Drivers and their horns...

[Captain Ice]

I'm sorry, but that's stupid imo. You'll wreck your own car just to make a point? Don't be so emotional on the road.

Not to make a point. In order to keep them from zipping in front of me and collecting my front end in the process, I will reduce my following distance. If I wind up tapping the vehicle in front of me, I will gladly do so to keep from being involved in the worse wreck that would otherwise have occured.

I'm confused... You're willing to ram the driver in front of you, who isn't the driver that's pissing you off? Am I misreading that, because that's fucked up.

You are misreading that. It's not done because they're pissing me off. It's done because I've seen them swerving in between other cars in order to pass. Usually, they're also right up on the ass of the car ahead of them (not even a car length behind the other vehicle most of the time). I do this NOT to piss them off or to inconvenience them in any way, but to keep them from cutting across my front end and involving both of us in an accident.

If I'm not in traffic and have my normal following disatnce, my normal reaction is to back off a bit and give them space. Let them kill themselves, so to speak.

Don't get me wrong, I've exacted revenge on drivers before, but never in a way that seriously jeopardized anyone. I think at freeway velocities it's probably not sane to get into a road rage pissing match against someone you think drives like an idiot. It's not worth it.

One time there was this woman on the freeway though... big fat ugly thing in a Sebring... it was a two lane freeway, and traffic congestion was pretty high... but she would jump lane to lane in highly dangerous spots... flapping her arms up and down widly (completely letting go of the wheel) in rage... honking at everyone, trying to intimidate them to get out of the way...

She didn't make it very far at all, I ended up taking the same exit right behind her, I outmaneuvered her on the surface streets and manged to get in front of her... then I slowed down and used the traffic in the other lane to box her in and forced her to go as slowly as I could (as it turned out the cars in the other lane were highly useful, cooperative and slow... perhaps they saw the same thing I did). She hadn't even done anything to me personally on the freeway, but she honestly needed the lesson. Well, calling it a lesson is probably aspiring to too much considering what a moron this woman appeared to be, but at the very least she deserved some impromptu vigilante justice.

This is a perfect example of the type of situation I where I would box her in behind another car (at least until she got safely around me). And thank you for using that term. I was trying to come up with it last night and could not come up with the right wording.

 

[TGTheodore]

Nobody has the right to go slow either.

Uh, yes. I'm pretty sure you do have that right.

And you can be ticketed for it.

--Ted

 

[jkladis]

To cut to the chase, some governed highways have posted minimum speed limits. On Illinois highways, it's typically 10-20 below maximum. Not the end of the world.

 

[John Picard]

The slowing down thing, I've done that. I'll be going 5 miles over the limit, and some jackass will be riding my ass, honking, shouting and beating on his steering wheel. I'll slow down to the actual speed limit just to piss him off even more.

If your in the right lane, cool. If your in the left lane, you should be dragged from your car and shot.

Left lane, right lane, no difference. I'm not giving some asshole the satisfaction of getting out of his way because he wants to be a jackass on the road. This has been happening lately in a lot of construction zones around here, where it is a MUST that you drive the limit. Most of the time it's only one lane in these areas, the others are blocked off with cones. I drive the limit to avoid the army of cops who are clearly visible and just waiting for you to fuck up, and they get all agitated. Fuck 'em.

I live in the OKC area and would LOVE to know why no one can handle the interchange where I44, heading south, branches to I240. Ever since it was rebuilt, people literally slow to 45mph, which irks the hell out of me, and it makes it a bitch to merge onto the Interstate from 54th street. For some reason, the DOT's idea of posting the speed limit at 52mph during the construction phase must have screwed people up.

Anyway, the left lane is for passing. I slow down for construction zones; however, you're looking at this the wrong way, Nerdius Maximus. If someone wants to go fast, change lanes and let him pass. Chances are if there's a cop there, guess who is going to get pulled over Trust me, I've used this strategy for over 20 years and it works very, very well.

 

[backstept]

what I hate is at 4 way stops and someone goes before their turn

 

[Trekker4747]

I had a guy flip me off once, honk his horn, and yell at me out his window once. Because, apparently, by my making a left-turn I blocked him from making the left-turn he wanted to make.

