Inconsiderate Drivers (share your stories, etc.)

xwesx

Yes, they are! They launch them into Cook Inlet from just south of Ninilchik, which itself is a few miles south of Clam Gulch.

Last year a guy lost his truck when he got it stuck in the muck below high tide. When the tide fully came in, you couldn't even tell the truck was out there.

fintail

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKRRBmmJfms

Very inconsiderate. I wonder how insurance covers such idiocy.

the_big_al

and that is why your rates are so high... if i were an insurer, i wouldn't cover that. getting flooded because it's parked on the street and the river rose up too high? different story. flooded because I think i am cool and can drive in the water?? moron.

xwesx

Yeah, I feel the same way. You can't fix stupid, so why insure it?

euphonium

The loss payee requires collision and comprehensive. It's the Comprehensive coverage that pays because it's not a collision & the Comp deductible is usually a lot less.

A city attorney friend pulled the same stunt with a brand new Ford Country Squire at Cannon Beach, OR, but got pulled out just as the sea water was entering the floor board. The cost of new carpeting was less than his deductible at the time.

Such a stunt seems to be rather common on the West coast.

fintail

I can't see how some of these big trucks are a worthy risk for insurers at all - given the drivers and driving style I usually see from those things. I wonder if it was a financed car without full coverage...that would be amusing.

I remember out at Ocean Shores back in the late 80s there was an early 70s Chrysler that had been out in the sand for some time....when the tide was out you could find the roof.

jensad

Wow its amazing what people will do. I remember a driver down in Rodeo Ca. that backed up his pickup truck and tralier down the boat launch ramp and just kept backing up until his boat, trailer AND pickup was completely submerged!

I was having lunch at the diner so I called a tow truck for him. Boy was he mad but then he was to blame.

It sounds like it is fairly common as I read the posts here. Hey, but all the resident posters would never do something like that, right?

Hope all has a wonderful day and stay safe.

jensad :shades:

the_big_al

Not unless top gear wants to come along and see if my truck will take the kind of abuse they put that toyota hi-lux through on one of their episodes.... Course my truck is paid off and it's monetary replacement value is minimal. (the actual value in terms of sentiment and use is much greater but....)

xrunner2

That reminds me of a construction zone we went through a few days ago. There were warning flags a mile ahead on a two lane highway and it was high desert so you could see the start of the construction a good ways off.

A part of I90 that I travel has had bridge construction zone (both directions) over a river and altered lanes with concrete barriers. On week days, workers are within perhaps 5-10 feet of the barriers and passing traffic. Signs are prominently displayed well in advance of the construction zone showing 45 MPH limit, fine of $375 for going over limit and automatic jail term for hitting a worker. The zone is no more than 3/4 mile and most drivers just can't seem to slow down to the 45 MPH mark. If you try to go 45, you will likely have an idiot car/suv or semi driver on your bumper. What is so important to save a handful of seconds and not have respect for the safety of construction workers?

tjc78

On the way into work this morning a careless driver in a late 90s Corolla is driving at 5 under with a pretty large tree branch stuck under her car. She is dragging it along without a care in the world. Then she proceeds to turn on her left blinker, starts moving to the left turn lane, then all of a sudden swerves right and makes an illegal u-turn (to the left). All this while right in front of me and I had to hit the brakes pretty hard to avoid hitting her.

ponderpoint

On interstate/expressway sections of road - is the left lane the "passing lane" or the "fast lane"?

The way you answer will reveal a lot about how you drive....

tjc78

Doesn't that depend on the amount of traffic? In rush hour, where all two/three lanes are fairly crowded I would call it the "fast lane" on off peak hours where the traffic is light I would consider it more of a "passing lane"

euphonium

In WA, it's the Non Towing Lane and the Not over 10,000 lb lane. If you are only towing a tent trailer, it's not your lane and your speed limit is same as for trucks.

The most frequent violator is the High Ball motor coach draggin a toad followed by the Diesel HD pickup hauling horses.

oregonboy

You left out the lifted 4x4 pulling a toy-hauler or ski boat at 15 over the limit. :lemon:

elias

I think the answer is dependent on state law, as well as the de-facto way the road is used.

In busy traffic and where passing-on-right is legal, these rules tend to hold:

The left-lane is for tailgators and slowpokes.
The middle-lane is for slowpokes driving exactly the speed limit.
The right-lane is the de-facto fast lane.

snakeweasel

It's the passing lane.

Or if its rush hour it's the just sitting in your car going nowhere just like everyone else lane.

