This city is nuts to drive in. There are 2 official lanes of traffic on the road with up to 6 lanes of vehicles. One morning I swear that there was only 1 inch between the mirror of the car that I was in and the van next to me. If the car ahead of you is going to slow, you just pull into the oncoming lanes and go around them.
How many lanes are there?
There are these little vw van type busses that run all over the place. They pop in and out of traffic and are constantly honking. There are so many of them since so few people actually own cars. There is a pretty constant line of them coming and going from and to the same places. They are all competing for fares so are always bumping into and out of traffic.
The VW Busses. There are really only 2 lanes of traffic here also.
There are a ton of motorcycles! These are a lot cheaper than taxi's and since they weave in and out of cars in both lanes they are a lot faster. I have seen people as young as a newborn on a mom's back to very old on these. I have seen 3 grown adults on one motorcycle. The motorcycles are very protected. If you do end up hurting someone on a motorcycle it is likely that your car will be mobbed by other cyclists and you will be beat up.
Motorcyclists can pick whatever lane they want to drive in.
A group of motorcyclists hanging out waiting for riders.
One day when we left the house there was no movement of the traffic. We pulled in and just sat there. What became interesting was as we sat there we had both lanes full of people going the same way. I figured when whatever it was cleared that we would all just be sitting but actually people all feel so entitled on the road that they just pushed in. It was crazy!
On top of the cars and motorcycles there are bikes, walkers and these carts that are used to transport things. These carts are rented by the people and they walk miles and miles delivering whatever needs delivered. This is very hard work and pays very little. This is the type of job that someone that didn't pass their 7th grade exams would do. These carts can be very heavy. I have seen some guys actually with such a heavy load that they can pick up their feet going down hill and just ride. They also cut in and out wherever they please.
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On top of the cars and motorcycles there are bikes, walkers and these carts that are used to transport things. These carts are rented by the people and they walk miles and miles delivering whatever needs delivered. This is very hard work and pays very little. This is the type of job that someone that didn't pass their 7th grade exams would do. These carts can be very heavy. I have seen some guys actually with such a heavy load that they can pick up their feet going down hill and just ride. They also cut in and out wherever they please.
Back side of one of these carts
Front side - very heavy.
These carts haul furniture, hay, sticks, sugar cane, and whatever else needs moved from one place to another.
Women carry everything on their heads. These buckets are very heavy. They walk along the sides of the road also.
The other thing to always be aware of is the animals. There are animals everywhere. The Massai people take their goats, sheep, and cows and let them graze on the sides of the road. Many times I have seen animals spooked and jump out into traffic.
One thing that amazes me, with all this traffic and all these different types of road traffic, there are actually very few accidents. I have only seen 3 accidents total since I have been here and one was a motorcycle that lost control (no other traffic involved).
I will not be driving in Arusha!
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