Travel Blogger: Shlomit

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From Dehli to the Himalayas - driving in India

Posted on Oct. 3, 2006 at 12:45 (Subscribe)

yikes....there are not enough words to describe the traffic in India.  Here is a

short video giving a small taste of what it is about...but as I have been told many, and found out to be so true...there is nothing like experiencing for believing it. 

 

Traffic in India just seems to work on a whole different set of rules than in the western world.   The basic first and foremost rule is "the bigger the better", i.e. the bigger your vehicle is, the more privileges you have on the road.  This basically means that the bigger vehicles - especially buses and trucks, drive pretty much carelessly, while the smaller ones, ranging from dogs to stock-loaded tractors, either stick to the left or honk their horns to signal bypassing.

The horn is used there as often as we use blinkers - they are as essential for driving as the steering wheel is.

Many travelers belief that this all results well  because of some sort of existential harmony keeping things in order. This is belief is clearly painting India in far brighter colors than real....the truth being that India stars #1 in traffic accidents and fatalities charts.

 

I'm sure there are many more tips for safe commuting in India...but the ones I can collect from my experiences are:

 

 - Travel inland first class  - go for the best travel solutions you can possibly afford.  It is almost always worth the extra $$. 

-  Wear a helmet when on a motorbike or bicycle-  bring one from home or buy the best brand you can possibly get your hands on (AGV and GP-ones are considered relatively good Indian makes.

- Never drive if you are not 100% alert. Driving in India takes far more concentration and energy than coasting a western road.

 

Comming next....Modern Chandigarh, picturesque Shimla and the breathtaking Himalayas. 

 

 

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Changing driving habits in India

Posted on May. 8, 2007 at 01:23 by Anonymous

Much of the world wide web is full of sarcasm & mocking of driving on Indian roads. This site http://driving-india.blogspot.com/ has been created with the purpose of providing driver education and training rather than criticism.
The driver education is to be provided by way of a series of short videos focusing on concepts and principles most Indian drivers are unaware about. The goal is to move beyond the traditional clutch-accelerator training provided by the otherwise friendly neighbourhood driving instructor.

The 14 video's currently available are -
Video 1: Covers the concept of Blind spots
Video 2: Introduces the principle of Mirrors, Signal and Manoeuvre
Video 3: At red lights, stop behind the stop line
Video 4: At red lights there are no free left turns
Video 5: The Zebra belongs to pedestrians
Video 6: Tyres and Tarmac (rather than bumper to bumper)
Video 7: Merging with the Main road
Video 8: Leaving The Main Road
Video 9: Never Cut Corners
Video 10: Show Courtesy on roads
Video 11: 5 Rules that help deal with Roundabouts
Video 12: Speed limits, stopping distances & 2 seconds rule
Video 13: Lane discipline and overtaking
Video 14: Low beams or high beams?

To watch the video's visit - http://driving-india.blogspot.com/

Dr Joglekar

Transportation in India

Posted on Aug. 5, 2007 at 01:01 by Anonymous

Transportation in India is available from http://www.indiatransit.com. This one's a free website providing information for free to passengers. It has private sector and public road transport corporation bus service information. <a href="http://www.indiatransit.com">Transportation in India</a>