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One wonders if many of the drivers spotted texting while driving daily on Bahrain’s highways and back lanes realise the danger they put other people and themselves in?
Every day, I glimpse literally dozens of drivers looking constantly down at their phones while driving at nearly 100kmph on the highways – or on small, congested lanes in congested neighbourhoods.
They don’t seem to grasp the notion that the vehicle they are in could cause a fatal accident while they try to message, or reply to, someone. Even if a car is travelling at 20kmph, a split second is all it would take for a distracted driver to hit a child, a pedestrian, a cyclist or another car – or even, plough into the side of a building.
I understand there are strict laws in place against the use of mobile phones while driving. But, on the evidence I see on the roads every day, people just don’t seem to be bothered about the fines they might collect or the death and destruction they could cause because of their stubborn need to communicate while their car is hurtling along at 80, 90 or 100kmph.
Perhaps the threat of a bigger penalty – such as an offending driver’s licence being suspended or revoked; or even a brief detention – might alert these people that, by indulging in what they seem to think is a harmless switch of attention from the road ahead to their mobile phones, they could end up in serious trouble with the authorities.
Please wake up and smell the danger, folks. You can always reply to a text or a phone call when you reach your destination.
Do not put innocent lives at risk simply because you think you can multi-task while driving. When you’re behind the wheel of an automobile, your sole focus should be on the road ahead as well as your surroundings.
A very concerned and irate citizen
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