I wrote this entry a while back, but never posted it because I’ve tried to stay away from making sweeping generalizations about people and culture during my stay in Japan.
But then during a bike ride through town today, my feelings on this issue were only further confirmed. So, here it is…
I realized the other day that I’ve become accustomed to the near-miss while riding my bicycle. The frequent brushes with death no longer faze me while trying to get from point A to point B on the streets — it’s all just part of the trip. It’s like riding through a giant video game, with mad cars and crazy bikers popping out with dizzying regularity.
During my first few months in Japan, I wasn’t so at ease with the game. I was slightly appalled at the erratic and dangerous driving I’d often see here in Nagano. Pedestrians, bicyclists and cars often seemed just a hair away from catastrophe.
Many drivers in Japan seem to drive with an air of confusion and surprise, as if they’re constantly taken aback when they encounter anything out of the ordinary. This leads to cars roaring out of alleys with no thought that pedestrians or bikes might suddenly cross their path, drivers who seem confused to find pedestrians in crosswalks, maneuvers that make no sense at all, and agonizingly-long disentanglements when two cars find themselves facing each other in a street big enough for only one car.
But the most amazing thing is that I’ve never seen an actual accident. Just more close calls than I can ever begin to recount.
Let me step out on a limb and make some generalizations, comparing road experiences here and in the U.S. It’s not that drivers in the U.S. are particularly skilled or safe. I’d say that drivers in the U.S. are intentionally unsafe. There’s anger, rage and aggression behind the wheel in America. Here in Japan, my take is that many drivers are unintentionally dangerous.
Which is worse? I can’t quite say.