Inconsiderate Drivers (share your stories, etc.)

snakeweasel

I have that feature too, it also tells me if I am going to fast, if I missed a turn, which lane to be in, if a light is about to change its called a wife.

elias

that turn signal alert feature sounds great for the hordes of aging baby-boomers and beyond. But it's entirely necessary in the boston area, where nobody ever used a turn signal and would ignore any out-of-towner who dared to try it.
maybe next the automotive engineers can figure out how to sound an alert if the driver floors it and is about to drive through the front of a convenience store or someone's dining room.
not that i'm saying any of you guys would do that, but it happens so ridiculously often. statistically, at least one edmunds.com reader is going to accidentally drive through a building some day. we'll hate it when that happens, but we'll surely try to be more considerate about it, thanks to this forum.

xwesx

Hahhaah. I have one of those as well; they are very effective though far more annoying than a chime.

xrunner2

Remember how all those doofs drive down the road forever with their turn signal on??

I rarely see that with seniors. Think what might start happening soon will be younger people in 20's, 30's who had been using those 5000 watt stereos in their cars will be leaving their turn signals on. The BOOM, BOOM, BOOM they liked will have probably destroyed lots of their hearing abilities. These same folks might also be running into trains at grade crossings where there are no gates.

euphonium

Was that really you in the rental car on 405 doing 110 mph?

snakeweasel

Regarding that speeder...the funny thing is that he has a record a mile long, and IIRC still has a valid license.

In Illinois in theory you can get over a hundred tickets a year and not lose your license.

snakeweasel

It couldn'y have been, Fintail doesn't drive that slow.

Claires

Wow, good to know

fintail

I slow down in some residential areas :P

Regarding that speeder...the funny thing is that he has a record a mile long, and IIRC still has a valid license.

pat

Are you getting close, Claire? :P

Claires

Let's just say I'm relieved that we're talking about moving violations and not parking tickets -- I'd probably be riding the el if we had to combine the totals

1racefan

"I have that feature too, it also tells me if I am going to fast, if I missed a turn, which lane to be in, if a light is about to change its called a wife. "

Yep, the standard "Nag-igation" system that automatically gets installed in a man's car at marriage.

xwesx

(snickers)

If I knew what was best for me, I would not share that comment with my wife. But, since I do not (hey, that is what put me in this predicament in the first place!), I will do it anyway.

xwesx

Aw, carp. You are right, Al, that is me as well. Heck, I never even though about it until now. Granted, she pipes up if I make a mistake, but it is usually warranted. I, on the other hand, am often annoyed at her inconsistency and tendency to either speed or poke along, and I am also verbal about it. My reminders serve only to get her upset at me, she never tries to correct the behavior. I say she is too sensitive; she says I am too critical. *shrugs* Life is too short to avoid all marital strife.

stickguy

I solved the wife driving problem a long time ago. I don't let her drive when we are together. Well, rarely if whe happens to pick me up, and I do remind her that she is either braking later or jack rabit starting!

Unless of course she is the desginated driver, in which case I am likely not paying attention...

Now, if you want to have real fun, drive with your 16 YO that is just starting out!

xwesx

Haha, well, I am a very fair individual. If my wife wants to drive, I have no problem with it. Do I want to drive? Yes, most of the time, but I certainly appreciate her desire and/or need to drive as well. Now that we do not have a Subaru any longer, I do not mind letting loose of the appliance's steering wheel on occasion as there is very little fun factor. I know I would feel like a caged animal if she never let me drive. Besides, it gives me a reason to be overly critical.

As for the youth... hey, you have license to direct. I imagine, though, based on my own learning to drive, that it must be a nerve-wracking experience!

euphonium

The person can't drive steady. Suddenly he takes his foot off the gas as if to put it on the brake, but doesn't and then speeds up quickly to make up for lost speed.
He does this without need from traffic in front. He just can't help himself from "walking the accelerater".

The passengers are not receiving a smooth ride, but are constantly adjusting to the rocking motion of the car. The driver also does not speak smoothly, frequently saying things like "ahum", "uhh", "you know", "ahh, ahh, ahh".