The problem? No left turns were allowed from where he was -as indicated by signage.

 

[John Picard]

I had a guy flip me off once, honk his horn, and yell at me out his window once. Because, apparently, by my making a left-turn I blocked him from making the left-turn he wanted to make.

The problem? No left turns were allowed from where he was -as indicated by signage.

I had a guy start crowding my lane on the I40 Crosstown in downtown OKC about 12 years ago. There are three lanes in each direction, and I was in the far right lane with him in the center lane. He starts crowding right, so I just snuggled right up to the dashed lines that divide the lanes. He finally glances over, sees me, and yanks the wheel hard left with his mouth flapping about a hundred miles an hour all while flipping me off. I smiled and laughed at him.

 

[Trekker4747]

I'm cruising down the highway in the right lane the other night, little traffic, going about 75 (Limit is 70.)

I see a car coming up an on-ramp ahead and think little of it, we eventualy catch up to one another and I slow down a bit and soon we're pacing one another in the neighboring lanes (him in the acceleration lane me on the highway), his running out of length. He turns on his signal, and again he's not speeding up anymore and we're now both going about 65.

I say fuck it and speed back up to my crusing speed, he ends up in the shoulder briefly and merges onto the highway.

I notice in my RVM that he's closing in on me, I get off on the next (my intended) exit and he gets off too -no signal. I turn left at the intersection and he does as well.

On the surface street I'm in the left lane and he's turns wide turning into the right lane -not the lane he was supposed to turn into off the off-ramp, BTW- and he speeds up to potentially over-take me. As he does in leans out his opened window, yells something -I've no idea what as my windows are up- and flips me off; he then speeds up, cuts infront of me, makes an illegal U-turn at the next intersection -displaying a red light- and heads back behind me, presumably to get back on the interstate.

Dude, setting aside the traffic laws you broke to get back at me and head back on your journey, on the highway I had the right-of-way. Merging traffic yields to the highway traffic.

I was traveling at reasonable highway speeds and I even slowed down to let you on. I needed to be in the right lane as my exit was coming up. You, however, did not use the acceleration lane for its intended purpose -to speed up to traffic speeds-, you did not use your signal until you thought it was apparent it was needed -I know in cases like this that use of signal is redundant but it still just irritates me.

And then you flipped me off? ASS!

 

[the 4th hanson bro]

I'm cruising down the highway in the right lane the other night, little traffic, going about 75 (Limit is 70.)

I see a car coming up an on-ramp ahead and think little of it, we eventualy catch up to one another and I slow down a bit and soon we're pacing one another in the neighboring lanes (him in the acceleration lane me on the highway), his running out of length. He turns on his signal, and again he's not speeding up anymore and we're now both going about 65.

I say fuck it and speed back up to my crusing speed, he ends up in the shoulder briefly and merges onto the highway.

From the other driver's pov, these two moves put together were douchey and made it look like you weren't letting him on.

Dude, setting aside the traffic laws you broke to get back at me and head back on your journey, on the highway I had the right-of-way. Merging traffic yields to the highway traffic.

And if you had kept your speed constant, it never would have happened.

 

[Trekker4747]

I'm cruising down the highway in the right lane the other night, little traffic, going about 75 (Limit is 70.)

I see a car coming up an on-ramp ahead and think little of it, we eventualy catch up to one another and I slow down a bit and soon we're pacing one another in the neighboring lanes (him in the acceleration lane me on the highway), his running out of length. He turns on his signal, and again he's not speeding up anymore and we're now both going about 65.

I say fuck it and speed back up to my crusing speed, he ends up in the shoulder briefly and merges onto the highway.

From the other driver's pov, these two moves put together were douchey and made it look like you weren't letting him on.

I slowed down to let him on the highway -if he were speeding up- if I had stayed at my crusing speed it would've been harder for him to speed-up and get on the highway.

He didn't get on the highway because he couldn't find his acceleration pedal. If he pressed that pedal he would've speed-up, overtaken me, and been able to get on the highway. My final acceleration was done in a "you obviously have no intention of merging onto the highway" fit of exasperation.

