Written By Saleem Ayoub Quna

Despite the police traffic efforts and advice, motorists using the Jerash-Amman highway still insist on flocking the site where more than 20 innocent people lost their lives and many others became permanently handicapped. This behaviour could be seen not only as an expression of curiousity , but may be, also as a healthy indicator that those people want to learn more, to educate themselves on tha hazzards of reckless driving by making their own first-hand impression about the accident.

All parties concerned with the safety issue on the roads should take notice of this beahviour, make reasonable conclusions of it and try to turn it into a useful awareness raising tool. Some kind of a permanent reminder in the form of a gigantic bill-board or even a monument in memory of those who died on that sad rain day, could be envisaged to remind motorists that speeding is definitely not the shortest cut to reach home or work place safely.

Usually as time goes -by , people tend to forget. But to maximise the benefits of a hard learned lesson such as this one, a permanent visual and readable feature near the location of the accident could be just one simple, but effective step and an educational tool.

On the other hand, hundreds if not thousands of citizens (who keeps counting?) lost their lives on other national high ways in Jordan, such as the one linking Amman and Aqaba. Again, all concerned parties, including car dealers companies, could ponder the idea of erecting a series of electronic bill boards or sigh along that high way that keep reminding motorists and travellers of the casualities of traffic accidetns, thus indirectly challenging them to drive more carefully, if they want to avoid the same destiny or having their names added to the publicised long list.

Tobacco companies for example were forced by law to warn smokers of the risks they take when they smoke. Why not remind and warn some motorists that reckless driving habits can take their lives and those of others too?