Sunday, November 16, 2008

Speed breakers as Arrogance index!

Speed breakers are a common sight in the urban and semi-urban areas of India. The speed breakers are thought to be speed calming devices/constructs which are either planned by the traffic authorities or are a result of digging of roads for telephone, sewage, or optical backbone networks.
For the past two weeks we have been commuting to office by bike and what I feel is that the speed breakers are a measure of the arrogance of the local inhabitants. The number and height of the speed breakers in a locality can be thought of as arrogance index. More the people are arrogant, more number of speed breakers are planned!.
When we slow down our vehicle to tackle the speed breaker, another Indian brother might overtake us from the left peeking his way to the side of the road where the speed breaker tapers and wanes. With no concern for other commuters of the road, he would reenter the lane and proceed stopping our normal flow. So most of us do not give even a thought to these constructs on the road, with full speed we dash against it and fly in air for an instant causing trouble to everybody on the road.
Does these constructs really serve their purpose? To some extent yes, it serves the people in those places where majority of people have patience and do not display the Indian identity of arrogance. In most places, speed breakers are just another mound of tar and road metal and concrete. Any road when opened for public is like a sky way; six months down the line speed breakers crop up like mushrooms after a seasonal rain of arrogant traffic. But unlike mushrooms that die and reborn with season, speed breakers are permanent.

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