Two wheels, five people

The ratio of number of motorcycles on the road in Delhi to the number of motorcycles on the road in San Francisco is roughly 1,000,000,009 to 1. I totally understand the appeal of having a nimble vehicle when rush hour traffic can gridlock cars for kilometers on end.

What's amazing, however, is that an entire Indian family of five can fit on a little motorcycle. I've seen a man with a baby in his lap, his wife behind him and two kids sandwiched in-between the adults. And it's not only once or twice that I've seen this configuration on the road.

It's quite normal to see a man driving a motorcycle with a woman in a brightly colored, flowing sari on the back. Typically, the man will be wearing a helmet but the woman's brains will remain unprotected.

I commented on this phenomenon to a co-worker who explained that when the motorcycle helmet law was passed, requiring all motorcycle riders to wear helmets, certain women balked because it messed up their hair. Another group of women took a smarter route and complained that it went against their religious beliefs because they were unable to cover their heads with a traditional scarf and a helmet. Apparently, the courts decided that the law did indeed violate religious beliefs and exempted women from this law.