Unlike the US where every aspect of driving is regulated by a complex set of laws and regulations, here in India there is only one law governing use of public roadways. Its the Law of Mass. Taking from the basic laws of physics, it is whoever has the greatest mass does as he pleases.
So traffic has a hierarchical structure where the larger dominates the smaller, from large buses and trucks down to pedestrians.
No body in motion with a larger mass than another slows down or changes course in anyway in consideration of other smaller bodies.
An excellent example is crossing an intersection. Whereas we are used to a situation where if you are crossing the road but miscalculate speeds slightly, the oncoming vehicle will slow or swerve, here no such adjustments are made. While this sounds coldly Darwinian, it actually has some practical utility. If one were to make such adjustments in trajectory for smaller bodies, one would never be able to go anywhere. The competition for space is too strong to allow for such altruism.
Since its the smaller of the two bodies that bears most of the burden in any collision, the logic is that the smaller WILL move out of the way.
The largest vehicles are the lorries (like our semis). They are the undisputed lords of the road, but such lordship does come with a cost. When such a lorry causes an accident that results in it coming to rest (usually in a ditch) a mob rapidly materializes surrounding the lorry and if the driver was not quick enough to abandon his truck and run is generally provided rapid retribution until police can arrive potentially saving his life, if not already lost by that time.
Since there is nothing a smaller body can do to a larger one, I guess this is the one opportunity where 'payback' can occur.
So traffic has a hierarchical structure where the larger dominates the smaller, from large buses and trucks down to pedestrians.
No body in motion with a larger mass than another slows down or changes course in anyway in consideration of other smaller bodies.
An excellent example is crossing an intersection. Whereas we are used to a situation where if you are crossing the road but miscalculate speeds slightly, the oncoming vehicle will slow or swerve, here no such adjustments are made. While this sounds coldly Darwinian, it actually has some practical utility. If one were to make such adjustments in trajectory for smaller bodies, one would never be able to go anywhere. The competition for space is too strong to allow for such altruism.
Since its the smaller of the two bodies that bears most of the burden in any collision, the logic is that the smaller WILL move out of the way.
The largest vehicles are the lorries (like our semis). They are the undisputed lords of the road, but such lordship does come with a cost. When such a lorry causes an accident that results in it coming to rest (usually in a ditch) a mob rapidly materializes surrounding the lorry and if the driver was not quick enough to abandon his truck and run is generally provided rapid retribution until police can arrive potentially saving his life, if not already lost by that time.
Since there is nothing a smaller body can do to a larger one, I guess this is the one opportunity where 'payback' can occur.
No comments:
Post a Comment