Drivers in Turkey are infamous. I heard once that Turkey had one of the highest number of traffic accidents/fatalities in the world - but I've found nothing to confirm this (in fact, according to the World Health Organization - Eritrea has the highest per 100,000 inhabitants: 48.4, followed by The Cook Islands). The U.S. State Department did feel the need to print this about Turkey:
"A number of accidents occurred when a local driver stopped, turned or took some unexpected action which caused the U.S. driver to hit the other vehicle or be struck by someone else. Many of the "unexpected" actions were unexpected according to U.S. driving standards but are quite common in Ankara and Istanbul and other parts of the country."
So, let me expand on that. Taxis are the worst, everywhere. In Turkey, I think I'll put bus drivers as the second worst. You'd think with all those lives at stake, they'd be a little more careful - but this is not the case. Okul Tasiti has very little meaning as most of these buses are tour buses in the summer, and school busses in the winter. These mini-busses and small vans that carry students and commuters alike have routes they drive and contracts to keep - and traffic as a mere obstacle to these goals.
It is not uncommon to see the following:
- running red lights (where there are no cameras)
- driving into oncoming traffic to bypass those waiting for the red light
- reversing on the highway
- buses stopping suddenly, or pulling out suddenly to drop off/pick up passengers
- one lane made into 3 1/2 lanes
- double or triple parking (in a no parking zone)
- forced merging
I call it cheating. Everybody is trying to "cheat" traffic. But, there really is no cheating rush hour. Maybe it will buy you a few seconds, a minute or two tops - but rushing around one, only meets you with the next bout of traffic, and ten more cars trying to do what you just did.
My commute to work during rush hour is like a free-for-all on the road. Lanes aren't always clearly marked, and when I drive down an "open" road with no lights - there is a line of cars in front of me with cars coming joining the line from every side street and parking space within sight. Relatively, traffic flows surprisingly smoothly considering the lack of regard for the "rules of the road".
When I park at school - I'm usually blocked in by parents at the end of the day. Parents waiting for their little darlings, so I wait too ... impatiently. And then it's a rush to exit the parking lot, then the campus, and then to join the flow of those going home.
It has made me a better driver most days. More alert, more accepting, more patient. Because you have to be to survive.
I took Teoman and Tomris on a mini-bus the other day. It was a rainy day, but I wanted to get them outside - and Teoman loves busses. Tomris still loves everything new. We left the house with little cars in our hands and hopped on a bus waiting for passengers. The driver took off before I could sit down with my two small children. That's another "normal" - along with the road being a free-for-all, the busses you have to fend-for-yourself - women, children, and the elderly alike. We sat near a window and sang the "wheels on the bus" song. We travelled for quite a ways, and I hopped out near a park. Passengers on the bus are always looking out for children and the elderly, and I usually get a hand from someone. Teoman jumped off the busses step which made everyone chuckle at his enthusiasm. We had found a park with a huge apparatus built like a castle. It had the recycled rubber mats as flooring and it was relatively dry. We played, drove our cars, climbed stairs, went down slides, ate crackers, before making our way back to a bus stop.
There are many buses that come by - but I'm still learning how to spot which one will take me all the home, which one will accept coins versus a card, and how to actually signal the bus to stop when my hands are full with little hands. The driver on the way home pulled over for me -- he was watching my eyes for a signal while I was still trying to read the sign on his window. He pulled over anyhow and I got on seeing as he was the only one of the three busses that stopped. The small bus was full, and a passenger stood up so that I could sit all of us down on one seat. Teoman was disappointed it wasn't next to the window.
The driver waited for me to sit, and because he couldn't see us - called back to see if we were sitting safely.
That was a first for me in Turkey.
No comments:
Post a Comment