Driving in Santiago, Chile
Basically I can’t stand driving in Santiago. It stresses me and drives me nuts!
Sometimes I think I’d love to own an old beat-up car. Why? Just so I wouldn’t have to worry about what happens to the car after it runs into those incompetent drivers that cut in front of you or sit inches away from your back bumper. It would save me the hassle of having to squeal the brakes on very couple of blocks to avoid any scratches and dents.
Watch out for the buses!
And it’s not just cars you have to worry about; buses are like tanks that think they own the roads. Since they’re bigger, they know that your little car will come off second best in any entanglement (unless you have a two-tonne Volvo). When the Santiago Buses were all painted yellow a couple of years ago, you would see many cars with dents and yellow lines scraped across their side. Now those scratches are white with the odd streak of green.
Horns
Did you know that beeping your horn miraculous changes everything… or that is what many drivers seem to think. There may be a traffic jam for miles on end though people will continually beep as if it would speed it up (do you really expect the car in front of you to suddenly sprout wings and fly out of your way?). When the traffic light turns green and you hesitate just a solitary second, you will also get beeped. Sometimes they will just beep because it’s Friday or Monday or any day that finishes in a Y. It drives me crazy how impatient people can be and how liberally they use their horn when you know it doesn’t make any difference whatsoever.
Pedestrians
Not only do you have to be aware of the other mad drivers when you are behind the steering wheel but you also have to add in another factor… pedestrians. They have a habit of dawdling across the road as if it were a slow romantic strong along a beach. I’m sure those pedestrians think they are made of rubber and if they walk out in front of your car that they will just bounce off and everyone will be OK. There have been numerous times I have had to squeal the brakes on after some random person decides to walk out in front of the car. The thing is, they will not just do this at pedestrian crossings (expected) or street corners (sort of expected) but anywhere they feel. And then if you beep the horn, they hurl abuse back at you!
The worse place in Santiago for people to do this is just behind La Vega heading West (between La Vega and the Patronato area). You seriously have to slow down or you WILL hit someone.
Just so you know, being a pedestrian yourself you have to be careful crossing the road since car owners don’t often respect the pedestrian (zebra) crossings. That’s probably why people just cross the road wherever they like.
Tolls in Santiago
There are newish highways than run through and around the city of Santiago but which you will be charged to use. How are you charged? By a little device called a Tag that is normally stuck to the inside of your windscreen near the rearview mirror. They make a beep sound as you go under an archway (with a purple glow) which means you have just been charged for that part of the highway you used. The licence plates of your car will get photographed if you don’t have a Tag and there will be a hefty fine given to the owner of the vehicle. Even though there are different companies responsible for different highways (Costanera, Vespucio etc) you use the same tag for them all. If you don’t have a tag, you can get day passes at some gas/petrol stations in Santiago, usually just before you enter the city.
The amount of time you save with these user-pays highways compared to using the normal roads is quite substantial. You can get from one side of the city to the other in no time and you don’t have to worry so much about pedestrians made of rubber!
Tolls in the regions
When travelling out of Santiago expect to pay tolls every hour or so. From Santiago to the coast there are two tolls to pay. From Santiago to Talca there are three you have to pay. These tolls are often more expensive on the weekends too.
See the documents you need to have to drive in Chile
How do you feel about driving in Santiago?
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I also hated it – a lot
where my wife and me would fight. I even hated being a passenger but now after 2 years here I got used to it and must say that compared to Buenos Aires or Mexico City Santiago is the paradise to drive….
The car was the only place (at first)
One of my worst ever experiences was on one of my first days I ended up in the wrong direction. That’s because in Santiago they change the direction of the roads in rush hour (generally a good thing) but if you don’t know it and follow the huge arrows on the road you might end up driving in the wrong direction. I was in a road with 4 lanes of traffic – all coming towards me and all beeping like crazy as if I did not know I f***** did something wrong
You’re right, those reversible roads are great though can be a killer, especially when you are on the cusp of the change of direction because of the hour. Should I go? Should I stay in the lane? Why is that car flying towards me in the same lane?
