The rules of the road are there to provide safety for drivers and pedestrians alike, and must be followed.

Within the space of 10 minutes yesterday, a journalist in this newsroom witnessed two situations that could have resulted in accidents. The first was on a roundabout. A truck on the left lane and a scooter on the right lane both entered coming from the same direction. As the scooter was turning right, the truck, instead of going straight on, also turned right, getting awfully close to the scooter as they both used the same exit on the right. In fact both vehicles had to come to a brief halt exiting the roundabout to avoid colliding. The truck driver either didn’t see the scooter who had the right of way, or was trying to get ahead. Around ten minutes later, that same journalist turned onto a road that was one way, only to find an e-kick scooter coming down the middle of the same road the wrong way just metres away.

No impacts occurred in either of these instances, but they could have, and both could have resulted in some form of injury. Situations like the above are how accidents happen.

We’ve all seen instances where cars tailgate one another, or vehicles keep driving onto a roundabout without a care in the world for vehicles coming from their right side already on it. Those are also instances where accidents can happen.

But aside from following the rules, one must also stress the need to keep cool and not drive aggressively.

Malta isn’t a large country by any means. It’s small. Yes, it’s traffic riddled, but driving aggressively or blatantly ignoring road rules will not get a driver from point A to point B much faster, but it does greatly increase the chances of an accident. It could also result in injury, not only to that motorist, but to others who are not at fault.

The traffic, coupled with the scorching summer heat is a recipe to make blood boil. It is something we must all deal with, but keeping calm and level headed is always the right move.

There are too many accidents on the road which can be avoided.

But there are also certain questionable traffic management decisions taken by the authorities which quite honestly make one scratch ones head. An example that comes to mind regards placing a zebra crossing right at a roundabout exit. One such example lies in Naxxar. It is dangerous for pedestrians. Granted, not many pedestrians walk where this roundabout is placed, but it is an extremely busy road junction for vehicles, and very often sees quite a bit of traffic at peak hours.

When a vehicle is coming from one direction to turn left, the driver would obviously be looking right to check for oncoming vehicles trying to find a moment to exit, with a long line of traffic behind them. Once they start moving they are immediately met with a zebra crossing upon exit. If a driver isn’t paying 100% attention and there is a pedestrian crossing, it could spell tragedy. Better planning is needed.