the jimmymac attack!

Blogs come in many shapes and sizes. Some people post daily like a diary. I choose to write about things I find interesting or amusing. Sometimes I start something but do not finish. Then I save it in my 'drafts' and it does not appear here until I 'post' it. But it is dated when I start it. So if you have been here before please go back to May, June and July because you may find some posts that were not there last time you looked. I hope you find something new and worth the trip. cheers!

I imagine that driving styles and habits are a bit different in various parts of the world. Many things can contribute to driving habits. Obviously the number of vehicles on the road will be a factor. The condition of the roads is a big factor. The weather plays an important role. I think that culture and language and even philosophy of life also play a part in the driving habits in a city. It has been quite interesting to observe the drivers in Taiwan as opposed to North America. In both places there is a lot of traffic but I've noticed some real differences. In North America road rage has become a serious problem in the last fifteen years. People have begun to just crack from the excesses of stress and pressure caused by driving in cities. People sometimes literally get out of their cars and attack each other or chase other drivers in their vehicles. I'm sure there are some stressed and aggravated drivers in Taiwan also but it seems road rage is not as big a problem. There seems to be a much more tolerant and fluid approach to driving. In America you are right or wrong. You have the green light or you don't. People with a green light think it is their god given right to go forward and blast their horns if anyone is in the way. In Taiwan the driving is more like an ebb and flow of cars going forward, then giving way to another and so on. In America the main goal is to get from A to B as fast as you can, by the shortest route. And often the shortest route is grid-locked because everyone has the same idea. In Taiwan I think the highest priority of drivers is not A to B. The highest priority is to not hit anyone or get hit. Not because of fear of accidents but because it would be inconvenient to be in an accident. So I also get the impression that there are surprisingly few accidents considering the multitude of vehicles. Throughout the day in Taipei there are thousands of little encounters where drivers play a subtle game of chicken. Who will give? Who will push through? For example drivers do not change lanes. If you want to go over a lane or two you just start to drift into it. Another driver will slow or speed up or drift over also. Or maybe the other driver will not give and you will have to retreat. This constant give and take goes on all day. Drivers do not make left turns. Again you enter the intersection and drift toward your intended direction. In North America a driver is supposed to wait for a gap in traffic and make a left turn with cars following each other. If this approach were taken in Taiwan drivers would always have to wait for the light to change. So instead the drivers creep more and more through the turn until they have a chance to go when they judge the oncoming traffic will not hit them. It's not a gap but rather just a slower oncoming vehicle or someone slowing to turn also. Or just a slower, less aggressive driver who will then have to give way to the vehicle turning. And there is no horn honking, or there seldom is. And drivers do not turn in orderly single file. If the first driver is too slow a second or third vehicle will turn around him or cut in on the inside. The whole effect is a kind of weaving of traffic with cars going here and there and in and out. And through it all are the inumerable scooters and motorcycles which also drift and sway and go up, down, in and out. But the motorcycles go in every direction. They do not just drive down the street. First they drive down the sidewalk to the street, then they drive across the street and the wrong way down a one way street. Then they go down an alley... and drive into the living room of their apartment if they live on the ground floor. No kidding.

In Taipei the subway system is known in English as the MRT. It is fairly new, only about five years old. While cities such as New York, London, Toronto have had subways for a long time many other cities are just building them. Last year Bangkok opened a subway. One advantage the late comers have is access to new, modern technology and planning that is better than the old styles. The Taipei MRT is marvelous. It is very clean, efficient and reliable. It was built with the help of the German company Siemens. Everything in the system is bilingual. All maps, signs, annoucements and tickets are done in Chinese and English. The whole system is also automated. I used the system for one or two months before I ever spoke to an employee. In fact as an English speaking person I can be served in English by the Taipei MRT better than by the subway system in the English speaking city Toronto, Canada. There are many, many ways the MRT is better than the Toronto system known as the TTC. Of course the TTC subway is 50 years old and feeling its age but they could learn a lot from Taipei's MRT. Automation really helps improve everything. I believe Toronto's TTC could not handle the volume the MRT handles due to automation. I also think a big reason the TTC does not have automation is the employees' union fears it would cost jobs. I don't think it cost any jobs in Taipei. Automation just makes everything better and more efficient. In Toronto you must go to a man in a booth to buy tickets just like fifty years ago. It is so outdated and inefficient it is unbelievable. Many Toronto riders would agree with me that buying tickets from the guy in the booth is a pain. In Taipei you go to a machine. I bought an "easy card" from a machine and use it regularly. To add value I just go to the machine and add money to my card. I use the card to swipe my way into the subway and also on buses. I only get charged for what I use. Hong Kong has a similar system they call the Octopus card. And the MRT machines are totally bilingual. They even talk to you in Chinese or English. So I can be served in English much easier in Taipei than in Toronto. In Toronto I must line up to be served by a grumpy guy in a booth who cannot hear what I say which leads to a lot of aggravation for the customer and the employee. So does Taipei have any employees besides drivers? They sure do. They still have booths but they are large, modern centers used to serve special needs. If you are lost or need some special assistance they are there to help. They also have men and women on the platforms to make sure everyone gets on and off the trains safely. And they have wonderful washrooms. Toronto has about 6 restrooms in their whole system. And they are the dirtiest, ugliest restrooms you ever saw. They do not have mirrors for example. There is a piece of metal on the wall which I guess is supposed to be a mirror. Taipei has beautiful and clean restrooms in every single station. They even have pictures on the walls and plants on the floor! And there is an army of ladies working every day in every station to make sure they are clean and properly stocked with supplies. What a difference from Toronto! I think a problem in Toronto is undesirable people loitering in the washrooms. So what do they do? No washrooms! Just put a bunch of ladies cleaning the washrooms and stations all the time and they will chase away the undesirables. There's a lady in the men's' room! It's ok, she is cleaning it. And we all know cleaning people get minimum wage. Cannot afford it? Just lay off a few executives. That will cover the cleaning staff's salaries.

Even annoucements on the public address system are better in English in Taipei than in Toronto. Why are English annoucements better in Chinese speaking Taiwan than in English speaking Toronto? Good question! In Taipei they recorded every station annoucement with a very well spoken annoucer and a good PA system. Every station is announced as you approach it in English and Chinese. It is easy to hear and understand. In Toronto again they are operating like the speakers and microphone were constructed by Thomas Edison. Each station is annouced 'live' by the conductor if he feels like doing it. It seems they often don't feel like it and there is no annoucement. No worries. When they do announce stations the PA system is so bad you often cannot understand what they are saying anyway. What a way to run a railroad! The MRT is wonderful. Toronto you could learn a lot. But please don't send politicians over to look at taxpayers' expense. Just ask Siemens and other companies to show you how automation could improve the TTC. And think about putting in some washrooms and hiring some ladies to keep them clean. And maybe the TTC ridership will increase. Maybe serving people decently would pay off and pay for itself with increased ridership and revenues.