One million little yellow taxis! I swear there are a million of them, and thousands of little vans and mini-buses, each one painted a different colour with signs telling which part of town the go to in the window. I have not figured these out yet. I understand the system - there is no system! Each one is owned by an individual and they drive around all day on a route they design. The routes seem quite stable - you just have to know where to get them and where they go - not like there’s route maps available! Taxi’s are so cheap so it’s not really that important for me to learn, I guess it’s just a curiosity. I think maybe one day I will just get on a few and see where they go! They drive like bats out of hell here. A taxi will turn right across three lanes of traffic in front of other cars and mini-buses. It’s amazing there aren’t more accidents. There is also no limit it seems on how many people you can jam in a tiny taxi. Our most so far was 8 including the driver.
This traffic is moving quite quickly - three lanes wide up this narrow street. I think the only saving grace for traffic in Arequipa is that many of the streets are one way.
This is a standard intersection and yes, all of these cars are moving - none of these cars in this picture is stopped. They weave in and around and through, like sailboats at the start of a race. I think there is probably "PARE" (stop) signs or something at this intersection, but those are mere decoration in this city. Pedestrians beware - these drivers follow the Machiavellian rules of the road.
Cars will pass each other on this narrow street. Notice anything in these photos? How many taxis do you count? One million little yellow bumper cars!
Taxi! Taxi!. Yes thank you. Can you take me and my load of rebar to my construction site. Thanks! Oh ya and let me throw these concrete blocks in the back too. Red flag? Who needs a red flag? No-one will be able to miss the rebar bouncing and flailing around on the roof!
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