Now here in the Chicago area there are a few places where the exit and/or entrance ramp is to the left, so I an not sure what you would want to call it there.

ronsteve

Snake, it's definitely the passing lane, and even more so in Chicago, which actually seems to have fewer left-exits than a lot of other major cities.

xrunner2

Both, but may not be in rush hour traffic. In rush hour here on I90, have to "safely" move around between left, center and right to not get stuck in lines. Seems to be patterns every day at certain mile markers where left lane gets jammed up, and other markers where right is jammed up.

ponderpoint

I think it generally is STILL considered the passing lane but have run into this odd label of "the fast lane" ie; Motorists loiter in the left lane even though slower traffic has been passed (and cleared) in the right lane because they consider it "the fast lane", they are going generally faster than most of the adjacent traffic. They see no reason to return to the right lane.

To put it another way, there's the slow lane and then there's the fast lane and now it's up to the motorist to decipher their driving speed....

euphonium

This jerk didn't decipher his speed and read the results.

According to Washington State Patrol, the driver of a 2006 Mitsubishi Outback approached a 2003 BMW 325 at a high rate of speed and was unable to change lanes before rear-ending the BMW six miles north of Castle Rock.

The collision forced the BMW to veer left, strike a median jersey barrier, then roll onto its driver side. The driver of the BMW, , 48, of Aberdeen was not injured and was wearing a seat belt. Damages to his vehicle are estimated at $2,000.

Three passengers of the Mitsubishi Outback were transported to St. John Medical Center with minor injuries. The driver, , 32, of Redmond, Wash., wasn't injured. His vehicle was totaled. He was cited for following too close.

Just for following too close???

jwilliams2

The BMW was rear ended, struck the Jersey barrier, then rolled on its side. And only had an estimated $2000 in damages? That's kind of hard to believe.

snakeweasel

I agree I was rear ended at a low speed in my old Elantra and the only visual damage was a crack in the rear fender. The repair bill was around $1,000. So I would expect a more expensive vehicle with far more damage to be more than twice the cost to be repaired.

fintail

"According to the Washington State Patrol" can lead to some funny things. According to the WSP, drivers won't tailgate if there are dots on the road which cost tens of thousands of dollars. And you should see the lame-o traffic safety spot on WA state TV right now.

Today's winner - aging yuppie [non-permissible content removed] in a new unplated Escalade pulls right out in front of me from a driveway, as I am going down a 40mph road at ~ speed limit. I veered around him and cut over a little sharply, just to make him look. As I put distance between him and me, several other cars had to dodge him as he was caught up in conversation with his passenger. These are the people murderous mobs will hunt down when times turn dark.

Also saw way too many phone yappers...good to see the new primary offense law is working, and isn't just a revenue scheme.

fintail

Almost got to rebuild the fintail today...woman (who I won't stereotype further) in a black previous gen Pilot turned left directly in front of me as I was approaching at ~40. No signal, no warning, she just turned. I panicked and slammed on the brakes, the car locked up and screeched in a cloud of smelly smoke...but it was able to avoid the idiot. As the tires on the car are a decade old, I soon pulled over and made sure they were all still round. Why isn't something like that worthy of capital punishment? :shades:

elias

The fact on my commute-roads is that the leftlane and middle lanes are "owned" by dawdlers, LLCs & MLCs.
The right lane is de-facto "owned" by both the "professional speeder" and the "responsible slowpoke". These two groups can coexist nicely/politely in the rightlane, but things would be safer if the leftlane & middlelane dawdlers followed the "travel in rightmost lane" law as well as the slowest-drivers professional-speeders do.

xwesx

Well, the article also said the offending vehicle was a "2006 Mitsubishi Outback," so I think you have to take what this article states with a grain of salt.

imidazol97

> as well as the slowest-drivers professional-speeders do

The "professional speeders" need to slow down and drive more carefully. They need to realize the road does not belong to them; it belongs to all the people. Watch the domineering speeders run right up on someone passing in the left lanes because they feel they shouldn't have to slow down to within 8 of the speed limit; that lane should just open up for their Parnelli Jones mentality to zoom on through.

Interestingly, when there are open lanes to the right, those dominators don't move over. But yet that's what they demand everybody else do.

elias

some professional speeders are very polite and considerate of other drivers, along with driving in the rightmost available lane.
other professional speeders are not so considerate.

euphonium

So as to get their way with other normal drivers, the chronic speeder would have you believe that it is discourteous of you to not get out of their way when it is most discourteous of them to bully you from behind.

When traveling on a 3 or 4 lane freeway and all lanes are clogged, why spend time in the outside lane which has to deal with not only the beat up condition of the lane, but looking out for on ramp traffic, many of whom feel they have a right to alter your travel as they don't yield at all.

ponderpoint

"Backwards lane discipline" may be a phrase that inadvertently summarizes my original inquiry, is is the "fast lane" or is it the "passing lane" and I think I've decided for myself that there is no such thing as the "fast lane".