His wife always asks me to do the driving so I do, but he must be difficult to follow down the highway. :lemon:

snakeweasel

Had someone like that behind me one day. came up real close then fell far back then was real close, then far back, the close, then far away back and forth. I knew it wasn't me as I was using cruise control and was leaving it alone.

jensad

When my wife and myself go out for a drive we trade off the driving. When we get home we sit down and discuss briefly how the other did. And after that its over.

We mention the good stuff and also talk about not so good stuff. It takes practice but it also relieves some of the frustration that can develop at least in us.

And quite honestly she does an excellent job except she stays in the right hand lane too much. The freeway lanes here is Calif, er, disneyland, are rough in the right lanes and less so in the left lanes.

She says I go to fast and sometimes follow too close behind trucks.

Good luck to all and stay safe.

jensad

ruking1

Actually quite a useful exercise!

Mission planning, Previsualization, Actual, (driving) and After Action analysis are what crack'd fighter pilots do ALL the time.

Everyone in the US should have the joy and pleasure of experiencing LA LA Land traffic in full rush hour, at least once in their lives. :sick: :shades:

snakeweasel

When my wife and myself go out for a drive we trade off the driving. When we get home we sit down and discuss briefly how the other did.

And you're still married?

fintail

Today I had to dodge a new Ford Escape that ran a stop sign. Fun.

I also got behind a very short woman in a Toyota Solara who was going 21 in a 35, with about 15 cars behind her. I was immdiately behind her on the empty road, so I just went around her. Nobody else had the courage, so the line continued to grow as I pulled away. I had to turn a couple miles later...so I don't know what happened to that group.

Also, another Solara...this one pulling a large moving trailer. I guess it will be inconsiderate when the transmission blows and the thing is blocking traffic...to me it looked very overloaded.

snakeweasel

Today I had to dodge a new Ford Escape that ran a stop sign. Fun.

So you escaped an Escape :P

jensad

Good morning ruking1 and snakeweasel

Yes I am still married to the same wonderful soul now for over 44 years. In my old profession that was rather unusual.

We talk alot and try to stay united with the kids and the blessings i.e. grandkids. Taking the time to share took practice but it works for us.

Nothing changes. Making someone drive in LA traffice IS crime AND punishment. What a sentence to drive that every day and in 20 or so years to discover, nothing probably has changed except you have more worry lines on your forehead.

Hey tailgating is very dangerous and most gaters don't have a clue. I had one last night on the 680 freeway near Dublin, (another delightful roadway with potholes et al.) using her cell phone on my bumper at 70. I got over and let her pass me.

I used to love to zap them on the old job because I felt tailgating is an activity that is very dangerous and caused many accidents.

Good luck to all and stay safe.

jensad

xwesx

I think that communication practice is commendable and probably contributed greatly if not to the longevity of your union, then at least to the level of happiness, growth, and satisfaction you both achieved thus far. Withholding feedback until later is not an easy thing to do, but it can be far more constructive. I am appreciative that you shared, jensad.

euphonium

"The freeway lanes here is Calif, er, disneyland, are rough in the right lanes and less so in the left lanes."

The same is true in the Northwest which, I believe, contributes to Left lane camping. I have developed my patience to abide by the Left lane camper's choice as long as he maintains the legal limit of speed. Any mph above that is a bonus.

Wait until you get home to critique the other's driving? We practice, "Strike while the iron's hot." Besides, at our age, we tend to forget.

When I drive smoothly, she goes to sleep & that takes care of any bitchin.

stever

For a couple of years in recent memory, semis were required to drive in the left lane on the interstate heading east out of Boise. That stretch of pavement in the right lane would steer your car if your axles fit the ruts.

ruking1

Yes actually that is what happens with 3/3 other family members, when they ride with me. Funny how it is very difficult to coax into the drivers seat where I can take shotgun and catch some z's. :shades: :lemon: The down side for me, is it is one more variable to fight in staying awake.

xwesx

I had such a difficult time training myself to stay awake when I first started driving. Prior to that, I would get in the back seat and be asleep within 5 minutes. I was like McQueen in Cars, "Sure you can Mac. I tell you what, I'll stay up with you! zzzzzzzzz"

Now, I have to work at falling asleep on the rare opportunities I get to be a passenger! I say in my head over and over, "It's okay... you're not driving!" :sick:

hammerhead

On a couple lanes of I-90 WB between here & downtown, the ruts DO fit my car! Like the Autopia at Disneyland! Look, Mom, no hands!

