THE ROAD LEADING TO DEATH

Three dead, nine injured ... The passengers of the Ford Transit minibus, which was travelling from Baku to Sumqayit on the morning of 17 September, were not destined to reach the destination. Someone lost their health and someone their life.

The tragic consequences of the minibus accident on the Baku-Sumqayit road reminded me of my long-standing intention to analyze the causes of this sad situation on Azerbaijani roads.

Many lessons from one accident

Immediately after the terrible accident on the Baku-Sumqayit road, officers of the Ministry of Transport and traffic police began raids. Inspectors demonstrated with admirable zeal to journalists invited beforehand how they dealt with offenders of passenger transportation rules.

During the raid, 10 drivers, who were involved in the illegal transportation of passengers and did not have relevant documents, were fined, and their minibuses were sent to the penalty area. As a result of skirmishes between drivers and inspectors, several people were arrested and taken to the police station.

At the same time, on video footage from the scene of raids, drivers claim that the Ministry of Transport employees themselves are not interested in liquidating illegal transport because they regularly collect bribes from them.

As was expected, the Transport Ministry denied the incident. The representative of the Ministry of Transport, Vuqar Nuriyev, noted that this minibus had nothing to do with them. "The minibus that caused the accident was engaged in illegal passenger transportation," he said, urging residents of Sumqayit not to use minibuses that do not have licences. According to his logic, before boarding, each passenger should ask the driver for his licence, although experience shows that the licence does not guarantee safety on our buses.

While transport workers were busy identifying illegal carriers, another minibus of the same brand crashed into the iron railing near the stationary traffic police post in the village of Navai in Haciqabul District. According to news agencies, one more person was killed in a car accident on 18 September.

What is happening?

So, there has been another traffic accident, another terrifying scene, casualties again, and, unfortunately, these are not the last casualties. According to the Main Traffic Police Directorate, in 26 years - from 1988 to 2014, 69,622 accidents were reported on the roads of Azerbaijan, which killed 24,537 people, and 77,457 people received injuries of varying severity.

Of course, no one in the world has yet been able to bring the number of fatal road accidents to nought. But it is possible to prevent a number of accidents with the use of modern technologies. And there are enough of these technologies in Azerbaijan. But we will come onto that later. In the meantime, let's see how minibuses that bring death end up on our roads.

Judging by the results of the raids, dozens of unlicensed minibuses run on the Baku-Sumqayit road alone. Unlicensed means that they do not meet the requirements and in many cases, are life-threatening. Furthermore, the drivers of these vehicles, as a rule, either do not have the appropriate category or a driving licence. A medical examination before they hit the road is out of the question, not to mention the cases when they drive buses drunk?!

Consequently, there are many reasons for traffic accidents and the relevant authorities simply cannot but be aware of them. And they themselves do not deny that. Then how come these minibuses have been illegally carrying passengers for so many years?! Did such a number of buses evade the watchful eye of transport inspectors of whom there are so many on the roads?! Maybe the drivers of illegal minibuses are right when they claim that inspectors themselves patronize them for a price. According to them, even when those seeking a licence comply with all the requirements, they face masses of problems, which is why they prefer to work with illegal payments.

It is no secret that it is because of these reasons that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev handed over licensing of taxis to the ASAN service. "There are serious violations in the transport sector. People are tormented and face unreasonable demands. We have already transferred part of this sector to the ASAN xidm?t service. In the future, ASAN xidm?t standards must be used in all areas," the head of state said at a meeting on economic issues and preparation of the state budget for 2016.

It is known that the country's president pays special attention to the improvement of road infrastructure and transport services. This is proved by new roads, bridges, flyovers and road junctions throughout the country, modern buses and taxis, which we see on our roads every day. And the creation of the ASAN service at the initiative of President Ilham Aliyev is considered a revolutionary step in ensuring transparency in many areas.

However, the accident on the Baku-Sumqayit highway showed that not all officials are interested in this transparency - after all, fishing in troubled waters is easier. The raids conducted after the tragic accident revealed connivance on the part of entities that themselves are responsible for safety on the roads. And it must be said that even these raids are often conducted in violation of the law. Article 406 of the Administrative Code of Azerbaijan does not provide for the dispatch of a vehicle to the penalty area for violating the rules of passenger transportation or for lacking a licence. Moreover, Ministry of Transport inspectors have no right to do so.

Is it better to prevent or to punish?

In the case of the minibus that committed a serious traffic accident on the Sumqayit road, the traffic police had sufficient grounds to "imprison" this vehicle in the penalty area for life. And this applies to almost all of these cases, which, oddly enough, "escape" from the attention of Ministry of Transport and traffic police inspectors. They remember about them only after accidents or when it is necessary to invite TV channels for another raid and demonstrate their "uncompromising" attitude towards violators. 

