And if anyone is able to achieve it, he or she has done more than what Obama has done to preserve peace in world. I bet even Gandhiji would have given piece of his mind had he driven cars in his lifetime.
More I drive my car, more I realize how senseless pedestrians (and two wheeler riders) are in India.
I have broadly categorized pedestrians in India into four categories. Have a look at the following graphic
1. Category RED - illiterate - people from villages:
People from this category are scared of vehicles and hence want to cross the road in minimum time. To do that, while crossing the road, they will run as fast and as straight as they can. And because they are scared of vehicles, they will always make sure that there are no vehicles close by before they start their sprint. Because of this, they are best road crosser and hardly irritates drivers. If you are driving cars, you will not even see these kind of people because they will never cross the road if you (a car) are around. You need to be on your building's terrace to see people of this category.
2. Category ORANGE - common man - middle class:
People like you and me. We want to follow road crossing rules but we also want to reach to our destination sooner than later. We start crossing the road walking straight and then, as soon as we realize that our destination is not exactly opposite to our starting point, we start walking diagonally. People from this category are irritating as they are on the road for a longer time which results in more confusion for drivers and more honking of horns. Also, the whole purpose of reaching to destination earlier is not achieved because they have to halt in between somewhere to let cars go by.
3. Category BLUE - educated class - upper middle, higher class:
People of this category are ALWAYS in hurry. They think that they are doing the most important work and everyone else's time is not as important as their own time. When they start crossing the road, they start in a straight line from source to destination (diagonal). They never care about traffic or anything else. They will raise one hand, assuming that vehicles have stopped they start walking. And if vehicles bang into them, they will start shouting and will scold you on how bad people are driving in India. How they have no respect for pedestrians. On road, these guys spend almost double the time spent by ORANGE category guys, blocking double the number of vehicles and increasing noise pollution to double of its value.
4. Category GREEN - educated class + (technology or children):
People from this category are most insensitive, ignorant and arrogant people. They are so busy that they will not even care for their own lives. These people are again higher class people having a need to be on mobile phones all the time. Or they are the moms with 1-3 kids and 5-6 shopping bags with them. They have learned so many things about everything else that they have forgotten how to cross the road. They never stop before starting to cross the road. But when they are on the road, they realize the traffic and they will come back. This continues till there is no enough traffic to bring them back. Think about the confusion they create for car drivers. They are crossing, they are not crossing.. what the hell? And usually when they come back, they will NOT turn around and then come back, they will still be facing at the other end but will start walking backwards!!
I hope people unlearn their "smartness" and stick to basics when they are crossing the road. While crossing roads, walk straight (perpendicular to road), fast and make sure there are no vehicles close by. Please do not talk on phone while crossing the road. Think twice before worrying about being late by 17.3 secs and before starting to walk diagonally; you are risking your own life.
Bringing more people in RED category will help us in achieving safe, stress free driving experience in India!
I will be glad if you share your experience with car driving in India.
