Safety Expert Harps On Traffic Rules

As schools resumed
from their second term Easter holiday on Monday, parents and guardians have been urged to obey safety tips while taking their children and wards to school.
A safety expert and Managing Director of Alasco Invest and Safety Company, Chief Opuda Alawari made the assertion in an exclusive chat with The Tide in his office on Monday.
Alawari said parents should ensure that they took their children to school and bring them back as well if chanced, and should always obey road traffic rules and regulations as well as observe traffic drill before crossing the road on foot.
He reminded them not to phone, read or send text messages while driving, so as not to distract them or lose concentration, pointing out that some parents are fund of phoning behind the steering.
The safety officer also enjoined children not to play on the motor road, fight or pick items while crossing the road to avoid being knocked down by on-coming vehicles.
According to him, where necessary, they should be guided and assisted by their parents or an adult while crossing the road, stressing that they should not cross the road between parked vehicles at a curve or corner, intersections so that the on-coming driver would sight them from far and avoid risking their lives.
He opined that children should walk on the pavement, where provided, facing on-coming vehicles so that they could see the vehicle coming and avoid any contact, while those between the ages of three and 12 must always sit strapped in the back seat.
Alawari harped that on no account should children cross a road at end of the crest of a hill, between moving vehicles, appealing to the authorities to ensure safety of children at all times.
He also advised drivers to always obey traffic rules and regulations, stop at zebra crossings to allow pedestrians and school children to cross, and enjoined pedestrians (school children) to use other zebra crossing or bridge when crossing the road and always walk on the left hand side of the road for visibility and safety on the road.