THE 48 hours to “hell on the highway” for an untold number of travellers, commuters and pedestrians created by the hastily and even secretly erected B1 speed reducers since last week is creating more problems than it was supposed to solve and is leading to public disgust that even took a turn in Parliament.
The first accidents were reported within the first 24 hours of the speed strips being installed. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages were already recorded during the past five days since installation, and the government still cannot explain how the decision was reached. The Minister of Transport, who did not waste time to implement the draconian traffic hazard, Veikko Nekundi, is now asking for more time to answer concerns.
What was supposed to be a safe pedestrian crossing solution created a plethora of brand-new problems. With this hastily thought-out plan, the ministry is directly contradicting its own law.
Under Namibia’s Road Traffic and Transport Act 22 of 1999 and Road Traffic Regulations, a “freeway” is a road where pedestrians, cyclists, animal-drawn vehicles, tractors, and low-capacity motorcycles are prohibited.
No walking on freeways: “No person shall be on a freeway on foot except…” The exceptions are basically emergencies, breakdowns, or official duties.
Furthermore, pedestrians now become blatantly arrogant in crossing and even demanding right of way, while drivers must literally come to a stop on a 120-kilometre-per-hour designated freeway.
