The video was shot by my friend, photographer George Haddad when catching a bus in the Nahr El Mawt area. The bus seems to be marked “15” on the windshield. Hopefully the driver can be located, as was the case recently in the US when a school bus driver was caught on camera by a student.
I’m also posting this because texting has become endemic on Lebanese highways. Sometimes it feels like every other driver is texting or scrolling when you look around in traffic.
The issue was raised last year when pop star Haifa Wehbe was cast as a spokesmodel for the much-hyped “Don’t text and drive campaign” organized with the help of a former minister. But with zero law enforcement proposals, the campaign seems to have amounted to little more than a publicity stunt.
So what is stopping the police from pulling over and fining such drivers?
I’ve written about bus safety in the past–also at issue are the open doors on buses even when driving at highway speeds. I wonder what our transport minister makes of all this. Does he have an opinion?
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Note: This cell phone video does no justice to George’s stellar photography work. See the link above and visit his Facebook page for great images.