I have also heard that driving in other capitals can be much worse than Santiago.
I love your beautiful country and its people. I visited Santiago in 1995 for 5 days when I was on a business trip. I loved and do love the friendly people of Sanitago. I really did not want to come back to New York, but my business responsibilities brough me back to New York. May be one day I would like to settle down there at Santiago permnently, but one cannot predict correctly future. What will be will be.
Sincerely,
Amrit J. Vadehra,
Yeah, I have to agree with everything Rob. W. wrote. I have been in Santiago for five years and find myself more and more dreading to get behind the wheel. A few factors that are worsening the situation is the rapid increase in the amount of people and cars these last few years. Also, it’s a five hundred year old city with narrow streets and a high population density. Chile doesn’t have the ‘driving culture’ like the States. I noticed when getting my Chilean license, that the main focus was on being certain I had good reflexes and motor skills (tested by these video game like machines). There is virtually no value placed on driving in such a manner has to promote courtesy, graciousness, safety and non-aggressive behavior. What is particularly striking is the personality change many people in Santiago undertake when they get into a car. It’s a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde phenomenon. People whom I know quite well and are generally nice and easy-going will transform into aggressive “show no quarter’ warriors instantaneously. Being a foreigner, I have to accept that I will most likely never understand the culture well enough to explain these things. Like all cultures, it has its ‘stuff’ that you just have to accept.
A couple pet peeves, observations and / or bits of advice I’d like to share: Speed limits are sensible and well posted, but absolutely ignored. Tail-gating is the norm. Flashing your brakes three times to ask the tailgater to back away a bit will result in a show of horn honking, headlight flashing, middle finger waiving and a flood of Chilean profanity. On top of that, the driver will probably either get even closer or do something extreme to get in front of you. I have to assume that it’s not understood as a message to ‘please back off’, but rather an intentional act to just ‘dick’ with them.
It’s illegal to speak on a hand-held cell phone while driving. That law is almost completely ignored. Since most of the cars are manual transmission, you will see people who are driving like they’re drunk. When you pass them you’ll see is just that they’re on their cell phone. Another thing to think about while driving.
The painted lines in the road that represent lanes are often ignored. Just think of them as ‘suggestions’.
Many people do not ever bother using their signals. One issue, though about signal usage is that displaying your intention to change lanes will often result in a car speeding up to try and stop you. A passive-aggressive thing, it seems.
If you brake hard for a yellow light or a fresh red one, you risk being rear-ended. Better to run it.
It’s very common practice for a car to sprint a left turn in front of you when your light has turned green. Thus, never jump right into an intersection.
It’s also common if your are waiting to turn left that a car that was behind you may come up into the intersection and put itself in front of you (pure impatience) . Also, a car may stop in a non-turning lane and wait for a chance to turn. Of course, this stops the lane of traffic and results in a symphony of horns. Amazingly, the driver in the offending car won’t even blink.
Drivers of bigger and more expensive cars will often display a sense of entitlement and privilege in their driving. Expect a never yield, ‘get outta my way’ , ‘I’m more important than you’ attitude. An example of this is when I come upon a luxury car going the opposite direction, say a nice Mercedes (of which there are many here), on a narrow street. The road is wide enough for both to pass. However, there’s a good chance that driver will stay in the middle of the road and expect the modest car to go to the curb and let them pass. Your option here is to jump to the curb or play ‘chicken’ and show the other driver that your are going to stay on your side no matter what. I’ve hit mirrors a few times. I can’t say this is a good idea. But, like everyone, I have my limits.
Cars will pull out from driveways without any concern that you will have to slam your brakes to avoid hitting them. Especially annoying when you look in your rear-view mirror and see that no one was behind you and thus if the driver simply had waited three seconds, he or she could have taken all the time in the world.
