[Lukeskywalker]

I was reading this thread and today I experienced something worth contributing here.

Friend and fellow member Unni.Ak had come over for lunch to my place, he had ridden over from his house near KR Puram on his Pulsar.
Post lunch, my wife asked me to get a cough syrup for our daughter who seemed to be developing a cough, I asked Unni if we could just take his bike to the nearby pharmacy instead of my car, he readily agreed.
We rode the 1.5 kms, parked the bike, bought the medicine and then when Unni tried to start the bike, it was not starting.
He kicked and kicked, used the self start, no go, then I tried, we checked everything we could think of, the battery seemed fine, there was fuel, yet the bike would not start.
We had parked in front of a small eatery which was closed, but the guy inside came to see what the problem was, he too tried and could not start the bike. We then walked up and down to check for a bike mechanic, but being sunday everything was closed.
I was contemplating taking a bus/auto back home and fetch the car when the hotel guy offered us his bike saying why don't you ride into the locality and try and find a mechanic, we had hardly met this man and he was offering hsi bike to unknown guys, anyway, we gratefully accepted and rode into the locality almost 4 kms away, almost all garages were closed, then I spotted one which was open, we stop, but the guy says he's alone so can't come to our help. But he is kind enough to call his brother who is on the road somewhere and asks him to ride out to help us, he asks us to go back and wait for his brother.
Sure enough, by the time we get back, the guy is waiting near our bike and he checks the fuel line, spark plugs etc. He lifts the fuel tank and seat and unplugs a couple of electrical connections cleans them and puts them back.
He then proceeds to start the bike in one go, he puts back everything that was removed and says, there you go.
Now for the unusual part:
He refuses payment for the service rendered, says he did not actually "repair" anything, just cleaned stuff so he will not charge us anything. with that, he rides off.
Next, I walk into the eatery and give back the guy's keys, thank him and offer to pay at least for the fuel we used up, he again flatly refuses saying he just felt happy helping us.

Now, in today's day and age, it was quite a pleasant experience coming across such good Samaritans. May their tribe increase.

[srikanthns]

Originally Posted by Lukeskywalker

Now, in today's day and age, it was quite a pleasant experience coming across such good Samaritans. May their tribe increase.

Really heart warming to read such posts! Let their tribe increase!

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by apachelongbow

OT: If you want traffic policeman to 'prevent' offences, then he/she should be god. He must stop you before you drive without ur seatbelt, he must place the helmet over your head, he must apply your car brakes so that you donot break a red light... and so on. Come on, if you do not want to take responsibility of your driving, then sorry dont expect others to spoon feed you, especially the law.

Those statements are very silly to say the least. I don't know about you or what you know about law enforcement, as far as I know, LE is totally about preventing a crime before it happens, mush easier for TRAFFIC LE, they surely dont have to be God to prevent folks from jumping signals or taking an illegal left turn. All they have to do is, instead of waiting for the traffic offenders, wait at the point where the offence happens and stop people from doing it. Is that so hard ?

Originally Posted by Archish

Happened to me last month.
Chennai - Lazy Sunday morning, just woke up. Wifey visiting her parent's place in Vellore. Mom on phone with sister in Bengaluru, looks like something very very serious, instincts tells me to gobble up some bread, and I do. Yes, my instinct is right, sister needs emergency spinal surgery and we have to be in Bengaluru ORR in next 5 hours. We pick up wifey in Vellore and I realize that I left my License home, now only option left is that we pray I dont get pulled up by a cop.

I do not think these ID cards work in this time and age, actually when we have breached a rule, it is better to just pay up and leave. Why this unwanted attention ?

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

Those statements are very silly to say the least. I don't know about you or what you know about law enforcement, as far as I know, LE is totally about preventing a crime before it happens, mush easier for TRAFFIC LE, they surely dont have to be God to prevent folks from jumping signals or taking an illegal left turn. All they have to do is, instead of waiting for the traffic offenders, wait at the point where the offence happens and stop people from doing it. Is that so hard ?

What you are saying is quite silly actually, with due respect!. If you want to be spoon fed like a 5 year old, with someone jumping in front of you to prevent you breaking a signal, then I have nothing more to say, exept each to his own. Preventing a crime before it happens, is sci fi, something like that Hollywood serial, where computers monitor your crimminal instincts and predict when you will break the law and stop you

So as per you, police will now monitor each and every signal, every crossing, every road to 'prevent' people from breaking the law!! Also the cop has to see you/your car and guess if for that day, you are likely to break the law!! How easy is that?

