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Good manners belong on the roads as well as in the home
By Tian Yu and Pan Zheng |
April 27, 2009, Monday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE history of transport on land can be divided by method of powering used - animal power, as used for pulling carts and carriages; manpower, as used for bicycles; and mechanical power as used in automobiles.
Of these the invention of automobiles over 100 years ago has changed transportation and society most rapidly and greatly.
Some developed countries, like the United States, Germany and Britain, recognized the popularity of automobiles very early and now have generations of experience with them.
Juergen Werner Schulz, the chief manager of the Quality Management Center of German Vehicle Industry Association, said that he grew up and learned about the world in the back seats of vehicles - he sat on the fuel tank of a motorcycle when he was three; when he was six he sat in his grandfather's car; when he was 10 he sat in a Volkswagen Beetle; and he owned his own motorcycle when he was 13. After that, Mercedes, BMWs and lots of others followed. Schulz was deeply influenced by his grandfather and father's well-mannered driving such as always wearing a seat belt and looking out for pedestrians. Schulz believed his son and grandson would keep the tradition of these good manners.
China stepped into the "automobile society" from "the kingdom of bicycles" at the end of the 20th century. In the beginning of the 21st century, many have thrown their bicycles away to become drivers. The number of vehicles driven by ordinary people is huge.
In some regions, the change has come comparatively quickly but good driving manners don't always follow at the same speed. Driving habits, behavior and opinions are still sometimes stuck in the "bicycle age." For those who used to rush about all over the road, how can they become immediately civilized when they start driving?
It's the same for pedestrians. Since China has not yet achieved a complete cultural connection between urban and rural areas, many people from the country are not familiar with traffic and rules of the road in cities.
This has resulted in tragedy when a family of three from Henan Province went to Beijing to work. Sadly they walked across the motorway and were run over. They had probably been used to walk on the roads in their country area. Good traffic manners are made by long-term learning, not short-term activity. On the way to civilized traffic, we are just at the beginning of a long journey.
Of these the invention of automobiles over 100 years ago has changed transportation and society most rapidly and greatly.
Some developed countries, like the United States, Germany and Britain, recognized the popularity of automobiles very early and now have generations of experience with them.
Juergen Werner Schulz, the chief manager of the Quality Management Center of German Vehicle Industry Association, said that he grew up and learned about the world in the back seats of vehicles - he sat on the fuel tank of a motorcycle when he was three; when he was six he sat in his grandfather's car; when he was 10 he sat in a Volkswagen Beetle; and he owned his own motorcycle when he was 13. After that, Mercedes, BMWs and lots of others followed. Schulz was deeply influenced by his grandfather and father's well-mannered driving such as always wearing a seat belt and looking out for pedestrians. Schulz believed his son and grandson would keep the tradition of these good manners.
China stepped into the "automobile society" from "the kingdom of bicycles" at the end of the 20th century. In the beginning of the 21st century, many have thrown their bicycles away to become drivers. The number of vehicles driven by ordinary people is huge.
In some regions, the change has come comparatively quickly but good driving manners don't always follow at the same speed. Driving habits, behavior and opinions are still sometimes stuck in the "bicycle age." For those who used to rush about all over the road, how can they become immediately civilized when they start driving?
It's the same for pedestrians. Since China has not yet achieved a complete cultural connection between urban and rural areas, many people from the country are not familiar with traffic and rules of the road in cities.
This has resulted in tragedy when a family of three from Henan Province went to Beijing to work. Sadly they walked across the motorway and were run over. They had probably been used to walk on the roads in their country area. Good traffic manners are made by long-term learning, not short-term activity. On the way to civilized traffic, we are just at the beginning of a long journey.
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