by Yours Truly
Part Deux - Pedestrians
In my never-ending quest to provide my nine readers (I would appreciate if each and every one of you could actually get around to signing my guest book to get to know you all a little better thank you very much - whew!) with interesting information on life in Merida, I am continuing this series on driving in Merida. Which, by the way, I have decided to call, in a fit of creativity, Driving in Merida.
This part, the second part for those whose knowledge of francais is limited to petite pois and fromage, will deal with that traffic nuisance known as the pedestrian.
Pedestrians can be found all over the place in Merida. In the downtown area, also known as El Centro Histerico, (or Historico, depending on your frame of mind), pedestrians, called peatones, are everywhere - like ants in your sugar bowl - and getting your vehicle through them can be like navigating through a flock of sheep on a Scottish country road. I would strongly advise newcomers to avoid driving downtown as it can boost stress levels a few notches, not to mention the added inconvenience of the inevitable traffic fine and amonestation from the cop who will surely carpe diem when he sees your pale and nervous white face.
If you must drive downtown however, keep a few things
in mind:
If you want to get anywhere, get as close to the car in front of you (hopefully it's not another tourist!) and stick there like glue, ignoring traffic lights, pedestrian crosswalks, and so on.
Do not feel mercy for pedestrians carrying children, large packages or walking aids. Stopping to let them cross the street will only serve to open a window of opportunity to each and every other person trying to cross that street and you will be stuck with many an irate driver behind you.
When approaching intersections, traffic lights and pedestrians crossing are not in any logical way related. What is related is vehicle speed and proximity to velocity in crossing a given street. That said, when approaching an intersection where you have the green light, by all means accelerate or at least rev the engine and the pesky pedestrians will move a little faster towards the other side of the street. Slow down, and again you have a problem similar to the one described in the previous paragraph.
If, on the other hand, you are the pedestrian, which
is highly likely given the price of rental cars with misleading borderline
fraudulent names like Budget, Thrifty and Joy(!), keep in mind the following:
No one cares whether or not you feel you have any sort of right of way. Don't even think about stepping off the sidewalk without carefully checking for any and all kinds of vehicles.
Crosswalks are decorative items in Merida. Again, use all five senses before venturing across any street.
There are no traffic lights for pedestrians. You have no rights, although the infrequently read Yucatecan Drivers Manual frequently mentions that you do. This is a fallacy. Cross the street when there are no cars, busses, motorcycles or bikes around. Period. Any traffic lights and/or traffic cops indications are for the vehicles. You are on your own.
Back to the drivers among us.
Away from the city center, with its narrow, picturesque and myriad pedestrian-filled one way streets (odds run east-west and even numbered streets run north-south), driving becomes easier. The streets themselves are a little wider and there are much fewer pedestrians to watch out for. They are there, however, so do be careful.
Luckily, even outside of the city core, a person walking is a person to be honked at, like that errant chicken that crossed the road. Pedestrian crosswalks have proved so useless (no one even knew they existed or what they were, apparently) that a new design was implemented: a mega-tope painted in yellow or white stripes to resemble a crosswalk, but with teeth. This new zebra crosswalk forced vehicles to slow down and thereby supposedly let anyone interested cross the street. But still, Yucatecan conductores were not participating in this little game, since they were always in a hurry and had no time for civility. The Cultural Capital of the World's citizens would not have stopped for Zubin Mehta and his violin if he was crossing the street here. Apparently, when the Culture awards were being handed out, they were only looking at the Mayan pyramids.
After what I imagine must have been weeks of brainstorming, the S.P.V. (police force) got involved and installed a traffic cop at each of the major megatope crosswalks to further enforce the idea of stopping for pedestrians. The further addition of a sign indicating the amount you would pay in fines if you didn't let someone across, helped drive the message home.
Having some consideration for other people around us, is a concept that is talked about enthusiastically by the priest in church on Sundays, but when they get back in their vehicles, the general populace tends to dismiss any fraternal feelings they might have almost felt for their fellow citizen of Merida.
Thus, a set of physical barriers (the megatope, the policeman, the sign and the fine) must be put in place to make society a little friendlier.
An interesting case is the pedestrian who you do give the right of way to, stopping your car and waving at them using a quick left to right openhanded horizontal waving motion with your left hand, indicating that you have stopped for them and are letting them pass. This pedestrian has been so conditioned to expect the worst from drivers (a la Pavlov), that he or she is entirely distrustful of your gesture and will ignore you, much to the disgust of anyone behind you, who begins honking wildly and making obscene gestures with his hands in your general direction. If he does venture out in front of your vehicle, he will stop there as he checks the other lane, since the other cars are now zooming around you as you wait for the person to cross; everyone is honking at you; finally the pedestrian retreats and you move on. In your rearview mirror you observe him waiting dejectedly for a break in the traffic. No one else has stopped.
Another case worth mentioning is the perceived socio-economic status of the pedestrian attempting a life-threatening street crossing. If the approaching male driver sees that the peaton is of brown color, perhaps holding the traditional sabucan, and generally looks poor, it doesn't matter if that person is holding a baby or seven shopping bags from the Comercial Mexicana, he won't slow down. If, however, the pedestrian is female, looks basically blondish and a little upper class, that car will come to a complete stop, crosswalk or no. A generous flourish of the hand indicating that the street may now be crossed will follow, as will many a look back in the rear-view mirror to see if maybe she acknowledges the gesture and would secretly like to go home with him...
In short, if you are a pedestrian, be very careful and very aware that things are not as they are in say, Switzerland, where the vehicles not only come to a stop at the redlight, but will actually turn off their motors to dimish noise and air pollution. If you are a driver, fear not, pedestrians mean nothing.
But maybe, just maybe, you could stop and let the occasional peaton do his thing, thereby helping to make Merida's streets a little friendlier and maybe even inspire some of the locals to do the same.
Next time, we'll continue with the driving series... perhaps we'll look at Highway Fun!
Buen Viaje!
