RULES OF THE ROAD IN OAXACA

Give an example of an oxymoron. You guessed it. But just when you think you’re comfortable driving in this city, with seemingly no strict or enforced regulations, there you are, a transit (traffic cop) flagging you down, ticketing you, taking away your license plate, or towing your vehicle away. Observing and learning what other drivers are doing provides no solace or guarantee that you won’t end up paying a fine, perhaps because your car is missing or because other motorists are honking at you. All I can do is offer some understanding and explanation, and the rest is up to you.

Let’s start with the premise that this particular local government employee is not paid very well and therefore has limited “resources,” in the multiple sense of the word. They have told me that he earns about 6,000 pesos a month, and also that he earns about 2,000 pesos a month and therefore depends on earning his salary “on the street.” Keep this in mind or look up your own statistics. What is certain is that he probably earns less than the average Oaxacan (around 65,000 pesos a year according to the most recent statistics)…not like the law enforcement officers we know who retire at fifty with good pensions and later start a second race. in the field of security.

I am convinced that nobody knows the traffic laws and that everything that is enforced is done randomly or on a whim. The point is that even when you think you are doing the right thing or know the law, you can still get pulled over, fined, or suffer the wrath of irate motorists. What follows is a little help for prospective Oaxacan drivers, what constitutes acceptable driving practices, not necessarily the law…or what will keep you out of trouble. But in the last fifteen years I’ve only been pulled over three times…once for making a U-turn at a major intersection, once for driving without license plates, and recently for simply not knowing what to do in the middle of a strange-looking intersection with even stranger road signs (to date, not a single fine).

Note that frequent lanes are not clearly marked or not marked at all, and the lights don’t always work, at least for one direction of traffic. When you see two or more traffic heading at an intersection, don’t assume they are working in unison. I recently saw an officer cutting his nails while he was apparently directing traffic.

WHO HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY?

Many intersections do not have yield or stop signs or lights. Most large streets up and down have the right-of-way, as do most major cross streets, but it is a matter of learning over time which street is which, what constitutes a large or main street, and even once you’ve done it, be cautious entering each intersection because you don’t know if the other guy knows. At traffic lights, green has the right of way, but not immediately. You will probably be charged with driving in a jurisdiction where there is a one or two second delay between the other driver getting a red light and you getting a green light. Not so in Oaxaca. Before you continue, back off carefully to see how many drivers will speed through the red zone. They say traffic lights (traffic lights) are only suggestive, so sometimes there will be drivers who stop and then go red. Although illegal, this is not an uncommon or unacceptable practice…it just happens, and I bet that those who run a red light in this context have fewer accidents than drivers who proceed immediately after seeing a green light, or those passing through unmarked intersections.

TURNING

You are not supposed to turn right on red after stopping if it is safe to do so, unless there is an arrow sign. Crack this one and you’ll be honked at more than for going through a red one! Sometimes the right hand lanes are reserved for right turns only so be aware or understand why the guy behind you is honking when he obeys the red light… there is probably a green arrow somewhere that tells you to turn right. The car to your left might also want to turn right. With regard to left turns, the same is true. But more often than not there will be two or three lanes of traffic that will want to turn left, including you… but before you turn left, make sure the driver on your left also plans to turn left and not go straight. . It seems that the buses are allowed to turn in whichever direction they want from whatever lane they are in, and since they are bigger than you, be careful, if you can see them through your exhaust. Unless you plan to turn, the safest place to be and avoid angry motorists is in the center lanes. On occasion, you may even come across a far right lane reserved for left turns! But wait. As of May 2006, road “improvements” on the city’s main east-west thoroughfare, Niños Héroes de Chapultepec, began to be completed. Instead of the usual left-turn lanes, we now have, one block before an intersection, traffic signals directing you to turn to the left end of the roadway, through lanes of oncoming traffic.

Then when you get to the intersection where you want to turn left, there are additional traffic lights. It is difficult to explain the concept, the chaos and the danger for both drivers and pedestrians. Think of it like you’re driving down a North American highway and all of a sudden you have to become a British driver, but only for a block and a turn. The government has posted officers at these new intersections to familiarize drivers with these new lanes, which is admirable…but when these crazy instructors leave, after the powers that be decide that Oaxacans are now familiar with the grid pattern, what happens? to non-Oaxacan drivers, such as tourists. And finally, in the context of these new turn lanes, authorities sometimes put up the wrong sign, so you can find yourself, following what the sign says, going the wrong way down a street with oncoming traffic. Will Hertz then double his insurance premiums?

PARKING LOT

You will learn to double park, even if you hate people who do it and create traffic jams. Sometimes tranisto blows his whistle, sometimes he starts to give you a ticket, or to take away your plate, and sometimes he doesn’t do anything. Pick your places, keep a passenger in your car who knows where to find you and be quick. The vehicle you are blocking will be patient, as the driver probably double parked an hour earlier. When parking near a corner, the key is to park on a street where cars can only turn the other way so there’s no chance of getting caught. You’re not supposed to, but most of the time it gets overlooked. However, if you are near a street corner where bus traffic turns, be careful because the bus will not be able to turn and Transito will do everything possible to remove your vehicle. Don’t worry too much about just making it into a parking spot, because Oaxacans seem to have a knack for getting out of small spaces. Keep an eye out for driveways as they are sometimes quite difficult to see. In parking lots, take note of the early closing hours.

SPEEDING

I don’t know the speed limits of the city, nor do the vast majority of Oaxacans. Speed ​​bumps will dictate your speed, as will the driver behind you. As for the first ones, sometimes they are marked and sometimes they are not. Notice the number of tire and spring repair shops, and the align and balance signs. Attack the ends slowly and, if possible, at an angle. Highways often have posted speed limits, but time your speed as you would in the city. Although the toll road warns of radar in operation, the only place I have seen it is on the highway from Acapulco to Mexico City. However, you can be stopped without radar, the fine is very high, you better have cash on hand and remember that there is no presumption of innocence.

AND REMEMBER

In Oaxaca, to obtain a driver’s license, there is no driving test or vision test. Either you take a written test or you pay someone a bit of money as a bribe, a very common practice.