Cheers!
Paul

stever

That's the one - I think it was worse going toward Mountain Home.

You'd be driving along and there'd be all these trucks hogging the left lane and about the time your blood pressure would peak over the LLCs, you'd see the DOT sign telling them to move over to the left lane.

timadams

A Yahoo news article reports that "in the last eight months of 2007, Montgomery County's new speed cameras recorded 224 cases in which police vehicles were recorded traveling more than 10 mph over the speed limit, according to department records.

Supervisors dismissed 76 of those citations after determining the officers were responding to calls or had valid reasons to break the speed limit.

But that left 148 who didn't have that excuse, and about two-thirds of those citations haven't been paid, said police Lt. Paul Starks.

The police union says officers shouldn't pay because the citations are issued to the owner of a vehicle, in this case the county, and not to the driver."

Oh, so drivers who speed aren't at fault? It's the car's fault, or the car owner's fault. Good to know that's how it works. And of course, speeding is so dangerous that no police officer would ever do it. Man, I love that story. I'm just surprised it ever saw the light of day.

imidazol97

I wonder how many tickets for speeding those same officers have passed out telling the drivers how dangerous speeding is?

ruking1

Sort of the GOV/ATTY GEN E. Spitzer effect?

euphonium

Spitzer is toast.

Yet, when I see Ted Kennedy still in office, maybe Spit's has a chance. :sick:

ruking1

I think he will pull a Paris Hilton.

MOM,I got a rash!! And the cell they want to put her in is less than 15,000 sq feet.

Well on Monpoly and LA LA Land that rates a get out of jail free card.

oldfarmer50

"...I see Ted Kennedy still in office..."

Ted had an excuse, he was drunk at the time.

BTW, as a New Yorker I'm proud to say that I voted for the Socialist Workers Party candidate. As least I knew what they stand for. :mad:

Oh, just to keep on topic, I hear that Spitzer doesn't signal when he changes lanes.

stickguy

Well, they can argue that the "owner" has to pay the fine, but they could (and probably should) all be fired. They broke the law while on duty, and should pay the price.

And they certainly can't argue it is a bogus or unimportant law that shouldn't be enforced, or they have to stop writing tickets.

So either do the time for the crime, or stop writing speeding tickets!

jensad

I feel sad for the three teenage daughters and his wife did not look too happy. I think Spitz is on a spitzzz and the family must also suffer for an action of the dad. Indeed the children the also victims besides the NY State,

Oh, I bet that many law enforcement people go faster than the citizens, and I bet the supes go much faster than the cops.

There was a famous Speaker of the California State Assembly that was alledgedly clocked at over 100 mph many times and never cited. I.e. power corrupts and absolute power corrups absolutely.

Good luck to all and hey I hope all of us stay safe

jensad

redmaxx

Oh, those people piss me off sooooo much. We have so many around here! They always seem to figure out how to hit the accelerator when I go to pass though. I end up being forced to go 80-90 to make the pass and then when I can finally move into their lane (even if I am cutting them off) they act like I almost took off their bumper. :mad:

And of course, nobody remembers about u-turns around here anymore. I'm always getting dirty looks and erratic behavior when I encounter someone that runs a stop sign or light and I'm in the middle of my u-turn. I'm not the problem!

Then on the way home, I was cruising in the left lane, going 75 when this truck suddenly moves into my lane. I see a car in the right lane, about a 1/4 mile in front of it, plenty of time for me to overtake the truck before it catches up to the car. So I flash my lights, but I continue to gain on the truck as if it was going 60-65. So I move into the right lane and start accelerating briskly, but I don't gain as much as I should. So I plant the gas and to my surprise I lose all my gains and the truck starts to overtake me. WTH? :confuse: So I move in behind the truck and resume 75. The truck moves into the right lane as we're now coming up on a car going 65 in the left lane. I keep my distance from the truck and move into the right lane to pass as well. After overtaking the car, the truck moves into the left lane as there is also a car in the right lane. In doing so it seems to slow down to around 70. Unfortunately, I had to speed up to about 80 to overtake the car because it suddenly decided to speed up. And guess what, when I finished passing it, it slowed back down. :mad:

We have the most erratic drivers around here, plus they don't know what "Slow traffic keep right" means.

