Every driver must be able to scan the road vicinity as they drive. This allows them to see potential danger and align their vehicle accordingly in terms of speed and position. Having said that, drivers must be aware that one’s vision on the road is compromised at night. What one can see clearly in the day may not be so at night.
Along the road and even right on your course lane, there could be impediments which can obstruct your journey, such as jaywalking pedestrians, stray animals like cattle, goats and donkeys. Pets like dogs and cats could also be prowling in the dark and dangerous enough to cause a driver a significant accident.
It is for that reason that this column calls for reduced speed at night to put up with any hazardous element or object while one is on the road. Some motorists in the way they drive, together with the unroadworthiness of their vehicles, may juxtapose themselves between your space and excessively speeding cars.
Stray animals in the dark
It has been recorded universally that most accidents that involve stray animals, cattle, occur at night. While the prevalence of stary animals cannot be underestimated on most major roads of the country, it is imperative to register how dangerous and even fatal they can be at night.
As alluded to earlier, drivers, in scanning their vicinity, can spot cattle away and ultimately steer their vehicles to circumvent such catastrophes on the road.
Sincephetelo MVA Fund has established cattle ranging and traffic monitoring programme along four major routes in the country being, Madlangampisi/ Msahweni Road, Mhlaleni /Nhlangano Road (MR9), Mafutseni/ Matsetsa Stretch (MR 3) and Traffic Circle/ Nhlane Royal Residence.
Principally, the duty of these foot soldiers is to parry stray animals off the road and further monitor other traffic challenges around their communities.
They are visible in reflective clothing and may be seen riding bicycles. However, this kind of assistance is not available at night, it would be dangerous for them.
Motorists should monitor their speed, lighting system of their vehicles and ever be on the lookout for animals in the dark.
In the event you knock down livestock
It would seem all livestock in the country bears ear tags, which when logged into the government veterinary systems connect such a beast to the owner. It you can, as a motorist, it is important to cut-off and keep the tag, which you can hand to the police officer for traceability purposes. If possible, it is equally important to remove the damaged car from the course to avoid further collisions in the same collisions.
The warning also goes to farmers to always ensure that their animals are enclosed in the barns and not have them stray onto the road, especially at night. Not only shall they be fined for letting them stray onto the road, but they shall also be liable for the damage that occurs to vehicles crashing into their animals.
Through their recovery programme, SMVAF has the right to collect the amount they would have paid to the injured parties because of the accident caused by the animals.
Take aways
- Reduce your speed at night, there could be stary animals on the road
- Watch out for any impediment in traffic at night and drive accordingly
- Respect the cattle rangers parrying the animals off the road for your safety
- Save yourself on the road – kill your speed
- Smvaf may recover money from farmers whose stary animals cause accidents on the road
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