and I have been caught speeding, not often, but generally I feel I can say with confidence, I am a safe driver. However, every day, I encounter bullying, intimidating, arrogant and careless driving.
Javid and al Roushdi (2019), of the University of Nizwa have published a study based on excessive speed being one of the causal factors associated with serious accidents in Oman. Their research revealed, among other things, “individual personality traits, and the driving culture,” as most clearly at fault, predictably among male and younger drivers in the Sultanate. They identified “the main priority of public safety policies should be to plan awareness and behavioural change programmes for drivers in Oman.”
Recent publicity on drastic penalties for mobile phone use by drivers, dangerous overtaking, and hard shoulder overtaking, appear to indicate a ‘get tough’ attitude by lawmakers, but will, based on previous legislation, achieve little! Jail sentences, and increased fines are not, and have never been the answer to any societal discipline. Look at Omanis and their society, and what makes them appreciated as gentle, respectful, and inoffensive. It is not at all about being disciplined it is about embracing their culture! So, let us alter the road safety culture.
There are enough laws ‘on the books,’ for the authorities to develop cultural changes on the roads, so let us look at ways to change our roads. First, campaign aggressively against ‘driving’ that contradicts the law. Excessive speed, dangerous driving, careless driving, tailgating, and mobile phone use can be enforced with a tagline, “You do this... you will be caught... you will be fined... you may lose your car!” That would slow them down and wake them up!
Second, we cannot ‘pussy-foot’ around child-seat/seatbelt legislation anymore. If drivers cannot secure passengers safely, according to the law, in motor vehicles, they need to be sent back home. Short trip, long trip, it does not matter. The message must be clearly delivered, that it is unacceptable to have children standing on seats, ‘playing’ in cars, leaning out of windows and sunroofs. They present a risk of distraction to drivers.
One only must go to any vehicle registration outlet to see and hear drivers arguing with officers about incredible amounts in fines, which demonstrates the ineffectiveness of the current system. A driver can incur twenty or thirty fines a year, and their driving ability is not questioned...only their ability to pay, and there is precious little in the way of a punitive perspective as the driver has learned nothing!
Let us allow, for example, a six month ‘educational’ or ‘soft’ phase during which the focus is on strong enforcement, with ‘warning notices’ issued for advisory level offences recorded in the system, but not actioned if a 90 day ‘cooling-off’ period sees no further driving offences. These warning notices can clearly explain the consequences of repeat offending when the ‘soft’ phase expires, being harsher fines and repeating endlessly the tagline, “You do this... you will be caught... you will be fined... you may lose your car!”
Finally, wider GCC research by Magarbleh et al (2013) identified that police officers face significant push-back from drivers with hierarchal ‘priority,’ and positions of power, authority, and influence, making their jobs not only difficult, but unpleasant, in what is a perpetual reminder of privilege and position abuse that must also change or be changed.
Enforcement through legislation has not worked on the roads, and active enforcement must change road user cultures. In developing clear enforcement protocols, insisting that drivers embrace a ‘safe roads’ philosophy, or face losing their vehicles, only then will the ‘road safety’ culture change, and our roads become safer.
Ray Petersen
petersen_ray@hotmail.com
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