[aargee]

Originally Posted by headers

, This road is good upto 140..160 only..beyond which it becomes very bumpy!!

A safer speed on this road is 80 to 100 kph!!

Not an off topic at all

You're BANG RIGHT on the speeds & also that the roads are bumpy at few stretches, especially after the toll & some places in & around the quarry.

After the toll, safe speed is only 80 Kmph & at Nolumbur stretches one has to be really watchful. Also the Maduravoyal bridge is not upto the mark compared to the bridges on NH4-NH46-NH7. May be they're still under construction.

[arvind71181]

I have been wanting to ask this for some time now.

On the roads, on some places, there are markings which look like a stick man and a number is also present on top of the head. This is present right on the road. Can anyone please tell me what do these markings mean? Do they denote that there has been some accident there? Also, what is the significance of the number?

I see two on my daily commute to work - one near the India Garage on Butt road and one further down the road neat the MIOT hospital bridge on the way to Porur.

[pypkmsrikanth]

Actually the byepass has become quite bumpy off late especially when you come from Tamabaram side. With the shifting of long distance buses to the byepass during day time it is no more a peaceful drive when you come from Tambaram side in the evenings.

It was far worse a couple of months back when the Thiruneer Malai entry & exit was possible to both the lanes of the byepass. I used to take 15 minutes to cross that point and another 15 minutes at the Toll booth.

For a jouney which used to take about an hour or so in the morning from Padi to Mahindra city, the return it used to be anywhere between an hour and half to two hours in the evening.

Though the bottle neck at Perungulathur is extremely unpredictable, yesterday I saw a long line of vehicles all the way from Irumbuliyur bridge to the near the under construction Vandalur overbridge at around 10 in the morning. Fortunately it was empty when I returned an hour or so later.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by aargee

What's the point blocking the entire traffic flow at each bus stop?

It is irritating when they do this. But recently I have noticed that this is mostly because autos & share-autos have taken over the full bus-stop, leaving them no choice but to stop such that traffic flow is hindered.

Originally Posted by aargee

Oh!!! C'mon now!!! Are you saying Chennai is the only city to be hated for this? Do you think other cities in this country are the best? What about Hyderabad? Bangalore? Do you think they're way ahead than Chennai. Pls, stop bashing Chennai guys!

Boss, why take unnecessary tension where none is warranted ? No one here is trying to paint Chennai as the worst city or bashing it, as you seem to infer everytime something about Chennai is mentioned.

If you noticed, this thread is about "traffic & life on the road in Chennai" - so what do you expect people to discuss here other than Chennai roads & related stuff ? Why would someone discuss B'lore or H'bad here ?

Chennai has the distinction of being the city with the highest number of 2-wheelers, which in a significant way contributes to the chaos. Especially because of the careless/suicidal riding that is a characteristic of most riders here.

[silversteed]

@SB: I would call them "senseless 2-wheeler riders" instead of simply "2-wheeler riders". They're like locusts, most of them. And not many even know about the existence of traffic rules. Any gap on the tarmac is considered their private property. And footpaths are an extension to this. Less said, the better.

[aargee]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

It is irritating when they do this. But recently...traffic flow is hindered.

Strongly agreed & have noted it too; but you see, I've given a thought about this too; do these MTC guys have any accountable on per trip target? Big NO. So why these bus guys are after the share autos?

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Boss, why take unnecessary...something about Chennai is mentioned.

Well @SBaleno, I'm not saying for each & every sentence when Chennai is being mentioned. I was only saying for one statement of your's & Thad sir's post

As much as I love driving, like Thad mentioned, I would hate to have driving as a profession in Chennai

Had it been India, probably, I would not bothered. So it gives an impression that Chennai is only the place to be hated for a driving profession.

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

If you noticed...Why would someone discuss B'lore or H'bad here ?

Yeah, I was expecting this reply long back; that's why I asked, why post something that's common in India? Talk about MTC guys, I keep quiet as that's perfectly apt only in Chennai. But hating to drive as a profession in Chennai, tell me, how should I take? India or only in Chennai? Isn't it a national issue?

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Chennai has the distinction of being the city with the highest number...characteristic of most riders here.

Now this again is a right & wrong statement my friend; the former part is true that Chennai has highest two-wheelers; but attributing the entire two-wheeler community to "careless/suicidal riding that is a characteristic" is something incorrect. Aren't the cabbies, share autos, MTC, School buses (very sad to say), college buses adding to that? Isn't that a collective effort (Effort huh!!! ) my friend?

Last but not the least, @SBaleno, just like KL, I've love for this city where I grew up. I can accpet negatives of this city, but cannot accept something that is a national issue & attributing it only w.r.t Chennai. If there's a thread on traffic life in Kochi or TVM & if people say people are reckless, trust me, I would be the first person to say, they're far far better than ppl in Chennai & have some riding sense. Now that's the same love I've for Chennai too; sorry that I don't deserve to complaint when I cannot change.

