Driving in Manila for Foreigners - Tip #2: Horns and Highbeams are your Friend.

In most other countries and cities (with the exception of places like New York City), it is generally considered rude to honk your horn excessively at other drivers. Usually the horn is reserved for aggravated drivers, to call your attention to something, or in more extreme driving instances. In Manila, the use of the horn is a regular necessity. I've probably used my horn more in the past year and a half that i've been driving here in Manila than I had in the whole 24+ years I had been driving in the US prior to that. It's worth noting though that the horn here is used in a couple of different ways. 



I mentioned in my previous post in this series that cars here drive mere inches from one another. This gives very little "cushion" around your car, so the horn is often used to tell would be lane interveners, "Hey, i'm here next to you...don't even THINK about coming into my lane." It can also be used to nicely draw the attention of other drivers to your presence in a myriad of other driving situations, like when you see that tricycle about to make a U-turn from the right shoulder, or even that taxi cab or SUV about the make a U-turn from the right shoulder across all lanes of traffic (yes, it happens ALL the time here). In these situations, a nice quick double or triple honk works well to inform them of your presence.



Other instances where the horn is completely acceptable is when taxi cabs and Passenger Jeepneys stop in the middle of the road to pick up or drop-off passengers (probably the cause for a LOT of the traffic problems in Manila). A heavier handed honk lets them know that there are people on the road OTHER than them. Of course, this doesn't mean that they will move any faster or learn anything from it (like pulling over to the side of the road when dropping passengers), but it sure does feel good sometimes. 



Now, let's discuss the use of highbeams here in Manila because it is VERY much different compared to other countries. Misconstruing the "meaning" of the highbeam flash could have catastrophic results, and in a minute you'll see why. 



In the US, we usually flash our highbeams in 2 main situations. The first is when someone else has their highbeams on and they forget to turn them off when you come into their line-of-sight. We'll usually give them a quick highbeam flash to remind them that their highs are on. Out of courtesy, they'll usually realize their mistake and turn off their highbeams. Normal, considerate-of-others kinda behavior. The other common use for the highbeam flash is to concede right of way. For example, you're on a road in traffic and there is an oncoming car with their turn signal on waiting to cross the street to turn. If you're not going anywhere anyway (because of the traffic), you'll signal to that turning car that you are letting them go by giving them a quick highbeam flash. This is usually followed by a "thank you" wave as they proceed with their turn. Basically, the highbeam flash used this way is a signal to other driver's that, "I'm letting you go". This is in stark contrast to how the highbeam flash is used in Manila.



In Manila, the highbeam flash is used mainly to signal the intent to go (or to keep on going). When you flash your highbeams at someone you're telling them, "Hey buddy, I'm here and I'm going!" (if you're waiting to cross the street), or "I'm here and I'm not stopping for you!" (if you're driving down the street and someone else wants to cross into your lane). It's also worth noting that usually both the horn and highbeam flash can be paired together as both an audible and visual warning of intent to go.



So, like I said...highbeams and horns are your friends. Familiarize yourself with their proper(at least for the streets of Manila) usage and meaning, and USE THEM. Just remember, If you're waiting to turn left onto a side street and the Jeepney driver barreling down the opposite lane flashes his highbeams at you, he is NOT letting you go out of courtesy. He's telling you that he IS NOT stopping. Obviously, misconstruing the two could be catastrophic and would result in you NOT getting to your destination without incident and within a reasonable amount of time...