Shanghai Bob

There’s a fair amount of physical danger in Shanghai, but not much of it seems to come from other people unless they are behind the wheel of a car. I’ve seen three traffic accidents since I’ve been here, and have myself come close to being run over by two trucks and a bus. I had read that traffic is dangerous in Shanghai, and Andrew told me as well, but it really is extremely dangerous.

Trucks and buses that ignore pedestrians are obvious dangers, but there are some very subtle dangers, too. The electric scooters are so quiet that you can’t hear them, and they don’t usually have headlights, so it’s easy to step out in front of one at night. All the intersections have very nicely laid-out crosswalks with little green men that mean nothing to traffic.

This is a frame from a video I took of a crosswalk with a green walk light and a big truck plowing through. 13 vehicles drove through in the 30 seconds that the walk light was green. Part of the reason it’s so dangerous is that traffic can come from any direction, but most of the reason is that I’m clearly subconsciously used to thinking I’m safe when I’m in a crosswalk and the light is green. I have to get over that.

In terms of crime, Shanghai seems to be relatively safe. Thieves seem more opportunistic (and incompetent) than violent. Someone stole tiny LiYan’s camera while she was in the metro, but gave it back when she grabbed his arm and asked for it.

Below is a picture of the high-tech scaffolding they use in Shanghai.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 9th, 2008 at 8:56 am and is filed under shanghai.