Road safety at the times of school opening

Road safety at the times of school opening
A Jayaprakash Kovilloor

Yet another academic year is around the corner, and as usual, so is south west monsoon. Our kids are going out again to pursue their next levels and a great number of toddlers are going to attend schools for the first time. Their fears and the apprehensions of their parents are not unfounded because they are going to have tough times ahead when they think about the roads and the transport infrastructure these kids are going to depend upon.

Have we done the ground work to accommodate the fresh school goers along with the regulars this time at least? We have the notorious tendency to act upon something only when we taste the bitter aftermath of a tragedy. Our kids are going to face a lot of difficulties on the roads and we need to do lot many things to avert eventualities. What shall we do to ensure a smooth ride to our children to school?

· Parents have to be strict in not cramming their kids in auto rikshaws and similar precarious modes of transports.
· When private bus operators are found to be skipping bus stops, the responsible citizens should raise their voice against it.
· If the same is found repeated, the best thing the elders could do is to boycott such buses on a regular basis. We have to tell them, if they fail to be considerate with our kids, they are not going to get passengers.
· The state owned transport corporation may run enough buses during peak hours, say between eight and ten and three and five.
· The staff of these buses need to be given strict instruction to take maximum number of children and take them safely to their destinations.
· Those nasty road abusers need to be nabbed and brought to book, and their licensed cancelled outright.
· Heavy vehicles like those notorious killer tippers need to be banned from roads during peak hours.
· Traffic officials may ensure that traffic is moving smoothly. They may deploy enough staff at strategic places so that drivers, pedestrians and passengers will enjoy smooth flow.
· All electric powered traffic signals should to serviced and kept in good condition because monsoon is around and repair work may not be possible once it is raining.
· All major bus bays need to be fitted with quequeing facilities so that children can queue up to their buses and thus we may avoid stop-and-run accidents. We have plenty of such stories to our credit.
· All school authorities who own their fleet of buses have to train their drivers and cleaners so that children will get better movement to and fro.
· The telephone service providers who periodically dig drenches and canals by the roads should be asked to do their job responsibly.
· All private vehicles owners may take time off to take their vehicles to the work shop and have a check up and fix those sensitive spots like brakes, tires, wipers, horn, indicators and head lights.
· School authorities may deploy a few teachers in front of the school before and after the school hours to ensure that their children cross the road safely.
· School children should not be allowed to take two wheelers in the school compound.
· Parents may be given instructions not to let their kids travel by bikes.
· Bicycling to school is a good idea, but students need to give strict instructions to follow all traffic rules.
· School children should not be allowed to travel pinion on bicycles, and cycling to school in groups, at times, is dangerous.
· And parents who take their kids to school on their way to office must remember one thing. When they take two kids and their bags and baggage along, they are taking their whole life with them. Be careful and do not cram your two wheeler with more than it can afford.
· And parents, please don’t be over ambitious with your kids. Let them travel freely, let them play out, let them climb, run, go under sun and get wet during rains. This will do them good.
· The notorious school bags that include, Tiffin box(es), water bottle, even oxygen cylinders are a big problem to growing kids. Let these bags be small and handy enough to carry.
· Children may be given the freedom to walk up to their school if the same is located nearby say a few kilometers away. A street conscious student will grow healthier than comfort-conscious one.
· And finally we the grown up ones will have to (man)handle those eve teasers and female mongers who pry on growing school girls.
· Female police officer can be deployed in buses and bus bays and they may be given enough leeway to handle such menaces with iron hands.
· Political leaders and the so-called social reformers need to stay off the cases registered against traffic offenders.
· The police need to be pupil-friendly and public servants, and school children should feel free to approach them whenever their service is needed.
· The private bus operators who grease the hands of the police must understand one thing that they are playing with the lives of innocent kids and the great expectations of their parents.
· And finally, even if everything is said and one, the department of health need to stay prepared to manage any eventuality that may occur, of course, accidentally.
· All road users must remain calm and decent on the road and when they pass by a school, please sound horn, slow down and show respect to road using kids.

If we can do our due shares in this direction, a lot many accidents could be avoided and our children will enjoy better schooling this time. The education department is doing everything possible to keep the confidence level of kids at new highs at every new result, and it is the responsibility of the ministry too to make things work in such a way that this academic year is going to be free from accidents and accident related traumas.

The Parent Teachers Association, Teachers Assocations, students’ wings of political parties and all those ones who have a boy or girl studying somewhere need to be concerned about the well being of all the kids on the road.