Good Motoring
Ride high on safety
H. Kishie Singh

WHEN safety considerations are blatantly ignored on the roads then it is time for the government to intervene and protect the citizens against themselves. In the motoring world the mandatory wearing of the seat belts and helmets is aimed solely at saving lives. It does not come as a surprise that the Kerala High Court has put forward a suggestion for amendment to the Motor Vehicles Act. The High Court recommends that women wearing a sari should be prohibited from riding pillion on a two-wheeler. Surely a dhoti can pose the same danger.

The court has mooted the restriction in the context of road safety. The Central and state government have been told to consider changes in the Motor Vehicles Act. The court has said that women wearing a sari on a two-wheeler put themselves in danger as the loose end of the garment can easily get entangled in the wheels resulting in an accident.

As per safety considerations the pillion rider on a two-wheeler should ideally sit straddle but women wearing a sari can’t sit like this so it is all the more important to ensure that the required amendment is made to the Act.

It should be mentioned that India is one of the few countries where pillion riders are allowed to sit with both legs on the same side of the two-wheeler. This, in fact, is a very unsafe way to ride pillion and is not allowed in any of the developed countries.

Other than the sari end getting entangled in the wheel, a woman with her dupatta flapping in the wind, whether driving or riding pillion on a two-wheeler, too, is in danger. In most such cases the woman is generally unaware of the ‘flight of her dupatta’and oblivious to the danger it poses. Another point that the court brought up is that not more than one child should be carried by two adults on a two-wheeler. "More load would make the vehicle unstable and cause mishaps", the Bench said. Motorcycle manufacturers should also be instructed to provide handgrips behind the driver seat, the court added.

All too often we see two small children sitting behind papaji on a two-wheeler and trying desperately to get a grasp around their father’s ample waist. The best that the child can do is to clutch a fist-full of the fabric of the driver’s shirt. The little hands don’t have enough strength and the fabric can rip. The child is, thus, in extreme danger.

Another extremely dangerous situation that a two-wheeler owner creates for himself and the pillion rider is to cover the seat with a plastic sheet to save the original seat cover. This material is slippery and the danger increases manifold when woman pillion riders wearing a synthetic fabric dress sit side-saddle. There is no cohesion between the two fabrics. In the event of taking a sharp turn or sudden braking the vehicle usually goes into a wobble and this may be enough to dislodge the pillion rider.

There is a correct way to sit side-saddle on the pillion. The pillion rider’s weight should be on thighs and not on the hips. There is another safety factor that is usually ignored. Eye protection. It is common to see faces scrunched up and eyes half shut to protect against the wind.

Should anything fly into the eye, the rider will instinctively close eyes and this is the last thing that one would want to do while driving a mobike. In many developed countries eye protection, too, is mandatory. It is not enough to have a helmet visor is also essential. Eye protection is a must. Drivers and riders on our roads consider rear view mirrors to be unnecessary. One can see a lot of cars being driven with the outside rear view mirrors closed. These mirrors are often missing on two-wheelers. This means the rider has to turn his head to check the traffic behind him before making a turn. This is a dangerous move. It can destabilise the two-wheeler. It would be so much safer to use rear view mirrors. Here are some sobering statistics. Of the 122 persons killed on Chandigarh roads this year, 50 were two-wheeler riders while 89 were grievously injured. Think about it.

The Australian Traffic Police offer this piece of advice — Road sense is an offspring of courtesy and the parent of safety. Happy Motoring.