The Worst Drivers in America...

Used to live in NYC and moved to Louisiana. No turn signals, people pull out right in front of you, people on the darn phone even though it's against the law. I'm going to start wearing a steel pot and a flak vest next time I drive. Frank
 
One more thing ..not one of you mentioned....the so called "Smart Phone".. a prime cause of all the stupid things we all see other drivers doing....
 
Hmmmm. 50 posts! Have any states been missed? I don't remember seeing Utah or Oregon. I'm sure there are more. Maybe we should all move to the "good" states and teach them our spectacular driving skills.
 
I agree with everybody above. Lotta bad — which means dangerous — drivers everywhere.

What helps for me is, as I have gotten older, I just give the lunatics plenty of space. Got no need whatsoever to challenge anybody.

Want to cut in front of me suddenly? Have at it! I leave plenty of space for it. Want to pass me on a curve? Sure, I'll slow down and try to give you the best possible chance of surviving.

Like to run red lights? I'll wait on green until I am sure you've stopped.

I still run pretty fast when traffic is sparse and it feels safe to me. (And I think unlikely to get speeding tickets.) But I sure have no interest whatsoever in playing games with yahoos.:)
 
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vytoland said:
we see crazies and NASCAR wannabees everyday around here.....stop signs, speed limits are non existent to the "special people".....
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You've got that right. Took my life in my hands every time I ventured out on the road when I lived in Chicago.
 
I think there are bad and inconsiderate drivers everywhere, but the thing about Oklahoma drivers that has puzzled me is what happens when it rains. I drive the same when it rains as when it's sunny but maybe just a little slower and more cautiously. For some reason, rain freaks some people out here! Some will be driving 20 mph on a 65 mph road when there's a light sprinkle, and other people act like they can't see or are lost. You see wrecks EVERYWHERE, I never have figured that one out.
 
THEY ACTUALLY USE A TURN SIGNAL?

hittman77 said:
I've got a cousin living in Austin who doesn't think the drivers there are bad at all. I believe it's because she is one of them!

My wife grew up in Chicago.....not the burbs......IN Chicago. I discovered quickly that in Chicago a turn signal means they're changing lanes NOW ...... they ain't warning you or looking for permission ...... they're making it happen!
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The only signal I see is the bird they flip you when they make a left on red while smoking/drinking beer/texting/ and leaning on the horn cuz it's your fault. ;)
 
Another pet peeve is while driving on a street where people coming from the right have a stop sign. Many many times as I enter the intersection where they are supposed to stop, they continue past the stop sign into the intersection. Of course I never know if they will actually stop at some point or just plough through so I have to hit the brakes. For some reason this is mostly done by women.
 
I have enjoyed all the posts, and I certainly don't challenge the accuracy of anyone's recounting of personal experiences, but I am a little surprised at all the negative comments, particularly in places where I have actually driven.

Boston, for one, does not seem to me to have worse drivers than other parts of the country. If nothing else, they should get considerable credit for not running over all the lawbreaking bicyclists that infest the city (bicyclists, don't bother flaming me - I was a life member of LAB back when it was LAW).

I did notice the last time I was northbound on 95 in the Carolinas that the left-lane speed would have been called reckless driving in VA, but that's why they call them the Carolinas (because they're not Virginia). But that was just a nice cruising speed - I did NOT see any unsafe driving. Anyway, I don't drive that way any more, anyway. I try to avoid two (NJ, NY) of the very few states that are more anti-2A than MA. And I get MD and DC thrown in as a bonus.

We (the US of A) have our share of idiots, but I'm pretty sure that this is actually one of the safest countries to drive in.

However, enough of reality. I didn't really mean to break up a good bull**** session. And the complaints aren't bull**** - they just, in my experience, do not represent what's mostly going on out there.
 
That appears to be SOP in Austin as it happened several times while we were there. I'm not talking about city streets with 25-30 MPH speed limits, but secondary state highways where the traffic flows at 55-65 MPH. Maybe it's an intimidation tactic, but it would seem to result in some significant "wrecks".


hoosierone said:
Another pet peeve is while driving on a street where people coming from the right have a stop sign. Many many times as I enter the intersection where they are supposed to stop, they continue past the stop sign into the intersection. Of course I never know if they will actually stop at some point or just plough through so I have to hit the brakes. For some reason this is mostly done by women.
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During my years as a paramedic in Boston I responded to many collisions involving bicycles. Very few of them were purely the motor vehicle driver's fault and some were completely the fault of the bike rider.

