Here’s a heartwarming story of a Romanian policeman for once doing the right thing and helping out his fellow citizens…
Last week, in the small town Calarasi, south east of Bucharest, an off duty policeman stopped at a pedestrian crossing to allow a man to cross. (A selfless and all too uncommon act in itself).
However, as the pedestrian was crossing too slowly, the policeman decided to take action, and administer immediate punishment: after calmly parking his car he preceded to beat up the pedestrian so badly that he is still in hospital, and will not be walking too slowly across pedestrian crossings any time soon. That will teach him.
We should of course be thankful to the policeman that this menace to society is off our streets and that journey times in Calarasi have been reduced by 1.5 seconds.
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A day or two after the incident, a four year old girl was killed on a pedestrian crossing in the same town. We assume she had not been walking fast enough.
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While we are on the subject of pedestrian crossings in Romania, here is another way of dealing with people (especially old women of 75) who cross too slowly, this time as demonstrated last week by a young driver in the northern town of Iasi:
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I always stop at pedestrian crossings in Bucharest. It seems that pedestrians (after they overcome the shock to actually see a driver let them cross the street) really appreciate it. Too bad it happens much that I’m overtaken by other cars while I’m waiting in front of the crossing so the poor ones on foot have again to jump for their lives.
Bucharest drivers are so used to people crossing on the middle of the street that they consider legitimate not to offer them priority anymore at pedestrian crossings.
Did I ever tell you how a few years ago I witnessed a scene where a 75 y.o. man crossed on the middle of the street without even hurying (not that he was in the position to hurry at 75…) and a car came and almost hit him and the man grabbed a stone and ran after the car and threw the stone at the car?
When he crossed on the middle of the street he didn’t hurry at all, but when he ran with the stone after the car he looked like he was in his 30s…
There are lots of pedestrians like that man in Bucharest, drivers are simply tired of them and of all pedestrians.
and http://www.bucharestherald.ro/dailyevents/41-dailyevents/14737-severe-accident-on-magheru-blvd-with-two-killed-and-three-badly-injured-caught-on-camera this happened last wk. Not sure this is really news Craig it happens every day!
Read this article about driving in Romania: http://www.thediplomat.ro/articol.php?id=1251