I do see gatherings of young people walking around at night, but relatively few pedestrians relative to the density of the city.
On Sun, Oct 23, 2011 at 5:19 PM, duh-roo <bowmanster at gmail.com> wrote:
> It's a matter of culture. In the states, people expect drivers and
> pedestrians to regulate their movement by formal significations, so many
> people don't actually pay much attention to their neighbors in the streets,
> relying instead on traffic lights, lanes etc to keep them safe. In China
> (and most of Asia) both drivers and pedestrians go where they like, when
> they like, and rely on themselves and each other to keep aware and not
> collide. As a consequence, people move slower, keep their heads on a swivel,
> and traffic flows smoothly without stopping, though it may appear chaotic or
> "anarchic" simply by looking at it--the way a flock of birds navigating
> common air space might. This is shocking and uncomfortable to a westerner
> not used to the practice, but it really isn't that difficult. I can't speak
> for Shanghai, but here in Yongzhou, Hunan province, you can safely enter the
> street whenever you like, drivers will see you and go around you, or you
> will see them and pause to let them pass, everyone honks politely to let you
> know they're coming, and no one gets hurt, though I have seen a few people
> on the ground having fallen off their motorbike in bigger cities like
> Changsha. Quick google on traffic accident stats suggest China's fatal
> accidents as percentage of population is a bit lower than America's.
>
> On Mon, Oct 24, 2011 at 3:35 AM, Bill Quimby <quimbywm at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> There was an article in the New Yorker a few years back about driving
>> in China. Totally anarchic. It was suggested that they find it difficult to
>> accept the idea of turning on headlights at night.
>>
>> - Bill
>>
>>
>> On 10/23/2011 12:15 PM, michael perelman wrote:
>>
>>> I just returned from Shanghai. Walking there is dangerous. Cars have the
>>> right of
>>> way, no matter what. I saw a dead pedestrian.
>>>
>>>
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-- Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Chico, CA 95929
530 898 5321 fax 530 898 5901 http://michaelperelman.wordpress.com