Traffic Control In Goma

I don't think I've been so excited driving through a city since Pyongyang. While there's always a lot to see in Africa, Goma really bombards you from all sides. It's in a pitiful state after the Nyiragongo erupted in 2002, destroying 40% of the city, which probably wasn't exactly in amazing condition to begin with. It's also been the site of some battles and was seized by M23 rebels in 2012 before being retaken by the government. M23, being the rebel group that rolls into Virunga in the documentary of the same name.

So, let me just state the obvious. There's a traffic control officer standing in the middle of the intersection here. I think I only came across one or two of these in Goma, but still, I came across them. There is actually a surprising amount of traffic, although mostly trucks, motorbikes or chukudus. When I say a surprising amount of traffic, this is relative to the generally poor state of roads (this one was paved!) and the fact that Congo often has the dubious honor of being the poorest country in the world.

Human traffic control. Not as cool as a robot controller though.