Country Driving : : a Journey Through China From Farm to Factory

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In this penetrating narrative account, Hessler investigates China's lurch into modernity as he survives the advent of the nation's uniquely terrifying car culture, probes the transformation of village life, and explores China's frantic industrialization.

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Driving changes in China submitted by hirak on November 6, 2012, 1:51pm China looks a lot like India. When I visited China in 2006 it seemed to me as if Indians had been evacuated from their cities and replaced with Chinese people. A recent Economist article mentioned that there are more ways the countries are dissimilar than similar. Perhaps politically and economically, but on the level of the street it's shockingly similar: the level of noise, the throng of people, the hustle-bustle in the street, and of course the crazy traffic and driving with all the nice, loud honking. I thought that purposeless honking to be a uniquely Indian contribution to the world of transportation (see old post), but I was wrong. The Chinese are equally adept at this art. Also, they are adept at the art of driving really close to the next car and navigating through tight spaces.

Many of Peter Hessler's observations that to the Chinese traffic laws were 'mere guidelines' and that driving was a survival sport was nothing new to me as an Indian (I hazard to say that apart from Europe and North America, driving is mostly a survival sport). Peter Hessler has lived and worked in China for many years and his writing shows a genuine affection and respect for the Chinese people, but the tone of his description of traffic transgressions of the Chinese smacked of slight condescension. His explanation for bad Chinese driving was that the bulk of mass of the Chinese were suddenly uprooted from their pedestrian and cycling ways and stuck into cars much too suddenly, and they tend to drive as they walk. Taking the shortest path, huddling in groups, and making sudden turns almost as in mid-step and deciding to go the other way.

(More on:http://fromhelicon.blogspot.com/2010/12/peter-hesslers-country-driving.html)