[noopster]

Some really good experiences shared on this thread.

Mine is back from when I was 18 and my enthusiasm for driving far exceeded my knowledge! One Sunday took my Dad and sister out for a "long drive" which translated back then to anything outside my immediate locality. I drove to Yari Road in Versova and actually managed to impress the family since I didn't stall the car or get involved in any untoward incidents. All was going swimmingly till we decided to head back. I boldly took a U-turn on the (then) 2-lane road. Only to realise that the Premier Padmini didn't have such a sleek turning radius as I had imagined. So now I was stuck, with the car surrounded by vehicles on all sides, and suddenly started to panic.

My Dad and sis started to lecture me, which didn't help any! Just when I was ready to get out of the car and run out screaming, a man from another car came over. He told me to calm down, said he would help me complete the U-turn...and did. In hindsight it was actually quite simple but just that the heat of the moment got to me. I reversed and went forward couple of times, and it was done. The man smiled and waved off my profuse Thanks and got back into his car.

The amazing thing was, through the entire time it took me to do this, though I was blocking maybe 20 vehicles on either side, NOBODY honked or yelled or made any obscene gestures. Maybe it was the fact that it as Sunday, or maybe they realised that I was jus a kid in some trouble...they all waited patiently till I finished my turn and drove away.

[ninjatalli]

^^ Similar to an experience of @noopster, but in my case it was with a bike.

We had a Kinetic in the house which I trained myself. Even after driving that vehicle for over 6+ months without any issues, I was yet to master a geared vehicle, and that too a bike. The only practice I had was on my dad's old Chetak and that was only done when I had to show my driving ability to get the license.

So I used to head for this "computer classes", mostly on my bicycle. One day I am the only student in the class and the prof tells me to join in the next session. I complain that the distance is too long to cycle and he suggests me to take his bike. I gleefully take the keys but at the back of my mind I have this guilt of not informing him about my driving skills. However I get to the bike and start it. With a few hiccups, I'm away and driving without any problems. A few kms ahead the bike stops; all my attempts are useless in starting the bike. I check the tank, there is sufficient amount of fuel. The guilt returns with a vengeance and I start assuming that I have done something wrong while driving it. So I start walking the bike, a good 2-3 kms before I come across the first mechanic.

After hearing me out, he has a look at the bike. Suddenly he smiles and does something. And immediately on the first kick, the bike starts. I am flustered, and a bit relieved. On asking he points towards the fuel lock - it was earlier set on the OFF position and hence the reason the bike had stalled. (I had no idea about this, having never ridden a bike before)

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by noopster

Maybe it was the fact that it as Sunday, or maybe they realised that I was jus a kid in some trouble...

Or maybe 'cause this was quite a few years ago when most of our fellow citizens still possessed qualities called patience and courtesy

Cheers,
Vikram

[ArunV]

Had an unusual experience with the Bangalore traffic cops yesterday evening. I was out with my wife, my sis and her kids. We had parked our car infront of Barista near sony world signal to go for dinner at Mast kalandar.

Had my dinner and came back, i can see a traffic police standing next to my car. Seeing me coming near the car, he ask if that is my car and says that its a no parking area.
He had already noted down my number in a piece of paper and holding his challan book to issue a challan.
There were 4 cars parked there and i parked behind them and i say this to him and i was not aware that this i no parking.
He points to a board which says no parking, but turned away from road.
All these conversations happen and we both are smiling and talking to each other.

He says 'Take this challan and pay it in any of the police station.
Me: Ok, can i pay it online.
He: No you cannot. Pay it in any police station. 100Rs fine
Me: Can i pay it in any Bangalore one
He: (Smiling) Yes
He: Do u want to pay it now?
Me: (I check my purse and see that there is only Rs10) Sir, dont have enough money to pay the fine now. I will pay in Bangalore one
He: Its ok, I am not charging you rt now. Dont park here anymore.

This was totally unexpected and smile at him thanking him and I leave.

Never expected.

[NPV]

Mods - Thanks for updating the thread title, seems more appropriate now. When I started the thread I did not have Good Samaritan experiences in mind since I did not think of them as 'unusual' but then in the times that we live in, finding a good samaritan is indeed unusual especially when in a tough spot unexpectedly. Here's one such incident that I can never forget.

