Processing Creativity: Road Safety Tips

I think road safety is a topic which requires a lot of attention but strangely it has been ignored a lot. Road is a place which all of use and hence all of us have certain responsibilities towards it. It is a public place which we use everyday and our work is hampered even if we face a small problem in the roads.

If you think I'm joking then just assume a car accident in front of the road when you are late to reach the office on a Monday morning. I know you won't like to face such a dreaded situation and I hope nobody does but statistics are telling a different story.

If you still have any doubts check out the statistics for yourself and statistics never lie. ;-)

According to the statistics around 1,40,000 people lost their lives because of road accidents and another 5,00,000 people got seriously injured and became disabled. If you will add everyday accidents to this list, the numbers will reach at a staggering height.

So, the point that I want to focus here is why Road safety is important and I hope you take it seriously now as the numbers are increasing exponentially every year. These road accidents are spread all across the country, from metro cities to highways in small villages. The problem here is something deep, the problem here is about our thinking and our mentality.

What are the main causes of road accidents ?

1. Over Speeding - Most of the accidents that take place in the roads are because of the over-speeding. This is one of the basic reasons for accident. When we over speed our reaction time decreases and chances of our making an mistake increases. Even a small mistake in high speed can cause a very serious accident. Hence, people should try to drive in a normal speed as over speed could lead you to death.

2. Drunk Driving - Another prominent reason for road accidents is drunk driving. Many people take this thing carelessly. They think they can drive the car easily even when they are drunk but this turns out to be fatal.

There are another group of people who do drunk driving for adrenaline rush or for excitement. They are prone to met with accident because they also over speed and break the laws as well. Further, because they are totally not in command of their senses they easily met with accidents.

3. Breaking Traffic Rules - Most of the people obey traffic rules while driving their vehicles. If someone is not following the rules then he is going to met with accident as he will commit a mistake.

For example, Red light jumping is one of the most serious traffic offences. When you jump red light, you don't just break the law but put your life and other people's life in jeopardy as well because the people coming from other directions are going to come at high speed thinking that it's there turn to pass but since you broke the law, you will come and hit the car and both your life and other person's life will be in danger.

4. Avoiding Safety Gears - Avoiding safety gears won't actually led to any accident but it will increase the fatality of the accident. If you are not wearing a helmet then even a small accident could become fatal and lead to your death. Similarly, not wearing a seat belt could make a small accident very serious and could lead to loss of life.

5. Over taking - Over taking is always dangerous. People are told to do lane driving because it is safe. When you over take then there are multiple things you would have to keep in your mind.

Firstly, you would have to control your own speed and direction.

Secondly, you would have to keep a tab on the speed of the person you are trying to over take.

Thirdly you would have to check there isn't any other vehicle in front of in the next lane.

Hence, it becomes a tough job and failure to keep a tab on any one thing could lead you to death or a fatal accident.

6. Careless Driving - Many times we get distracted while driving which could lead to accidents. For example,

Using mobile phone while driving lead to many accidents. Similarly, talking with fellow passengers could also lead to accidents.Thinking or day dreaming could also lead to accidents.

# Ineligible or Inexperienced Drivers - Due to lack of checks many people who don't know how to drive properly get licences. Further, they drive fearlessly as law is not strict in punishing them.

Many parents allow their minor children to drive which leads to many accidents.

Steps to help Road safety in India

1. Drive at normal speed - Don't over speed your car as this is the main reason for most of the accidents.

2. Follow Traffic rules - Following traffic rules will help increase road safety and will save many lives. Simple things like obeying red lights and not driving from the wrong side will help stopping many accidents

3. Lane driving - If people will drive in the lanes they will automatically decrease the chances of accidents. Over taking causes many accidents and lane driving will stop these accidents.

4. Wearing Seat Belts - Wearing seat belts won't stop accidents to happen but it will decrease the fatality of the accidents.

5. Taking precautions - Taking precautions like checking safety equipment and parts of the car will help in reducing the accidents a lot. For bikers wearing helmets is a must.

6. Don't drink and drive - We should avoid driving while we are drunk. We should either let someone who is not drunk drive the car or should take a cab ride back home,

7. Don't be on phone while driving - Being distracted while driving causes many accidents and if you are on phone then the chances of accident increases because you are distracted.

Nisan Safety Driving Forum (NSDF)

This year NSDF will reach 8 new cities and effectively reach to around 2 lakh people. Compared to previous year, NSDF has seen 126% growth in sensitization towards wearing seat belts.

Nissan safety driving forum also does live stimulated experiences to understand how safety features function through a simulated car crash.

"Under its Blue Citizenship CSR umbrella, NSDF by Nissan works to build awareness of safe driving in India. NSDF encourages drivers and passengers to wear seat belts, and participants learn through interactive activities the importance of wearing seat belts."

NSDF is promoting these Road safety tips using some really cool and trendy posters. Here are few of them -

DRIVE SAFELY