Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Look right, no wait-left, no WAIT-RIGHT! RIGHT! RIGHT!

I've only been in town a week but I'm happy to report that I've already mastered many of the skills necessary to prosper in London!

For example, I can now gather correct change--accurately and efficiently--from a handful of pounds and pence.

[Funny money]

I can understand (nearly) everything a local says to me.

And, I can cross a busy road with (almost) no fear of getting hit by oncoming traffic!

That last skill was a particularly helpful one to learn because anyone who's ventured to the UK from a right-hand-driving country knows, when it comes to traffic, things are a bit different than they are back home...

It was no doubt after a long and disheartening look at the years pedestrian injury statistics (and a realization that a large number of those injuries were caused by a pedestrian simply stepping into oncoming traffic after verifying that there was no traffic oncoming from the wrong direction) that city officials deciding the pain and suffering saved by painting a simple two-word advisory at the onset of every pedestrian crosswalk well outweighed the cost. Although I can't thank those people enough, I also still can't force myself to cross a busy street with total faith in those two little words.


Through much trial and error over the past week, I've come up with a simple protocol to ensure one never gets hit by an oncoming automobile.
  1. Approach the intersection and look left for oncoming traffic (I know, I know, traffic generally approaches from the right, but certain habbits die hard. If clear, move on to step two.
  2. Look down.
  3. Follow the written instructions (using the above example, LOOK RIGHT). If clear move on to step four.
  4. Before advancing check the pedestrian sign to insure the 'little green man' sign is illuminated.
  5. Before advancing check the left once more (just to be sure).
  6. If all is still clear, check once more to the right to insure no bicyclists have 'popped out' onto the road from a side street.
  7. Walk briskly across the street!
If you have followed the above instructions carefully, you should now find yourself advancing confidently across the throughway! Congratulations--you're well on your way to being a Londoner!

-Cheers!
Dan

No comments:

Post a Comment