(Sometimes it is wise to look left and right before crossing the road, more so if a speeding car is heading your way. Image source: https://mikedelgrosso.co.uk/)
There are lifeless zombies that cross the road every morning near my residential area and workplace.
To others, they are known as factory workers – lowly paid, the repetitive task assigned and often “foreign” in nature. At their workplace, they are almost like the bee worker, working on a specific task 6 days a week, 12 months in a year. So, the use of their creativity and intelligence is probably limited to choosing the gravy or the flavour of their drink during their lunch break.
Other times, it would be sufficient if they could just follow the simple factory rules and meet the daily quota.
The smarter ones would probably end up as their supervisors or take up night classes and improved on their current position. But the majority may probably be happy if they can score extra hours on their overtime sheet and get their salaries on time and send the bulk of it back to their poor household in a far, far land.
But I am rather pissed off with these factory workers as in the mornings and in the evenings, I have to dodge them as I am going to and from the workplace. Have you seen how a factory worker crosses the road? More so if they are crossing in front of you?
Seeing a foreigner dashing across a 3 lane highway to get to the factory on the other side of the highway is not a new thing – some of them have lost their lives this way. They rarely think of the risks. They don’t think of the speeding car. They think that they have right of way no matter which side of the road that they are standing on. They simply don’t look.
Early in the morning, I have to pass a place where a score of factory workers would be crossing the road to get to their factories on the other side of the road. Because it is in the early mornings, traffic is usually low (but that does not mean there are no vehicles). From afar, I can see a bunch of workers would be walking almost in one long line.
As I approach this “crossing” place, the “line” remains unbroken. I can see the factory workers in the line, is not looking out for the traffic but rather busy and casually following the worker in front or chit chat with their friends. They just walk with complete ignorance of the traffic whilst on-road (I have the same problem with the Africans as well).
Perhaps (seeing too much of Animal Planet) they feel secure in numbers – 20 factory workers against one speeding car, 20 chickens against one hungry tiger.
It is until my bumper almost touches them (which I purposely do every morning), they realize that there is a car on o road. Some will back off and allow me to pass. Some remain ignorant and continue to walk slowly.
Others simply panic and dash across the road. I guess if I run down a couple of them (which likely to happen one of these days), the idiotic, zombie-like, factory worker will remember to do the basic thing before crossing the road – look right, look left, look right again and when it is safe, proceed to cross.
I guess them being foreigners, such basic rules of crossing the road was not taught in their schools (this basic rule was taught in primary school during my schooling time).
During the evening, the stupid factory workers up the risk by many folds – they take care to cross the road but that is because there is more traffic on the road. They wear darker clothes, usually dark blue t-shirt and dark jeans (though it may not be their fault – it may be the dress code at the factory), it is harder to see them at 100 km/h until it is too late.
P.s. No offence intended to other hard-working, traffic rules abiding factory workers. To those who think they can cross without looking, be prepared to be the morning target.