A representative of the Ministry of Transport, Mammad Ibrahimov, admitted during a raid that most minibuses illegally carrying passengers were intended for the transportation of goods before they were imported into Azerbaijan. And only after that, were they converted into minibuses. This raises another question: how did these vehicles pass the official checkup at the traffic police?! Even if these vehicles were minibuses in their "previous lives", their current state clearly does not allow them to pass the necessary examination.

Suppose, however, that the inspection tag still adorns the windshield of the remade minibus in some illegal way. In what fabulous way are dozens of buses with gross interference into their design moving freely through the two stationary traffic police post on the Baku-Sumqayit road without attracting the attention of countless police cars on this road?!

And a look with the naked eye is enough for most of these vehicles to end up at the penalty area - there is no need for modern diagnostic technology the traffic police are equipped with.

Speaking of technical equipment. Today, all the major roads of the country and streets of cities are equipped with modern radars and cameras that allow you to record traffic violations. In addition, this year on the instructions of the president of Azerbaijan, hundreds of new BMW cars packed with radars, cameras, sensing units and other equipment were purchased for the traffic police.

According to logic, modern technology has to record most of the traffic violations, while traffic police officers can spend their time on traffic control and prevention of violations. This will also eliminate the human factor, in other words, disputes between inspectors and drivers, which sometimes end in serious incidents.

Meanwhile, in reality we are still witnessing a situation where a police car with a large number of recording devices stands somewhere in the shadow, while the inspector, following the old tradition, runs towards the offender with an outstretched baton.

Surely everyone is aware of the picture when traffic police inspectors, hiding around the corner, are waiting for the next offender. This phenomenon can be encountered every day in the centre of Baku - on Istiqlaliyyat, B. Sardarov, Sheikh Shamil and other streets. The driver who did not give way to a pedestrian will definitely be stopped and fined at the turn. This is how it should be. If you break the law - answer for it. But what is the guarantee that before the inspector hiding around the corner gets a chance to stop the car, it will not knock down a pedestrian on the unregulated crossing? Is it not better to be on duty in a visible place to prevent a possible violation?! It seems that the purpose of the inspector is not to prevent a possible accident but to collect as many penalties as possible.

Either way, it is better if a potential violator sees the traffic policeman before he can cause an accident, especially as there are a lot of drivers on our roads who are familiar with traffic rules only by hearsay. How they manage to pass the exam for the driving licence is a topic for another conversation. The worst thing is that such "steersmen", apart from everything else, do not even have an elementary driving culture. Even a fine does not scare such people.

Fortunately, regular raids by the traffic police really produce positive results. Today, drunken drivers and roadhogs who bothered citizens especially at night are encountered much less frequently. The view about the selective approach of the traffic police to drivers, depending on the social status or the presence of some patrons, is gradually fading away in society.

However, all these measures should not have the nature of a campaign. To prevent road terror, there is a need for a systematic approach. There should be everyday and real, not formal control at all stages - ranging from issuing driving licences, assigning relevant categories and conducting technical examinations to the issuance of licences for passenger transportation and medical examinations of drivers before each working day. Otherwise, what can we expect from a driver who got his driving licence or category for driving a bus in some illicit way?! It is no secret that today, at the wheel of the bus we can often see a young man whose age is hardly appropriate to the driving experience that is necessary for the relevant category. And if he is sick or drunk, and his vehicle is faulty, then obviously a tragedy cannot be avoided.

I think we should develop a more effective mechanism of assistance for relevant government agencies. For example, if a transport inspector is not authorized to send a vehicle to the penalty area because of the absence of the licence, it has to be done by a traffic police inspector due to a technical malfunction or changes to the design. The main thing is to ensure that the aim in itself is not to collect fines or pretend to be doing something.

And it would be better if road users displayed civil responsibility in the name of their own safety. It would also be a manifestation of patriotism, love of the country and people, of which we love to talk so much. To be a patriot, you do not necessarily have to fight on the front line, it is enough not to kill each other on the roads.

OPEN QUESTIONS

R+ is ready to provide the relevant bodies with the opportunity to respond to them

How come unfit minibuses illegally carried passengers for so many years?! Can such a number of buses get away from the watchful eye of transport inspectors?!

Most of the minibuses illegally carrying passengers were intended for the transportation of goods before being imported into Azerbaijan. And only after that, were they converted into minibuses. In that case, how did these vehicles pass the technical examination at the traffic police?!

In what fabulous way are dozens of buses with gross interference into their design moving freely through the two stationary traffic police post on the Baku-Sumqayit road?!

What is the guarantee that before the inspector hiding around the corner gets a chance to stop the car, it will not knock down a pedestrian on the unregulated crossing? Is it not better to be on duty in a visible place to prevent a possible violation?!