When I was working I did a lot of overtime on a bicycle and saw a lot of bad bike riders.

Cambridge of course, is much worse. I was there yesterday and many bike riders seem to think that some painted lines on the street give them license and protection to ride like idiots.

Unsurprisingly, Austin is similar. It's like Cambridge in so many ways, although the food, weather, and friendliness of the inhabitants is much better. :eek:

Model520Fan said:
I have enjoyed all the posts, and I certainly don't challenge the accuracy of anyone's recounting of personal experiences, but I am a little surprised at all the negative comments, particularly in places where I have actually driven.

Boston, for one, does not seem to me to have worse drivers than other parts of the country. If nothing else, they should get considerable credit for not running over all the lawbreaking bicyclists that infest the city (bicyclists, don't bother flaming me - I was a life member of LAB back when it was LAW).

I did notice the last time I was northbound on 95 in the Carolinas that the left-lane speed would have been called reckless driving in VA, but that's why they call them the Carolinas (because they're not Virginia). But that was just a nice cruising speed - I did NOT see any unsafe driving. Anyway, I don't drive that way any more, anyway. I try to avoid two (NJ, NY) of the very few states that are more anti-2A than MA. And I get MD and DC thrown in as a bonus.

We (the US of A) have our share of idiots, but I'm pretty sure that this is actually one of the safest countries to drive in.

However, enough of reality. I didn't really mean to break up a good bull**** session. And the complaints aren't bull**** - they just, in my experience, do not represent what's mostly going on out there.
Click to expand...
 
Well I haven't driven all over the country but I have over a goodly bit of it. Before I found myself driving in New York City I would have said Dallas Texas. Those folks have a little game they like to play called Freeway Roulette. Drivers turn on their radios and the disc jockey plays a pre-selected song. At some point before its end the DJ stops the music and all drivers must change lanes.

I have to drive through Dallas coming and going to Miss Pam's folks place in the Texoma area and I've been doing that a dozen times a year and I've been doing it for 36 years so I know where of I speak.

But in October of Y2K we went to visit our daughter who was then living in NYC. She was tired of having to worry about parking/storing her car so she asked me to drive it home for her.

SAY WHAT!?!? You want me to drive...HERE?

I'd just guess that 80% to 90% of the vehicles on the streets of Manhattan are taxi cabs. If a street is marked for 2 lanes or 10 it makes no difference. They pay no attention to lane markings. If there is a space even barely big enough to push a cab through it they will go for it and to heck with the lane markings.

They drive with their horns and not their brakes. I only had to drive about a mile to get to the opening of the Lincoln Tunnel and more than once I was positive that I was going to die in traffic before I ever saw the Lincoln Tunnel. Somehow by the grace of God we made it but we were deaf from all the honking and curses from irate cabbies. See, If you try to drive friendly and observe lane markings, stop lights, and speed limits you are going against the system and endangering the cabbies. It's a dangerous business and I ain't lyin'!

When we came out in New Jersey we were sweaty with relief and drove I-95 almost all the way to Texas. Nooooo Problem-o! I will never drive THERE again. There is no where I want to go bad enough to ever drive in NYC again. I'll just stay put until I can catch a ....cab. :D It's the safest way to travel. Not pleasant but safer than driving yourself.
 
Virginia drivers are the worst I have ever encountered.

Zero concept on how to merge onto a highway.

Multiple car pile ups during the rain.

No concept at all of the coast to coast traffic law.Longest right hand turn at an intersection.

And every other Trucker playing Elephant race on the interstates.
 
elm_creek_smith said:
Nope. Some of them stopped off in Oklahoma. However, I did have an attractive blonde in a red top-down Mustang convertible pass me on the left before crossing three lanes of traffic to barely make the Round Rock exit on southbound I-35 with nary a signal or even a look over her shoulder. Maybe her kids are driving by now...

Sent from my QTAQZ3 using Tapatalk
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elm creek, that was Christie Brinkley, she was trying to catch up with Clark W. Griswald (Chevy Chase?)!!!

Best Regards, Les
 
Out here in the mountains of West Virginia, the locals generally know how to drive and driving on a mountain road's just something you do to get from one place to another.
It's the tourists that come out here and have not a single clue.
They'll jump all over their brakes every time the road curves or goes downhill.
They'll slow way down and ooh and aah at the local scenery.
I'd come around a corner at 60 mph and some ding-a-ling'll be creeping down the road at between 30 and 35.
"Oh (expletive deleted)!" On the horn and the brakes.
The upside is they're also really helping the local economy, especially when they speed through town.
 
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