I’m taking a break from reporting about the “tourist sites” to discuss the ambiance of visiting Delhi. Two things stood out, in part because they were so different than DC–noise and pollution. Maybe if I were comparing it to the noise of New York City at rush hour or the pollution of Los Angeles on a hot, summer day, I wouldn’t be so critical. But, both Delhi and Washington are capital cities, even if they differ dramatically in size.
Since I’ve already noted one of the effects of air pollution, namely the lack of a blue-sky, in some of my earlier posts, I’m going to focus on the major cause of noise pollution–humans with access to a vehicle horn. In Delhi, there are many more modes of transport than there are in most American cities, and when drivers of these widely disparate types of vehicles are sharing the same small space, they seem to feel the need to make their presence known. They honk when overtaking, they honk when sitting still, they honk if someone or something is in their path, they honk if they want to change “lanes”, they honk to acknowledge they see someone else wants to move ahead, they honk to inform someone else they are approaching, etc., etc. Hopefully, you’ve got the idea. They like to make a lot of noise. I think the noise has become so ingrained, they have to honk because without all the honking it would be too quiet.
Here is a gallery of photos showing the various types of transport.
In addition to being noisy, traffic in Delhi is chaotic, although probably no more so than most third-world countries. Even if there are lines on the road to indicate lanes, which isn’t often, they are generally ignored. On the major three-lane highway around the city it wasn’t unusual to have four vehicles abreast, plus motorbikes and rickshaws. Traffic lights are scarce and, if there isn’t a traffic cop around, often ignored.
One evening while we were sitting in rush hour traffic going nowhere, I heard a thump. Traffic in the three oncoming lanes thinned to reveal a woman laying in the road. Two men rushed from the curbside, helped her to her feet, and essentially carried her to the sidewalk. The hit-and-run driver never stopped.
Pedestrians cross streets wherever and whenever they want. No one seems to think anything of it. It’s amazing I didn’t see more accidents.