Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Driving 103

Good boys and girls! This time you're not running for the keys. Now you're learning. Some more points:

Ever seen those sometimes broken (dashed), sometimes solid lines on the road? They're not done to spend tax payer's money for kickbacks, well, at least that's not the only reason. Those lines mean something. Yellow lines are placed on the edges of a road. For instance, on an undivided two-way traffic road, there would be yellow lines on the sides and the middle to show drivers from both directions what their territory is.

White lines divide the road into lanes. The laning on Pakistan's roads, especially Karachi, are absolutely pathetic. I've seen lanes suddenly get created out of nowhere, and lanes ending without proper signage. Think about the (ex) intersection at Nursery, where they now have an flyover. A lane suddenly emerged on the right handside. It used to be for right turns only, but people would use it for going straight as well, which was very very wrong, because that lane was ending on that intersection and was not continuing on the road ahead at all. Being in that lane for going straight is extremely selfish, and if you're like that, read lesson number 1, driving is a responsibility, not a privilege. So, be particular about right turn and left turn lane. On almost every intersection, you'll find a guy towards your right who wants to turn left, and a guy to your left who has his hand (which should be chopped off immediately) sticking out making a gesture that he wants to turn right. You're going straight and he drives in front of you and goes around you. That is very very wrong. Dont ever do that. Petrol is expensive, but it isnt that expensive. It wouldnt cost you much more if you were to just drive courteous and safe and go straight instead, move into the fast lane when the opportunity arrives and then make a U-turn when you come to an intersection that allows right or U turns.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Forget about lanes, whats more annoying is when people come onto the main road from some service lane or side road without looking!! ... It has happened to me a couple of times ...and its a shocker! Gets me hailing all sorts of abuse towards them ... !

Muhammad Saqib Ilyas said...

Dont worry, my friend. I've only started. I'll be coming to all the issues, insha Allah. No stones will be left unturned. However, thanks for the reminder. I wouldnt forget to blog about this. "A couple of times"? Like, do you drive only once every fifteen years or so? It happens to me like 200 times a day.