Road Pet-Peeves

So, Kit, you are saying that Utah Mormons are bad drivers?

I hate it when I need to change lanes, and some douche is coming up behind me in the target lane. I signal to change, and I slow down so Mr. Douche can pass. He slows down too, staying just in my blind spot so I can't safely change. I speed up, flasher still one, and Mr. Douche speeds up too, not giving me room to move over. Fricking idiots! I want a Car Wars laser turret to deal with these douchebags!

 

Ugh! I would flip out! It happens to me all the time that I signal, check my blind spot to see it's clear (and it is), then I start converging and I turn again to the blind spot to see an a**ho** who speed up and I have to swerve back in my lane... If you see someone with the blinker, LET HIM PASS!

 

In my neck of the woods, rotaries are considered the bane of safe driving, and there are very, very few of them left. There are always a few people who just don't know how to use them properly and safely, whereas everyone understands the concept of a red light.

 

I agree that the biggest problem with roundabouts is how other people understand them (my father even takes detour to avoid roundabouts because he doesn't trust other drivers). However, it's much better than stop lights since it really reduces the waiting time and greatly improves the flow. So I think instead of reverting back to stop lights, the government should better inform the drivers of the rules and procedures associated with roundabouts. I personally use at least one a day and I prefer them to stop lights.

But again, if people pay attention to the road signs, they can get safely across a roundabout...

 

Triactus, I think that opinions of roundabouts/rotaries may vary from region to region. As I said before, in my region, they're considered to be rather dangerous, and for the most part, governments try to get rid of them if at all possible.

 

Roundabouts work, and they're NOT complicated. Why the hell can't people just learn to use them? If I can understand it, anyone should be able to.

 

Rotaries/roundabouts aren't so bad... it's the drivers who drive 50 mph through them that make it piss hard to get in - they have the right of way, but they don't have the right to try and murder us all!

 

What do you mean? Over here, it's the person inside the roundabout who has right of way. So however fast he drives, you have to wait for him to go through.

 

They have the right of way, but besides the fact that driving 50 in a circle is dangerous, but it makes it impossible to get in safely - I know the people trying to get in have to wait, but things would go a lot smoother if the people could actually get in the rotary without having to put themselves at risk of being rammed up the bumhole.

 

Well, if you have enough time to get in, it's the person behind you who speeds that has to slow down. If he clips you, you stop, call the police, and wait for the guy's insurance to pay for the repairs on your car...

 

Capn, it may simply be a case that over there in the UK, everyone is so familiar with them, that they're no big deal. But here in New England, it seems to be the opposite. There are fewer and fewer of them all the time.


Saying "why can't people just learn to use them" is rather pointless if the traffic data shows that rotaries are among the most dangerous places on a road, and that it's easier to simply get rid of them, in favor of stop lighted intersections or some sorts of overpasses.

Wringing ones hands and saying "why can't they learn" just seems pointless. The real point is that, at least around here, people simply don't seem all that comfortable with rotaries, so why try to force them down the throats of a motoring public? That attitude smacks of big government elitism ...

 

The roundabouts have huge avantages to stop lights, so I think the better solutions in implement a way to better educate the people. But the worst thing is, like someone mentioned before, ALL DIRECTIONS ARE WRITTEN ON THE GROUND AND ON SIGNS. I don't understand how people can't get roundabouts.

 

People shouldn't be looking at the ground when trying to merge into a rotary

 

Even though I know you're joking, you of course look the huge arrows painted on the ground when you're coming up to the roundabout.... But still, the same arrows are on signs next to the roundabout.

I have my driver's license since last mai, and the biggest fear I had when I was learning to drive was ''oh my god, how am I gonna be able to know what lane to go in???"... And then you notice that everything is written either on the ground or on a sign. Everything you need to know is there, you just have to look at it.

 

Getting away from the circle thingies for a bit, I don't understand people who ride bicycles on the roads in the winter. Slippery roads, 3,500lb-plus cars, and bikes just don't mix. Unless you hate cyclists, in which case you have a perfect excuse.

 

Or jog on roads that have been somewhat narrowed by snowbanks and are often slick, sloppy, or just downright messy.


Or worse ... bicycles or joggers who don't have reflectors of some sort on their bikes or jogging clothes when it starts getting darker. I don't "hate" bikers or joggers. I used to bike a lot myself when I was younger. But it scares me silly when I come up on some nitwit who doesn't have any reflectors at all, and I don't see them until I nearly run them over. I don't want to hit anyone cuz they didn't wear reflectors so that I could see them at a safe distance. (I've never hit anyone not wearing reflectors, but I've come far too close for comfort on a number of occasions.)

 

Oh, you're quite right about that. I hate when I only see people at the last minute because they don't wear reflectors. However, the stupid thing is I always wear black or dark color clothes and I don't wear anything remotely reflecting... So if I don't post for a while, I probably got hit by a car...

The bike thing made me think of something else I dislike. I have no problems with cyclists. I don't know about where you guys live, but here, cyclists have it in their heads to go in the car lanes. You'll often see bikes going in the car lanes. Hey, cyclists : YOU'RE NOT DRIVING A CAR! When their on a boulevard or something, they really hold up traffic!