A little over a year ago, I was taking my mother home after an event when my motorcycle’s clutch cable suddenly snapped.
It happened at Jawalakhel Chowk.
The bike stalled right in the middle of the road. I couldn’t move it because, without the clutch, I couldn’t safely get it into neutral. Cars, motorcycles, microbuses, and minibuses kept coming, each one having to swerve around us.
Less than 100 meters away stood a traffic police officer.
He could clearly see what was happening.
I wasn’t expecting him to fix my bike. I wasn’t expecting roadside assistance. I wasn’t expecting special treatment.
I simply expected him to do what I thought was part of the job: walk over, help divert traffic for a few minutes, and make sure two stranded people in the middle of a busy intersection weren’t about to become another road accident.
He never moved.
For nearly five minutes, we remained there while vehicles dodged around us. I couldn’t even ask my mother to get off because we were literally surrounded by moving traffic.
Eventually, I held the front brake, revved the engine enough to free the gearbox, managed to find neutral, and slowly pushed the bike toward the side of the road while weaving through traffic.
Only then were we safe.
That incident has stayed with me ever since.
Now, with all the recent discussions about stricter traffic enforcement, automatic fines, and increasing penalties, I think it’s worth asking a simple question:
Is the role of traffic police only to enforce the law?
Or is it also to help the people they’re sworn to serve?
Enforcement is important. We need rules. We need accountability. Dangerous driving should have consequences.
But public service cannot end at issuing fines.
If someone is stranded in the middle of a dangerous intersection, isn’t preventing an accident more important than documenting one after it happens?
Had a microbus or minibus failed to avoid us, I’m sure there would have been an investigation. Statements would have been taken. Insurance papers checked. Licenses inspected.
But wouldn’t it have been better if someone had stepped in before there was an accident to investigate?
This isn’t about blaming one officer. I don’t know what was going through his mind that day. Maybe there was a reason. Maybe there wasn’t.
This is about the culture we create.
When people see a uniform, they should feel that help is nearby—not just that punishment is.
Traffic police are often the first public officials present when something goes wrong on the road. Their presence should represent both authority and assistance.
Perhaps it’s time we rethink what success looks like.
Not just how many fines are issued.
Not just how efficiently violations are detected.
But how many accidents are prevented because someone in authority chose to help before it was too late.
Public safety isn’t only about enforcing the rules.
It’s also about protecting the people.
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