Careless drivers

Sometimes at peak hours, particularly in the mornings, I listen on my radio car the FM programme on traffic accidents. There was once a discussion between a resident and the programmer. The resident said that Addis Ababa has witnessed a gradual increase of vehicles these days to its brim. In reply, the radio man said that the number of vehicles in Addis compared to other cities of the world is insignificant. He tried to convince him by saying, “Do you know if all the vehicles are put together in this country, they would not be more than 128000?”
“Oh Gosh, said I intrigued, where am I standing exactly in such helpless situation?” But, the truth is, notwithstanding the interviewer’s world reality, at a time span which is not more than a decade and half odd years, the number of vehicles that circulates in a bright busy morning is, first of all, over and above the capacity of the existing good roads of the capital city. Secondly, the number of existing vehicles of all categories is over and above the capacity of the existing electrical traffic controlling system. Thirdly, it is over and above the controlling capacity of the deployed traffic police. And I concluded this is really a sign of progress, an increase of national wealth, and a promising ground for further material development, despite its negative picture.
Proudly, the city’s development has continued to unravel. Proudly, the traffic police are deployed at an increased rate and with a manifested skill and swiftness, too. Yet, there is plenty of room unlike the programmer’s view, to admit that the number of vehicles for the existing improved Addis roads is beyond what they could entertain.
Surely, determination of the notion that whether the number of vehicles circulating in Addis is minimal or not depends upon the completion of all road expansions and the upgrading of all potential community roads. So, in the absence of that, the ratio between the increase of vehicles and the expansion of roads remains non linear. However, presently, one would not be mistaken to assume that the number of vehicles for the existing roads of Addis is overflowing and beyond the capacity of the existing roads.
It is in these vivid circumstances that careless drivers are hatching and want to play the mouse and cat game by escaping in disguise after causing accidents. If there were not such drivers and sometime arrogant pedestrians, accidents would have been minimized. You should not be surprised to find in town vehicles that circulate without brakes the next morning the annual vehicular inspection takes place.
Yes, sometimes one finds the Old Airport road, or the Megenagna, the Bole or Ourael intersections as crowded as the streets of some other similar sized cities of the world at peak hours.
So, will it be unfair for the average citizen to say that there are plenty of vehicles in Addis Ababa more than the existing capacity of her roads accommodate; or will it be fair to say the existing number of vehicles available is insignificant as compared to other world cities.
I recall the sufferance of people some good years back when there were no enough taxis in the city due to the then prevalent condition of the country. For me, for sure, the Addis Ababa roads are full of vehicles that could be comparable with any city of equitable size and I do not wish that this city were to overgrow her size in the deployment of useless and reckless taxis and aged environment hazard vehicles. However, in comparison of the old and the new scenarios of Addis, I wouldn’t mind if the roads are overcrowded with efficient public transportation means that crisscross the entire intersections of the city for twenty-four hours on end that would tempt everybody to do away with one’s outdated car.
Notwithstanding, over sizing is an easy invitation for abounding careless drivers who really want to escape facing the reality and who prefer to bump your car or knock a fellow and run away from your site and from that of the law enforcing bodies. These are such drivers amongst us, indeed. One cannot provide an overnight solution to such a problem but only through time and self awareness of the higher values of society.
Surprisingly, just a few days back, a white Mitsubishi-Lancer automobile bumped a friend’s car on Bole road in front of Getu Commercial Center and went straight past everybody to the Greek School to drop the occupants. The slightly bumped car driver followed him till the intersection of the school by already making aware the traffic man on the spot about the incident and waited for him there in the hope he would come and talk to him; but, as he saw the damaged car he took another detour and drove away. Fortunately, the plate number is available for record. The man was there waiting for the offender not to claim damage as it was slight, but, to tell him in the face that running away from reality is not a profiting game in a world where justice predominates contradictory personal motives much less intentions of careless drivers.