I thought I'd seen traffic...

Look closely and you'll see those are nearly all motor scooters, and not bikes. Very common in congested areas outside of the US because of their ease and maneuverability.

Try riding from Lake George NY to Ticonderoga and back on the 4th of July weekend. It's a suicide mission....

Yeah, they are mostly scooters - but there must be some bikes in there somewhere. I was more impressed with the sheer number of vehicles careening through that intersection and how they manage to just barely avoid colliding.

-bikeguy

bikeguy said:

I was more impressed with the sheer number of vehicles careening through that intersection and how they manage to just barely avoid colliding.

Heh, they appear to be adhering to a traffic signal at least. In many European cities, traffic signals are barely suggestions. Replace all those scooters with teeny little Fiats (cars) and you'd have a video of Naples, Italy.

frenchyge said:

Heh, they appear to be adhering to a traffic signal at least. In many European cities, traffic signals are barely suggestions. Replace all those scooters with teeny little Fiats (cars) and you'd have a video of Naples, Italy.

Someone once told me that in Naples (where I don't remember seeing traffic signals at all btw, at least in the old town) if you look before crossing the street, but walk out anyway and someone hits you then its your fault. If you don't look, then its the drivers fault. Therefore no one looks before crossing the street, they just walk out. It all seems to work, but it looks like total chaos. I also remember the police had no lights or sirens on their car - one guy hung out of the window waving a red dot on stick. It was totally nuts.

Eden said:

Someone once told me that in Naples (where I don't remember seeing traffic signals at all btw, at least in the old town) if you look before crossing the street, but walk out anyway and someone hits you then its your fault. If you don't look, then its the drivers fault. Therefore no one looks before crossing the street, they just walk out. It all seems to work, but it looks like total chaos. I also remember the police had no lights or sirens on their car - one guy hung out of the window waving a red dot on stick. It was totally nuts.

Undercover cops in a hurry. In a town with a big crime problem you often try not to be conspicuous, especially if you are escorting a magistrate or someone lots of people would like to see dead.

And I remember that in the US everyone shots one another! 🙄

Naples traffic is... interesting. But come on Eden, how does your logic on street crossing hold up? No, no, I did not look! It is his fault! 🙄

So we drive a bit faster than you guys do. And our safety zone is a bit different... [I am from Rome, by the way]

Quite frankly, had a lot of trouble driving in the US. Silly speed limits (15 mph while lights flashing, you are within 12000 kms of a school). :p

All in good fun, of course. 🙂

Powerful Pete said:

And I remember that in the US everyone shots one another! 🙄

Well sure, but we wouldn't think of bumping another's car.... that's when the lawyers get involved. :eek:

Powerful Pete said:

Naples traffic is... interesting. But come on Eden, how does your logic on street crossing hold up? No, no, I did not look! It is his fault! 🙄

Maybe it's a story they tell American tourists, but I heard similar to what Eden said -- if you make eye contact with a pedestrian then you have to yield. Otherwise they should avoid the speeding Fiats.... :p

frenchyge said:

Heh, they appear to be adhering to a traffic signal at least. In many European cities, traffic signals are barely suggestions. Replace all those scooters with teeny little Fiats (cars) and you'd have a video of Naples, Italy.

Adhering to a signal? There's traffic both ways simultaneously in that video. They come within inches of each other - with traffic going in cross directions.

Most European countries have a yield to the right system if there's no traffic light - not like in Canadian cities with stop sign after stop sign 100 meters apart. I'm thinking of Toronto in particular.

-bikeguy

Powerful Pete said:

Naples traffic is... interesting. But come on Eden, how does your logic on street crossing hold up? No, no, I did not look! It is his fault! 🙄

All in good fun, of course. 🙂

Hey - I only said someone told me that and it was long after I had actually been there. Maybe people get that impression from the incredibly effective chaos that rules the traffic there. Everyone managed to keep moving and no one got hit even though I really don't remember any traffic signals in the area of town that we stayed in (near the train station). My husband and his mom sat out on the balcony of our hotel and just watched it was so fascinating. On the other hand I doubt I've ever had a more terrifying cab ride.....

Eden said:

On the other hand I doubt I've ever had a more terrifying cab ride.....

LOL. My worst cab ride was definitely in Washington DC. I think the cabbie was a Nigerian (he told me he was an engineer).

frenchyge said:

Maybe it's a story they tell American tourists, but I heard similar to what Eden said -- if you make eye contact with a pedestrian then you have to yield. Otherwise they should avoid the speeding Fiats.... :p

It doesn't exactly work that way, but I cannot really explain the system... you just 'know' when you can cross and when you cannot... it is an Italian thing. 😄

bikeguy said:

I've ridden in some pretty heavy traffic, but it must require nerves of steel to ride in this:...

Those kind of traffic conditions are common in many Asian cities. I've ridden pushbikes and motorbikes, and driven cars in similar in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. They are 'obeying' traffic signals, but it is tempered with the application of available opportunities. Traffic light changes are recommendations, rather than obligations.
Moving through such intersections really isn't that difficult, and bases itself on utilising forward vision, with a little peripheral. There is a vehicle hierachy that allows for free-ish flow. In a car, you largely do battle with other cars, and watch out for trucks. The golden rule with cars is that the other guy probably doesn't want to scratch his paint. makes it much easier to be driving a company car. One thing you don't do is look sideways. Doing so is like admitting defeat. It There will be swarms of bikes around you, but you pretty much ignore them - their maneuverability and vulnerability combine to allow them to look after themselves.
On a bike, you just judge the gap. There is a certain critical mass level that allows a group of bikes to present the same inertia as a car. Then they can push through, the same as any other vehicle. Up until that combination is reached, you're just a fly avoiding the swatter. Usually nobody is driving at overly high speeds, even though it may seem so.
Trucks and buses just roll on through. They expect everyone to understand that the bigger vehicle will be victorious in any joining of the masses.
There are some intersections where it just doesn't quite work. There was one just below myoffice in Kuala Lumpur which had a daily replenishment of squished step-thru's sitting on the islands.
City intersections are a lot less worrying than facing 3 vehicles abreast coming at you head-on, at 100+ kmh in your lane on the open road.