In Romero this Wednesday there was a crash with a tragic balance / the day
Since January 1, around a dozen fatal accidents have been recorded in the City. NGOs and road safety specialists attribute the alarming statistics to the lack of control policies.
In this context and separated by a few hours in the middle of the week, two hit-and-runs on the public roads of La Plata showed a common denominator: the drivers who were taken ahead, in one case a cyclist who died and in another case a pedestrian who He was left with serious injuries, they fled after the impact.
Both episodes are just a couple of all the claims that have been recorded in the Region since the beginning of the year.
Pedestrians and cyclists are, in the traffic scenario, the most unprotected actors. And that is not only because the lack of a vehicular structure leaves a greater margin for the possibility of injuries, but also because the number of vehicles is constantly growing, and as noted by the entities that fight for a better coexistence on the road, debauchery is also increasing. and the unconsciousness on the part of the drivers of private cars, taxis, remises and buses. All this in a context in which the bicycle gains prominence at the same time.
The NGO Corazones Azules Argentina observes that the growth in La Plata of the use of alternative transport (bicycles, electric skateboards) is accompanied by an excess of confidence when driving in this type of mobility.
According to the opinion of the institution’s referents, “what triggers the risks of suffering road accidents are recklessness, not driving with a helmet, not respecting traffic signs, poor layout of pedestrian paths and a lack of correct signage in streets”. According to estimates by the entity, from 2016 to date, 24 cyclist deaths have been recorded in the City.
Also Blue Hearts counts the fatal events that occurred in the Region with pedestrians. They add, from that same 2016 until now, 63 people run over who died walking on public roads.
For the head of the NGO, Pedro Perrota, “a greater presence of the State is urgent.” And he also considers that “we are all responsible when we circulate in the streets and we must assume this role.” In this sense, he stated that the way to avoid accidents is “to work on prevention and road education.”
Along the same lines, the president of Estrellas Amarillas, Silvia González, evaluated the high rates of road accidents throughout the country. “La Plata does not escape this reality,” said the leader while maintaining that the situation with traffic “worsened exponentially after the pandemic” and stressed that in Argentina “the same thing happened as in the other countries where they were the quarantine restrictions are strong: fatal episodes due to traffic increased a lot”.
González, who pointed out that “January is being tragic” in relation to road accidents, stressed the need to accentuate “controls”, because, he said, “that is what is missing to prevent traffic deaths.”
The head of the national NGO celebrated the entry into force of the “zero alcohol” law, but insisted on the importance of the operations so that the regulations are complied with. “Now it is necessary to control its compliance and sanction it, because it is a dissuasive and preventive law, but compliance must be forced,” she added.
They promise controls
A source from the Municipality responded to the problem that was indicated with a balance of what was done in 2022, indicating that during the past year “they worked with the implementation of daily operations.”
Also, as anticipated, “it is expected to multiply controls throughout this year.”
In the same order of things, in the Commune it was assured, although without further precision, that “a series of important measures are being studied that will seek to improve road safety in the Party.”
It was highlighted, on the other hand, that in addition to the controls and the corresponding sanctions for offenders, work will be done “on awareness, education and road training.”
