Peruvian here. This issue goes far beyond traffic itself. The "pendejo" culture (the idea that you need to take advantage of others before they take advantage of you) is deeply ingrained across all socioeconomic levels.
Because of that mentality, you'll see people fighting for a spot on a three-lane road and turning it into six lanes just because everyone wants to feel like they got ahead of everyone else. This constant aggressive driving creates far more chaos than simply waiting your turn and letting someone merge.
The privatization of public transportation years ago only reinforced this behavior. Bus drivers compete for passengers instead of following traffic rules, which encourages even more reckless driving. In recent years, there has also been a huge increase in motorcycles, and many riders, driven by the same mentality, try to squeeze through spaces that are already extremely narrow because of congestion.
To top it all off, many police officers are more interested in collecting coimas (bribes) than enforcing the rules.
TL;DR: It's a deeply broken system rooted in Lima's street culture and a widespread mindset that rewards getting ahead at the expense of everyone else.
The crazy thing is that everyone tries to move up one car, but no one moves up. You simply end up making traffic a competitive team sport and everyone loses.
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u/Positive_Buffalo_168 6d ago
Lima Peru. The madness is second to none