Speed is the essence of this era. It colours our lifestyle, thought process and the way we drive too. Yes, the last one – you read me right.
Unfortunately, not only speeding and flouting traffic rules but also underage, reckless and drunken driving have caused numerous accidents in the city. But we fail to learn our lessons and keep committing the same mistakes again and again. The reasons ? We are always in a mighty hurry. We are addicted to showing off. We value less and less our own and other’s lives, the environment and the law and order.
Here in this part, the type of vehicle one owns reflects status, wealth and power. Naturally, the trend is to buy big , sturdy , space consuming and flashy models. More and more varieties are entering the market each day because there is an overwhelming demand for them. Two wheelers are not far behind – super expensive and super built. As there is no capping if you have the moolah you can buy as many as you wish. A fleet is seen as a power enhancer. It’s another thing that there is a massive parking constraint within the city.
I am a lay person. I possess limited knowledge about the technical details – how superior is one brand over the other. But I do know the bigger and costlier the vehicle the worse is the driving. The mass psychology being if I am behind the wheels of a huge four wheeler I own the road. All the other drivers have to give way to me because I have to reach, wherever I want to, faster than the rest.
Needless to say, road rage is not uncommon. So is rogue behaviour. Usually , when you are moving sedately in your lane some jazzy machine will be zipping right past you, sometimes too closely for your own and your car’s comfort, overtaking, changing lanes frequently , taking the wrong turn or side at unimaginable speed irrespective of the vehicular congestion en route. You cannot tell them off because they are habitual offenders and have no inclination to mend their ways. Plus they have money and muscle power to boot.
Then how do you protect yourself and your humble chariot out on the road from these giant bullies? By showing the greatest on-road courtesy – give way and let them whizz past. “Aap pahle” – You go first. And invariably you meet the Formula One Racer, after a kilometre or so, at the next red light standing still with the engine off.
Why?
Because the signal is of 90 Seconds or more.
So much for flying past !!!
😂😂😂😂
This post is part of Blogchatter’s Half Marathon 2026
As long as my Kuya allows me to ride in his vehicle going to town, I can survive without motorcycle or car. I’m enjoying my bike.🤩
I think owning plenty of expensive cars( that others are rarely use) is kind of bragging show–im rich and powerful, something like that. The saddest thing is they get the money from the citizens’ taxes.🤮
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Anything unnecessary is wastage. Yes, it’s a show of power, money and muscle and nothing else.
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You are right, the flashier the car the indicator it is of your wealth. What surprises me is in Bangalore, which is the world’s most congested city, people buy BMW and Audi and I am not kidding you that I cross them faster on my feet when I get off the bus because they seldom move and I wonder what’s the joy of owning something when you cannot even use it for the horse power it promises? Just to show it off?
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Here there are n number of imported cars but I don’t think they are meant for our potholed roads, extreme congestion and speed limits.
Bangalore is known for standstill traffic. I can understand what you are saying.
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Here we have traffic cameras affixed at most places and the challan is sent to the owner
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We also have traffic cameras in most places and challans are received online. Any delay in payment of challan the matter is escalated to the Courts. However, still you cannot curb bad driving.
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Very true. The challans must be hefty so that people are deterred from violating the rules.
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Those who drive recklessly do not care about the fine , hefty or not. Speed for them is a manifestation of power. But power corrupts. So does the aspiration for power lead to disaster.
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Very true dear friend
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Responding to bad driving behaviour with courtesy is a good idea. It diffuses rather than escalates!
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Exactly. There’s no point in arguing. Thanks Liz.
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What do you even do with these high-speed drivers? 😄 They just zoom past as if they’re racing against time!🦋✨
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Exactly. Dangerous for themselves and detrimental to others. I guess it has become a national trait, sadly.
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So very true
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Thank you so much Derrrick 🙏
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Road rage is not uncommon these days. We, too, have the same experience.
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Yes, it’s one of the negative aspects of the modern age. People are losing patience and tolerance both.
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Sadly, that’s true. 👍
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I’m always amused by the cars that go flying past me, only to be caught at the traffic light. I don’t understand the need for speeding everywhere. Slow and steady wins the race. 🙂
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Exactly. But who’ll make these people, mostly youngsters, understand that hurrying won’t make them reach anywhere faster. A steadier pace will.
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A brilliant, ironic, and sadly true reflection on road psychology.
Great post
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Thank you very much Luisa for your esteemed feed back.
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🙏🌷🙏
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Geeta Di,India has a record of 5,13,474 road accidents resulting in 1,83,434 fatalties in 2025.
The day before yesterday a man and his 4 year old son died in a road accident and while the dead were being buried,grandfather had a cardiac arrest and he too died.A single accident took lives of 3 men of same family.
‘Aap Pehle’ is the best thing one can do to oneself,but what I have witnessed on roads is that youngsters have done degrees in Road Rage and they feel it a shame if they don’t overtake all other vehicles whatsoever be the consequences.
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Nusrat,
Good morning!
It’s a shame that we have not been able to harness the restless energy of the youth to better, more constructive and more creative purposes.
Every accidental death produces a shock wave which dies a natural death.
But for the family it’s an indelible black day – unforgettable and inexcusable.
In a vague attempt to rake out its sociological causation I think rash driving and road rage can be traced to the generic impatience and addiction to speed – the essence of this era.
Today’s children have to juggle through a lot of information, constantly changing technology, evolving socio-economic shifts, migration out of choice or forced, spurts of inventions etc. It’s the fear of being left out of the spin perhaps which makes them so restive and in a perpetual state of hurrying motion.
And that manifests in their driving as well I feel.
These are my personal theories. I may be wrong.
How to deal with their irreverence I don’t know.
Perhaps NCERT should revisit the syllabus and make it more in consonance with changing needs and times. Morality and ethics and values require to be re-implanted perhaps.
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You are absolutely right,Geeta Di.
Education system and of course NCERT should revisit the syllabus and frame it in a way which inculcates moral values in students.
We had Theology and Moral Science as a part of the curriculum in our childhood.
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Moral Science was one of my subjects too.
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Moral science had so many short stories with morals.These stories taught more than what long sermons did.
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Children related to stories more Nusrat. Even we still remember the stories we were told by our grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles.
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Road Rage is a dangerous phenomenon. It escalates very fast too and this is one trait that does not have a geographical bias. “Pahle Aap” is the best policy.
Many years back I took it to my ego and let our cars hit one another-The other driver came and told me – “I agree I am an idiot, but what are you?” And that changed my perspective.
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We learn from our mistakes. Road rage is infectious and dangerous
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This is such a spot‑on snapshot of our roads today. The way you’ve described these self‑styled “speed monarchs” is both hilarious and painfully accurate. The bigger the vehicle, the bigger the ego—and the smaller the patience. And yes, the grand finale is always the same: after all that dramatic zig‑zagging, you find them waiting obediently at the next red light like chastened schoolchildren. Your “Aap pehle” philosophy is the only way to stay sane in this circus of horsepower and hurry.
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Having your roots here , I guess, you absorb the scene more intimately. The big bullies, the over confident rickshaws, the scampering autos, then the on road dons – the State owned buses. Amidst all these chaotic adventurers my first car – a Wagon R – was like the shy, demure dulhan who didn’t know who all’s feet to touch. But then Lukhnavi Tehzeeb caught on somewhere and ‘pahle aap’ became the sovereign elixir.
But your description of ‘chastened schoolchildren’ at the traffic isle, I guess is the right brake, if not a reprimand, for the ‘speed monarchs’ .
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