Our scorn for road etiquette is truly puzzling

One of the great lines of the late actor Robin Williams was in the movie Good Morning Vietnam, when he was asked to comment on the marijuana problem among US soldiers.  “There’s no problem,” he said, “they’ve all got plenty.”

In the same vein, if a Nairobi driver was asked if there was any problem with driving and talking on a mobile phone at the same time, he would probably answer: “No problem. I can use the phone just as easily whether I’m driving or not.”

Perhaps this explains the inexplicable conduct we witness on our roads every day. If you see a pedestrian, or cyclist, or another motorist doing something so bizarre that it is impenetrable to logical analysis, perhaps you’re looking at it from the wrong angle.  

You must have wondered, many times, what on earth was going on in the mind of another road user when he or she performed an extraordinary manoeuvre, and you have perhaps wished you could stop them and ask what they were thinking, and what they thought might be the impact of their action on other road users ... Wait, other road users? What other road users? What are they doing on my road?

Certainly, every road user is capable of making a one-off mistake. It is also possible, in relatively sophisticated situations, that a road user might actually not know what the proper procedure is.

For example, overtaking safely, promptly and briskly requires some forethought and judgement, not just rote learning.

MENTAL PROCESS

Not everybody makes that effort, or has the timing skill, or picks the right gear – and certainly not everybody considers cars behind who would also like to get past during a rare gap. But much of the most crass behaviour is clearly deliberate.

And it often involves rules that are so basic that they are bleedin’ obvious, even for someone who has never been taught, or has the memory limits of a goldfish.

So what is the mental process of a pedestrian who steps out onto a busy road and takes three suicidal paces before looking to see if there’s any traffic coming? Did someone forget to mention that the “look right, look left, look right again” procedure should always be completed before leaving the pavement?

What is the thinking of a driver who parks at a wonky angle that takes up two places? Do those who park straight take special extra lessons and spend hours practising?

Why does a queue jumper think  every other vehicle in the line is waiting its turn? For what reason do some drivers not indicate when they are turning?  It’s not something you can “forget” to do, any more than you might not remember to sit down and close the door.

What about those who chronically fail to dim their lights for oncoming traffic? Have they never been dazzled? Can they somehow see better when other cars have their lights on beam?

The protocols are not a mystery.  Flagrant disregard of them is.