|
re:
Valmiki Faleiro's:
Goa’s appalling road
sense
Maximus Aureluis
TGF:[ We at TGF are not
impressed by those who write from what appear to be the shadows of
pseudonyms. We make an exception on this occasion as we found this
response interesting. Apart from spell-check, this post is published as
received]
I am indeed
concerned when people with some level of journalistic ability make
allegations that are based on perception and observations (and a bit of
web based research) rather that with any factual basis. As in the past I
have aimed at providing through your website a forum for responding to
the critics of a paradise on earth that I call home. Mr Valmiki seems to
take the cake for the criticiser of the year like a true Goan waiting,
willing and wanting to point the finger at an area where he is neither
educated, qualified or experienced to make a professional assessment on.
First in foremost Mr Faleiro has chosen to group the three main aspects
of road and traffic engineering under a simplistic heading of "road
sense" before he began his barrage of criticism. These three faculties
of engineering generally deal with the design, construction and
management of road and traffic. In addition to this there is a totally
separate area of work which generally deals with the compliance and
enforcement of traffic...be it vehicular or pedestrian. These are
generally enforced and enacted through the legislative framework of a
country or state which Mr Faleiro has added to the mix to present a
hotch potch of observations.
Now back to Mr Faleiro.
In his article he seems to be confusing (and oscillating) between badly
designed constructed and maintained roads and the regulatory framework (ie
compliance, enforcement and regulation) that governs them. Indeed when
he illustrates with examples from his contacts overseas he seems to use
data to reinforce his point of view rather than explore that methodology
and basis of the outcomes. Indeed Japan has a lot less accidents per
capita than India but the data that Japan presents is for a 95% motor
vehicular population. India has a large percentage of accidents
involving cyclists which still make up for a bulk of our vehicular
traffic and are included in the 87,000 accidents o a comparison between
the two countries is not really valid.
Indeed the general application of the road rules is something that most
third world countries lack and this is because of the general lack of
education in these countries. The rules governing the road should be
taught at the school level to ensure these skills are imbibed at a young
age. Education is a major part of ensuring compliance of the regulatory
framework governing roads. Road Users need to be informed and educated
that the road is not a race track and fines for breaking the road rules
should be severe. Population growth in the last decade coupled with the
ever growing gap between the rich and the poor has resulted in two
classes of people one who think its their god given right to break the
rules and another who are that ignorant and don't understand the rules
in the first place. Mind you this is not limited to the road only. Mr
Faleiro trying to demonstrate how much he knows about the road rules is
certainly not going to solve the problem. I am appalled by the number of
Goan immigrants who seem to descend on Goa annually just for the right
to voice their criticisms about how bad things really are. Mind you a
majority of these people are generally sweeping floors and/or minding
service stations in western countries and have in no way contributed in
any way either to the transportation and/or road engineering practices
in these places. Choosing to drive a vehicle in any country is a vastly
individual choice based on how comfortable one is with the prevailing
road and traffic environments of these countries and if these people
feel like legal aliens on the road than that's just sad.
Goa has inherited a vast majority of its urban road network from the
Portuguese. The speed environment and traffic volumes (and traffic
mix)including predicted growth levels that these roads were designed for
were a fraction (and very disimilar) to what it is today. In addition,
the heavy rainfall periods that Goa endures annually have required on
going maintenance to ensure their performance levels are maintained.
This has not been possible because the technology and levels of
corruption have meant a compromise of the process. These factors have
subsequently resulted in a compromise in the safety levels of the road
driving experience. A number of these similarities have resulted in
Portugal having similar road and traffic related problems as is the case
with Goa
Goa has a generally a very low speed environment when compared with most
western countries. Generally an overall speed limit of 40km/h applied
with the current model cars is an imbalance. Most European and Japanese
cars are designed to accelerate to average speed limits in excess of
60km/h. This ability and a lack of adequate enforcement results in
drivers (especially younger drivers) making risky maneouvres on roads
unable to cope, thus resulting in accidents. One certainly cannot base
ones driving experience on the answers to series of questions that one
asks before making a road manouevre rather than sound design principles
that these faculties have been built on. Different classes of roads are
designed for different design speed limits and traffic volumes. This is
a field of engineering that takes into consideration sight distances
(stopping and overtaking) cruise speeds etc. Roads in Goa are designed
for a low traffic and speed environment. The current mismatch of what is
actually happening exacerbates the problem.
Traffic congestion and volumes is one of the major problems effecting
most urbanised traffic environments. Western countries are looking for
answers outside the framework of conventional traffic and road
engineering such as encouraging the use of public transport, encouraging
the health and safety benefits of walking and cycling and developing
intermodal combinations such as car/bus, car/train etc and other
sustainable transport measures. Restricting the use of cars within the
city centres and developing large car parking areas on the city fringes.
I don't believe all is lost for Goa although when reading some of your
writers contributions one would think its the end of the world. For
example Goa could exploit its waterways as a mode of transport aimed at
alleviating traffic congestion on the road. More sustainable transport
options could be explored and the development of a three pronged
approach focusing on education, compliance and enforcement could be
encouraged. Indeed Goa should look to the west for ideas and individuals
that are new and innovative to address these problems. I am sure there
would be a number of people from the Goan diaspora that have a
background in this field of knowledge.
From the Gladiator Chronicles
August 23,
2006
Back to TGF front page |
