Menacing kids on bikes

A new menace has arrived in Rawalpindi streets, the kids on bikes. They love to pick up and swing around in the air these metal things with handlebars before slamming them down hard on the ground.

“Anyone unfortunate enough to get in the way would be seriously injured. Most of their parents just look on indulgently, without any attempt to stop them using what amounts to a dangerous weapon in a crowded place,” says Anwar Hussain from Fazal Town.

“Just yesterday, I watched in horror as a little gang of five young teenagers sped by on their bikes, giving pedestrians less than a foot of clearance. If any of the pedestrians had changed direction or put one of their hands out, they would have been seriously hurt,” says Nazakat Ali from Tajabad.

Razi Haider from Butt Market says, “One kid took on an elderly lady, carrying two bags of shopping, who was walking with her daughter. How the kid ever managed to get between the two defeats my imagination. The slightest movement by them would have caused an accident.”

“It's scary and intimidating for people who are walking - they can't see these scooter riders coming up from behind. Old people and the disabled are particularly vulnerable. Elderly people can't always hear them and they certainly can't be expected to move out of the way in time.

“There are times when we are chatting to friends without realising that someone is swinging a heavy, metal object very fast and right behind us. I think these metal bikes should be banned in crowded public places, as they are not kids' playthings and can put someone in hospital,” says Abbas Tabish fro Shah Khalid Colony.

“Even the adults should ride the bikes slowly, sensibly, and with respect for others, not head down at full speed like the kids. If they don't realize that over speeding is dangerous, selfish, and illegal, perhaps they don't have a whole brain,” says Hussain Ali from Mangraal Town.

Nazar Kazmi from Faisal Colony says, “It isn't just kids who can be a menace with them. In my area, a grown-up man went beetling along somewhat empty road lost control and ended up going head-to-head with a concrete lamp post. He didn't survive.”

“These bike kids are a nuisance where I live. It isn't too uncommon to see them ride to school on the bike, for no other reason than to look cool,” says Tasneem Qazalbaash from Gulzar-e-Quaid.

“This problem needs to be addressed. I see several 5 to 7 years children riding up to the market on tricycles. Bike kids are threat to them as well,” says Nadia Syed, a resident of Airport Housing Society.