PS - Just asking out of curiosity, @SBaleno, have you been to Hyd, BLR or any other city other than KL to witness the traffic there?

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by aargee

I've given a thought about this too; do these MTC guys have any accountable on per trip target? Big NO. So why these bus guys are after the share autos??

I find it funny why you fault the MTC guys in this case too. It is a bus-stop, not an auto-stop and if I were a bus-driver, I would be pissed off to see autos parked at the place where I am supposed to drop/pick passengers.

Originally Posted by aargee

Had it been India, probably, I would not bothered. So it gives an impression that Chennai is only the place to be hated for a driving profession.?

That is the impression you seem to get - it was not implied. I stay in Chennai & have been riding/driving here since the mid-eighties. So natural that I would cite Chennai in that sentence, instead of say Blore where I dont drive.

Originally Posted by aargee

Yeah, I was expecting this reply long back; that's why I asked, why post something that's common in India? Talk about MTC guys, I keep quiet as that's perfectly apt only in Chennai. But hating to drive as a profession in Chennai, tell me, how should I take? India or only in Chennai? Isn't it a national issue??

Are city buses an issue only in Chennai ? Maybe you haven't heard about the BlueLine buses in Delhi that kill/maim many more than MTC or the private buses in Kerala cities which race recklessly and endanger lives.

Originally Posted by aargee

Now this again is a right & wrong statement my friend; the former part is true that Chennai has highest two-wheelers; but attributing the entire two-wheeler community to "careless/suicidal riding that is a characteristic" is something incorrect.

Both the parts are correct. The majority (90% and more) of bikers do ride without worrying about their life - after all the car/bus guys are there to save them. And this comes from someone who does both riding and driving.

Originally Posted by aargee

Last but not the least, @SBaleno, just like KL, I've love for this city where I grew up. I can accpet negatives of this city, but cannot accept something that is a national issue & attributing it only w.r.t Chennai.?

Whether you accept it or not, does not make a negative go away. And when someone posts an issue he sees with traffic in Chennai, he need not first check/confirm if it is unique to Chennai and then post here. Love for a city is a good thing, but let us not get too narrow-minded about it, lest we go the way of the SS, MNS et al.

Originally Posted by aargee

PS - Just asking out of curiosity, @SBaleno, have you been to Hyd, BLR or any other city other than KL to witness the traffic there?

I grew up in the north and have been to all the major cities in India, with KL being the place where I spent the least time. Though that does not in any way mean that I should compare them with Chennai on this thread. This is a Chennai-traffic thread, not a compare-Chennai-with-other-cities thread.

[aargee]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

The majority (90% and more) of bikers do ride without worrying about their life - after all the car/bus guys are there to save them. And this comes from someone who does both riding and driving.

I'm really surprised; if 90% of people ride without worrying about their life, then why isn't the two-wheeler population coming down? If one were to say, the cars, buses, jeeps, cyclists, pedestrians are there to save them, then, are these guys riding at 190% safe? Don't get me wrong, I'm only trying to say, attributing two-wheelers alone is not a right statement; also, 15% of fatals are caused by MTC (from the stats), again, I'm not blaming the MTC guys in total; like I said before all of us are putting everyone's life into threat. May be only 10% of people know what's safe riding/driving is.

With due respect @SBaleno sir, this is getting no where when you want to say all the things about Chennai, which are no way different from other cities, which sounds more of ranting.

Both us can keep giving 1000s of points w.r.t Chennai on our own ways, but the truth is, there's nothing specific to Chennai when it comes to breaking law, enforcement, violations; these are spread like cancer in this entire country (you know better having travelled this country) with Chennai no exception. Again, like you said, one needn't check for unqiueness to what each one sees in Chennai traffic life. As I said before, when I cannot be a part of the change that I want to see, I should not complain; its that simple.

Anyways, I stop my OT here as we've gone too much on this - *Peace*

[Thad E Ginathom]

The news will say that a bus/truck/car hit a 2-wheeler and the riders were killed. It will not say that the two-wheeler had just, for instance, cut from the left accross the front to turn right, or had overtaken ion the left when the larger vehicle was turning, and indicating, left, or that the biker had tried to squeeze through a closing gap between two other moving vehicles --- or any of the other lethal antics we see every day. Our news reporting as as bad as our driving.

Originally Posted by aargee

I do agree that these guys are under pressure to complete their trip logs (7 for blue & 8 for Khaki unformed drivers), but that doesn't mean they should take vengence on road right? What about Sunday's when there's almost no traffic? They still drive like crazy isn't it?

