Police say 'road guides' a safety threat
By Zha Minjie |
October 25, 2012, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
IT'S becoming common to see people holding cardboard signs that read "Road Guide" on the city's expressways and while police say it is dangerous and can lead to accidents, there is little they can do about it since they "are just trying to earn a living."
Traffic police estimate there may be hundreds of such people offering their services as a guide.
In many instances, they squat along the side of the road, usually near toll stations, with their sign and wait for a driver to stop and hire them while nearby police officers, lacking laws to punish them, ignore them.
"People from out of town don't know the roads very well. Of course, you have to know the roads to get around the city easily. We really help these drivers," Chang Chunping, a road guide, told Shanghai Evening Post.
The guides usually earn dozens of yuan a day and will shout loudly at drivers in vehicles with out-of-town plates to drum up some business.
"Sometimes you get lucky and the drivers wave at you," said another guide, surnamed Feng, who had a companion injured in an accident. He added he usually gets business from tourists or those coming to the city for medical treatment.
Traffic police said they usually remind the guides to be careful about traffic safety.
Regulations only ban pedestrians from entering highways and expressways and the guides will be let go once police give them a warning.
The big worry is road safety.
More than 5,000 expressway accidents in recent years across the country have involved such guides, police said. No data have been released on accidents involving these guides in Shanghai.
Some guides and drivers said they wish the government would organize training and issue licenses to make it a legitimate profession as the city's vast network of highways has confused many motorists.
"We do not cheat, do not scam and we earn the money by our work," said Feng, 46, who has been in the business for seven years in Shanghai.
Traffic police estimate there may be hundreds of such people offering their services as a guide.
In many instances, they squat along the side of the road, usually near toll stations, with their sign and wait for a driver to stop and hire them while nearby police officers, lacking laws to punish them, ignore them.
"People from out of town don't know the roads very well. Of course, you have to know the roads to get around the city easily. We really help these drivers," Chang Chunping, a road guide, told Shanghai Evening Post.
The guides usually earn dozens of yuan a day and will shout loudly at drivers in vehicles with out-of-town plates to drum up some business.
"Sometimes you get lucky and the drivers wave at you," said another guide, surnamed Feng, who had a companion injured in an accident. He added he usually gets business from tourists or those coming to the city for medical treatment.
Traffic police said they usually remind the guides to be careful about traffic safety.
Regulations only ban pedestrians from entering highways and expressways and the guides will be let go once police give them a warning.
The big worry is road safety.
More than 5,000 expressway accidents in recent years across the country have involved such guides, police said. No data have been released on accidents involving these guides in Shanghai.
Some guides and drivers said they wish the government would organize training and issue licenses to make it a legitimate profession as the city's vast network of highways has confused many motorists.
"We do not cheat, do not scam and we earn the money by our work," said Feng, 46, who has been in the business for seven years in Shanghai.
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