The only way I was able to stay sane in the intense Indian traffic was to look away...staring ahead and seeing that there were multiple vehicles headed straight for us was so scary, I just chose to read my Kindle books on my iPad or look out the side window and watch the masses go by. India is filled with so many people...1.3 billion in a space smaller than the U.S....that I felt as though I was in a hive. Everywhere, everywhere there were tons and tons of people, whether in the city or in the countryside. And those people have to get around, and they do...on bikes and scooters and in cars and in trucks. And there is not enough road for all these vehicles, going various speeds, to fit. So, you are constantly passing someone and there is oncoming traffic and there are blind curves, but this does not deter your driver from marching right ahead.
The good news is that drivers in India are not Americans. The honking going on there is for courtesy, to say, "excuse me, I am about to pass you, okay?" with an answering honk for "okay!" . Traffic moves over to give the driver more room to pass. Oncoming traffic slows down and moves over so that you don't crash headlong into each other. People drive cooperatively. What an idea?
We Americans are in-your-face!-drivers. We are agressive and competitive. Indian drivers are not. They are polite and work together to make the roads work. This was a big eye-opener.
Whole families of 5 or 6 people all sit on one scooter, helmetless, and zoom by. Women in sarees sit sidesaddle behind their husbands, nursing babies on SCOOTERS! It is scary to watch. Thank goodness we didn't witness any accidents, though we did see the aftermath of a couple.
I think we could learn some patience from these people, though I don't wish the driving conditions on anyone.
Sounds like Africa too! Lots of people on not very many roads!
Posted by: Margaret | Saturday, March 24, 2012 at 05:32 PM