Horn Not OK Please!

Few months ago, i was travelling in my friend's car in Frankfurt and at a circular turn a car which was coming from the front honked. While i was wondering what message was the driver trying to give to us, remark by my friend Raman, that its for the first time more than 7 years that he has heard a honk surprised me. My own experience in Frankfurt was limited to driving cycle and skates and i dont remember ever been honked at.

Yes honking in Europe and specially germany is to give a message to someone and honking without purpose is considered a bad road etiquette at least. People who drive on road get their license after a practical exam and after training under supervision of certified trainers. I have seen some of my friends failing the test too and very few passed in first attempt. Needless to say everyone follows road etiquette to the latter and feeling of trust is there on road which leads to cars running at top speeds. Yes in Autobahns (Germany's highways) there is no upper speed limits and i have seen cars speeding at high speeds which i presume was atleast 220 Kmph (Because even the car in which i was sitting achieved a speed of 180 Kmph).

The Government takes intense care of the needs of public and no flight is allowed in night from 11 PM to 4 AM as it can disturb the sleep of the residents during these peak sleep hours. Also in Autobahns which are near to residential areas, an acoustic wall is provided which prevents residents from loud noise of the speeding vehicles.

As India is still currently in developing stage so the standards of roads can not be expected to match those of developed nations. We have recently constructed some good quality highways but by and large they are exceptions and not rules, nevertheless the user road experience can still be improved by regulating the driving license regime and making it more transparent and stringent. In my city Aligarh, it is not difficult to find people who always keep their hands on horn and press whenever they want. Worse still there are some young friends who drive at top speed with their horns always on. (Yes its very painful). I say with full confidence that if any of my German friend manages to drive for some hours in my city he will stop complaining about anything in life and would thank God for all the blessings that he has got :)

Too much horn creates noise pollution and makes it difficult for people to live. It leads to hypertension, ear problem, irritation and also is leading cause of rising road rage in India (My view). Indian government should put in place stringent norms for traffic including issuance of automatic challans on jumping red light and implementing wearing helmets mandatory. When person breaks a rule of not wearing helmets more rules are broken in sequence. So its also going to have a psychological effect on us.

The recent Maharashtra government initiative to remove Horn Ok might appear a meaningless initiative to some but for me a man who knows the values of ideas and symbols, its going to have a deep effect on driver psyche and make them realise that honking is for a purpose of warning and should be used sparingly. Besides too much honking leads to people ignoring honks and may lead to more fatal problems in case a genuine warning is missed.

Horn NOT Ok, Please!