I miss the cops

A lot of times during my normal commute here in Bangalore, I see ambulance vans trying to get past congested roads, chaotic traffic, accidents, and I really miss the sight of the CHIP (California HIghway Patrol) cars screeching by on the road shoulder, clearing the way ahead & helping emergency vehicles move faster. These are somethings that are taken so much for granted in the US, I used to almost hate seeing cop cars hidden near the highway waiting for speeding cars, waiting to hand over a speeding ticket. Driving is also such a pleasure in the US - I have, at different times, driven over 800-900 miles in a single day, in about 10-11 hours, without getting tired. It is quite an amazing network of roads they have in the US - from the Turnpikes on the east coast, and the beautiful coast-hugging Route 1 on the west, to the no-speed-limit roads in Montana.

Today I didn't drive, sometimes it just gets too much and too stressful driving here in the city traffic. For the most part, I have adapted to the mentality of survival of the fittest on the road. The big car rules, the SUVs and buses & lorries can drive however they want. If you have a truck, you have priority over a car, who has priority over a two wheeler, who in turn can cut off a pedestrian or cyclist trying to cross the road. Any chance this is a direct and rude application with the theory of evolution?

Well, there are always accidents. Most of the time, they are sad occurances, where the innocent get killed, and the guy in the larger vehicle gets away. The vehicle insurance schemes suck big time too. So, if I had a random guy (by that I mean "uninsured motorist" in US lingo) come bang into my car, I can of course go through my auto insurance (yes, even Geiko is here in India), and get the dent fixed. But here is the catch - my premium suffers. And I dont get an insurance debate I would have gotten if I never made a claim for a whole year. So, now I have been driving around with dents & scratches on my car for about 9 months now. Once I get past the year, and get the insurance premium rebate, I think I will get things fixed so that the costs incurred get amortized over the 2 year period...or at least that is the idea.