Really? I've seen a number of drivers in Shanghai stop for me while I'm just standing in the middle of the road, waiting for a clear spot in the traffic.
Actually, I got a fairly strong feeling that Shanghai traffic has gotten noticeably less crazy over time, but I can't rule out that I was just observing the local traffic of different regions of Shanghai at different times.
Haven’t experienced Shanghai personally but ten years ago in Xi’an and Chengdu, yes, this sometimes was the only way to cross roads. In Jakarta and Bangkok, however, this always is the only way. Compared to those cities, however, the traffic in Chinese cities I’ve seen was always very organized.