When I slowed down all he needed to do was speed up and get on the highway.

 

[John Picard]

I'm cruising down the highway in the right lane the other night, little traffic, going about 75 (Limit is 70.)

I see a car coming up an on-ramp ahead and think little of it, we eventualy catch up to one another and I slow down a bit and soon we're pacing one another in the neighboring lanes (him in the acceleration lane me on the highway), his running out of length. He turns on his signal, and again he's not speeding up anymore and we're now both going about 65.

I say fuck it and speed back up to my crusing speed, he ends up in the shoulder briefly and merges onto the highway.

From the other driver's pov, these two moves put together were douchey and made it look like you weren't letting him on.

I slowed down to let him on the highway -if he were speeding up- if I had stayed at my crusing speed it would've been harder for him to speed-up and get on the highway.

He didn't get on the highway because he couldn't find his acceleration pedal. If he pressed that pedal he would've speed-up, overtaken me, and been able to get on the highway. My final acceleration was done in a "you obviously have no intention of merging onto the highway" fit of exasperation.

When I slowed down all he needed to do was speed up and get on the highway.

I'm with Trekker. If you can't merge, then park the damned thing in the garage. I hate it when people try to prevent me from merging, and they quickly learn that my Dodge truck is no dog. I give people a chance to merge, but if they show they can't handle it, then that's the end of it. Whenever possible, I will change lanes so they have plenty of space.

 

[Aragorn]

Here's a recent story about an intersection where one street has NO STOP SIGN and the other street does. I'm on the street without a stop sign. Yet not one but two vehicles on the street with the stop sign pass in front of me, forcing me to stop. And one driver actually honks at me for not stopping for them! Even though they saw the driver in front of me cross the intersection without ever stopping.

I hate stupid people.

 

[RoJoHen]

Here's a recent story about an intersection where one street has NO STOP SIGN and the other street does. I'm on the street without a stop sign. Yet not one but two vehicles on the street with the stop sign pass in front of me, forcing me to stop. And one driver actually honks at me for not stopping for them! Even though they saw the driver in front of me cross the intersection without ever stopping.

I hate stupid people.

Do they also have a sign that says "Cross Traffic Does Not Stop?"


Yesterday, I was in the left turn lane. There was no left arrow, so I was just waiting for oncoming traffic to pass so I could turn left. The guy behind me in the turn lane honked at me. I had no idea why. There was nowhere for me to go yet. I wasn't about to turn left with a stream of cars coming at me.

The bastard then drove around me (passing me on the right) and cut in front of my car and ended up in the middle of the intersection with nowhere to go. I had no idea what the hell he thought he was doing.

 

[Trekker4747]

Here's a recent story about an intersection where one street has NO STOP SIGN and the other street does. I'm on the street without a stop sign. Yet not one but two vehicles on the street with the stop sign pass in front of me, forcing me to stop. And one driver actually honks at me for not stopping for them! Even though they saw the driver in front of me cross the intersection without ever stopping.

I hate stupid people.

Do they also have a sign that says "Cross Traffic Does Not Stop?"

Irrelevant since there's a stop sign that the cross-traffic, apparently, isn't using.

 

[backstept]

Yesterday, I was in the left turn lane. There was no left arrow, so I was just waiting for oncoming traffic to pass so I could turn left. The guy behind me in the turn lane honked at me. I had no idea why. There was nowhere for me to go yet. I wasn't about to turn left with a stream of cars coming at me.

The bastard then drove around me (passing me on the right) and cut in front of my car and ended up in the middle of the intersection with nowhere to go. I had no idea what the hell he thought he was doing.

I have a similar story.
I'm in the right turn only lane, and just as I get the green and start rolling this cop, yes a police officer, swings around me on the left and turns right directly in front of me. If I'd been any quicker he'd have run into me. Also I was too shocked to honk at him. Aren't cops supposed to follow traffic laws? If they have their lights on I'm more forgiving but if they're just out driving around shouldn't they drive safely?

 

[RoJoHen]

Yesterday, I was in the left turn lane. There was no left arrow, so I was just waiting for oncoming traffic to pass so I could turn left. The guy behind me in the turn lane honked at me. I had no idea why. There was nowhere for me to go yet. I wasn't about to turn left with a stream of cars coming at me.

