StoneSoup Posted June 25, 2012 Report Share Posted June 25, 2012 What it is like in a Nigerian traffic jam Trafic Hell On Earth "...It was long after dark on the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, outside Lagos, and traffic had barely moved in five hours. Through the rear window of our Land Cruiser taxi, I could make out an apocalyptic scene: six lanes of buses, 18-wheelers, fuel tankers, and sedans, wedged bumper-to-bumper in both directions. Curses and horn blasts pierced the diesel exhaust–choked air. Brakes screeched as vehicles inched forward. I lay down in the backseat, trying to get some sleep. Moments later, I felt a thump, and the car rocked violently back and forth. “These crazy men—they steal the headlights!†my driver exclaimed. Crowbar-wielding thieves were prowling the traffic jam, preying on captive motorists. “Don’t get out the car,†the driver warned...." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted June 25, 2012 Report Share Posted June 25, 2012 Interesting observation in the orignal article: According to Tom Vanderbilt, the author of Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us), “Traffic behavior is more or less directly related to levels of government corruption.†Vanderbilt cites a clear correlation between traffic-fatality rates per miles driven and a country’s ranking on Transparency International’s corruption index. (In terms of road safety, the Scandinavian countries fare the best; Nigeria is near the bottom of the list.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobbledonk Posted June 26, 2012 Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 Makes sense - Jakarta's traffic is like something out of your worst nightmare. At least in Jakarta, you are usually trying to get to something worthwhile, but Lagos ?? I'd rather paddle a canoe across the treatment ponds at the local sewage plant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horneytorney Posted June 26, 2012 Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 i think this is complete nonsense! there is hardly any traffic jam in North Korea just because there are no cars there! on the other hand some cities in USA or Europe have a lot of traffic problems but not much corruption Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamui Posted June 26, 2012 Report Share Posted June 26, 2012 i think this is complete nonsense! there is hardly any traffic jam in North Korea just because there are no cars there! on the other hand some cities in USA or Europe have a lot of traffic problems but not much corruption The quote says: "more or less directly related". Of course in countries with few cars the relation is weak. Just look at Cambodia, which is much more corrupt than LOS: the traffic jams in PP are not worth mentioning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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