More on Driving in Italy

I walk out of my house this morning and I see a van attempt to turn out of a cross street on to a busy road. It stops, but not before getting honked at by a car approaching in the oncoming traffic. Since this is such a common situation, the usual aftermath involves both parties moving on without incident. The guy in the car decides that he wants to be a tough guy and engage the van driver (who in the end really didn't do anything but make a "false turn" onto the main road) so he slams on the breaks and gets rear-ended by a moped. The moped's front tire gets stuck under the car and the driver goes flying off into the street. The driver of the car completely ignores the fact that the person who has just rear ended him is now flat on his back in the street and continues to go over to the van driver and start an argument with him. The van driver (who is really guilty of nothing) pushes stubby out of the way and comes to the aid of the moped driver, who is now up and about and bleeding from the mouth.

It seems that most accidents here in Rome could be easily avoided if the drivers were to apply a bare minimum of common sense and respect for their fellow drivers. My observations tell me that 99.9% of the road accidents occur because one party was doing something very very very stupid. When driving in Rome, break each 100 meter stretch down to a mini-situation and assume that the other person(s) involved in these mini-situations are going to make the stupidest decisions possible. If you see someone tailgating you just assume that they are eventually going to pass you. If you are passing someone on the highway get ready for them to come out of their lane and cut you off. If you see someone waiting to turn on to a cross street just assume that they are going to cut you off. If you see someone in the left lane just assume that they are going to make a right turn. I am trying to understand why Italians drive like this. Everything else in their lives seems to move at a peaceful nonchalant pace. Why must they drive to fast and reckless?

The highway is a hostile environment. There is no enforced speed limit (although I think it is officially 130 kmph - about 80mph) but police really don't pull people over for speeding. You're more likely to get stopped on a city street by cops with machine guns checking to see if your name is spelled right on a piece of paper. Some highways have autovelox devices, which record your speed by radar and ensure a hefty speeding fine and points on your license if you get snagged (5 months later, though, how many people can you kill in 5 months of reckless driving while waiting for your punishment?). Common Italian highway courtesy involves coming up about 1 meter right behind your fellow drivers in the left lane and flash your brights at a rate that causes dizziness and nausea. If the person does not move within 0.00005 seconds, the horn starts honking. What is going through a person's mind at a moment like that? I tend to drive very cautiously. I never do more than 130 kmph on the highway and I only use the left lane to pass. Most people who engage in this behavior probably know that the overtakee is going to return to the right lane after passing a couple of cars. Does it make sense to startle someone and make them nervous while travelling at such a high speed? Who instills these values into the average Italian, with their appreciation for the good life and otherwise peaceful mannerisms? The thing that worries me is that everyone does this, not just a few delinquents, and every Sunday evening on the news I am forced to watch pile-ups which closely resemble car bombings. It's really sickening when you think how easily it could have been avoided. In the end a trip that takes a normal driver like me 3 hours will only be reduced by at most 20 minutes if one drives too fast and reckless. Is the sheer terror really worth that half an hour saved? Nothing else in this country moves quickly and lateness is universally accepted.