Agreed. Just because I wouldn't want to be one of them doesn't mean that I excuse them in any way. I feel the same about London bus drivers. Not because they can't drive skilfully, which most of them can, but because govt policy has made them kings of the road and they exploit that in every way.

Point to ponder - Just think about this, why wouldn't people wave hands in front of a running train & cross?

I think some do, and die as a result.

Bang true @SBaleno; the entire system has to change without which we'll all keep blaming each other. ENFORCEMENT is the key!!!

Enforcement and education.

Oh!!! C'mon now!!! Are you saying Chennai is the only city to be hated for this? Do you think other cities in this country are the best? What about Hyderabad? Bangalore? ...
@Thad sir says this because, he always compares London w.r.t Chennai; had he been comparing other Indian (crowded) cities (Kolkatta for instance, for instance only), then I'm sure he should feel Chennai to be lesser or at par.

Nope. Just because this thread is about Chennai, I live in Chennai, and Chennai is the only Indian city that I drive in.

I'd rather drive in Chennai than London. British government policy has been anti-car for a long time now, and much of the civil engineering in London is done in a way that makes life harder for the car driver, in the hope we will use public transport instead. Of course there is a different standard of driving, due to those two elements, education and enforcement. If there is one thing I would have liked to bring with me, though, it is the fact that most London bikers dress and drive as if they know they are riding the most dangerous vehicle on the road. They drive like bikers, and not like pedestrians that somehow got motorised.

Chennai Bypass... got a call from my wife, the other day, who was coming back from Ambattur to Palavakkam by FastTrack cab. She said the driver wanted to take Chennai Bypass, as it would be quicker than 100-foot road. I said that, paying by the km, it would be much further. Was I wrong?

[aargee]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I said that, paying by the km, it would be much further. Was I wrong?

Nope you arent; but the point here is, if one wants to SAVE TIME (not money) & are on self drive to enjoy a long drive and/or high speed driving (for pure pleasure), Chennai Bye-pass can give that.

[pramodkumar]

Today this really crazy thing happened when i was travelling in our office cab, we were at a signal and our cab driver was crossing the signal slowly and from our left a scooterist in a honda activa jumped his signal seeing him our cab driver slowed down further timing his crossing, then the activa guy also slowed down, thinking this dude will stop our cab driver slowely accelerated and so did the activa guy. due to this confusion our car slowely nudged against this guys scooter, nothing bad and this guy did even loose balance, we stopped immediately, seeing this the activa guy came near the drivers window and spat on him and sped away.

The activa guy was well dressed and well educated, looked like he was on his way back from work, after all this the poor cab driver wiped his face and applogised to us for the whole incidence. This made us feel even more sorry for the cab guy.

It shows how uncivilised the educated guys are here and how civilized the uneducated people are.


Pramod

[arvind71181]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

It shows how uncivilised the educated guys are here and how civilized the uneducated people are.
Pramod

It has got nothing to do with education IMHO. Its more about giving respect to your fellow drivers and riders which clearly the person did not have.

Having said that, I doubt how any other cab guy would have behaved if he was in the scooterist's place. I guess nothing can be generalized

[Thad E Ginathom]

Thanks, aargee... so it's 100-ft road when in a cab an not in a hurry, and Bypass when in own car or in a hurry.

pramodkumar, very decent guy you had there, driving that cab.

[DWind]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

The activa guy was well dressed and well educated, looked like he was on his way back from work, after all this the poor cab driver wiped his face and applogised to us for the whole incidence.

Did this happen in OMR? And did the activa guy look slightly old (50 ish) well dressed and without a helmet? If so, then I know this guy and was at the wrong end with him

[aargee]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

Today this really crazy...drivers window and spat on him and sped away.

Sorry to hear about that Pramod; quite sad to see the way the city welcomes you.

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

The activa guy was well...for the whole incidence.

Yeah, you could do nothing more than feeling empathetic to the poor cabbie; and remember, this is how the road rage builds up.

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Thanks, aargee... so it's 100-ft road when in a cab an not in a hurry, and Bypass when in own car or in a hurry

You're welcome sir

Originally Posted by DWind

Did this happen in OMR? And did the activa guy look slightly old (50 ish) well dressed and without a helmet? If so, then I know this guy and was at the wrong end with him

@DWind - As I told before, you handled that situation very well; its very unfortunate. Just remember next time guys, whether its useful or not, stay calm in any mishaps & call the cops immediately & ask that guy to stay over there to get things resolved. I'm sure most guys will move away from the spot immediately without a fuss!!!

PS - Since most of us are working in OMR, we should probably stay in touch & help one another when such mishaps occur. What say?

I could be completely wrong, but I get a feeling that everyone in this country is more or less frustrated with something or other in life; may be it could be due to the poor quality of life, insecurity, injustice & that's probably the reason for such things to happen. Most importantly - no respect for others or other human life!!!