THE UNCERTAINTY OF LIFE
More people die on our roads than on the race track. But our innate vulnerability doesn’t always help us do the right thing…
John Fewings’ message regarding the death of a driver provides a good starting point for a discussion on the subject of road safety and the risks we run every time we leave the house.
Before the invention of the train less than two centuries ago, walking was the most common mode of transport. Even then, there was the risk of being set upon by brigands and robbers. The same applied to folk who travelled or horseback or by horse-drawn vehicle – they ran the risk of accidents of all kinds in addition the perils outlined above for pedestrians.
I say this to remind myself and my readers that we are, by nature, vulnerable and that one of the great satisfactions in life is also our capacity to deal with and minimise risks.
Look at our roads – it really is amazing that there are so few accidents! Millions of people leave their homes every day and get behind the wheels of cars, lorries, motorbikes and pushbikes. They’re all out there on the streets and roads together, all with different modes of transport, abilities, backgrounds and needs. So looked at as a whole, we have to conclude that everyday traffic is incredibly safe.
And that’s what fools us every time. In two ways. Firstly, terrible accidents affect us emotionally and wrench our hearts (and in this sense I am in complete agreement with John). On the other, however, we become convinced that we’re so safe that we don’t have to do everything in our power to stay that way.
I once sat on a road safety committee aimed at educating young people. I was continually asking them to point out to their local media, all those places in their local area with reputations as “fatal bends” or “crossroads of death”. Where these places exist, all we need to do is look at why they get those sinister-sounding names, modify the situation and then signal their dangers very clearly indeed. Unfortunately, that just doesn’t happen. Worse still are the things we remain indifferent to but which cause the deaths of dozens of motorcyclists and ordinary cyclists in cities alone: urban “furnishings”, signposts, signals, posts, trees, etc. of all kinds.
Everyone takes refuge in the speed limit issue. But that’s merely an excuse to avoid many other problems, Speed limits are necessary where required. But they are not enough on their own. Motor racing has proved this to us again and again: our race tracks have become very safe indeed for the simple reason that all dangerous obstacles are removed religiously. Then, there’s the imponderable: like the fate of poor Marco Simoncelli. The same imponderable as when a brigand jumped out from the bushes in bygone days and killed you for your bag…
PUBLISHED IN EDITOR'S CORNER BY ANTONIO GHINI ON 11.08.2011
Credit: Ferrari S.p.A. (www.ferrari.com)
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