 Press reports suggest that Moscow is getting serious about increasing the pressure on miscreant drivers to the point they have to mend their ways or face immensely higher fines or even jail time.
For example, the Moscow Times reports that as of Jan. 1, 2008 the fine for running a red light will increase to 700 rubles from the current level of 100 rubles, while breaking the speed limit by more than 60 kilometers per hour will cost offenders 2,500 rubles, or about $100, and can also mean a license suspension of six months. Even the penalty for driving without a seatbelt escalates to 500 rubles from 100 rubles.
I am not one to suggest that Kyiv follow Moscow's example on most issues. However, there are times when Moscow seems to have it right, and we in Kyiv and perhaps throughout Ukraine should pay attention and consider following suit.
It is not uncommon while walking down the sidewalk on Kyiv's main streets to be faced with the sudden appearance of an oncoming car traveling at 10-15 miles per hour or more. Even more frequently a sidewalk pedestrian may be faced with a car coming up behind and impatiently honking its horn to suggest that the car should have the right of way over the pedestrian. Appealing to a traffic policeman, should one be lucky enough to spot one, is most often a useless exercise.
As the number of cars on Kyiv's roads increases and the traffic gets heavier, driver conduct seems to be in constant decline. As one is sitting stopped in a traffic tie-up, it is becoming quite common to see one of the auto-mastodons, usually a Mercedes or a hulking SUV, suddenly swerve into the opposite traffic flow lane and rush at breakneck speed to get ahead of the mere mortals following the traffic rules.
All this, of course, raises the question as to whether or not stricter law enforcement and higher fines would make any difference in the deteriorating traffic conditions. Certainly, traffic policemen would have to be retrained to better understand their role, and they would have to have leadership that backed them up and did not feel it necessary to pander to every petty politician - and the politician's wife, son, bodyguard, etc.
It is true that currently Moscow traffic is much worse than Kyiv's, and that is all the more reason that Kyiv should begin the process now, before our traffic conditions deteriorate to mimic Moscow's utter traffic chaos.
It will be interesting to see just how much luck Moscow has with its new standards that reserve one of the highest penalties for those driving with no license or with their license under suspension. Anyone suspected of driving drunk under either of those circumstances and refusing a blood test would get an automatic jail sentence of 15 days.
Kyiv traffic today is terrible and getting worse on a daily basis. As the city's population and the number of cars continues to increase at a dramatic rate, we suggest that the time has come to get the situation under control before we wind up with Moscow-sized problems.
Jim Davis is the editor of Ukrainian Observer Online.
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