Numerous statistics verify that China has the highest rate of car accidents and related fatalities in the world. But what nobody ever mentions is that just walking across a street here can also be life threatening.
In most countries I have ever lived in, pedestrians are protected by the simplest of rules: if there is a crosswalk and the light is green for walkers, they can cross safely. In this situation, they have something called "right of way" (priority) over any vehicle, which are supposed to stop to let people cross.
From my understanding, this same basic traffic law IS on the books in China. However, from living in Shanghai for many years it has become dangerously apparent to me that this law is absolutely not obeyed or even enforced by police.
On the contrary, Chinese pedestrians have become so accepting of vehicles turning at corners without yielding or crossing intersections without slowing that the new "common law" is that vehicles always have priority over pedestrians.
Close to my office in Changning district, there is a heavily trafficked thoroughfare that gets as many cars as people crossing its intersection. Yet, what usually occurs are pedestrians having to wait at their green light because cars continue to bully their way through the crosswalk. I fear for my life at this intersection.
Sadly, many less-aware pedestrians don't realize how closely they brush against death every day when crossing a street in Shanghai. Failing to pay full attention to cars who refuse to stop at a red light is just begging to get clipped.
I have seen countless cars drive right in front of mothers pushing their baby in a stroller, which, but for the grace of god, would result in the baby taking the brunt of the car's impact. Why these drivers have no compunction about possibly killing someone is beyond me, but every single day I witness at least one near-fatality.
The pathetic thing is that none of these insane drivers could plead ignorance should they actually kill someone. They are all very aware of the traffic laws, as Shanghai has one of the most difficult written driving tests in China. The Global Times' own reporter, Yang Lan, wrote an article last year (see: "In Shanghai, the ultimate driving lesson is on the road") about how it took her three attempts to pass the test.
A Chinese friend of mine has a solid theory about why Shanghai drivers suck. He said that 20 years ago there was hardly a car in sight except for the wealthy and officials. Therefore, pedestrians and bicyclists were quick to jump out of their way because they knew they would be blamed and punished for any accident. This acquiescent mentality, my friend believes, has been inherited by today's pedestrians. Even when cars run a red light or push their way through people, few will fault the driver.
As a Westerner, I have less tolerance for bad driving than the locals do. When I see some arrogant driver try to turn right without slowing down, I can only think that they are just trying to show off their power against us, the lowly plebeians, who walk instead of drive to work. In France, my home country, we have a saying "The biggest one owns the road." There are other similar idioms around the world, such as "Big fish eats the little fish," all which seem to be a very literal attitude in China.
Busses here blaze through red lights and the traffic police let them, but those same cops will chase after scooter riders for not stopping at the white line. Chinese taxis like to honk at law-abiding pedestrians for not getting out of their way. But then the rich people in their shiny black sedans honk at the taxis for not moving.
It is an absurd food chain that I have not ever witnessed in any other developed country. From Paris to Amsterdam to London, I have always felt quite safe crossing a street. But not here in Shanghai, where even the highly publicized recent crackdown on traffic violations has failed to enforce pedestrians' legal right of way.
The opinions expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Global Times.