Back in 2008 we were on our way back to Bangalore, traveling in my Indica car from a trip to Palakkad and Coimbatore. Around 5.30pm we were near Chinnar (about 2Km before the A2B, BP petrol pump) and suddenly I heard a squeaky sound and felt the vehicle was wobbling on left side. I slowed down and stopped on the left shoulder, got out to see if there was a flat tyre - found that left rear tyre was flat so got ready to replace that with spare tyre. As I was getting the jack and spare tyre out, a gentleman passed by and asked if I need any help to which I said I can manage to change the tyre myself. He asked me surprisingly how I can change 2 tyres at the same time and now I was Then I realized that front driver side tyre also was flat! I asked him if there was any mechanic or puncture shop nearby and he said closest one was about 5 Km away but how will I get there ? He then told me to take a chance at the house on the left and that person may help. We walked towards the house that had a lot of frontage, a cow, a mini commercial truck, etc parked in front. Seeing us, the owner walked up and asked us what had happened. When we explained he said he has helped a lot of people in such situations earlier but could not help now as he was going out to meet someone urgently. We thanked him and turned back towards the car and so many things were going on in my mind on the situation and how to get this fixed. In the next 5 minutes it suddenly turned dark adding to our woes. I told my wife we'll try to flag down an auto or any other local vehicle and take the 2 tyres to the nearest mechanic, have it fixed and get back to the car but that was easier said than done. As we were standing there, the gentleman from the house walked up to us with his wife and kids and asked us to come inside his house. I was wondering why he decided to suddenly help us and we slowly headed back with them to the house. They made sure my wife and daughter were comfortable inside the house, offering us coffee and something to eat. The gentleman, Mr.S then asked me to follow him to the car and on the way out he made a couple of phone calls from his mobile phone and by the time we reached the car there were 2 guys waiting in an autorickshaw. They said they will take care of everything and asked me to just stay there. They quickly took a jack and flashlight out from the auto, removed both tyres and in no time the car was now standing on 2 tyres and 2 jacks! Next, they took both tyres in the auto to the nearby mechanic while Mr S and I walked back to his house. We were then talking about a lot of things, with him exlaining their life, how the small village transformed into what it was then and the highway that took up a large portion of their estate. After 30 minutes, Mr S received a call from the other guys that the punctures were fixed and they should be back in 5 minutes. We walked to the car and the guys in the auto came back and fixed the tyres back. They told me that one of the tubes was bad so we should have it checked somewhere near Hosur and inflate it if required. Mr and Mrs S then made us an offer to have dinner at their home which we politely declined since we had to get back home quickly. They gave us their mobile and land line phone numbers and asked us to call if we get into any further trouble on the way. We did not have enough words to thank their kindness and timely help and the left around 7.30pm to Bangalore. Driving slowly and also stopping on the way near petrol pumps to check if tyre pressure was fine, we reached Bangalore safely around 10.30pm, what an experience!
On all our trips towards that side we call them and pay a quick visit if they're at home, and Mr S is saved in my contact list as 'Krishnagiri Tyre God'.
There are some gods out there on this earth too!

[VM1]

I am reminded of one incident when I was at Hyderabad driving around in our M800.

This happened on the road from Hitec to Jubilee check post. I was low (to the bottom!) on petrol levels and thought I'll make it to the filling station at Jubilee checkpost. As luck would have it, the car stalled bang at the signal while I was at the front of the queue! And this was at peak hour around 7 PM. I put on my blinkers and started waving my hands to cars behind to go around. Since I was at the front, a traffic cop was looking at me - and to my wonder came over and started pushing the car so that I could move it to the side. I thanked him, walked over to the filling station just across the street, got some petrol in a 2 litre bottle to be able to drive the car to the pump and tanked up.

I had never expected this from a traffic cop and was really pleasantly surprised.

[cnaganathan]

Two incidents from my two wheeler days:

#1 - I was riding to work from Adyar to Thiruvottriyur. This was when the old overbridge at Royapuram was being repaired and the new one was yet to be built. Traffic therefore used to be diverted through a Railway gate between Royapuram station and Harbour. I always used to ride with my helmet strapped on and my work shoes. The cop managing the traffic at the gate stops me and here is the conversation:

He: papers?
Me: All in place - hand him over copies of RC, Insurance and my license.
(Checks all documents)
He: your Insurance expired.
(That was when I remembered that I had not placed the latest copy in my car)
Me: No sir, I have renewed but forgotten to put a copy of that in my box.
He: What is this sir you are properly dressed with Helmet and shoes but you don't have an important document. I can't let you ride the bike. Do one thing leave the bike here, go home and bring the copy.
Me: Sir that is far away and I will be late to office
He: hmmmmm. Ok. give me some thing for a coffee. you know how tiring it is to stand here from 3.00 AM with all these dirty truckers driving like carzy.
Me: huh?! hand him a tenner and scoot from that place.


