Rant about bad drivers

[finesse_r]

Drivers every where including the USA are all too frequently unskilled, with poor reaction times, even when stone cold sober. If you throw alcohol or drugs into the mix it even gets crazier, a lot crazier out there on our highways.

While I will grant that some accidents are unavoidable by one of the parties involved, most of the accidents that happen could be prevented by both parties. Just because some idiot runs a red light, does not give you the right not to look both ways and get out of the idiots way if you can, and if you are really driving defensively most of the time you can. Just whining that it was his fault will not bring you back from the dead and will not make you walk again if paralyzed.

Most accidents occur when one party does something unexpected or illegal and the other party is too slow to react to it. I cannot count the number of times I have left the road to avoid a head on collision (when some idiot tuning the radio or dialing their phone or talking to a passenger, or fiddling with a hot cigarette ash, or just asleep at the wheel) came across the line right at me with both of us driving at high speeds in opposite directions. I have slide to a stop when idiots ran through red lights and stop signs even though I had the right of way. Especially when riding a motor cycle I have had people pull out right in front of me. Fortunately I was watching and as soon as they started moving, I reacted. Not fun, but much better than having a collision.

I will tell you very few people drive with that type of awareness and with those types of reactions. However, that is what will do more to keep you alive than all the safety gear in the world. It is a matter of being focused on driving and of concentration on your surroundings. Driving safely is hard work and few people put in that kind of effort to it.

If you are familiar with the bell curve, it applies to driving skills as well as anything else. That means half the drivers out there are below average in skills and awareness. When you add in immigrants, who never drove before they were adults, and the truly stupid in the mix, well you begin to see how dangerous those highways out there really are. Learn to drive defensively for your life, especially if you live in a high density population area.

Some of the people I have ridden with, and I am talking about adult, educated, native born intelligent drivers have terrible basic skills and poor reaction times. I really hate to be a passenger in a vehicle because I have never found anyone else that really drove well in my opinion.

Any time you are so close to a vehicle in front of you that you cannot stop if he slams on the brakes you are too close.

Don’t just watch the brake lights of the car in front of you. Watch the brake lights of the cars in front of that vehicle.

Know if there is a car beside you or in your blind spot and get some decent rear view mirrors that help with that.

If someone is tailgating you too closely find a way to let him get by even if you have to pull over or change lanes.

Make certain you give your turn signals well in advance and the faster you are going the farther in advance you should signal.

If turning left across oncoming traffic make certain you have plenty of time to clear them and also make certain no one is passing you because you slowed down to make a turn. Just putting on your turn indicator is not enough. Visually make certain no one is coming around you on the left.

If you do make a left turn do not linger while doing so. I see old people especially nearly stop to make a left hand or right hand turn. They are begging to get rear ended. If you are so old you cannot drive reasonably well you need to turn in the driver license before you kill someone or kill yourself.

This nation need some serious driver education courses that go far beyond anything offered today. Driving is a complicated skill that almost every idiot thinks they know how to do just because they know how to put the car in drive and push on the accelerator. Being old enough and big enough to crank a car and make it go in the general direction you want is not being a good driver by a long shot.

Can you imagine the outrage if we had 45,000 people killed by gun accidents every year!!!!!

 

[Edmo]

BRAVO!!!

I couldn't have said it better!

As a retired USAF pilot I'm always striving to maintaining my situational awareness while driving and am constantly amazed at how bad the general population drives. Throw in cell phones and it is crazy bad (or crazy stupid).

I am also a motorcycle rider and I am hyper-aware of everyone around me while both riding & driving.

Be careful out there. As you mentioned and as I always say, "Half of the people you meet are below average."

Edmo

 

[Laketime]

Women drivers in Boston where I'm from,love to pull over to the right with the left blinker on.You can't pass them.Also when they overshoot the drive through microphone they back up,then forget they are still in reverse as they head to the other window.Nails the guy behind them.They would also try and go around black top crew destroying cooling finish top.Women are much better drivers here in the south.

