I thought "General views on India Traffic" was too broad a topic to write upon, but am making an effort to drive on this dusty and treachrous terrain as it deserves a discussion.
Traffic - What does it mean?
I understand traffic as an amalgamation of several dimensions like - Roads, Vehicles, Traffic rules, Drivers, Location and Time of day. There could be other dimensions but I feel that the above cover the most important ones to define traffic.
Roads - Since most of the time vehicles run on roads, the quality of roads becomes an important parameter in describing traffic over them. Many of our cities have roads that resemble the surface of the moon from close quarters, with cracks, creavases, faults, canyons and gorges in between, sometimes enough to swallow a 2-wheeler and to help to ease digestion for riders of 4-wheelers.
Vehicles - Thanks to rising purchasing power and automobile loans in a jiffy, the number of private as well public vehicles is growing at an alarming rate. Since India has a great indeginous assembly talent, we can often see some creative home made vehicles on the road too. Our bicycles and cycle -rickshaws do add their flavour too(and speed).
Traffic rules - What? never heard of them? Oh no come on, these do exist for those who wish to follow. The enforcement is weak. These rules seem to be followed by the traffic policemen only, that is when they get to exhort some INR from defaulters. Needless to say it goes into their personal coffers.
Drivers - Technically the person controlling the vehicle and its movements(plus honking etc.) qualifies as a driver. In reality there can be pseudo-drivers too, that is the ones who control the technically defined driver. Rarely do both understand or follow traffic rules to the T.
Location - Yes, that's a factor too. The definition of traffic at chandni chowk would anytime be different from a smooth drive on Delhi - Jaipur highway.
Time of day - Imagine yourself coming to your office in Gurgaon at 10:00 AM in the morning from North Delhi versus driving back on the same stretch at 10:00 PM in the night.
Now that I have the definitions in place, let me compare Indian traffic to some of my experiences abroad.
While driving with a colleague from Lincolnshire(a Suburb of Chicago) to Downtown Chicago, I used to notice that all vehicles moved in ONE direction, at ONE speed(approx 80 mph), were of nearly ONE size. The roads were generally smooth and nobody ever honked. I have had similar experiences at couple of other places in Europe too.
Now If I compare the traffic in our country on the same counts, I realised that vehicles of ALL sizes and shapes, moved in ALL directions, at ALL possible speeds, and nearly everyone honked as and when possible.
We certainly have more variety on all dimensions to talk highly about. Driving in US of A is boring, while its quite exciting here. Even an Idiot can drive well in USA, while everyone is ready to become an idiot while driving in India. See the difference?
Where lies the problem?
If you've noticed by now, all the dimensions mentioned by me are linked together to define traffic. I fail to understand as to why our Government and its strategic planners fail to see the relationships. Let me elaborate my stand here.
- For example, there should have been a way to control the exponential growth in numbers of vehicles until the necessary infrastructure(roads, flyovers etc.) were in place. Policies could have been enforced to discourage purchase of an additional vehicle of the same type for a person. There could have been a surcharge on the same. Similar policy should govern the issue of auto loans. The effect would be to reduce the existance of vehicles that are not really needed.
- Issuance of driving license and collection of funds from offenders need to be strengthened. Monetary transactions should happen only at courts / other designated places to collect the same, but not by the traffic inspector at the scene. This could reduce corruption at this stage. The history of traffic violations should be recorded and used to decide suitability of a person while purchasing another vehicle, the rate of interest on loans, the re-issue of driving license etc. Developed nations already follow this model successfully.
I can cite more inter-relationships, but I feel that my point is made.
Driving Ettiquettes / Common Offences:This is generally a forgotten or even an unknown topic. Have you ever honked at a person ahead of you when the traffic light a kilometer ahead just turned green? Well, I have othen been that person ahead!
Honking - We are in general loud about everything we do. Honking is our way of life on the road. In more mature societies, honking is considered a sin tanatmount to verbal abuse.
Overtaking -** We prefer to be the masters of the road(it it exists) as well as our vehicle. Overtaking is another way of life on the drive, be it from the right or the wrong side. We remember to give the other guy a stern arrogant look into his eyes everytime we succeed in this endeavor. I have seen people overtake from all sides except maybe over the head. Let's leave it for the future vehilces that could fly.
Parking - Parking where we should not is also on the rise. Well there are more vehicles than what can be peacefully parked in malls, basements etc. I have seen people parking everywhere except on tree tops. Maybe we can do that in the future.
Me first - This syndrome catches us in congested areas, where only one vehicle can come out at a time. Deadlocks result, and some good citizen is expected to come out of his car and act as a traffic guide. Worse still, if it happens at a railway crossing where vehicles at both sides occupy the entire breadth of the road.
Traffic signals - The likelyhood of breaching a traffic signal is inversely proportional to the proximity of the traffic inspector to where one's car is. If the lights do not work, the likelihood increases.
Mobile phones - Talking while driving is a common offense, the writer is often guilty of the same himself. A hands free is a better option if one must.
Is the future any better?
I doubt, but still have hopes.
1-Tatas and Maruti may have come up with a Rs 1 lakh car, thus fuelling further traffic congestion, while NHAI might still be busy digging and erecting more flyovers.
2-Better still, some manufacturers may come out with an arial version of cars - cars that could fly, thus complicating the third dimension of traffic. I wonder how tarffic police would catch them breaking rules. Boieng and AirBus might enter as new players in the automobile segment.
3-Horns may get better. Instead of the drab honk, we may be able to download horn-tones(on the lines of ringtones). Traffic scene would resemble a Radio Mirchi program. I shudder to think however if people still maintain their love for Himesh the horrible.
4-Car may have sensors to warn the driver of very close proximity to another object, preventing some dents and possible accidents.
Let's wait and see, if we still need to honk our way through.