Pedestrians will walk out in front of you without warning. Very often without ever looking in the direction of the car they just made stop. You will never see a pedestrian rush in order to benefit a waiting car.
Buses and taxis: Whew! Where do I start? Just know that they are capable of anything. Some bus drivers act like they are in a little convertible sports car and their wife is having a baby in the front seat. They know that their size will always make everyone else more out of their way. But, to be fair, car drivers will do absolutely nothing to help a bus driver. Taxis: Well, anyone who drives for a living in Santiago will develop a thick skin. I can completely understand why they have no patience left. I admire and feel for them.
If you are a pedestrian, don’t be shocked if a car zips by just a few inches in front or behind you. I’ve had the front of my shoe run-over (she was on her cell phone).
Driving at night? You will often see cars with no lights on. Flashing your headlights at them will have no effect. Would welcome any explanation for this one.
Highway on-ramp? There are no rules. Don’t expect anyone to let off their accelerator to allow a little more space for you to get in. In fact, they may accelerate to try and stop you. Make sure your headlights are on (it’s the law). Some ramps are long enough for the driver can get up to highway speed. Problem is, some drivers don’t use them and simply stop and wait for an opening. Also, if you are on the highway, be prepared for some cars to just merge in blindly. Ever see Mr. Magoo drive? It’s like that.
And lastly, be prepared to see drivers blocking intersections and thus creating unnecessary gridlock. It’s caused by drivers being impatient and not wanting to stop and wait for the next green light. They fill up the intersection and thus the cross traffic can’t move. The cross traffic does the same thing and the result is the traffic moves at a snail’s though the amount of cars is not particularly heavy. Stay away from Américo Vespucio during rush hour.
Despite everything I have said here, Santiago is paradise compared to some other cities. Spend a little time in Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Beirut, New Delhi, Kathmandu. and you’ll know what I mean. New York City can wear you out pretty quickly, too.
One explanation I can offer in regard to Santiago is this: The police (Carabineros), rarely give out moving violations. You’re more likely to get a parking ticket than be stopped for something while driving. Given that a driver can do whatever they feel like and have almost no concern of consequences, the people of Santiago deserve a lot of credit. I’m willing to bet that if the L.A. police and sheriff were to stop handing out tickets, things would get ugly very quickly.
One last thing to consider: The really bad, dangerous, shameless and overly aggressive drivers represent probably no more than ten percent of the population. The problem is, in Santiago driving, you encounter so many cars so quickly, that even one-in-ten means that you will almost always being dealing with one or two of them at any given moment. It’s tiring.
I need to be fair and mention that nearly everything I listed here pertains to Santiago. Driving in other parts of Chile is generally much, much easier.
Hi Stewart…
Thanks for your awesome comment and all was OH SO TRUE!
That rule of the bigger cars ruling the road I knew because they would come out best in an accident, then you mentioned the more expensive cars. Maybe it is because they are more likely to be able to afford a lawyer or getting repairs or even just a classism thing where they expect those “lower” than themselves to get out of the way.
As for the carabineros not doing much, that is so true. Since I have been driving in Chile I have only been told to pull over two or three times and just at a routine stop on the side of the road to check for documents and not from speeding or doing anything wrong. If the Carabineros wanted to fulfill their end of month ticket giving cuotas, then they should target the hoons and irresponsible people more. When in New Zealand in September, I was reminded by signs that you “merge like a zip” all over the place. That culture of letting people merge into your lane here doesn’t seem to work. And as you mention, Santiago is probably a paradise compared to other countries.
Does anyone have an experience to share where they compare driving in Chile to another country where driving is worse?
“I need to be fair and mention that nearly everything I listed here pertains to Santiago. Driving in other parts of Chile is generally much, much easier.”
No, Stewart, I have to say that everything you say applies to Antofagasta as well.
Ha ha ha. That was funny.
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