Road rage must not stress city's fraught system

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Some ease in lockdown measures means we will see a trifle more people and more vehicles on the road. The State will not have much more respite, seeing that numbers are not going down. Yet it is important that with every little relaxation, or some ease, there is more caution.

One of the big issues here is respecting traffic rules as a few more vehicles get back on our roads. Our cops are sacrificing themselves in this fight, more than 10 dead should be a sobering reminder of just how big a price our warriors are paying in this war. The force is also stretched to maximum capacity, as they are needed in all sorts of capacity during this crisis.

This means there are fewer cops on the road, but traffic discipline should now fall heavily on the drivers. Emptier roads and less visible cop presence cannot and should not result in a free for all, with drivers literally standing on accelerators, cutting corners, and throwing all adherence to rules to the wind.

While this may not be in Mumbai, we are already seeing and reading about road accidents mowing down migrants. In SoBo, we had a very tragic incident, where a teenager lost his life after the car, driven by someone else, crashed into a stationary bus on Marine Drive. Do be especially careful as pedestrians are also not expecting too many vehicles and may tend to dash across the road, or saunter on the roads in the middle. You have a bigger responsibility than ever in these times.

Do not burden an already fraught system with the careless and callous flouting of road rules, taking advantage of seemingly invisible vigilance. This is time to step up, doing your bit for Mumbai. Coronavirus combat is not just for doctors, nurses, police or even politicians. Each one of us is a stakeholder and has to contribute in some way.

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