Europe

Russia’s reckless drivers

By The World ⋅ August 14, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment
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carphone2Last year, an estimated 35,000 people died on Russian roads. Eleven hundred of those people were killed on the streets of the capital, Moscow. So, what is it that makes getting into a car in the former Soviet Union such a gamble? Cell phones? Texting while driving? Drinking? The answer might surprise you. Jessica Golloher reports.

Life Magazine’s Photo Slideshow: “Best and Worst Places to Drive in the United States.“

Discussion

7 comments for “Russia’s reckless drivers”

  • Lisa

    Boston, without a doubt, has the most idiots on the road per capita than any other city I’ve visited.

  • Cuyler Brooks

    The worst place I’ve ever driven – and I’ve driven in Ireland and Australia (though not Russia) – is right here in metro Atlanta. In 2007 I came within a fraction of a second of being killed by a car that ran a red light at Scott Blvd and DeKalb Industrial in DeKalb County – my car was totaled. The other driver was not charged.

    This year a DeKalb County cop tail-gated me into a blind curve on the Stone Mountain Expressway and when I reduced speed to reduce the hazard, ticketed me for “obstructing traffic” – after 10 p.m. when there was no traffic to speak of.

  • Marybeth

    The worst place I’ve ever driven was the highway leading out of Naples, Italy – at rush hour! It began as 3 lanes for traffic in each direction, with the lanes marked on the highway surface. As I joined the flow of traffic that was solid, bumper-to-bumper in all 3 lanes, an ambulance siren wailed behind me & most of the cars moved to left or right to allow the ambulance to drive up the middle, between lanes 2 & 3. However, many cars pulled behind the ambulance, forming a fourth lane that squeezed between the marked lanes, forcing everyone to drive MUCH too close to the cars on either side. Then, some drivers formed a FIFTH lane on the shoulder! This forced every car to be exceedingly close to the cars on either side, to the point that I would have been afraid to put my hand between the cars on either side of me – with everyone driving about 70-75 miles per hour! Not for the faint of heart, or those without a steady hand on the wheel! Never again!!! Marybeth

  • CT Davis

    Los Angeles, CA. When I moved here driving took a lot of getting used to. I see pushy drivers every day. What is it about guys in black Mercedes sedans that makes them think that traffic laws don’t apply to them?

    Another point: Russian traffic cops taking bribes is said to favor wealthy people, who then drive as badly as they please, but traffic fines here basically have the same effect.

  • Zack Douglas

    I once rode in the back of a dilapidated Lada cab in Guayaquil Ecuador. Not only was the driving erratic and dangerous, my seat in the cab was a folding chair sitting on the floorboards! Needless to say there was no seatbelt.

  • Jorge Silva

    Rural roads in China… Drove several 100′ Km on a rented van with a driver for several days. When driving thorugh villages the driver would pass within inches from pedestrians standing on the side of the road, would take over other vehicles with next no none visibility and, of course, our communication possiblities with him were minimal. India is always quite an adventure as well. The only thing that saves India is the fact that they drive at relatively low speed, however once we ran over a dog, who went under the car from front to rear, while the driver did not even bother to look through the mirror to see what happened. Those are high adrenaline drives, even for a native from Mexico City…

  • R. Murray Frith

    We’ve rented cars all over central Europe, UK, Central America & driven extensively here in the US & Canada, but nowhere we’ve been has been near as bad as the cities & freeways in Italy -especially in & near Rome & Naples. Signal lights are unheard of, with everything from bicycles to big buses to contend with -all interweaving rapidly. If the 2-3 lanes going your direction are backed up, people will actually pass by going into oncoming traffic from the other direction. It took us 4 hrs to find our hotel in Rome -the road to it shown on the map did not exist, & the one-way roads go on for a long way before you can get turned around. On the freeways there are usually 3 lanes each way. If you go to pass someone going 60-65 in the middle lane, by going 75, very soon someone going 100+ will be at your rear bumper flashing lights & beeping aggressively. We got our cars broken into twice, with all our luggage stolen in Rome right in front of the hotel in broad daylight. Car rental companies simply won’t rent out luxury cars there.