Growing elephant in the room
View(s):Over the years, Sri Lankan motorists have developed their own road rules, perhaps, as a response to the lack of road discipline. One such practice is the headlight signal—used not only as a warning but also as a demand for priority.
Drivers often flash their headlights to communicate, “Give me the way” or “I want to go first.” However, in countries with higher road discipline and greater respect for pedestrians, flashing headlights typically indicate a more courteous message: “Go ahead, I give you the way.”
A well-paved road in Sri Lanka.
Fines and bribes
And the road fines are too small, compared to those in other countries. There are justifications for that too. For some drivers, such fines should be “small enough to bear up” meaning they are expecting to pay moderate fines so frequently. The problem of this argument is that the road fine which is taken as a “licence fee” to engage in violating road rules promotes reckless driving habits and road indiscipline.
For others, road fine should be “small enough” to keep the bribe to the traffic police officers small. If the road fine is too high, the bribe would also be high as the two are positively correlated.
In fact, the cumbersome procedures to follow in paying fines encourage giving a bribe, which is easier and on the spot. The problem in this argument is that we are mixing up two problems to justify each other whereas the two issues must be addressed in separate domains.
Road accidents
Sri Lanka scores well in the number of road accidents – an average of about 25,000 a year, as reported by The Sunday Times two weeks ago on May 25. During the past few months of the year 2025 until May 21, there have been 1027 deaths from 964 fatal road accidents. Apart from that, there have been 1977 accidents causing severe injuries and 3995 accidents causing minor injuries.
If the country had a disciplined road network, many of these people would have still lived; many of the injuries would been avoided and unnecessary healthcare expenditure would have been saved.
A disciplined road network is much more than safety. Road discipline and an efficient transport system are not just indicators of a nation’s progress—they actively contribute to economic development. Yet, despite these alarming statistics, one question remains: why have successive governments failed to implement concrete plans to improve road discipline and establish a standard transport system?
Laws on documents
There are many laws written in the relevant Acts such as the Motor Traffic Act, aimed at maintaining road discipline and the driving conditions of the vehicle. But their implementation is limited just to a few such as speed limit violations. Many of the road rules do not seem to be implemented until and unless they have caused an accident.
Moreover, there is little to no consistent monitoring of vehicle road-worthiness, including essential components such as headlights, taillights, signal lights, unauthorised modifications, and carbon emissions. Seeing countless smoke-belching vehicles freely navigating the roads raises an unsettling question: has emission certification become merely a regulatory business venture rather than a genuine environmental safeguard? Even recent initiatives like the Clean Sri Lanka programme seem to have lost their initial political momentum within days.
Some other regulations often remain limited to signage, yet many motorists hardly take note of them. Furthermore, these signboards are frequently written exclusively in Sinhala, assuming that non-Sinhala readers are at fault for not understanding them—an oversight that affects road users from diverse linguistic backgrounds.
Count of votes
The primary reason governments hesitate to improve road discipline is political. While stricter enforcement of road rules would be a significant achievement including an increased revenue flow to the government, implementing such measures in a chaotic environment comes with challenges—and political risks.
For instance, enforcing road regulations would directly affect over one million tuk-tuks, which have earned a notorious name for indiscipline behaviour on roads, although they have become a vital mode of transport for many. How many votes would a politician lose if their election depended on those very drivers?
Moreover, road discipline cannot be enforced selectively—it must apply to all 8.5 million vehicles in the country, including five million motorcycles and over 100,000 public buses.
While some disciplined drivers may welcome stricter enforcement, the political calculus tells a different story. With 17 million registered voters in Sri Lanka, how many have direct ties to a vehicle? Given these realities, it is often politically safer to ignore this growing elephant in the room—even though doing so is far from the right decision, considering the country’s future development.
Political will
The rise of reckless driving and road indiscipline is more than just a societal issue—it reflects a deeper institutional failure fueled by a lack of political will, resulting in governance and administrative shortcomings.
As the country’s vehicle fleet continues to expand, the scale and severity of the problem will only intensify, as evidenced by past decades. Addressing this issue is crucial before such unsafe practices become ingrained in daily life.
A well-regulated transport system, backed by strict enforcement of road rules, offers far more benefits than just safety. A disciplined road network could have significantly reduced the number of traffic accidents, preventing countless deaths, injuries, disabilities, and infrastructure damage in Sri Lanka.
Moreover, improving road discipline could alleviate the strain on the nation’s healthcare system. A substantial portion of health expenditure is inevitably diverted to treating accident-related injuries—a cost that could be minimised through better enforcement and proactive policies.
More than safety
Road discipline extends far beyond safety—it serves as a catalyst for economic growth and prosperity. A well-regulated road network strengthens a country’s international image, fostering the expansion of business and tourism industries.
Efficient and organised road systems signal a thriving economy, attracting both local and foreign investments. Moreover, safe and orderly streets encourage tourism, generating revenue and creating employment opportunities.
Fewer road accidents translate to lower healthcare costs, a reduced loss of life, and minimal damage to vehicles and infrastructure. Smoother traffic flow enables businesses and workers to operate seamlessly, increasing productivity and contributing to national economic advancement.
Road discipline is not merely a standalone effort but a crucial component of a broader vision—a world-class system that draws people from across the globe for business and tourism. If Sri Lanka aspires to attain the status of a prosperous, developed nation, fostering globally recognised standards and instilling disciplined habits among its citizens will be essential.
Visionary leaders
Creating a First-World oasis within a Third-World region was a deliberate strategy that Singapore adopted in its journey to becoming a developed nation, as outlined in The Singapore Story by Lee Kuan Yew. Despite relentless efforts to enhance every aspect of Singaporean life and its environment, certain behaviours remained stubbornly resistant to change. Reflecting on the anti-spitting campaign he introduced in the 1960s, Lee Kuan Yew lamented, “But even in the 1980s, some taxi drivers would spit out of their car windows, and some people were still spitting in markets and food centres.”
This underscores a fundamental truth: establishing better societal habits is never easy, and meaningful change does not occur without consistent law enforcement. A disciplined road network, for instance, is not merely about safety—it serves as a foundation for sustained economic success.
Above all, consistency is key to transformation. Too often, we witness sporadic, ad hoc implementation of policies, which not only confuses the public but also undermines the fairness of law enforcement. When laws are enforced impartially and consistently, they become ingrained in society, and the public gradually adopts them as norms.
(The writer is Emeritus Professor at the University of Colombo and Executive Director of the Centre for Poverty Analysis (CEPA) and can be reached at sirimal@econ.cmb.ac.lk and follow on Twitter @SirimalAshoka).
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