Horns and High beams

Sometimes I feel like there is far more hope of getting the authorities to hand us a beautiful city on a platter, than there is of getting our people to behave in a civilized and courteous manner. Why is it that most Indians use the horn so much while driving? If they were standing in a queue, would they shove people about and yell 'GET OUT OF MY WAY!' ? No. So why do it while driving? I simply cannot understand it. What sense does it make to press your hand to the horn as soon as the lights turn green? Would everybody else just forget to move, if you didn't? It defies all logic.

I wish the solution were as simple as making honking a punishable offence. But the horn is an essential part of driving in India. You do need to use it to alert people to your presence (especially considering that no one uses their rear view mirrors). But for this, a gentle tap or two should suffice - there's no need to get carried away. And I wish I could say that I never use my horn in annoyance, but unfortunately I too, am often guilty of that crime. Honestly, driving in Chennai would try the patience of a saint. But I am trying to make an effort to change. 'Keep calm... and carry on' .

Unlike horns, driving at night with your headlights on high beam is completely uncalled for - at least within the city. The streetlights and headlights of other vehicles provide more than adequate light to see by. Dazzling headlights are not just annoying, they're dangerous. The only situation where it is okay to use your high beam, is when you're on a dark road at night and there are no other vehicles within 500 ft in front of you (travelling in either direction). If there is a vehicle coming towards you, it is courtesy to dip your lights until they have passed by. And it goes without saying that flashing your lights repeatedly to tell other vehicles to 'stay out of your way' is just plain rude. In fact, in many other countries, a quick flash of lights indicates that they will wait and let you go by. An extremely courteous gesture.

I guess it's obvious that this issue really bothers me. What I cannot see is how to get this message across to all the people out there. How about sending sms's to everyone's mobile phones? How about including traffic education in schools? What do you think? I would love to hear your ideas. Please leave a comment or email me at childofchennai@gmail.com .