Traffic Chaos

I have traveled to different parts of Asia as well and I definitely have seen what you experienced there in Columbia. The road there is very crowded with cars or scooter bikes and there is very little specialized room for bikes. I think cyclists there have to share roads with motorbikes and scooters or ride on the sidewalks. Heck, some of the smaller roads even don't have sidewalks for pedestrians. I admire your courage to be able to ride in that situation. it requires both courage and smart brain as well as the flow you are talking about is very hard to see.

It is also very traffic here in our area especially on weekday mornings when there are a rush of cars in the streets due to people going to school and work. What my father and I do is we usually go cycling before rush hour, around five in the morning to avoid the rush of cars and people. We bike back and forth from the house and the downtown area. We see to it that we get home by the time traffic becomes worse, for our safety and also to avoid pollution. On weekends, the streets are not that busy, but we still get out and cycle early in the morning and stay longer since there is not much cars and the air is cleaner. We don’t really hate cars being on the road since it is a public street, but we just want to be safe and have an easy biking experience.

Traffic is pretty light where I live. Most of the issues come from people just not paying attention, or people who are just irritated at the existence of cyclists all around. I've had people honk or yell at me for no good reason at all, but that doesn't happen that often. I was once yelled at to get in the bike lane while on a stretch of road that had no bike lane and signs posted that there are no bikes, skateboards, ect allowed on the sidewalk. Silly driver, where do you think I am supposed to go?

I live in one of the worst cities for traffic in the United States, at least according to about a dozen different rankings from news outlets. We have plenty of bike lanes and whatnot, though, so it's not a bad city for commuting. You'll see plenty of people out riding their bikes on the streets and on the hiking trails where bikes are allowed.

We had a Columbian teaching assistant live with us for a few months here in Minnesota. Experiencing traffic here was a bit of culture shock, he couldn't believe that cars let people cross crosswalks and that everything was orderly. Makes me feel pretty lucky that cars, bicycles and pedestrians can co-exist in relative peace.

Out where I live, traffic is few and far between. Unfortunately, when you do get it, it's very fast and usually ago truck..

Dora M said:

When I moved to Colombia seven months ago, I wasn't prepared for the absolute chaos on the streets in this country. Here, the only rule that is followed is that everyone goes first. Everything else usually gets ignored. Traffic lights are only ever an indication of how things should be, and if someone is actually using their indicator light it's a really special day. You don't just have to contend with cars and motorbikes, but also with horse carts, home-made vehicles that transport people, food and building materials, free roaming animals, humans in the middle of the street without road sense, and so much more.
In the beginning, when I was riding my bicycle to work, I often panicked and needed to stop by the side of the road until my heartbeat normalized again. But these days I am accustomed to the crazy and dangerous road and traffic conditions here, and it's merely a matter of "entering the flow" and feeling my way around.
How is the traffic where you live?

I suppose you would get "use" to the chaos, but really what a shock, indeed! I would have needed to take stop and calm my nerves, too. I am lucky to have bike trails where I take my daily rides. Luckily, I do not need to worry about the traffic because it is very busy! No horse carts, though!

Third world countries is going to [censored] a lot of Americans I can tell you that. There is no "giving way" to anyone, especially pedestrians. America has a standard and cops love to give out tickets for traffic violations. It does help them will fill up their quota. But the situation in the west and third world countries is obvious.

joshposh said:

Third world countries is going to [censored] a lot of Americans I can tell you that. There is no "giving way" to anyone, especially pedestrians. America has a standard and cops love to give out tickets for traffic violations. It does help them will fill up their quota. But the situation in the west and third world countries is obvious.

In third world countries you are nothing. Seriously, they will bump you and not think twice about your safety. Honking their horn is not a warning, it is a way to tell you to move because I am merging into your lane.

Pretty much the same situation where I live. But I'm used to it I guess. You just need to have a lot of patience and be extra careful when you are out riding your bike.

It's pretty much the same here as well. There's one small difference though. Instead of "Everyone goes first", people abide by the "I have the more expensive car, I have the right of way" rule.
There are also bike lanes, if you can call them that. Except they're on the sidewalk and occasionally have an utility pole, or a bus stop in the middle.

I've heard that it's pretty much everyone for themselves in some far-eastern countries when it comes to traffic. I heard someone who was on holiday out there once say that "they have traffic lights but they change colour, that's all they do..."

Things are not as bad here thankfully. On my regular commute the only things you really need to contend with are huge trucks, drain covers & cars edging out of side roads.

The traffic where I live is worse than our country. I live in India and here you have to be very conscious if you are out of your home. There are no traffic lights here and people commute as they wish. No one ever follows most of the traffic rules and often over speed on the roads which makes things very dangerous on the roads.