One reason I don't like to travel in Togo

So here is one big reason I don't like having to travel in this country. I think any other volunteer can attest to this as well. The roads are terrible. Think of the biggest pot hole you have ever seen and multiply that by 10. That is the condition of most of the roads in this country. If you are on the Route National (the main high way that goes north to south, through the country), you are likely to have better road conditions but a lot more traffic. And the bush taxis here are not in that great of condition either. They all have some sort of damage, some more than others, but they are still apparently fine to be driven. The tires are used over and over until they burst (I have seen and heard about many accidents caused by this). Add about 10 feet high worth of cargo to the top of the car and some in the back, hanging out the back door. Also add in the fact that the driver might have been sampling one of the local drinks , Tchouck or Sodabi, and might not be that capable of driving. Then add in 6 to 10 people over the legal American limit and you have a normal car ride. I guess I am lucky that in order to get to my regional capital I only have to travel around 30 minutes in this way. I am always white-knuckled whenever I am in a car. Larger trucks carrying cargo scare me even more. I have never been in one but just being near one when they are driving down the road will scare the crap out of you. Those too are always over loaded to the point that tires bursting are a very common occurrence. They also have a tendency to tip over quite frequently.

In order for me to travel down to Lome, I have to take the Route National through one area of mountains. Someone had the brilliant idea of putting the road there even though almost everywhere else is flat. Years ago construction was done on the road and at one point the road splits. One side goes in-between two rock walls where a space was made with dynamite and the other side goes on the outside of the rock close to a cliff. The picture above is a picture of this rock.

The space in the rock just barely fits the large trucks that go through and the trucks are driven far too fast for the conditions. The four or five times that I have traveled this road, there has always been at least two large cargo trucks tipped over or crashed in the road or on the side. Some of these accidents were so bad I would be amazed if anyone survived them. The destroyed trucks just sit in the road or on the side, until someone actually takes the time to have them removed. But that takes a few weeks. So traffic through the mountains is always slow or stopped.

Luckily when I came down here to Lomé, I took the bus. They only have one bus company in all of Togo. It keeps a schedule, takes reservations and is well kept. It was a quick and easy trip down to Lome, for the same price I would have paid for a bush taxi ride.

The only other mode of transportation here is Motos and those are just about as safe as the cars. You will see upwards of 4 people on one moto. For some reason, near my post a lot of people wear helmets. But that is not the case for most of the rest of Togo. I am also not allowed to ride them so it doesn't really matter. I just try to avoid them, having already been hit by one.

So for the most part, I stick to riding my bike or walking. Everything else just seems too dangerous. And I avoid riding anywhere near the Route National. I don't want to have the same outcome as the 4 people killed on the Route just in the 2 weeks at post.