We encountered every type of conveyance imaginable: walking, bicycle, motorized bicycle, motorcycle, rickshaw, auto-rickshaw (in some countries called the tuk-tuk), autos, trucks, tractors, busses, carts pushed by a man, and carts pulled by a man, a horse, one or two oxen, or a camel. All of these mix together in an amazingly effective (and inevitably inefficient) chaos.
The most common vehicles are the bicycle, motorcycle, and auto-rickshaw, and these slip through traffic using whatever tiny spaces are left by the larger vehicles. The observed capacity of a bicycle or motorcycle is four people, with the larger load including one or two children. A typical load is husband, wife, and one or two children. The auto-rickshaw, on the other hand, can hold 16 people, as we observed. (Later we saw this capacity increased as 3 or 4 men road standing up on the outside of the vehicle.)  |
| Auto-Rickshaws |
Before coming to India, we read that the yielding order of vehicles (ordered from most yielding to least yielding) is people, bicycles, rickshaws, cars, trucks, busses, cows. A better way to understand this ordering is to think of it as an audacity order (most audacious to least), except that cows are the very most audacious.
After observing traffic behavior since arriving in India, the rules of the road seem to be these:
1. There are no rules.
2. Lane markings, as well as direction of travel, are suggestions only, even on divided highways.
3. The horn is the most important equipment for navigation, announcing "Here I am - move out of my way."
Once when our driver was passed at a stoplight by a motorcycle he said "Why did he do that? He knows the rules!" All we could think was "Rules????" Many cars were missing side mirrors. It is unclear why any of the others still have them.
Each motorized vehicle has a horn that beeps, toots, trills, or warbles, and each horn sound is as unique and individual as cellphone ring tones. Together, they create a cacophony of sound somewhat like an orchestra of only the horn instruments warming up, neither unpleasant nor cohesive. The backs of trucks generally request "Honk Please." (This may be considered an alternate form of the signs on the backs of trucks at home that state "If you can't see my mirror, then I can't see you.) It made us wonder if any hand gestures considered impolite at home are considered friendly greetings here.
The roads we took between Delhi and Agra are in various states of disrepair, ranging from merely potholed to a washboard of crumbling concrete and dirt. Luckily, we are beyond the monsoon season, or mud would also add to the problem. Some of the highway we encountered was fairly new, which meant that the "rules of the road" (see above) were executed at a much faster pace! Just as at home, we made our very slowest progress in areas where road construction was under way. (To give an idea of just how slow construction appears to be, we saw a large family making itself at home underneath a bridge being constructed, using a pile of construction sand as a huge bed. Meanwhile, atop a flimsy ladder, the lone road worker dabbed beige paint at the top of one huge bridge support.)
Other exotic animals that we saw on the way (thankfully not used for transportation) were monkeys and an elephant. We did see a monkey sitting on the seat of a bicycle being peddled by a man who was standing up as he peddled. It wasn't clear who was the boss.
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| Laundry vs. Monkey |
Location:Northern India
I hope you took lots of pictures! :D
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