The "fast lane" is an invention of pop culture, a slang term that has migrated into driver psychology but, unfortunately, it is NOT anything that exists in a lawful or legally defined context, quite simply, there is no such thing as a "fast lane", it is driver fantasy. Generally, there is a "passing lane" that exists to the left (or farthest left) and a main lane that is to the right or farthest right.

I consider myself a slow poke driver and can be seen almost 99% of the time in the right lane. I am occasionally on I-83 north of Baltimore when rush hour starts to peak. I have noted that as traffic level increases, the level of traffic in the left lane increases, NOT the right lane!. Great swaths of open lane can be observed in front of me (right lane) but yet, hardly anybody returns to the main lane to enjoy this breathing room - They doggedly pursue the vehicle directly in front of them in zombie-like fashion.

Have a blinker go on up ahead as "codger" in the sedan now finds he/she has to pass a truck and the left lane zombie now turns into a fire-breathing dragon, menacing the "perceived" slow-poke even though they're making good time passing the truck and then.... You guessed it, codger gets back in the relatively free right lane and the "dragon" becomes a zombie again, right back up to the original other bumper they were behind..... Sad.

What a horrible drive some people have and only the reason being is because they create it themselves!

ponderpoint

"when it is most discourteous of them to bully you from behind."

I have often thought that severe tailgating is a form of menacing and should be pursued by law enforcement more in the form of raw criminal intent and not just a mere traffic citation..... Extremely dangerous activity committed by slime balls that need to get a life or therapy.

In Germany, tailgating is VERY serious and can result in some nasty penalties. Someday, America might get a clue..... We're still wrapped up in "Smoky and the Bandit" mentality were the speeding ticket is the hot item....

xwesx

Great points on both your posts! I notice the same things on the rare occasion when I drive through Hell cities.

fintail

In Germany, impeding the flow of traffic or camping out in the left lane is also just as serious. I guess it's a chicken and egg kind of subject. I've driven in a few countries, and I have yet to see anywhere where LLC'ing (or tailgating) is as prevalent as the USA. America, get a clue when it comes to driving? Not until the ability to fog a mirror is removed as the toughest licensing requirement :sick:

jensad

I honestly feel that tailgates are the most dangerous drivers with slow drivers next. Speeders generally know how to drive and will have their radar gun set up for the cops who are using their radar guns too.

After getting retired, I continued to work and I commuted up the IS 680 freeway in early evening hours and stayed a steady 70 mph in the right lane. The other four lanes to my left all were traveling about 80 down to 75 mph until we all slowed way down near 680/24 interchange. But the fast paced drivers were courteous and seemed to respect the other commuters.

But the tailgaters many times were not in an accident but by their lane changing and really, "following too close" were the problem that caused accidents.

Once in a great while, I would come to work at 5am and go out on the freeways and the clocks I got was on the speeders in the right lane, at about 90mpg to 100 mph because there was very little traffic that early. And really the only people that got hurt were the ones that did not pay attention to the road ahead at 4/5 am. Now it seems like from 4 am on its congested. And I am glad I don't have to work it anymore as I used to go very fast sometimes 100/110 mph just to catch up. Radar saved officers lives now and that was a tool we did not have in "the old days".

Good luck to all and stay safe.

jensad :shades:

hammerhead

Survived 900 miles from/to/in and around Portland over the weekend. Biggest gripe was the occasional LLC... truck with horse trailer, a couple of clueless non-indigenous 'nervous nellies', etc. A lot of phoners... not illegal in Oregon?

The non-LLC event worth sharing: I'm right lane, 74 in a 70, moving left to give an RV on the shoulder with a flat tire a little breathing room. The impatient little squirt coming up way too fast goes around me on the right.

Nice to be back home, where at least the numbskullls are somewhat predictable

Cheers!
Paul

xrunner2

On professional speeders - The professional speeders today are in NASCAR, IRL, F1 where they are paid to drive fast. The drivers on our public roads, interstates that drive fast, or faster than the posted limit at time, cannot all be put in same bucket.

The worst speeders are the tailgaters, either individually, or in a caravan, perhaps travelling at 65-75+ with average of one car length separating. Worster (K Olberman) speeders are those who close very quickly on LLCs and sit on their bumper. Prudent speeders could be those who don't try to intimidate LLCs or any others, but simply keep good and safe intervals and use open slots on 2-lane or multi-lane interstates to advance smoothly and steadily and without incurring wrath and middle fingers of those going slower.

fintail

Yes, as the LLC is acting responsibly and logically by camping out, and deserves respect.

