Rules of the game

Auto transportation in Central Asia continues to be an E ticket ride….a non-stop thrill a minute ride that is definitely an adrenalin rush. In Almaty, taxi drivers are masters of time management. The traffic lights have timing devices which let you see exactly how many seconds before the light will turn red or green. Drivers are able to spot a red light two blocks ahead, judge their speed and speed up or slow down accordingly to hit the light in the nanosecond that it turns green…more than once I looked left and right hoping that there wasn’t an equally daring driver coming perpendicular to us also judging whether he could make it through before ours turned green….this is all done as speeds in the middle of town that I would not dare attempt except on interstate highways. In Tashkent, taxi drivers may be licensed or not. If you stand by the side of the road, multiple cars will slow down to offer lifts….they have expert time-management skills and time is money to them so they zip, bob and weave, swerve, and dart in and out of traffic to get to the necessary destination in time to beat some other unmarked car to the next fare.. General lane controls are a mathematical equation…number of white lines multiplied by a factor of two…two line – four lanes, three lines- six lanes…and these are minimal numbers….if there is space between cars, it is like a vacuum in nature. We learn in school that nature abhors a vacuum, and so it is best to fill it. The general rule seems to be the larger the vehicle, the smaller the space needed….it’s all physics, but I was never good at math and science, so I don’t understand how they know how to judge it, but they do. Horns are important signaling devices and a code exists which all drivers understand. One honk at a traffic light means that the light will change in two seconds, why aren’t you moving? In moving traffic it means I’m here and coming through..this is answered by a corresponding one honk…two honks – I said I’m coming through, why are you not giving me room..this is answered by two longer honks meaning “screw you, I’m here and not moving over.” When all else fails it is best to roll down windows and shout each other. Eye contact in such cases is necessary lest the words lose their impact. Thankfully, the cars have seen all this before and can continue in a straight line. It is best to drive centering your car on the white line…this shows dominance and forces other drivers to adjust with the aforementioned horns communicating with each other In Almaty, drivers were mindful of pedestrians, and if you stood at a crossing, they would stop and allow you to pass. It was quite calming to know that you could cross in safety. In Tashkent, however, pedestrians are totally on their own. Blocks are extremely long and broad avenues of 6-8 lanes are not at all uncommon. Traffic whizzes by at rates approximating 50 mph and it is very disturbing to my old eyes to see little boys and girls no older than my grandson Alex standing in the middle of the street in their white shirts and black pants/skirts with cars zipping by them in both directions as they wait for a break in the traffic where they can bolt for the safety of the sidewalk. Even if you are in a crosswalk it is not a place where you relax and cross in safety…cars continue and there is a mental calculation made by drivers…speed+trajectory+ distance=close encounters of a very scary kind. The worst thing you can do in such crossings is to change your walking speed…all these calculations are made and locked in. If you speed up or slow down, it overloads the system and real danger disaster is imminent. Whether by law or by common practice, drivers have the right of way…and they have no hesitation to exercise this. My friends continue to be very mindful of us when we cross the street. Driving in the desert has its own rules. Without lane markers the only rule seems to be “I own the road, and I will exercise my right to my domain. There is generosity in this, sort of a noblese oblige..rarely do you force oncoming traffic to have all four wheels in the desert…Two wheels on pavement shows that you are willing to share your road with lessers. This is all done at speeds between 80-90 mph since the speedometer doesn’t vary much between 130-140 kph…side mirrors are very fond of each other and get up close and personal with each other, but since this is a Muslim country, touching is not allowed. Seat belts are an annoyance and should never be used. They restrict your ability to reach in the back seat for items deemed required for the trip, therefore they are disabled and non functional. Air conditioning means rolling down all windows and checking the condition of the air…the condition is always hot. In fairness to my above sarcasm, I have not seen a single accident or fender bender although we did experience a near disaster which haunted me for a full day. In Zarafshon, Sitora’s father stopped to let a woman who was leaving the central market to cross the street. She carried a baby in one arm, groceries in the other arm and a little six year old, or so, boy walked beside her…as they passed in front of our stopped vehicle, the boy darted from mom and headed to the side of the road just as a taxi came by with customary speed, read way too fast, and came within inches of hitting the boy…Screeching of tires, terrified screams from mom, and an “Oh my god,” from foreigners simultaneously filled the air…the taxi driver, naturally, screamed at the mother that this was not a pedestrian crossing, failing to note that there were not any pedestrian crossings within a 5 mile radius…I couldn’t help seeing my grandson, Alex, and I was left shaken for the remainder of the day.