Pedestrian Dangers

[JG]

The white lines painted in the street (i guess to make it look pretty), appear to mean nothing at all and certainly dont give the pedestrian any measure of safety.
I wont write a long post, telling you all of my near misses. I just wanted to know if the same thing happens to you. Just this afternoon i had perhaps the closest call ive ever had here and thats saying something. On a sort of quiet street, a half a block from the police station with a cop outside, i was already in the crosswalk and a car with plenty of time to slow down came barreling at me and this time i HAD to jump. if i didnt jump, i would have been killed or very seriously injured.
No its not like that back home and yes, it is like that here and well, my hands are shaking still. Yes, I know things could be worse, it almost was. I dont think, personally, this attitude of disrepect for laws and public safety is really that cute. i know some expats like it, they think its cool. Busses should be inspected, so should commercial vehicles. they arent. cars should also be inspected for emissions and safety. Only the newest ones are, supposedly. Whats with all of these cars driving around with no headlights! Does anyone agree that drivers should pass a driving test (applicants arent taking exams here) and the police should and must enforce public safety laws including pedestrian crosswalks.
But back to my purpose for writing, Does this happen to you guys too?

 

[bigbadwolf]

But back to my purpose for writing, Does this happen to you guys too?

Sure. I almost got run over by a bus; the incident was similar to yours. Traffic in Buenos Aires is as unruly as traffic in Lagos -- which is saying something. I'd better stop here before I'm accused yet again of harboring anti-Argentine sentiments. We're supposed to brush all these things under the rug and wax enthusiastic about the sheer charm of the place.

 

[JG]

i just found this group in the yellow pages. its called the "association for the respect of pedestrians". Check out their website at http://www.arpeaton.org.ar.
Im not sure what they do exactly, but i plan on being in touch with them by email. of course, there IS no respect for pedestrians here so they have their work cut out for them. City officials should look at Colonia in Uruguay where cars stop the second you put your foot in the street.

 

[JG]

i dont think reckless driving that kills can be justified. shame on the city government, etc. and it says loads about what kind of people they are in my opinion. kudos to uruguay for doing it right, at least in colonia. Oh, and i was mugged in barcelona too. not sure a cop would stand right there though while it happened, arms folded, passively doing nothing. this behavior is not to be accepted. im sure, despite the suggestion of the lines, im sure the drivers are in violation of existing laws.

 

[midlifebear]

JG:

If you find BsAs so dangerous and its people so disrespectful, why don't you return to your own country where everything and everyone is, in your opinion, so superior? I'm afraid I agree with Nashorama: be alert. Your sense of umbradge is, well, patetico.

 

[BikiniGirl]

Replying to JG, and agreeing with Midlifebear, if everything is so bad and so disorganised in BA, then you got to the wrong place. This is not your Mississippi. Be real, this is South America. Still, if you don't feel comfortable for any reason, then here, in this country where I am a foreigner as well, you have the right to pick a plane at Ezeiza Airport and go back to your own paradise, that is ...your country... , whenever you feel like, noone is forcing you to stay here.

 

[robster]

JG,"Just this afternoon i had perhaps the closest call ive ever had here and thats saying something." So was this call closer than the killer grannies that were trying to get you?No matter what country in the world you are in, you must take care when crossing the roads! If you want to avoid any of these situations then ONLY cross the road when there is nothing coming - Problem solved! So instead of trying to change a culture for your convinience, maybe you should change the ways you do things in this country. " I dont think, personally, this attitude of disrepect for laws and public safety is really that cute." Oh come on. What did you expect when you moved to South America? I wonder how many locals worry about this. Probably not many. In other countries, especially where there has been public unrest and widespread poverty there are far worse things for an outsider to worry about like being mugged or kidnapped and held for ransom. BA is a relatively safe city for the outsider and its within your control to stay out of trouble by taking extra care! I'll try and find a good link for you... The Argentine Association for the Blind may be able to teach you some road crossing tips to keep you safe in the future.

 

[Elpanada]

Should Argentinians also not complain about the situation? Should everybody just accept it with a smile and be happy about it? Maybe you guys won't complain either when you find yourselfs in Argentinian hospital beds after traffic accidents?
The traffic here does need to change and the only way it is going to change is if people complain about it and attempt to do something about it. For some odd reason drivers here do have zero respect for pedestrians, I can recall atleast six times that I have had uncomfortable near misses here during these last few months. Worst example of that was when this motherfucker in his little white car blasting his shitty music was driving fast as a bitch and didn't see me through the ugly looking black film on his windshield, I hate kids like those who treat vehicles as if they were toys and put others in jeopardy. The traffic here is insane and the lack of care which drivers show to pedestrians is also insane, the good news about this is that the government here acctually is taking steps to fix the situation trying to better educate drivers and employing these new urban guards who assist pedestrians and monitor drivers. The way I see it really those urban guards are unnecessary and that whole idea was a bad one but I do think that the government should tripple or quadruple its efforts in both testing and educating drivers.

 

[saracinib]

Getting geared up for your next lawsuit JG? Or maybe it´s a huge conspiracy, your neighbors looking for their final revenge. . .

 

[bigbadwolf]

The traffic here does need to change and the only way it is going to change is if people complain about it and attempt to do something about it. For some odd reason drivers here do have zero respect for pedestrians, I can recall atleast six times that I have had uncomfortable near misses here during these last few months.

Cheers, mate. You echo my sentiments exactly. You have to create a bit of a fuss, not go like a lamb to the slaughter. It's the squeaky wheel that gets oiled, and all that.
The other thing that bothers me is the way any poster critical of life in Argentina is advised to pack his bags and go back to gringoland. One consequence of this is that posts on this forum may not then reflect the true range of experience and problems prevailing in Argentina. If a prospective visitor just reads one nauseatingly saccharrine account after another of life in BsAs, he may be in for a bit of a shock when he actually visits the place (as I certainly was). These self-appointed thought police aren't performing a useful function.