Nowadays, the demand for road safety is significantly increasing. A great number of individuals believe that the most efficient way to improve road safety is by introducing harsher punishments for drivers. Personally, I align with this view for several reasons.
Admittedly, there are also other ways to improve road safety. One of the main approaches is to teach pedestrians about road safety rules. In all accidents, the blame does not always fall on drivers; pedestrians also make mistakes. It usually happens because of a lack of knowledge about road safety rules. For example, many children sometimes do not pay attention to such rules; they may cross the road without using a zebra crossing or paying attention to traffic lights. This may, in turn, end up in an unfortunate situation. Therefore, to tackle these problems, teachers or parents need to teach or explain to younger generations about road safety rules.
However, I think it is better to impose stricter rules on drivers. The chief reason is that serious penalties can discourage drivers from breaking traffic laws. If the government enforces stricter traffic laws, which may even result in drivers who repeatedly violate traffic laws having their driving licences revoked, this can strongly affect drivers, and they may think twice before breaking a particular road rule. One compelling example is Uzbekistan. This country introduced legislation called the penalty points system. If a driver breaks a road safety rule, they receive penalty points. If the accumulated points exceed 12 within one year, the driver can have their driving licence revoked for at least six months. As a result, this newly established rule has helped reduce the accident rate in the country.
In conclusion, although educating pedestrians about road safety rules can play a crucial role in improving road safety, I think it is more important to focus on imposing stricter penalties on drivers.