Letter: More controls for a dangerous weapon

Sir: I have waited for a long time for the slaughter on our roads to receive its proper media recognition, which is why I write to congratulate you on your full-page feature on car deaths. I have yet to encounter a better example of the 'dictatorship of the majority'. The reason the high incidence of car deaths is 'socially acceptable' is not only the fact that most people now own a car, but also that nearly every car driver has been involved in one or more 'near misses' that could have killed a pedestrian or cyclist. There is therefore a strong element of 'there but for the grace of God go I' about the manner in which the public view death on the roads. It also explains why judges are so lenient in their sentencing of those who cause death by dangerous driving.

I have thus far refused to own and drive a car precisely because it has become such a cause of death, injury and misery. Is it too much to ask for driving to be banned in all major centres of population? Restricting car drivers to the highways would, at least, restrict their homicidal tendencies to fellow drivers.

Yours sincerely,

Manchester

22 December