DEAR Editor,-
We are all aware of the traffic problems along Marine Drive which become especially hectic in holiday periods. As widening the road is virtually impossible in built-up areas, I would like to share a recent experience.
In Trinidad, West Indies, an island only 80 km long and 60 wide, there are two million vehicles on the road and they have made motoring in the city relatively hassle free!
When a driver approaches a stop street on a minor street trying to turn right with streams of traffic in both directions, it is almost impossible to find a gap simultaneously in both directions. Their solution is that as soon as a wide enough gap appears on the right, you drive into that lane, effectively blocking it. The approaching vehicles on the right slow down for you and the cars coming from the left, seeing that you wish to filter in, allow you to do so. The net effect is that traffic keeps flowing – with minimal inconvenience to anyone and this would make driving here a more pleasant experience.
Of course, to get the public to start doing this would be a long educational process and needs to be initiated in conjunction with the Traffic Department. Little steps lead to great solutions.
FRANK JARDINE
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