 

[LVSteve]

Sadly, driving is seen as a right in the US, not a skill that has to be learned and worked at all the time. That puts us behind the 8 ball before we ever discuss training and testing standards.

Speaking of driver training and tests (in those countries that have them) consider this pecking order:-

1) Many other US states laugh at Nevada's driving test, and they should.

2) People who have learned to drive in the UK laugh at the driving tests of every US state.

3) Any German will tell you (through hysterical laughter) how much British driver training and tests are lacking.

4) Very few Europeans, even the Germans, go to Finland to live because the driver training and tests there are too time consuming, expensive and downright difficult.

Sure, drivers in the US are generally better than those in Cairo, but there are days that the margin is wafer thin.

 

[e3mrk]

The Idiots that text while driving drive Me insane. I have been forced to sit through traffic lights because some Moron is texting and not aware the light has changed and other People are honking Their horns at Them and They are oblivious to what is going on around Them.
I was driving down a on ramp in S.Carolina and I was going about 55mph when I notice some ignorant Woman was just sitting at the end of the ramp texting,Needless to say as I managed to avoid Her I laid on the Horn and made a not to friendly gesture as I went by.Have People become so Stupid that They dont see the danger They are to everyone and Themselves?

 

[GatorFarmer]

If'n they don't want me drinkin' ma' sippin' whiskey whiles I drive, stree-ictly med-es-eenal I's might add, then why do they has a drive up windee at the liquor store?

 

[Absalom]

As a retired USAF pilot I'm always striving to maintaining my situational awareness while driving and am constantly amazed at how bad the general population drives.

Statistically, flying small airplanes is more dangerous than driving, but I always felt safer flying; up there, my safety depended almost entirely on myself, but when you're on the road, half your safety always depends on the idiot coming towards you from the other direction.

I came to this country several decades ago after learning to drive in Europe. From that perspective, I think a big part of the problem here is that compared to many much more densely settled countries, driving in the US is a very forgiving experience. With the probable exception of some major metropolitan areas (L.A. is scary), you can happily go through life driving hundreds of thousands of miles without ever really learning how to drive safely. Wide roads, lots of lanes, low traffic density, few cops. I have friends my age who have driven long commutes for decades and are very "experienced" (and believe themselves to be good drivers), and every time I have to get into a car with them, I ask myself afterwards why they (and I) are still alive. Most of my friends are interesting people who have lots of interesting things to say; unfortunately, too many of them share that peculiar American habit of talking animatedly while looking at the passenger they are talking to rather than at the road.

American drivers also suffer from overconfidence. They've actually done studies on this. If I remember correctly, 80% of all drivers placed themselves in the top 25% when asked to evaluate their driving skill. Would be funny if it weren't so dangerous. They also found that the more confident those drivers were in their abilities, the wider the gap between self-image and actual driving skills.

Even I have acclimatized to the relaxed driving style. When necessary, I can cruise the 750 miles down I-5 to the Bay Area in a day with no problem; lots of good tunes, some breaks, 12 to 14 hours, no sweat.
When I visit my folks in Germany these days, and borrow my brother-in-law's car and get on the Autobahn, I'm a nervous wreck after barely an hour, and they've got to almost pry my cramped fingers off the steering wheel afterwards.
But despite driving being easier here, our traffic death rate is still, calculated by population, 2.5 times higher than Germany's, and calculated by vehicle miles driven, 1.5 times higher.

Of course, we can't get around the fact that because of geographical factors, we need to drive. And we need to have children drive earlier. And in most of the country, taking the bus or the bike or walking is not an alternative, like it is in Europe or some large cities. So we can't make being able to operate a vehicle too difficult. And requiring more competence, like tougher tests and more stringent driver ed requirements, and taking the most obviously bad drivers off the road, means more money for law enforcement, and nobody wants to pay higher taxes; out here people have been voting down law enforcement levies and forcing sheriff's departments to fold up patrols right and left.

No easy solution.
.

 

[quneur]

Living near Boeing, yeah, I've noticed there's a lot of bad drivers. I guess its high traffic locations that frustrates people.

