Cementing road safety message

A CEMENT lorry, especially one driven at a high speed, must be one of the most intimidating vehicles one can encounter on the road.

With its revolving drum containing tonnes of concrete, it is menacing enough to make a motorist tremble.

Even when empty, its sheer size can send chills down the spine of anyone in its path.

Many of us have seen these trucks barrelling down the road at breakneck speeds.

Apparently, these drivers are in a great rush because a load of cement can only remain in liquefied form for about two hours.

Many years ago, I witnessed an accident along Jalan Labu in Seremban, Negri Sembilan, where a cement lorry – also known as a ready-mix concrete or agitator lorry – laid on its side at a bend after its driver lost control.

The lorry’s cement-filled drum, which had become detached from the vehicle, rolled away into a stream.

Only God knows what would have happened if there had been an oncoming vehicle.

More recently, I saw another plough into the rear of a delivery lorry, which then crashed into another vehicle in front of it.

These lorries play an extremely crucial role in the construction sector but it is time the authorities rein in drivers and owners who keep violating the law, including spilling wet concrete on public roads.

One is almost certain to come across chunks of dried concrete along routes used by these lorries and this is a hazard to road users.

Mounds of concrete on the roads are accidents waiting to happen.

I am told that apart from overloading, wet concrete can also spill if a lorry driver brakes abruptly, makes a sudden sharp turn or goes up a slope.

In Seremban, one will come across such a scenario along several roads.

One such hotspot is the busy Jalan Labu Lama-Jalan Industri Galla 1 stretch.

Kudos to the authorities who cleaned up the mess there on several occasions.

Unfortunately, the problem keeps recurring.

Concrete lorries have buckets at the end of the discharge chutes to collect any spill but this has clearly been ineffective.

Some lorries have buckets which appear flimsy from wear and tear.

The rough and uneven concrete has also caused mishaps involving motorcyclists, leaving them with permanent scars and hefty repair bills.

It is time the authorities come up with more effective solutions to resolve the problem.

For a start, the authorities should instal high-resolution cameras along the most affected stretches to catch the culprits.

This is certainly cheaper than using public funds to repair the damage and resurface the roads.

Secondly, stern action must be taken against concrete lorry drivers who cause spillage and whose lorries are not fitted with a proper bucket.

Regular operations should be conducted with the authorities and immediate action taken, which include keeping the lorries off the road for a certain period.

Both driver and owner should be slapped with hefty summonses just like drivers and owners of heavy vehicles which overload, as they damage roads too.

And after all that is done, the lorry owner must be required to foot the bill to repair the road.

I believe the penalties for such offences are already provided for in the country’s environment, transportation and safety laws and all that is needed is tougher and continuous enforcement.

The authorities must send a strong message that they are not going to spend taxpayers’ money any more to resurface roads damaged by these lorries.

Cement this in their heads, then and only then we may have safer roads to drive on.