Commentary – Pedestrian Safety

We try NOT to drive in foreign countries. This means a lot walking and subways. We got a real culture shock on this trip regarding pedestrians. In the United States, pedestrians act like they own the road. A person will walk slowly in front of a car expecting the car to stop. Cars stop at lights and will honor crossing signs.

In Tokyo, pedestrian traffic is very similar to the US. We had no issues in Tokyo. The people in Tokyo are very orderly and it was easy to walk everywhere.

In Beijing, the rules are very different. As a pedestrian, you take responsibility for your own safely crossing the street. Crossing signs are ignored by cars, especially left turns. On our first day in Beijing, we were shocked to watch a city bus ignore the signs and plow through a mass of people crossing the street. The people got out of the way and we quickly adapted to life in Beijing. In Beijing, the streets are filled with a combination of busses, cars, and bicycles. It is frightening to watch the cars move through the streets. Everyone shifts lanes, speeds up, slows down, and somehow it just seems to work.

In Shanghai, the attitude is similar to Beijing except there are fewer bicycles and more motor scooters. The motor scooters completely ignore any street signs. If you see a group coming down the road, quickly get out of the way.

In Hong Kong, the drivers and pedestrian safety were closer to London standards. Most people followed the rules, however the direction you need to look is different from the US due to the direction the cars go on the street.