Motoring Courtesies

[crosswind]

1. When parking, do not block another car or a driveway. You could obstruct a vehicle needed in an emergency situation if you do. If you really, really must, at least have the mind to leave a contact number on your windshield or with a parking attendant in the area. You’ll prevent any nasty deed that might be inflicted upon your car by the incensed owner of the vehicle you blocked.

2. Never block an intersection. Whoever is guilty of this should have his driver's license revoked. Seriously. One of the most infuriating things that could happen to anyone on the road is to get barred from crossing an intersection by a vehicle trapped inside the intersection box because its lane is already full and it can’t move forward. The caustic remark you want to tell the stupid driver is best rendered in Filipino: "Wala ka naman palang pupuntahan, hinarang-harang mo 'yang kotse mo dyan." In English: "I didn't know they gave driver's licenses to people with an IQ of 20."

3. Do not obstruct the pedestrian lane. You know those white stripes on the road? That's the space provided for people to walk on, which they won't be able to do if your car is sitting directly on it. Whatever you do, the pedestrian lane should be treated with the utmost respect. Disregarding it is like parking your car in a slot allotted for the handicapped.

4. Observe the "zipper principle" when merging. Question: Your lane is merging with another lane into a single pathway--how do the merging cars take turns? Simple: By alternately going one car at a time. This is the most Solomonic and most orderly way of solving the conundrum.

5. Always know how to yield the right of way. Another question: You reach an intersection with no traffic lights or traffic officers--which car crosses the intersection first? Answer: The car that arrives at the intersection first naturally earns the right to cross first. Should two vehicles arrive at the intersection at virtually the same time, the car on the left needs to give way to the car on its right.

6. Give way to an overtaking car. Sure, some drivers who overtake are just reckless speed freaks. But if you close the door on an overtaking car, it might figure in a fatal accident with the oncoming vehicles. I don't think your conscience can bear that. Just give way, especially to decidedly faster cars. In motorsports, slow cars are shown the blue-flag warning if they fail to let faster cars pass them. Stop holding up that Subaru Impreza STI if you're only driving a Honda City.

7. Give way to an ambulance. The usual complaint is that many ambulance drivers fake an emergency just to get through traffic. So? You'd lose nothing if you gave way to an empty ambulance, but a life could be lost if you didn't let a legitimate one pass. Make things difficult only for the convoys of public officials--unless one of the vehicles in the convoy sports a "1" plate, in which case you need to get the hell out of the way if you don't want to get shot at.

8. Keep off the passing lane unless when overtaking. This is one of the most basic rules of the highway that many Filipino motorists are not aware of. On the expressway, it’s very common to see slow cars hogging the leftmost lane, which is meant to allow faster cars to overtake slower ones. One look and you know which drivers most likely paid an LTO fixer to get their license.

9. Dim your headlights when there's oncoming traffic. It's understandable if you often feel the need to use your lights' bright mode. The Philippines, after all, is so poor we can't even afford to light our main thoroughfares. But be considerate enough to flick your headlights back to their low-beam setting when there’s a car approaching from the opposite lane. Using your lights' bright mode is like focusing a spotlight on other motorists. You'd get miffed if somebody did that to you as well.

10. Use your horn sparingly. Cars do not have horns so you can perpetually announce your presence to the world. Horns are there to help you warn other motorists or pedestrians about a potential hazard on the road, not to help you bully your way through traffic. Some of us are just horn-happy. Notice how the car behind you automatically honks the very moment the light turns green? You'd think the traffic light was wired directly into his horn pad. And while we're on the subject, never use your horn in a hospital or school zone. Some parts of your world could use some silence, you know.

11. Be mindful of puddles on the road. Be careful not to splash mud water onto pedestrians or other cars. It is quite simply the height of insensitivity.

12. Use your turn signals. Do others a big favor by never making them guess as to what your next move might be. By letting them know which way you're turning, you're giving them enough time and opportunity to react appropriately to your every maneuver.

13. Always fall in line. The biggest pricks on the road are those who give no regard to the neat line of cars before them, and attempt to jump it and get ahead of everyone else. We see this a lot at expressway exits and parking entrances. Who the hell do these people think they are?

14. Never throw trash outside. Put it this way: How would you like passing cars to litter the front of your house with cigarette butts and sandwich wrappers? Exactly my point. If you think of EDSA as one giant ashtray, you have no right to smoke inside the car in the first place.

15. Try not to rubberneck. I say "try" because it's in our human nature to look whenever there's an incident on the road. The trouble here is that, by craning your neck to check the ongoing commotion, you're slowing down and contributing to the bottleneck, thereby inconveniencing the cars behind you. Just move along. Four out of five times, it's just a boring fender-bender anyway.

16. Do not tailgate. Someone who tailgates is not much different from a stalker: His presence right behind you is unwelcome and is making you uneasy. Plus, there's always the huge potential for a collision.

17. Do not go against the flow of traffic. The practice is so common in this country that we actually have a word ("counterflow") to describe it--even if it doesn't exist in the English dictionary. It's not only unsafe, it also insults the motorists in the opposite lane by implying you are so special that they need to move aside just to let you pass. No wonder it's always a sure recipe for bloodshed.

18. Do not drop off passengers in the middle of the road. Because if you do, you become guilty of the very same thing we find most disgusting among jeepney and bus drivers.

19. Do not drive fast in a residential area or a school zone. You know why it's fine to go 300kph on a proper racetrack? Because you're sure no child will cross your path.

20. Offer a friendly wave of acknowledgment or apology. When another motorist politely gives you the right of way, wave at him to let him know you appreciate his act of kindness. And in that rare instance when you absentmindedly commit a blunder, wave as well to tell the other driver you're sorry. From experience, a good-natured gesticulation never fails to dissipate anger. Try it. You'll notice driving--even in hellish Metro Manila--can be a lot less stressful.

[cherlie]

Nice one...thanks!

[xwangbu]

yun o...candidate for post of the year..😉

[Jie11]

nice one too,... sir crosswind!

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nice one too sir crosswind!!!

[robgowild]

guilty ako dun sa number 13 ah.

[_Cathy_]

*TS, please cite the source/reference for your post if this is not your own writing.

[jick.cejoco]

These are the do's and not don'ts of most filipino drivers. There's even "competition" who has the loudest horn

[macsd]

You can add......Do not stall your car in the left most or passing lane. Keep them on the right most shoulder and fix it there. Not because you have EWD gives the driver the right to stall the vehicle at the left most or middle of the road. A little push to the right will keep accident away.

[vinj]

Simple courtesies that can actually help improve Metro Manila traffic flow. Couple this with disciplining of the PUV drivers and that would really be great.

[machine.pistol]

Nice post. I wish we could have implied permission to forward to friends.