Traffic Awareness and Guidance for Car Drivers

The questioner:
We have a call from Naif in al-Taif. Go ahead, Naif. Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings. First, I say . Is your question available to be connected? The distinguished scholar Shaykh Salih al-Fawzan, and also my brother 'Abd al-Karim al-Muqarn. Go ahead with my question. In fact, I have three questions, may Allah make them brief. Go ahead. The first question, Your Eminence, father, is it not obligatory and inevitable that there be an urgent necessity to implement an immediate traffic culture system to educate people about the dangers of traffic accidents, in accordance with the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic , and that there be, so to speak, a commitment from the competent authorities and also from the segments of local society. Thank you. Thank you.

The Shaykh:
My brother, there are traffic regulations, and praise be to Allah, but people do not adhere to them, or some people are not restrained by the traffic regulations. A driving license is not granted unless a driving test is administered to see if he is proficient or not. So there are regulations, praise be to Allah, but the issue lies in implementing and following up on these regulations. Yes.

The questioner:
May Allah reward you. Honorable Shaykh, from time to time we hear about these accidents, the reckless speed, and the loss of lives in these cars. Honorable Shaykh, perhaps you have some guidance for these people on the roads?

The Shaykh:
Yes, these people should fear Allah the Mighty and Majestic. Whoever is not skilled in driving should not do it, because he exposes himself and others to danger.
No one should take up driving unless he is skilled at it, and the license should not be granted except to one who is skilled in driving after his test. This is what the officials must do, and the drivers must take driving seriously; no one should do it unless he is skilled at it. This is the first point: not everyone who moves a car is fit to drive. The second point is that one must adhere to traffic regulations, because that is the cause, may Allah will it, of safety for him and for others. So one should not take up driving if he is not skilled at it, nor take up driving in a state that does not allow him to, such as if he is sleepy. Nor should he take up driving while preoccupied with something else, such as the mobile phone, the internet, or the like, because this exposes himself and people to danger. Nor should he take up driving and drive at a reckless speed, or a speed exceeding the permitted or required limit. Rather, he should adhere to the permitted speed limit, so that this is more conducive to preserving his own life and the lives of people. The driver of a car is responsible, especially if he has passengers, for they are in his care. He is responsible for lives, and likewise the oncoming cars contain lives. So he should fear Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and do the causes that ensure safe driving, and not be lax in this matter. Yes.