#2 - Again in Chennai - this time at Saidapet. I had to attend a wedding reception near the Railway station and drove down the road adjacent to Panagal building. I didn't know then that was a one way road with entry only from Mount Road. After the wedding, I was heading back the same road and was promptly stopped when I reached its junction with mount road. I don't know why the cop thought I would not speak Tamil and decided to speak to me in Thanglish. I decided to play along and avoid paying up.

He: Sir, why you come this road. you come one way. Pay fine Pay fine.
Me: Am sorry, i didn't know it was a one way.
He: Board at road end, you no see?
Me: Where? I didn't see one. Anyways am sorry. I rode down this way because I saw vehicles heading in this direction when I went a little while ago.
He: you Padicha (educated) man. you no obey rules. How we manage traffic? ok. ok. No repeat. Go.
Me: Thank you

[jayded]

After attending a colleague's wedding reception at Chennai (Anna nagar) yesterday, I wanted to get back on the highway towards Bangalore and asked for directions to a guy who was parked on the flyover making a phone call. He said there were 2 routes out of which the one via Avadi was less confusing than the Koyambedu one, and asked me to take that route and I went ahead thanking him. I think that's when he realized that the road was out of shape and traffic was more in that route. I was chugging along in 2nd gear behind a stream of slow-moving cranes and suddenly I see the same biker pulling over besides me and gesturing me to stop. He told me the route is prone to traffic and that he would guide me to a point where I enter a by-pass which will take me to the highway. For the next 3 kms, he piloted me towards the by-pass and gave me clear directions from there. I thanked him a lot and drove off. Was a pleasant experience. All whom I asked for directions around Chennai yesterday were really helpful and I didn't lose my way even once.

Another incident at the first toll en route to Bangalore from Chennai.
I had a 2 way receipt for the toll and hence took the left most lane. As I reached the toll booth, I got confused with the numerous receipts I had and began frantically searching and flipping through all the 7-8 receipts I had. The guys inside the booth waited patiently with a smile, and after a couple of mins, they started grinning and said "Sir, time up, you can go now". I gave them sheepish grin and drove off saying a "Nandri"

[Anandv267]

An incident which made me realise that there are a few MTC drivers in chennai who hate rule breakers!

It was late in the night (around 11.30). There was this 21G(Tambaram to high court) bus which was being driven in the most proffesional manner with proper signalling and stuff. I was following this bus from chrompet beacause i was in no no mood to drive fast and the driver was signalling perfectly before changing lanes so i just kept following him.

Location : Near saidapet court

The above mentioned bus driver and another bus suddenly stop their buses perpendicular to the road a little in front of the court.

I think there has been an accident and stop to find out what happened .
What i see there makes me go

Two share autos(Tata ace magic types ) were coming in the wrong direction on that road(It is a one way).

The MTC drivers had blocked the share autos and demanding them to reverse and come in the correct route. seeing this issue one of the drivers told he will follow the share autos to make sure they come in the correct route. After 10 min we saw the 2 share autos come in the correct way followed by an MTC bus !!!

After seeing this the only word i have for the MTC drivers is RESPECT!! going out of their way to teach people who do a mistake is not something everyone of them would do.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Anandv267

An incident which made me realise that there are a few MTC drivers in chennai who hate rule breakers!

Sirji, see my post in the "Traffic in chennai" thread about MTC drivers. They are indeed a bunch of well trained drivers, but unfortunately surroundings and situations force them to become what they mostly have become these days. Otherwise, you see them during early morning(first trip around 5.00 am or earlier) or late night services, they will be the most courteous and most helpful people.

I have even got dropped untill my doorstep by a MTC bus at 2.00 am morning. Provided one behaves properly and is not over acting as a high-society hero attitude.

Anyways, nice to see such people still on roads. Thanks for sharing this with us.

[Anandv267]

True Alphakilo. I always knew they are basically helpful people. But this incident shows that they actually care about rules! Hope they become like those always!