The festival is around the corner and the highways and country roads will be this week filled with the exodus of 'balik kampong' as Malaysians take advantage of the long holidays and festive cheers.

And as usual, taking into consideration the bad driving habits of Malaysians, and the numerous unsafe road and vehicle conditions, the reports of highway deaths will fill the news.

The various efforts taken by the authorities in the past has only put undue strain on our uniformed men who have to sacrifice celebrating Hari Raya with their families as they man the highways to help avert or minimise danger on the roads.

Perhaps this year the government should make it compulsory for all vehicles to drive with the lights switched on day and night. This would help add a greater degree of alertness amongst motorists and also consciously make them take effort to drive more considerately.

Having the lights on also helps to promote better visibility given the fact that the days and nights are often of rainy weather these days. Further, this will also curtail the increasing number of motorists who do not seem to be bothered to switch on the headlights even when dusk starts setting in. It is not uncommon to find vehicles driving without lights at dawn and dusk when visibility is very distorted and hazy.

The authorities should also ensure that vehicles that have faulty rear lights are taken off the roads. Many drivers especially of commercial and heavy vehicles as well as motorcyclists seem to pay scant attention to ensuring that the motor's rear lights are in working condition.

And the local authorities and highway operators should also instead of giving out goodwill packages to road users, divert such funds to maintaining the roads by ensuring that the curbside and divider lines are re-painted so that these glow in the dark effectively.

Hopefully we do not end up with loss of lives and injuries on our roads this season again.