redmaxx

This happens all the time here. I'm usually in the van driver's place and usually both the Mustang and the BMW are guilty of speeding up and slowing down to keep me trapped. I don't feel bad about cutting off the BMW (so long as I'm not so close I'm about to take off it's bumper) because it participated in the hijinks and I'm usually going >5 MPH faster than it by the time I enter its lane. Not that I was the van driver, I'm just saying that's what I do and why I do it in those instances. :shades:

210delray

In my particular instance, the BMW driver appeared to be blameless. It's just that the Mustang slowed down so much in the left lane (forcing the van directly behind it to do the same) that the BMW in the right lane just happened to catch up with the two.

ruking1

I do also, but at another level this goes with the territory. In some ways, it is an insight into the NY/NYC Brahma classes. Takes me back to undergrad days when we could flock over to the social and political science and law school profs and get their analysis and its meaning for American/World Societies at large.

jensad

You got me laughing Ruking1 about undergrad/grad and sneaking into lectures about the US society. A friend of mine told me many years ago, that "intellect is the barbed wire of the mind" and I think Spitz had a loose connection. But then and I am speaking just for me, I think we all have some loose connections but most of us use a combination of mind plus heart to get a positive result.

Some of the fun times when I was not working my way through college/grad stuff was to sit in classes and take in others opinions.

Good luck to all and stay safe.

jensad

P.S. Watch out for the trucks!! They can transport very heavy loads somethings steel/supermarket stuff that weigh 40000-80000 pounds. They will crush your car so be careful especially if they are in that left lane/or next to you.

ruking1

Just got back after a jaunt on the Highway 680, to Concord, CA . Traffic flow was at speed limit, PLUS. . Filled up@ the corner store for a 52 mpg, but D2 pricey @ 4.03.

jensad

We live in Concord and I used to work that freeway and later I worked in the San Ramon/Danville area at various middle schools.

When I would be coming home or going down at around 1-2 PM I would be in the next to the SLOW land at 70+ and traffic in ALL other lanes would pass me on right, left, or tail gate me. When my wife retires in two years, we are moving out of the speed zone which encompasses all of the Bay Area.

Gas at that price sounds about right. I last got gas at $ 3.75.

Good luck to all and stay safe.

jensad

elias

redmaxx, got rearwheeldrive? try doing the u-turns with tiresmoke/drift - you'll be amazed at how politely the light-running/right-of-way-violating cross-traffic drivers will yield. with FWD it's a strong twitch on the handbrake can eliminate the rear friction and enable a quick pivot for your u-turn.
please remember the right lane is our special friend, use it early and often to pass the lemmings in the left/middle. if there's a lemming backing up the left lane, hang out in the right lane and let all the tailgators pass on your left first. you'll probably avoid sandwich-rearender-accident some day if you do that.
the law in most states I drive in is not precisely "slower traffic keep right" - instead it's "drive in the rightmost available lane". no mention of speed.

euphonium

Fifty years ago, almost to the day, I was discharged from the Army at the Oakland Army Terminal. We took our savings and bought a new, leftover, '57 Plymouth Fury V8 in Crockett, CA.

First tank of gas cost .339 / gallon. Further down the bay in Menlo Park it was .389 / gallon.

In 50 years the price of gas in CA has risen 10.4 times what it cost in 1958.

Because prices of most all other purchases have increased more than 10.4 times, the price of gas today is a buy. Search your county assessor's records and learn what houses were selling for in 1958, 1968, and so on.

Also look at the Dept. of Labor statistical history and discover what wages were in those days. If prices and wages have risen 13 X what they were in 1958, gas should be 4.99 / gallon.

Registered Pharmacists were making $450 / month in 1958. Today, they are earning over $7,000 / month. You do the math. Gas is still cheap in comparison.

snakeweasel

In 50 years the price of gas in CA has risen 10.4 times what it cost in 1958.

33.9 cents in 1958 adjusted for inflation comes to $2.56 in todays dollars.

ruking1

Korean Vet? Thanks for serving the country! Vietnam era here. So do you have any of the steak knives left over from the gas price wars? Well surely I would not mind paying NOW then what you paid then .34 cents a gal. Too bad the housing in the area, despite the recent sub prime debacle is app a min of 37.5 X higher than the time you mentioned. 37.5 x what I would have made then (given what I do now) would be neat also.