The
Independent State of Samoa has just 200,000 citizens, but you can be sure many are a little less than placid today. They are undergoing a shift that few nations have done; one that may be as jarring as when
Jekyll changes to Hyde. They are about to change lanes. In a big way.
Samoa is the first territory in over 30 years to change which side of the road is driven on (the most recent switch-hitters before them being Nigeria and Ghana. There have been several countries that moved from left-hand driving to right; very few have gone the other way. Most switches have been to accommodate the flow of surrounding countries; Okinawa Prefecture did it to symbolize its return to Japanese control after the US took over.
When Sweden first
brought the issue forward in 1955, just over half the citizens voted; however the result was strongly against a change in direction.
Twelve years later the change was implemented anyway.
Interestingly, accident rates in Sweden during the first two months were down from the norm; they soon returned to the average rate. This was likely due to the extensive planning, legislation and redesign that was undertaken to increase capacity, rework problem intersections, reduce parked vehicles and change how pedestrians cross. Okinawa was
not so fortunate.
The changeover plan in Samoa has
not been well received, and could meet with
more opposition in the days to come. Many Samoans feel that the current government has not made sufficient preparations; over 18,000 protested in April of 2007. In a one-party country this has not mattered much to the will of the government. Local chiefs, called
Matais, do have influence. The government recognises the ancient tribal customs enforced by the Matai as part of modern law. Many Matai are not onside with the planned change; some have vowed to disobey the new traffic laws. Other citizens advocates worry that, since most buses are not allowed to drive (their doors now open onto traffic), many poorer citizens will face difficulty and added expense getting to work.
Early reports indicate things are calm at the moment. Today however was declared a national holiday, so the real test will be when people return to work tomorrow. Sadly, any problems with the transition, or the details of Samoa's underlying issues
will likely not register very high on the West's radar.
Today, while my boyfriend and I drove back from a technology-free weekend in the mountains we got stuck in traffic that turned our 3 hour trip home into 6 grueling hours of 2nd gear madness. Since we both hadn't heard any NPR for three days, we found a station and let it regurgitate its news stories while we baked in the sun. The Samoan driving switchover story must've come up every 15 minutes at least. It got to be our little joke and routine, somewhat alleviating our growing insanity. The announcer would come on, explain that Samoan's are now driving on the left, and we'd look up at each other and say, "Noooo shit!" Then we'd have the same conversation that we'd just had about it, but each time trying to come up with new angles and different ways to talk about the new information.
He's sleeping right now, but you better believe that he'll be getting an email at work tomorrow morning, with a link to a news story about how Samoans are now driving on the left, but with all sorts of interesting new tidbits, thanks to this thread! I win.
posted by iamkimiam at 11:56 PM on September 7, 2009 [4 favorites]