14 December 2021
Lindie Dube
Drivers have been warned to be more cautious on the roads as the festive season is upon us.
Many lives are lost during this period as travelers head for various directions to spend the festive season with loved ones.
A statement released by the Zimbabwe Replublic Police reports that
“The police warns drivers against proceeding through red robots and in the process cause accidents.
This follows a serious accident which occurred on 12 December in the evening at the intersection of Samora Michael Ave and Samuel Muzenda St in the capital in which two vehicles, an lsuzu Como and a Honda Fit, collided.
Gift Chinodo Mlambo (24), who was driving the Honda failed to obey traffic lights, and drove throught a red robot.
Mlambo’s vehicle veered off the road and crashed onto a Civil Court building at the intersection.
According to the Zimbabwe Republic Police as of the same day law enforcers have arrested ’11 334 of arrests motorists fitting vehicles with dangerous bar headlights across the country while the arrests under operation “No to touting” stands at 28 173 since commencement at the beginning of the year’.
The Traffic light signals read,
STOP on the RED; You may go on the GREEN. You may follow the GREEN ARROW.
Approach the traffic lights with caution on ORANGE and be ready TO STOP, and when approaching a traffic light signal, drivers should always make sure they are in the correct lane for the course one wishes to follow, and be prepared to bring your vehicle to a gentle halt.
It is said in recent years in Zimbabwe road accidents have been attributed to speeding, overtaking error, not giving way, following too close, reversing error, negligence.
Of late many drivers who use automatic powered vehicles have had a tendency of driving without a driver’s licence.
Some drivers, before the introduction of the computerised Learner’s Licence Test, used to bribe for the learners, thus many drivers are not privy to the road rules.
This has led to a serious flouting of road rules, such as parking right in the middle of the road with hazard lights flashing. Of late proceeding through a Red traffic light has become an ‘in thing’.
This has contributed to many accidents at traffic lights intersection.
To try and curb the number of road accidents a system should be put in place that will strip the driver off their licence and a custodial sentence meted to the offender. The situation is exacerbated by corrupt police officers who are still pocketing bribes from offending motorists.
It is unfortunate that when the courts allowed police to use spikes on motorists instead of traffic offences going down rather corruption by some police officers has increased.
“Police officials should receive training on the impact of road accidents on society and public health in order to have a better appreciation for why their job of enforcing traffic laws is so important”. Observed a motorist who was involved in a car accident.
Road markings need to be clearly revamped and potholes fixed.
Meanwhile, the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) was on Sunday forced to temporarily suspend toll fees collection after a haulage truck crashed Esigodini tollgate injuring two employees.
The incident plunged the tollgate into darkness as infrastructure was destroyed.
With the festive season upon us, the ZRP needs to ensure that only those police officers who are keen on curbing road accidents and restore sanity on our roads are deployed in the traffic section.
Road traffic accidents costs heavily and loved ones are lost