A FEW months ago, Director of Public Security Gen. Osman Al-Muhrej criticized the Traffic Department for not being able to keep pace up with the progress achieved by other departments under the Interior Ministry. "Every department has developed and excelled except you," he told officials in charge of traffic. The biting criticism from the head of Public Security came after the traffic chaos in our country reached unbelievable levels. Those who live in Riyadh will come to realize that the criticism of the security chief was very mild, considering what is going on in the streets of the Kingdom's capital city. The director of Public Security would not have digressed from the truth if he had said the traffic situation not only had not progressed but in fact regressed. At a time Riyadh is witnessing an infrastructure revolution with new buildings and roads, especially the public transport project with metro trains and buses, we find that the Traffic Department has no control over the situation and is unable to strictly apply the law on violators. The residents of the capital city are facing tremendous psychological pressure when they go out on their daily commutes. They have to navigate through many detours created around flyovers and crossings for the construction of Riyadh Metro. They regularly bear with the rudeness of reckless drivers who are used to breaking the law. In the absence of deterrent punishments, these reckless drivers commit traffic violations without any sense of guilt or remorse. They jump traffic lights, drive in reverse gear or change lanes without warning. The long absence of traffic policemen from our streets has created a new road culture in society. People have become careless about traffic rules and can repeat the same mistakes again and again without any feeling of guilt. This culture has adversely affected the law-abiding people who on their turn have become bored with their adherence to the law and order. They have endured long enough the savagery and brutality of careless drivers. One of the provocations in our streets is drivers who will try to squeeze themselves between cars near traffic lights. They will also do this at exits or u-turns. They deliberately violate the system to be the first in the queue. The end result is total traffic chaos that will make the law-abiding drivers regret their idealism and respect for law. These sorts of traffic violations could easily be controlled or avoided if our traffic personnel were aware of their role. It would be enough if a traffic policeman stood near a traffic light with his ticket book in his hands to deter any driver from running the red light. Another example, which foreign media considers as funny and weird behavior in the Kingdom, is cars parked outside crowded restaurants and shops, blocking roads and creating total traffic chaos. Some people may blame our lack of traffic culture on the fact that we are not a civilized people in the first place but in fact it is the traffic department that should take the brunt of the blame because of their slackness to apply the law. When the traffic policemen refrain from applying the law, the logical result will be return of the jungle law of "the survival for the fittest". In our case, it will be survival of the rudest. The traffic chaos in our streets may further deteriorate if it is not checked immediately and properly. The statistics on traffic incidents are frightening. There is a road death every 40 minutes. People who are injured in traffic accidents occupy about 30 percent of hospital beds in the Kingdom. This is in addition to the property loss and insurance costs, which have doubled or tripled. The Traffic Department has proved that it is incapable of solving our traffic woes. Despite the repeated criticisms of this sector over the years, we have not noticed any change for the better. On the contrary, the situation has further deteriorated and our traffic problem has become bigger and bigger. In my opinion, the solution lies in the establishment of a specialized national company to register violations and increasing punishments. And the revenue from traffic fines then should go to the government budget. Such measures will restore order to our streets and find jobs for the thousands of unemployed Saudis.
