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There is isnt any single solution for the problems that Indian cities face. It should be a multipronged effort.
Signages will alone not solve it, enforcement is what is necessary.
On the ring road for example new sign boards have come telling lorry and heavy goods vehicles not use the inner lane (right lane) - not a single lorry follows that. I will be surprised if the drivers can even read it also. What is the whole point in putting up these boards when people wont follow them and the police cant enforce them.
As an experiment, we should suggest the Bangalore police to enforce lane discipline on the ring roads. Put up all the necessary signages and see the effect it will have on the chaotic traffic on these roads.

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Many drivers come from iliterate backgrounds, & will thus be unable to read. Those that can read do not pay enough attention or ignore & flout rules as convenient to them whilst pointing fingers at others when caught or questioned, since there is a much larger section that does not pay heed, anyway. Some innovative methods to get these very large percentage of people to recognize & understand symbols & the need to respect them might work, possibly, if such can be developed & pushed through, somehow !

Thus, merely marking signs will not work in India. Very strict enforcement simultaneously would be necessary. First of all, an extensive training program for drivers with licenses would be required. It will not be enough to cover bus drivers, but must extend to all drivers & those seeking licenses.

The licensing process will need a complete overhaul & all this will have high costs - both, to the state & also on the individual. After all this, it might well be riddled with corrupt practices, as any such initiative does in this country.

Drivers, particularly the ones that come from poor rural backgrounds do not value safety against injury or life with priority - quicker commute is more desirable to them with some risks & takes precedence as their economic well being depends on it. Thus, they tend to  "force their way through" on the roads, without much care for signs & symbols, including traffic lights.

The bus stop or lane markings are being flouted everywhere & barriers are now being erected to keep parked vehicles away.

Flyovers & underpasses are being built becaue the corporators receive kickbacks - the more, the merrier, & life goes on, so help us god !

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Never said, this alone will work. But this is a forgotten priority.

How long do we continue to make 'corrupt practices' an excuse for not looking at basics - are mega projects exempt from corruption?

In UK, those who can't read can still take the driving theory test? The test is available in over 15 languages, including Hindi.

We can move the earth for getting nuclear deal but in 60 years we have not been able to collaborate with British counterparts for duplicating their systems here.

Lets not make cost an excuse here at all, this is a pre-requisite and yet will probably cost a fraction of the amounts currently spent.

Finally, a villager is no less intelligent than urban middle class, this is a stereotype, an urban myth. No one has role modelled, no one has taught these people the correct way.

BTW, our next door intellectuals behave even more badly on the streets - so much for educational attainments.

Its time we stop making anything and everything an excuse for not doing the right things first.

Its a no brainer, basics have to come first.

ASJ

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'Corrupt Practices' are not my excuse in the context. What I meant was how eventually things turn out here, & most of us have very little control other than to pose a question or shoot an RTI here & there.

Megaprojects are being pushed through or created so that the corrupt can practice their art for gains - the contractors, the politicians, the corporators, all make hay whilst it lasts, which is now over 60 years.

Why do you think flyovers are being preferred when simpler things might work better ? Why do you think the politicians align themselves with big industrialists a-la-modi style ?

I agree with yr title though - village boys are not necessarily unintelligent. With good guidance & education, they can have far better ethics than city dwellers since they would not have the same longing for materialistic things & would be far more sincere.

Also, you are right about the many educated people in the city that behave badly on the streets - I see them almost everyday when I am out.

"We" stop making anything and everything an excuse for not doing the right things first - okay so we in praja will, but will it change everything in this country of 1.1 billion ?

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The 100th monkey was the tipping point. You never know where the tipping point is for a particular behaviour, but it is there somewhere.

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