I think there should be a movement to call in LLCs as suspected drunks.

Yesterday's winner - another aging boomer in a RL, local plates but "Cal Poly" frames, in the left lane of 405 after rush hour, that lane moving at 65-70, he was going about 50...phone in his ear. Deserves to be ran off the road.

xrunner2

Fin missed the point. Not a question of respect or no respect. I hope that a rational driver (me and others), can usually find ways to maneuever around LLCs without emotion and fanfare without too much loss of that very "important" personal time. There is no point of taking on the LLC issue while on the road. Just get around them as smoothly as possible. LLC issue belongs with combination of legislators, police and maybe public info tv campaigns such as Smoky Bear and crying Indian.

fintail

Legislators and police have made the American driving experience the best in the world...I wholeheartedly trust them to improve it even more :shades:

I agree it is best to simply go around the obstructor...but at the same time, the obstructor should realize they have some responsibility too.

euphonium

the most dangerous and inconsiderate drivers, in WA, are on a road 6 miles from the ferry that is scheduled to depart in 5 minutes! The twisting roads on Orcas Island are to be avoided during ferry times.

xwesx

The non-LLC event worth sharing: I'm right lane, 74 in a 70, moving left to give an RV on the shoulder with a flat tire a little breathing room. The impatient little squirt coming up way too fast goes around me on the right.

That occurrence has happened to me so often in heavy traffic (with me being in your shoes) that I do not fully change lanes now, I just activate my left signal and center my car on the dividing line between the lanes. So far, doing so has allowed the margin of safety for the disabled motorist while preventing the "impatient little squirts" from using that lane instead.

It's incredibly intimidating to have to change a tire on a disabled vehicle's left side while on the shoulder of a busy highway with vehicles zipping by (many of the drivers oblivious) only a couple feet away. I guess some people just have not been in that situation and do not care to empathize. :mad:

xwesx

Cliffhanger! :P

euphonium

Go to 15220 again.

hammerhead

Some time after that event, I saw someone do exactly that, and I remember thinking that was a better way as well. I worry a bit about said bozos then trying to go around using only half a lane and getting themselves in trouble *way* too close to me! Where there's a will, there's a way...

xwesx

Hahah; I figured a full post was coming.

In cars or on foot, people can get a little crazy when they're trying to abide a public transit schedule. "If I don't make it there by xx:xx, I'll have to wait another 30 minutes for the next one!"

xwesx

Yeah, I've had that happen too! But, said bozos always do so on the left (keeping that margin of safety for the other motorist) and far be it for me to prevent someone like that from showing their true colors. At least I know they know darn well what is going on.

Sometimes consideration has to be doled out to those who need it most.

imidazol97

>Have a blinker go on up ahead as "codger" in the sedan now finds he/she has to pass a truck and the left lane zombie now turns into a fire-breathing dragon, menacing the "perceived" slow-poke even though they're making good time passing the truck and then.... You guessed it, codger gets back in the relatively free right lane and the "dragon" becomes a zombie again, right back up to the original other bumper they were behind

That's a very apt description of some of the left lane folk. Good job.

ponderpoint

"I honestly feel that tailgates are the most dangerous drivers with slow drivers next."

What do you consider as being a "slow" driver? I'm not trying to pick a fight - seriously...., I'm just curious as to what you define as being a slow driver. Is it someone below the speed limit, right at it or perhaps, drifting above the speed limit (reality) at some value?

Do you view the slow driver as driving "slow" in relation to the speed limit or your own observations of the traffic flow and relative speed of the group of traffic you are in?

ronsteve

euphonium said:
When traveling on a 3 or 4 lane freeway and all lanes are clogged, why spend time in the outside lane which has to deal with not only the beat up condition of the lane, but looking out for on ramp traffic, many of whom feel they have a right to alter your travel as they don't yield at all.

When there's at least 3 lanes and frequent on and off-ramps I've always thought the far right lane is best left for those getting on and off. Middle lanes are for driving and the left lane is for passing. (Not accounting for HOV lanes, of course.

stever

Hey Paul, I did 17 hours yesterday from Taos to Boise. Too long of a trip, but we had our two cats and didn't want to teach them how to camp.

I mentioned the great time we made going through the Salt Lake City corridor in the HOV lane over in the vacation forum; the only inconsiderate drivers I ran into were the "pros".

There's lots of passes between here and NM, and I had three or four truck drivers see me coming up at 70, yet they still pulled out so they could pass another truck going 64 mph. The passing truck usually managed 65 mph and a wolfpack would form every time. Both trucks invariably got to the crest of the hill at the same time.