Balkano survivor pt6: Traffic chaos
For new people here is very difficult to get used to traffic. The most of drivers don't respect any traffic sign and we constantly have roadworks. Except in the summer when everything must be ready for the tourism.
So, for 9 - 10 months in the year, many of our streets are closed or reduced on just one track. It goes very slowly and it is not because of details and quality of these works on the road. Many of us don't pay any taxes, so there is not much money in this.
It goes slowly because our construction workers and road workers are famous by getting drunk on their jobs. And they must handle these machines!
So we must drive careful, slow and on unfinished, rough road. We already got used to get in the car half of hour earlier wherever we go. We have very bad roads full of wholes and cracks. When they renew it, it never lasts too long because of their careless work. And these guys are resting, of course. At 8:00 AM, they made a break. Next break is probably in 9:30 AM. It must be tough!
If you are settled somewhere near the center of the city, it is better to walk anywhere. And if you choose to drive, you will see a lot, a lot of these:
In most cases, they don't place any warning signs BEFORE the spot of roadwork. They just park their truck and other machines on the road and start to open their beers. The law says that they have to put one of these signs a hundred and fifty meters before the roadworks, but police don't punish them when they don't place it. This situation can cause serious accidents, actually, they DID CAUSE serious car accidents, those who were guilty were punished but that didn't stop others to make same mistakes.
But on the streets that are not under roadworks, we have even bigger problems!
People leave their cars everywhere. Some of them actually park their car on the middle of the street and go to buy some supplies. Nobody turns on the blinkers and nobody gives any sign about the next action.
It is impossible to drive without breaking the law, especially when someone parks the track on the middle of the street. If you click on the second of photos just below, you will see that one policeman is actually doing his job! It is very, very unusual.
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On the most of the streets you must make traffic violation, risk your life and drive on track for opposite direction because someone is completely relaxed and parked his car on the middle of the streets while he's drinking coffee without thinking about his car or traffic. People are careless here, drivers and pedestrians also. They don't think about others and they don't care at all because police don't do anything. They are drinking their coffees in that bar, too!
In older parts of my town we have really narrow streets.
They were made because of attacks from the sea many centuries ago. It is much easier to defend from ship cannons, to hide and find a shelter if you have these narrow streets and walls built of the stone. But people in history didn't count that some day will cars have to pass trough that streets. I must drive trough one of these streets at least once in day. And many of these streets are not defined with direction or traffic rules.
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And people do not behave different on these streets, they also leave their cars everywhere and because of that tiny space to drive trough, many of us lose our side mirrors.
When you scratch somebody's car here, you just continue to drive like it's not your business. And the owner of the damaged car will probably never notice that scratch!
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Few weeks ago, @felixxx visited us from Germany.
He noticed many good things and had a good time here, but he also noticed bad construction works and bad roadworks.
He actually noticed this: many of traffic signs and traffic lights here were placed in the middle of the sidewalk. Not left, not right, in the middle!
I know that is not OK, but I completely got used to it, so I didn't pay my attention to that. Now, I started to see this everywhere. So, this is a place on which is impossible to write a message on your phone while you're walking on the street, you could end up with lumps on your head!
Thanks to my iPhone SE for making possible to me to take these photos and make these GIF-s!
So they do that everywhere ?
Who puts a pole in the middle of the foot or cycling path ?? XD
Not everywhere, but many of poles... very bad, conservative city lords
In Bulgaria you also have the issue of sometimes broken or missing manhole covers as well, and falling apart path paving - in Bulgaria they don't seem to understand you should put a progressive smaller size stones until a top sand below the pavers, so they get wavy pretty fast... It is more of a concern tripping over these wonky pavers when you are walking than running into poles there.
I do notice that there doesn't seem to be any flagstone paved, cobblestone roads there? They are very common in Bulgaria still, and not just in the big cities.
Compared to how the Dutch do paving though, most of eastern europe's footpaths are quite dangerous and ugly... shrug I still love it anyway, keeps me alert...
yes, it is very much like here, i suppose, thank you :) @l0k1
yes, there are many flagstone paved, cobblestone roads, but i didn't take photos
I love Balkan :)
Yes, road workers are famous for their hard work. While the one working is keeping the shovel from not falling to the ground the other four are discussing his progress :)
yes, and when they bury the hole, they dig it again because someone left his glove in there