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vandenberg
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Constitucion's claim to fame.
Just made a trip to La Paz and had the pleasure of getting to admire Constitucion's newly finished roadway through town.
Always a passage marred by local cops, eagerly looking for speed offenders to enrich their local coffers (pockets).
Now you will be lucky to get back up to 15 miles an hour, before coming to a halt at the next light. The city fathers, in their infinite wisdom, have
decided to go for some kind of record, hard to do in this dusty, agricultural town, but they found a way. From afar, coming into town, the road is
adorned with traffic lights as far as the eye can see, dozens, so it seems.
And of course, in Mexican fashion, all of them are, unerringly, UNsynchronized. And EVERY intersection has a working light. In the centerlane one will
have to wait not only for the cross traffic, but also for the turning traffic of both side roads, before getting the green light. Seems like a mere 15
minute wait between lights. And if one has the bad luck of the guy in front of you falling asleep and not noticing the change, the wait could be even
longer. And with our gringo ingrained politeness, we wouldn't dare to blow our horn at them and irking the local populace.
As an alternate may I suggest taking the streets a couple of blocks to the east, running parallel with the main drag, and getting through town a bit
quicker. The locals must have discovered this, since the traffic, usually heavy on the access roads, was very light both times coming through.
However, if staying on the main road, bring lots of patience and allow for some extra time.
Happy travels 
[Edited on 5-9-2009 by vandenberg]
[Edited on 5-10-2009 by vandenberg]
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rob
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Just went through Constitucion and suffered as described by Vandenberg. Also had the bad luck to stop at a new PEMEX and get gas before I saw "Auto
Express" in small letters . . .
The side street ploy is a stroke of genius.
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Bajahowodd
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"Auto Express"? 'splain, please.
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Paulclark
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But now you have the opportunity to view scenic downtown Constitucion instead of rushing through. Relax, live a little. Open another refreshment and
take in the beautiful scenery -- and learn the proper spelling of where you are.
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Udo
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 AUTO EXPRESS
Udo
Youth is wasted on the young!
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vandenberg
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Paulclark
But now you have the opportunity to view scenic downtown Constitucion instead of rushing through. Relax, live a little. Open another refreshment and
take in the beautiful scenery -- and learn the proper spelling of where you are. |
Whatdayatalkingabout
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lingililingili
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You are sooooo right Ed!
•Life is just one damned thing after another
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bajajazz
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Drove throuh Constitucion twice recently. Both times hit only one green light out of about 15 -- 14 reds, one green. Nutzoid city planning. Also,
anyone else of the opinion that the highway department is going crazy with the proliferation of topes and rumble bars? I think there should be a
trade off instated, no topes until all the potholes are fixed, it's one or the other as the potholes make the topes redundant.
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Howard
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I just drove through the town a couple of days ago and was amazed that all the local traffic obeyed all the red lights with no one jumping the gun. I
was hoping they would so I could follow suit but I was to chicken to do so on my own.
We don't stop playing because we grow old;
we grow old because we stop playing
George Bernard Shaw
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Bajahowodd
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Auto Express remains a mystery.
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Don Alley
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Auto Express is a chain of Pemex stations in Baja Sur.
I stopped by one in Loreto a couple of days ago to fill a 5 gallon (19 liter) can, to avoid the lines at the non Auto Express station. 23 liters!
Magic! And a large, visible leak on the fillup hose over the pump!
Auto Express, where you get more for your money!
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CaboRon
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| Quote: | Originally posted by bajajazz
Drove throuh Constitucion twice recently. Both times hit only one green light out of about 15 -- 14 reds, one green. Nutzoid city planning. Also,
anyone else of the opinion that the highway department is going crazy with the proliferation of topes and rumble bars? I think there should be a
trade off instated, no topes until all the potholes are fixed, it's one or the other as the potholes make the topes redundant.
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City planning in mexico is an oxymarooon
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BMG
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| Quote: | Originally posted by vandenberg
And of course, in Mexican fashion, all of them are, unerringly, UNsynchronized. |
When we drove through last week I would swear that every light was synchronized to turn red just as I neared the intersection. It does give you time
to see every business on both sides of the road while idling through.
I think the world is run by C- students.
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CaboRon
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Claim To Fame Denied
| Quote: | Originally posted by BMG
| Quote: | Originally posted by vandenberg
And of course, in Mexican fashion, all of them are, unerringly, UNsynchronized. |
When we drove through last week I would swear that every light was synchronized to turn red just as I neared the intersection. It does give you time
to see every business on both sides of the road while idling through. |
[Edited on 5-19-2009 by CaboRon]
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oxxo
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When I drove through Constitucion last fall they were detouring traffic to the side street. I know the route! No traffic lights, just stop signs
that are optional. 
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flyfishinPam
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Auto Express franchises = Highway robbery
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Howard
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I am not saying that it took a long time to drive through town but when I started at one end I was clean shaven and by the time I got to the other end
I had a 5:00 shadow and it was 9 in the morning!
We don't stop playing because we grow old;
we grow old because we stop playing
George Bernard Shaw
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BajaNuts
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Mood: no worry, no hurry....it's all good!
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Bajahowodd
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Remembering this thread, I purposely timed my trip through town. Since I was driving, I couldn't take off my shoes to assist in counting, but I did
come up with 11 lights. Northbound, of course, I hit the first one. And so on and so on. Not a green in the bunch. On the "bright" side, it took
eleven minutes from the time I hit the first red, until I was clear of the gauntlet. That really is not a lifetime. My guess is that most of us are so
conditioned to the speed of the open road, that these lights appear to exxagerate the delay. The down side is that on the auxilliary lanes, I did
notice several drivers really gunning it to try and make the next green. With all the shoppers, parked cars, etc., IMHO, whatever traffic gentling the
lights provide is negated by those who seek to make it an extra block, while paying more attention to the next light than who may be stepping off the
curb.
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bajamigo
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You don't have to have an unsynchronized mess to create traffic calming. It is humanly possible to effect a sensible speed, like 15 or 20 mph, with
simple synchronization.
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