I have a few driving laws I always go by:
1. Always obey the law including speed limits.
2. Pedestrians always have the right of way.
3. Always be aware of other cars around you.
4. Always be courteous to other drivers.
5. Never follow too closely.
6. Despite what OP says, pay attention to car in front in stop and go traffic. I always assume the car in front don't brake as you do like sudden stops instead of a smooth stop.
7. Always give alot of room to motorcycles. Crash a motorcycle usually means instant injuries or even death.
8. Pay attention to the light and not the car next to you. I've seen too many cars suddenly drive into a red light when the car next to them moved ahead in a turning lane.

 

[soFlaNative]

I try, whenever possible, to leave myself a way out.
That means I'll go to great lengths to be able to see down the road.
Everything else narrows down to my own two simple rules.
I always let the other drivers know what I'm going to do
and if I have to think about it, I won't do it.

 

[BigBoy99]

I'd like to add my rant about bad drivers. Last night I was almost run off the road by a lady realtor. (She had a large realtor logo on the vehicle's door.) She had her cell phone crooked in her neck and was using her hands to write something down, all the while she was holding the steering wheel with her wrists. Driving and paying attention was the last thing on her mind.

 

[UncleEd]

Besides all the distractions of cell phones, fixing the radio, etc.,
a lot of the trouble is too many drivers think everyone else is
an idiot and everyone should get OFF THEIR HIGHWAY, ROAD, LANE, OUT OF THEIR PARKING LOT.

So many self important people exist who think that if they don't get where they are going in the fastest time, the world will stop.

And yes, the most irritating things to me are "pushers" and tailgaters who can't possibly see beyond my vehicle as to what
I might be facing on the road.

 

[whitestang]

Due to my part-time job I am in the greater Chicago area a lot and the drivers there are always in a hurry no matter the weather or road conditions. I have had vehicles go past me at more than the speed limit even in a construction with workers in that area. Most people today only care about themselves and that their need to get somewhere is far more important than anyone else no matter what.

 

[Brian41]

Besides drivers training in High School I had two separate courses in the military. I got my Chauffer license when they were still difficult to pass and motorcycle endorsement so I've had a lot of training. I drove a service van for many years and was on the road a lot to get real life experience. Sure I got in a couple accidents then but getting rear ended when I stopped for a light and a lady that pulled right out in front of me were unavoidable.
I do admit when driving a service truck I used two way radios, cell phones and read maps but was accustomed to doing that and good at it but still not a wise practice. Today I do none of that and as example yesterday when I got a text while driving pulled into a parking lot to reply.

I've seen a lot on the road over the years but have to say drivers are worse now than ever before and have more distractions too. I'm not on the road so much now I'm retired but when I am I follow all traffic laws and don't speed. I also give plenty of room in front of me and never flip off other drivers or seldom honk my horn as I carry and don't want to appear to start a confrontation. Like many others have posted before I am a very defensive driver anymore. No wrecks or tickets in years and hope to keep it that way.

 

[finesse_r]

2. Pedestrians always have the right of way.

The idea that pedestrians always have the right of way is an interesting concept. I applaud it from a driver’s point of view and I consider it to be the height of idiocy from a pedestrian’s point of view. Yes as a driver I try to avoid pedestrians at all costs, even the jay walkers who step off the curb in front of me without looking and without a care in the world while jabbering to a friend or talking on their phone, or just lost in a day dream, or worse stoned or drunk.

But as a pedestrian I have to be an idiot to step off the curb in front of a 4000 pound automobile or a 6000 pound truck moving at 30 to 70 MPH and expect him to know I have the right of way. Yet I see this almost every day that I am out driving. People step into the road without looking, or worse while actually seeing the on coming traffic, because they assume they have the right of way and it is the responsibility of the drivers to avoid them! LOL

I mean I have more respect for those that play Russian Roulette than I do such pedestrians. While I fall short of thinking we should put a bounty on such people, I do think our laws have encouraged this type of reckless pedestrian behavior.

