[PRCo] Re: Indian cultural differences

[Schneider Fred]

I'm tired of searching the internet.   Your turn to try to dig out  
mileages.

On Dec 6, 2008, at 2:55 PM, John Swindler wrote:

>
>
> I knew that China was over 100,000 and US was under 50,000 with  
> about half due to alcohol.  But comparing by population is a  
> distortion.  How about a death rate per miles driven??  That should  
> give a better indication of highway safety.  In the end, some  
> societies place a much higher value on human life.
>
> John
>
>
>> From: fwschneider at comcast.net> Subject: [PRCo] Re: Indian cultural  
>> differences> Date: Sat, 6 Dec 2008 14:28:33 -0500> To: pittsburgh- 
>> railways at dementia.org> > http://www.driveandstayalive.com/info% 
>> 20section/statistics/stats- > multicountry-percapita-2004.htm> >  
>> Most recent data I could find was 2004. "Close enough for govmint  
>> > work."> > Yes, China killed 107,077 people on their roads in  
>> 2004 but that is > out of a population of 1.3 billion people.  
>> India lost 90,000 out of > a billion people. We lost 42,636 out of  
>> 293.5 million.> > China had 8.26 fatalities per 100,000 people,  
>> India had 8.33 and we > had 14.53. What is astonishing is that we  
>> have far more miles of > multi-lane express highways than China or  
>> India and they are > inherently safer than city streets. Our  
>> insistence on high speed > driving and getting there first is  
>> wiping us out. And our lousy > training of our drivers does not  
>> help either.> > Surprisingly, the worst death rate was Russia with  
>> almost 25 deaths !
>> per 100,000 population. The only had about 20 miles of expressways  
>> > in the entire country. I suspect there it has a lot to do with  
>> the > prevailing attitude that if you get caught going through a  
>> stop sign > or speeding, you bribe the cop and go on driving the  
>> same way. I > photographed an accident between a truck that turned  
>> left in front of > a streetcar. The replacement truck came up and  
>> emptied all the > cargo so it couldn't be impounded. The the  
>> police were called. > Then I watched the money changing hands.  
>> Then everybody went on > their way and a ten car blockade of  
>> streetcars cleared out.> > Germany, with a motor vehicle  
>> registration rate about the same as > ours but with people driving  
>> about half as many miles per year as we > do and with a tremendous  
>> number of miles of express highways (very > well designed ones)  
>> with no speed limits outside of rural areas, has > a fatality rate  
>> half that of the U. S. A. Their rate is 7.09 per > 100,000.I've  
>> always maintained th!
>  at the Germans do a fabulous job > teaching their kids how to  
> drive an
> d I think the death rate proves > it. (The only more populous  
> country with a lower rate is Japan.) > Germany don't believe in  
> letting mom or dad or Uncle Harvey teach you > how to drive. You  
> want to get a drivers license, you pay a driving > school $2,000  
> and they will you teach you. And they will do it right.> > > > On  
> Dec 6, 2008, at 1:27 PM, John Swindler wrote:> > >> >> > So what's  
> the annual highway death toll in India??> >> > For instance, it was  
> a surprise couple years ago to learn that > > China has about twice  
> the number of highway fatalities as the US.> >> > John> To:  
> pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org> From: > >  
> fwschneider at comcast.net> Subject: [PRCo] Indian cultural > >  
> differences> Date: Fri, 5 Dec 2008 18:51:55 -0500> > For those of >  
> > you who did take the time to look at some of those you- > tube >  
> > videos of India, the rucus of automobile horns on the streets is  
> > > > different from here. As our guides and bus drivers explained  
> it to > > > us, blowing the ho!
>  rn in India doesn't mean, "Get out my way you > > F--n > S. O. B.,  
> I have the right of way." Rather it means, "Hello > > friend, > I'm  
> here and I don't want you to get hurt. Please don't > > walk in >  
> front of me."> > A horn never wears out in the United > > States. I  
> suspect it is a > renewable part in India because you do > > not  
> drive two blocks in town > without using it.> > There was a > >  
> case in Lancaster last year where a lady who was drunk > went down  
> > > the wrong expressway ramp and ran head on into a car coming >  
> the > > other way. She killed two men. Last month she was sentenced  
> > to > > two terms, each of ten year!> > s to be served  
> consecutively. In > India, if you want to pull onto > > a non- 
> limited access expressway from > a home or gas station and > > you  
> are on the westbound side but want to > go eastward, you simply > >  
> drive east against the current of traffic > until you have a place  
> > > to cross over to the other lanes. That is > much more expedient >!
>> than driving a mile out of your way and turning > around. And an >
>> Indian expressway will have cattle sleeping on it, > elephants > >  
>> carrying burdens, trucks, cars, motorized rickshaws, > bicycles >  
>> > (except where they are on bridges through towns and then non- >  
>> > > motorized vehicles may be prohibited but you still can't  
>> restrict > > the > sacred cows), and perhaps even a camel caravan  
>> in the west. I > > > even saw a man walking down the middle of an  
>> expressway with > > water > bottles on his shoulders ... it was  
>> explained that he was > > carrying > water from the Ganges to  
>> another river to appease his > > god in the hope > of a better  
>> monsoon to end a five year drought. > > By the !> > way, I never >  
>> saw an accident on the roads in India. The first one I> > saw in  
>> two > weeks was after I got off the plane in New York ... > > then  
>> I saw where > a dufus of a truck driver had hit an expressway > >  
>> ramp too fast and > rolled a semi onto its side! That was within >  
>> > 4,000 feet of JFK > airport. >> >  
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