JOIN USIf there’s one thing that seems impossible to do in this City, it’s telling people not to talk on the phone while crossing roads.
Most people agree that this is an issue that cannot be patrolled but involves self-regulation and a change in mentality.
“I have seen people use their mobile phones when they cross the roads, fully aware of the fact that the vehicles are moving at a speed of 60 kmph or more. They are not aware of the danger that they might be causing to the vehicles around them, not to mention themselves. What is pathetic according to me is that most of them are educated. Why would someone make a choice like that knowing the implications?” questions Soumya R, a
young professional, adding, “the calls can wait but life, once gone, is gone forever.”
Nivedita Ramakrishnan, a student, takes off on the same line of thought and says, “I see people talking on the phone everyday on the Indiranagar-Koramangala Intermediate Ring Road. The worst part is that they cross the road, without caring for their lives. I’m a biker and have had to quickly apply the brakes many a time because of such people — and following me, the cars behind have also had to come to a screeching halt. This usually leads to an argument or fight because the drivers of the concerned vehicles get out and create a scene, which adds to the traffic woes. The ungrateful person who was talking on the phone and whose life was saved usually slips away in such cases.”
“My dad drives a motorbike and he comes across lots of these people everyday while he goes to and from work. He says that they give him a mini-heart attack every time. Such people are only mindful of the conversation they are having; not the road on which they walk. Six years ago, both my parents were in an accident because of this,” she shares, adding, “I just don’t want to go and hit a guy!”
Even cyclists aren’t spared of the problem. “Being a cyclist, it isn’t just the traffic — which refuses to acknowledge anything smaller than a bus — that you have to protect yourself
from. You have to be extra careful of the pedestrians as well. Most of them have forsaken their ‘look right, look left, look right and then cross the road’ philosophy to the ‘stare at the phone and cross the road’ habit. Riding close to the footpath seems more hazardous than riding a bike in the middle of the road!” notes Suvajeet Duttagupta, who enjoys cycling whenever he gets time off studies.
At the end of the day, it’s a death trap that pedestrians love walking in to for some reason. And keeping the worse-case scenario in mind, a missed call is better than a missing limb.