Big cars

Till few years back, I had this impression that people who have big expensive cars are usually drivers with good driving skills (how can you take chances with car you pay for and feel proud off)  but realized that that was a myth … when started observing it turned out 80-90 % of the big car drivers as Anil says “When people buy big cars, there ego also gets inflated. They also behave as if they own the roads.” and they expect other vehicles smaller or bigger on road should make way for them, if you think I am biased just try observing the bigger cars on road.

So that particular day Anil had given our Maruti 800 for servicing at ‘Hitech Maruti servicing center Ullor’ Most of the roads in Trivandrum are very narrow, and this service center is at one of the narrowest and dangerous road – dangerous because its just 5-6 ft broad and one side of the road is a Canal which is at least 10 ft deep. Anil was told that the car would be ready by evening 5:30, so by 5:30 Anil asked me to drop him at service center in my scooter. We would have reached around 5:45 pm and as soon as we entered the Road from the main road we saw, couple of cars parked and 2 traffic police and 2 Kerala police officers standing and instructing a guy probably in his early 50’s to take his ‘Honda City’ out of the way. The man refusing to take his car saying, that the Tata 407 from the opposite side should take reverse and give him way , he has already lost 1 hr waiting there, hearing this the Inspector said, ‘road is not just for you to use, turn your car to the right side where there is a right turn and clear the way.’ The man said he will take the car once a complaint is files against the 407 driver for blocking the way , inspector replied both of them can come to police station and file formal complaint. By now another man (he had called the police and intimated the traffic police) started abusing the Honda owner/driver as he has been stranded there for more than an hour because of the Honda Car parked in the middle of the road.

This was enough for me, meanwhile Anil had checked with the service center folks paid the bill and he told me to leave , since the problem seems to be getting over on the road and he should be able to take the car out in 10-15 mins. I already had enough of the crap and I decided not to wait for Anil and leave, while I did so I told the Traffic police guy to let go the 407 driver as he seemed to have no role in the traffic chaos , surprisingly traffic policeman agreed with me and said, road is for everybody to use, how can Honda car owner say that he cannot take reverse or adjust if a bigger vehicle comes from the other side.

It took me 10 mins to reach back home around 6:10 pm, but it took Anil another 1 hr to reach home. And then came to understand that the Honda owner even though after removing his car from the middle of the road did not allow 407 to leave and finally Anil and couple more agitated onlookers had to deal with him in aggressive mode – to which his response was that He has his house in this road and nobody can tell him what he can or cannot do on the road ! And that big vehicles should not come to the Service Center, the manager of the Service Center should be fined for allowing big vehicles to come !  What reasoning? We came to know that he is well educated and working CDS (Center for Development Studies) had done similar stunt before also and that time the bigger vehicle driver took reverse, so he expects every time when he is driving back to home when he enters ‘his’ road it should be empty for him !! I would have given him my piece of  mind had I decided to stay back to see the ‘Tamasha‘ instead I came home and wrote my piece on my Fb wall !!

Disclaimer - I love big 4 wheeler , being with Dad who was in ‘Border Roads Organization’ we always traveled in Jeep, Jonga and on routes which I would say are curviest, narrowest and riskiest in the country. We had absolutely professional drivers in the organization and my dad who would take on wheels once in while on such routes asking driver to take a break, himself was good and careful driver on those roads. I was again lucky to get a partner who loves driving and has good driving skills and can drive any gaddi confidently so I always told Anil that I want to have Tata 207 with a cabin (but that’s a commercial gaadi dear he would say patiently), or Bolero (but that’s a diesel gaadi, how much long drives will we go , what will be the utilization) and till recently my dream Gaddi turns out to be XUV500 …..  I have nothing against big cars or car owners as long as they drive responsibly :)