Aaaaarg!
Deep breath. Relax. Focus...
After happily leaving work at 3, it took me 2 and a half hours to get home today.
2 and a half hot, frustrating, wasted hours of driving an average of 10km/h on the highway.
At one point we were moving so slowly that one of the pamphlet hawkers from the traffic light at the off ramp wandered onto the middle of the highway to entice us with notices of happy hours and half price ladies' nights.
The reason for all this inertia? A "Crime Prevention Operation" spread across all three lanes, in both directions, in Friday afternoon rush hour traffic! At least, that is what the traffic reports on the radio called it. I guess they reasoned that there would be a drop in crime if everybody was stuck in traffic.
By the time I had managed to crawl to the point of origin, they weren't even there anymore! All that was left of the operation was a single police car and 4 bright red port-a-potty's, so I couldn't even yell at them for making me miss my Hiphop class.
After happily leaving work at 3, it took me 2 and a half hours to get home today.
2 and a half hot, frustrating, wasted hours of driving an average of 10km/h on the highway.
At one point we were moving so slowly that one of the pamphlet hawkers from the traffic light at the off ramp wandered onto the middle of the highway to entice us with notices of happy hours and half price ladies' nights.
The reason for all this inertia? A "Crime Prevention Operation" spread across all three lanes, in both directions, in Friday afternoon rush hour traffic! At least, that is what the traffic reports on the radio called it. I guess they reasoned that there would be a drop in crime if everybody was stuck in traffic.
By the time I had managed to crawl to the point of origin, they weren't even there anymore! All that was left of the operation was a single police car and 4 bright red port-a-potty's, so I couldn't even yell at them for making me miss my Hiphop class.
Labels: traffic
posted by Onanymous at 6:17 am
8 Comments:
I totally sympathise; I really hate being stuck in traffic too, and take it personally.
Reminds me of U.S. sobriety checkpoints. But those are at night and on holidays, never during rush hour.
You take hiphop classes?!?
THAT IS SO COOOOOOL!!!!!!
xxx Redsaid.net
next time go do some shopping at sandton or meet your work mates for drinks at a newscafe. until traffic clears.
Violet - I think I took it rather personally this time too :)
Nigel - I think they did it just to annoy as many people as possible. Btw, thanks for the link!
Red - It is quite fun to do, but I still prefer jazz. But it is very good excersise. At least, that's what I tell myself when I can't move the next day. :)
Tripeak - I would have loved to do any of those, but by the time I figured out what was happening, I was already stuck with no chance of turning back.
kom kaap toe hier ry almal stadig al is dit nie eers traffic hour.
I read about this in the paper. For once I am glad I work long hours!
Let me just add the other side of the story so people can decide for themself.
Apparently the criminals drive around during peak hour traffic, that way they know they won't be stopped at a roadblock, who ever heard of placing a roadblock on the biggest and busiest highway! Who did they hope to find? Osama? If so, I hope they did!
Well, we all complain about the crime in South Africa. If doing this means that we could have a crime free SA, I for one would support it. Unfortunately I think it does more damage than good. People's image of the police (or whats left of it) gets tainted! *more graphic words come to mind*
More roadblocks would be good, checking for road worthiness of taxis (impound them if they are not) check for stolen cars, make the criminals fear going out. But to stop rush hour traffic definately deserves the NARNA award of 2005.
It is one of those ideas, you know, it sounded good on paper.
Next time make the criminals suffer, NOT THE PEOPLE!
(I hope I was objective enough!)
I remember getting stuck in traffic first thing some years ago when I worked in a near-by city.
Some guy had thrown himself off a bridge into on-coming traffic.
His demise was as predictable as the outcome -- chaos.
It's just me, me, me, isn't it?
He had problems, we know that. But to share them with everyone else is just selfish.
He had options.
He could have stayed at home, slashed his wrists, toaster is the the bath, head in the oven, too many pills .. oh no!
Swan dive off a bridge into heavy traffic at rush hour.
Selfish...
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