Dear Editor,

I read with interest a recent article about curbing drinking and driving. Though the efforts of the National Road Safety Council are commendable, it is important to note that the consumption of alcohol is not the only reason why accidents happen and lives lost on the road.

In fact, with booming technology, and the many applications available to the public, including Instagram, Twitter, and just basic texting, lives are being lost now because people refuse to put down their phones when driving. Accidents happen in a split second, and it takes more than a second to reply to a text or post a photo on social media.

Furthermore, one doesn have to be under the influence of alcohol to drive above a speed limit; speeding sometimes is a deliberate and calculated behaviour, where the driver knows the risk but ignores the danger. Most people would probably agree that going 100 mph is foolishly dangerous and will very likely lead to a disastrous car accident. The problem, however, is exceeding the speed limit by only 5mph in the wrong place can be just as dangerous.

Though red lights and stops signs were implemented to ease traffic flow they are often misused by impatient motorists as they blow through an intersection. Even worse, some drivers run stop signs without even realising it until it is too late. One way or another, car accidents caused by drivers that run a stop sign or red light are usually fatal.

We must move beyond our singular line of vision to broaden our scope to cover all reasons accidents happen and target those reasons. Fines should be implemented for cellphone use while driving. I recently heard on a news report in the US that a celebrity was charged with a DWI. I was shocked to hear that term because I had never heard it before. I am more familiar with a DUI (Driving Under the Influence). DWI, I later learned, means Driving while on Instagram. The celebrity was fined.

We have to take a no-nonsense approach to this and keep our roads safe for ourselves and our children.

Claudine McFerson

Kingston 8

cmcferson.876@gmail.com