My personal rant are those in parking lots that waddle slowly down the middle of the open lanes between parked cars blocking the cars behind them as if they do have some inalienable right to hold up traffic with total impunity. I find this more prevalent in certain groups than in other groups, but it is somewhat universal.

My self as an old time poker player, prefer to bluff when I have some possibility of winning even if I have to draw out. No man, woman, or child is a match for 4000 pounds of moving plastic and steel (I know it used to be mostly steel, but today most vehicles are almost as much plastic as steel).

So if you are a pedestrian I beseech you to not assert your right of way too aggressively!

If you are a driver I would recommend you always give the pedestrian the right of way no mater how stupid he or she may be or how irritating their behavior may be.

 

[walkinghorse]

The OP mentioned talking to a passenger as one reason for distracted driving causing an accident. Why do drivers have to turn their heads to face the passenger when they are talking? Yesterday on a two lane highway, the car ahead of me kept going over the centerline everytime the driver turned his head to talk to the passenger. Several times the car was in the middle of the oncoming lane before the driver corrected.
Why?

 

[finesse_r]

The OP mentioned talking to a passenger as one reason for distracted driving causing an accident. Why do drivers have to turn their heads to face the passenger when they are talking? Yesterday on a two lane highway, the car ahead of me kept going over the centerline everytime the driver turned his head to talk to the passenger. Several times the car was in the middle of the oncoming lane before the driver corrected.
Why?

Incorrect priorities would be my guess. It is generally polite to face someone you are talking to them, unless of course doing so puts both your lives at risk!!!! A great many people drive like they are on auto pilot as they drive from rote memory and habit more than from concentrating on driving as their first priority. They pay little or no attention as to who is behind or besides them, and only a little more attention to on coming traffic. They are easily distracted by their passenger or by misbehaving children in the back seat, or by the radio, or by their cell phone, or by day dreaming about any number of things. They are doing almost everything they can think of except paying attention to driving.

These people should invest heavily in all the safety equipment they can afford as they will need it sooner or later. Most accidents occur when two such people encounter each other. If one or both of them is not sober or is under the influence of some mind altering chemical the chances of a serious accident just increase. We like to focus on the drunks and the druggies as the primary cause and that lets us feel safe. The truth is bad drivers are the single largest cause of accidents and while being drunk or under the influence increases their likely hood of a collision, if they drive often enough, they will sooner or later manage to have an accident even if stone cold sober.

I wish I could say only the stupid do this, but that would be untrue. While intelligence is one factor it is the ability to stay focused on the job at hand (driving, not chatting up your date) that is the primary facet of safe driving. Also of course is respect and knowledge of laws, regulations, and good reaction times, and good judgment. I know a ton of very smart people who lack either or both good reaction time or good judgment in relation to moving objects.

Think of driving as being able to throw a football to a running receiver. How many people do you know that can do that like Peyton Manning? How many cannot even grip the ball in the first place. Driving skills vary almost as greatly, so be very careful out there. Big difference is most of us know we can’t throw a football well enough to play in college or in the pros, but few of us will admit we are a danger on the highway.

As older people loose their reaction and reflex speed and their vision decreases, they often drive slower to allow for their loss in skills. Up to a point this works, but at some point too slow will cause other drivers to drive recklessly to get past you and you actually become more dangerous on the road.

At some point we have to take stock as a nation of the dangers of allowing Tom, Dick, and Harry to get 15 minutes of instruction and barely pass a driving test that a child should breeze through and get his license to drive all our highways.

I would like to see a rural license issued that allows people to drive only in rural areas. The skills required to drive where I live are but a fraction of those required to drive down the highway in Houston or to the West in Dallas. The thought of some of the people that are relatively safe around here venturing into these big cities is down right scary. Even I will rarely travel into large cities any longer and if I do so I avoid their high traffic times and areas like the plague.

I did not realize that nations like Germany had such strong driver training programs. Once again some European nations are far ahead of us. Certainly as this nation becomes more and more over crowed from virtually unlimited immigration, we need to make some serious changes in who is allowed to drive and where.

