Road safety starts in school

ROAD Transport Department director-general Datuk Nadzri Siron disclosed that there are 18.8 million registered vehicles and 14 million drivers in the country, and his department is conducting a campaign to get 1.2 million eligible Malaysians without a driving licence to apply for them.

Last year, a total of 6,700 fatal accidents were recorded with 62% involving motorcyclists. Of the total, some 30% involved school students.

If we wish to ensure the public and next generation of Malaysians possess attitudes and practices that prioritise road safety and compliance with the law, then we have to start with lessons in schools and continue through colleges and universities.

Those who failed to observe safety norms and compliance with the law are not educated, regardless of the academic qualifications they may have obtained. All their religious or moral studies would seem to be superficial with no application in real life.

Reducing the number of Malaysians without driving licences and fatal accidents in the country are concrete measures.

The target for the Road Safety Plan 2014-2020 is to reduce up to 50% of fatal accidents, and success is possible when education and enforcement are redoubled, if not transformed.

YS Chan Kuala Lumpur