What are your biggest driving pet peeves?

[J.T.B.]

When there's road construction and one lane is shut down, everybody sees the signs and most people merge over into the next lane long before they get to the closure. But a few assholes have to stay in the now-vacant closing lane and breeze right up to the cones where the lane gets shut off, and force their way into the next lane at the last possible point. Not only is this obnoxious, selfish driving behavior, it slows down the traffic flow because somebody has to stop completely to let them in. If they payed attention to the signs and changed lanes when there was plenty of room, like most decent folk do, traffic would flow better for everyone.

--Justin

 

[backstept]

(Off topic) When I am trying to type a forum message and some sort of "Quick Find" bar pops up every time I try to type an apostrophe. Does anyone know if this is some sort of Javascript forum thing or something I have accidentally activated in Firefox?

I think you may have been inadvertently pressing the '/' key while outside of a text box (or else you'd be typing /'s)

I hate this one, and no one else even THINKS about it.

There are 2 or more lanes of traffic in your direction, and you are the first car to come to a red light....and you STOP in the right lane with no cars in the left lane--while planning on driving straight.

Now, three cars pull up behind you wanting to turn right, which they can't do, because you kept your self-absorbed ass in the right lane.

If you're the first car and you're not turning right, get your ass out of the right lane.

on a similar note, there's an intersection near my house where the right lane is right turn only, yet people invariably try to go straight and try to budge their way into the left lane for which there is no room for them
I usually try to stay even with them so they can't merge and give 'em a good honk . . . yeah way to be an ass to other asses on the road

 

[Kestra]

Any reckless behavior irritates me a bit, but I get especially agitated when people drive like idiots in winter weather. They pull the same reckless crap when driving on ice and snow, and put themselves and everyone else at huge risk. I've seen far too many cars speed past me only to end up sliding across traffic or go off the road further ahead.

 

[backstept]

Any reckless behavior irritates me a bit, but I get especially agitated when people drive like idiots in winter weather. They pull the same reckless crap when driving on ice and snow, and put themselves and everyone else at huge risk. I've seen far too many cars speed past me only to end up sliding across traffic or go off the road further ahead.

indeed . . . 4WD does not mean MAGIC TRACTION!

 

[Pingfah]

People who drive too slow. Especially people who have a big queue of traffic build up behind them and still drive at the same speed.

Also, people who drive too fast.

Oh, also motherfuckers who try and stop me riding past them in a traffic jam by pulling right to the middle of the road and genrally just drivers that get pissy when I overtake them.

 

[Smiley]

I hate this one, and no one else even THINKS about it.

There are 2 or more lanes of traffic in your direction, and you are the first car to come to a red light....and you STOP in the right lane with no cars in the left lane--while planning on driving straight.

Now, three cars pull up behind you wanting to turn right, which they can't do, because you kept your self-absorbed ass in the right lane.

If you're the first car and you're not turning right, get your ass out of the right lane.

Being able to turn right on red is never a guarantee. If your next turn will be a right turn, it makes no sense to change lanes to the left just for the possible benefit of some hypothetical drivers behind you. I'm all for being courteous on the road, but this is a step too far. If right-turn traffic is that heavy, then there should be a right-turn lane.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Any reckless behavior irritates me a bit, but I get especially agitated when people drive like idiots in winter weather. They pull the same reckless crap when driving on ice and snow, and put themselves and everyone else at huge risk. I've seen far too many cars speed past me only to end up sliding across traffic or go off the road further ahead.

One thing I've noticed, is that some drivers totally start freaking out when it's raining, driving like they have to get wherever they're going as quickly as possible so they don't get soaked even though they have a roof over their head anyway.

 

[Crusher Disciple]

Gray cars that drive around in the rain with no lights on.

Cars that dwaddle in the middle lane of a 3 lane freeway)

Cars that won't roll up and allow the cars behind them to slip into the right or left lane that's about to split off. Really, do you need 3 car lenghts when you're sitting at a light?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

People who drive too slow. Especially people who have a big queue of traffic build up behind them and still drive at the same speed.

Also, people who drive too fast.

