In an interesting move, the Traffic Department issued guidelines on Wednesday that outline the responsibilities and liabilities of rent-a-car and rent-a-bike users. Besides rash driving, the police are of the view that the tourists' unfamiliarity with Goa’s landscape and tightly-knit road network is leading to accidents. A set of 10 road safety regulations have been issued for agencies of rented vehicles to distribute to their clients seeking a signed copy of the pledge at the time of handing over the vehicle.
The ten points in the undertaking are elucidated in simple language with corresponding information on the quantum of fine liable to be paid for a particular offence. From an awareness perspective, and for the discerning and law-abiding tourist this could be a classic ‘roadmap’ while on the roads of Goa. The question is, what’s new in that handout? Because traffic rules are anyways uniform across the country and as clear as daylight. A tourist, especially one who takes a vehicle and has a licence, by default, has to know what he/she can and cannot do, and what are the penalties for road offences. Goa is not a special case.
Taking an undertaking from a tourist that he/she shall not violate a traffic law, or, will not drive under the influence of alcohol, or won’t use a cell phone while driving, etc will in no way guarantee they will follow that protocol. The vehicle owners have been doing all of this consistently, besides taking a written undertaking on liabilities and fines.
The tourists are not ignorant of the consequences of rash and negligent driving, damage to vehicles or the penalties of violating rules. But still, they go full throttle because of the vibe that Goa is giving as a party destination. Let's be honest; Goa, tourism, parties and alcohol are interlinked and form an inseparable and a perilous combo.
Unfortunately, the traffic department understands all of this but continues to treat this issue with kid gloves and soft approaches knowing well that these are superficial. While there may be less than 25 per cent of rented vehicles involved in fatal accidents, the recklessness with which tourists have been taking the roads has been a constant nuisance and worry to motorists.
Superintendent of Police (Traffic) Rahul Gupta admits the user negligence but attributes accidents to the unfamiliar road terrain that the tourists fail to navigate seamlessly. That brings us to the point that tourists need better signboards along roads. Is it? Consistently soft-pedalling this issue and not addressing it in its totality is not going to yield results. Transport Minister Mauvin Godinho’s move of enforcing speed governors for all commercial vehicles and introducing 90-odd AI-monitored CCTVs are welcome steps but have to be taken seriously.
In a rusty system which is always resistant to change, one needs a giant-hearted effort and a resolute intent to drive that transformation. The problem here is, rented vehicles are a minuscule part of a bigger problem. Statistics show that the majority of the accidents involve local vehicles, an area where understanding the topography of the State does not come into the picture at all.
It may be unfair to shift the entire blame on enforcement, given the reach of traffic police, nonetheless, it becomes central to the plan. Issuing such middle-of-the-road guidelines will not help the situation Goa is grappling with.