The bastard then drove around me (passing me on the right) and cut in front of my car and ended up in the middle of the intersection with nowhere to go. I had no idea what the hell he thought he was doing.

I have a similar story.
I'm in the right turn only lane, and just as I get the green and start rolling this cop, yes a police officer, swings around me on the left and turns right directly in front of me. If I'd been any quicker he'd have run into me. Also I was too shocked to honk at him. Aren't cops supposed to follow traffic laws? If they have their lights on I'm more forgiving but if they're just out driving around shouldn't they drive safely?

Ugh, cops blatantly breaking traffic laws is one my main pet-peeves.

 

[John Picard]

The OKC police routinely break traffic laws. A few years ago, a police officer pulled an illegal maneuver and hit a minivan, totaling it. The driver and her husband sued the PD and came out rich.

 

[Trekker4747]

Yesterday, I was in the left turn lane. There was no left arrow, so I was just waiting for oncoming traffic to pass so I could turn left. The guy behind me in the turn lane honked at me. I had no idea why. There was nowhere for me to go yet. I wasn't about to turn left with a stream of cars coming at me.

The bastard then drove around me (passing me on the right) and cut in front of my car and ended up in the middle of the intersection with nowhere to go. I had no idea what the hell he thought he was doing.

I have a similar story.
I'm in the right turn only lane, and just as I get the green and start rolling this cop, yes a police officer, swings around me on the left and turns right directly in front of me. If I'd been any quicker he'd have run into me. Also I was too shocked to honk at him. Aren't cops supposed to follow traffic laws? If they have their lights on I'm more forgiving but if they're just out driving around shouldn't they drive safely?

Here's why people get mad when you're sitting behind the stop-line with a left-on-green light.

To make the left you're supposed to get out into the intersection to commit yourself to the turn, not sit behind the stop-line waiting for the opportunity to go. You get out there, commit yourself, and then turn when the way is clear. This also puts you in the right-of-way should the light turn red while you're in the intersection waiting, ensuring that people are still moving through the left-turn in situations where on-coming traffic doesn't stop to allow for the left-turns to be completed when people remaining behind the stop-line.

 

[Yoda]

Here's why people get made when you're sitting behind the stop-line with a left-on-green light.

To make the left you're supposed to get out into the intersection to commit yourself to the turn, not sit behind the stop-line waiting for the opportunity to go. You get out there, commit yourself, and then turn when the way is clear. This also puts you in the right-iof-way should the light turn red while you're in the intersection waiting, ensuring that people are still moving through the left-turn in situations where on-coming traffic doesn't stop to allow for the left-turns to be completed when people remaing behind the stop-line.

Bingo. Of course, passing them to take that spot is probably over the top. That particular fuck-up is so common that I would probably never honk someone on it.

Another one that pisses me off to no end which is absurdly common is people not moving to the right before a right turn. They just slow down completely in the lane forcing you to slow down even if there is a huge bicycle lane on the right side. Are you really that selfish/oblivious, people? What gives? Take a driver's ed manual with you to the shitter sometime.

 

[ByrdMan]

Here's why people get mad when you're sitting behind the stop-line with a left-on-green light.

To make the left you're supposed to get out into the intersection to commit yourself to the turn, not sit behind the stop-line waiting for the opportunity to go. You get out there, commit yourself, and then turn when the way is clear. This also puts you in the right-of-way should the light turn red while you're in the intersection waiting, ensuring that people are still moving through the left-turn in situations where on-coming traffic doesn't stop to allow for the left-turns to be completed when people remaining behind the stop-line.

Ugh... Had it this year where the woman in front of me pulled into the intersection waiting for the left turn, and then when the light changed red PUT THE CAR IN REVERSE and tried to back up to get out of the intersection instead of completing the turn. I had already pulled up to the line, and there were a bunch of cars behind me, so she basically sat in the intersection until the light changed again, blocking an entire lane of cross traffic.

I seriously believe you should have to re-test periodically to keep your drivers license. Especially people like this.