Back in the 1950’s when I was learning to drive the roads were wide, well maintained, and sparsely populated by other vehicles. Driving was a breeze and a ton of fun. Sunday afternoon drives were a frequent past time. Today, I cannot imagine that anyone just goes out driving for fun!

The Gulf freeway (I-45) Houston to Galveston had just been started (It evidently will never be finished) and in some places was all of 3 lanes wide in each direction!!!! We felt it would never be crowded! How could anyone have an accident on such a road?? Today it is much, much wider in most areas and is pretty much wall to wall and bumper to bumper most of the time, not just at eight AM and five PM. I expect not a day goes by without some kind of accident on it.

Changing times are putting more and more stress on our highways and those that drive them. We need to be proactive to try and cut down on some of the carnage that takes place on them. 45,000 more or less dead each year. All of Vietnam we only lost about 55,000 dead!!!! If you don’t realize that our highways have become a virtual war zone of death then you are just not paying attention.

 

[Jst1mr]

Why waste the effort in learning to be a good driver?
No sense learning to pay attention or keep your eyes moving, after all - your car can now look out for you, even to the point of stopping itself in case something crosses your path.
Learning how to control a skid or how to drive in the rain, snow or ice - a complete waste of time in the ABS age.
Don't tell me I can't take a peek at the newspaper, shave or use my phone while tooling along...if I do wander from my lane, my car will let me know and correct it for me.
What's the sense of using good judgement as to being OK to drive...doesn't everyone's car let them know if they are asleep or nodding off?
Descend a steep hill? Start a manual trans car moving forward from a stop while on a hill? Hey, your car's got your six.
Remember when we were expected to be smart enough to know when to turn our headlights on? Or wiper blades? Or check our tire pressures? Or dim our own lights for oncoming traffic?

Just can't understand why, with all this help, we are turning out more grossly incompetent drivers than ever before...

 

[johngalt]

The behavior I'll never understand is people who like to drive next to me in my blind spot. What advantage do they think they are gaining by doing that?

 

[vytoland]

The behavior I'll never understand is people who like to drive next to me in my blind spot. What advantage do they think they are gaining by doing that?

The behavior I'll never understand is people ...............

 

[PALADIN85020]

Well said in the OP.

The modern standard for following another car is to allow three seconds after that car has passed some sort of marker for you to pass the same marker at the same speed. This SHOULD allow you to take evasive action in the event something should go wrong with the vehicle in front of you. Count 1 one-thousand, 2 one-thousand, 3 one-thousand as a guide.

I was on the freeway a few days ago when some idiot was tailgating me in the middle lane. I mean he was right on my ***. He could have gone around me or slowed down to allow a safe interval. My method for "alerting" him was to turn on my emergency blinkers. He got the message and backed off. I then turned the blinkers off. This beats tapping the brakes, which could have unwanted consequences.

Blind spots are a problem. There is a correct way to adjust your outside rear view mirrors, and it's NOT to be able to see a portion of the rear end of your car from the driving position, as was tradition for years. Here's the way it should be done.

For the left mirror, lean to the left until your head touches your door window. THEN adjust the mirror until you can see a small portion of the left rear of your vehicle.

For the right mirror, lean to the right until your head is positioned about even with the left of your overhead rear view mirror. While maintaining this position, adjust your right mirror until you can see a small portion of the right rear of your vehicle.

Done this way, you will have better rear-view coverage of the left and right of your vehicle, and you should have fewer "surprises" in your blind spot.

The newer vehicles have backup imaging. These are worth using in conjunction with your rear view mirrors whenever you back up slowwwllly.

When you pass another car on the freeway, PASS IT. Don't inch up and run side by side for any length of time. If you have to break the speed limit to do this, DO IT. It's safer than blocking the road and hacking off those behind you for miles. Then get back in the original lane at the posted speed.

ALWAYS use your turn signals well in advance if you deviate in any way from going straight ahead - all turns and lane changes should be signaled so everyone around you knows what you're about to do!

Hope these tips will help you avoid a mess.

John