13 Jun 2018

Department of Road Transport and Safety has condemned the behaviour of some pedestrians.

Speaking in an interview during the Pedestrian Campaign at Bus Stops in Mogoditshane on Saturday, Ms Tendai Lisenda said some road accidents that involve pedestrians are caused by pedestrians’ misconduct.

She said 30 per cent of road accidents happening in Mogoditshane involving pedestrians are attributable to the use of cellphones.

Ms Lisenda said most pedestrians have a tendency of walking besides or crossing the road while talking on the phone, texting, listening to music using headsets or crossing the road slantways.

She said the campaign was meant to sensitise pedestrians on these matters, adding that pedestrians should use their senses of sight and hearing when they cross the road.

“If a pedestrian is crossing the road listening to music, they kill their sense of hearing and as a result they will not hear any sound that could alert them somehow,” she stressed.

Ms Lisenda said likewise, a pedestrian who crosses the road while texting concentrates more on the phone and would not see oncoming vehicles.

She also said crossing the road diagonally takes longer and puts the pedestrians’ lives at risk.

She said the campaign also targeted pedestrians crossing the road from one bar to another along the Gaborone-Molepolole road.

She cited the portion from Mogoditshane to Metsimotlhabe as one hot spot as there are bars, which are close to the road and are opposite each other.

Ms Lisenda said pedestrians also put their lives at risk when they are drunk, revealing that statistics show that some accidents happen near bars.

She thus encouraged pedestrians to stick to one place and refrain from crossing the road time and also put on bright coloured clothes during the night so that motorists could see them well on time.

The campaign was a joint effort of the Mogoditshane-Thamaga Sub-district road safety committee, the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund and Kgalagadi Breweries Limited. Ends