George Carlin said it best:

"Anyone driving slower than you is an idiot. Anyone driving faster than you is a MANIAC!"

Here's my driving pet peeves:

- People who park in front of my store. Get the fuck out of there, people. That's called a FIRE LANE for a fucking REASON. I don't give a flying fuck if you're waiting for somebody. Get a parking space like everyone else!

- Drivers with no handicapped parking permits who insist on using a parking space marked for that purpose.

- Tailgaters with their brights on. For that matter, anyone who uses brights at all without it being absolutely necessary.

- Jackasses who apparently think you're not turning your lights on early enough and therefore flash theirs at you. (Many times this is at an entirely useless time for lights, such as 1 PM on a clear day.) If you're not a fucking traffic cop, then shut the fuck up.

- Cars festooned with enough bumper stickers to cover most of the plot of War and Peace. Oftentimes these bumper stickers are of a sufficiently liberal persuasion as to make even Keith Olbermann go "Dude, lighten up."

 

[nevermore]

Dumbfucks.

 

[Aragorn]

The other day I was on the freeway and saw a commercial truck carrying who knows what in its trailer floor it past a couple cars just to tailgate behind a compact car. It wasn't like the little car was going to slow. The truck was at a decent distance and just speed up and got right on the guy's (or girl's) bumper.

 

[Garak]

Biggest pet peeve? Other drivers.

Yup!

 

[Pingfah]

Also, people who don't know the width of their own vehicle and sit there endlessly waiting for an opportunity to squeeze through a gap you could get 2 doubledecker buses through.

 

[Barbados Slim]

Tiny housewives in Suburbans or Navigators or Escalades trying to back out of a spot in a parking lot. Takes forever.

Also, I'm pretty much resigned to the truth that Toyota Camrys come with a Electronic Dumbfuck Control or something. Something about driving a Camry makes the driver slow witted. I think it's because the car is too isolated from the road. I know this from experience because I owned a Camry for two years and I drove like an old man on a cell phone eating a sandwich while changing radio stations.

 

[cultcross]

Any reckless behavior irritates me a bit, but I get especially agitated when people drive like idiots in winter weather. They pull the same reckless crap when driving on ice and snow, and put themselves and everyone else at huge risk. I've seen far too many cars speed past me only to end up sliding across traffic or go off the road further ahead.

I've noticed this in our cold snap this January - particularly about 3 weeks ago, was driving down to Devon on the M5, and it was like fucking dodgems. People just can't understand the danger they're putting themselves in, charging around under- and overtaking incredibly fast with a road that's covered in ice. Gritting isn't a magic solution, in weather below -5ºC it won't last more than half an hour.

I think the problem boils down to the fact that we in this country basically train drivers to drive in perfect conditions. When the conditions are anything less than perfect, they have no idea how to cope. The accident rate in the winter months is disgraceful, and a solid majority are caused by driving too fast and too aggressively on iced up roads.

Also, people who don't know the width of their own vehicle and sit there endlessly waiting for an opportunity to squeeze through a gap you could get 2 doubledecker buses through.

Good call.

 

[indranee]

roadragers.

 

[Trekker4747]

What are your biggest driving pet peeves?

Oh, I think I've made a career of talking about those around here.

 

[Aragorn]

Drivers who are so hell bent on making that left turn on a busy street that they're only paying attention to the cars and not the pedestrians. So when that oncoming traffic clears out just enough, they floor it to make that left turn. And either the pedestrians have to dive out of the way or the turning car slams on the brakes and is now blocking oncoming traffic.

 

[WHF]

Drivers who pass and feel the need to immediately cut in once they have passed. You should not return to the lane until you can see the other car in your centre rear view mirror and preferably you should go even further if traffic permits. If you have to cut in that quick don't pass.

It really pisses me off when drivers cut in front on highway with two lanes in the same direction. Some people seem to be scared to be in the left lane.

 

[Lookingglassman]

Morons who:

Pull out in front of me from a side street then go slow.

People who think they are indestructible and will walk out in front of me in parking lots

Speeders who get on my tail

The old dude who lives in the trailer park on the street I take to work who loves to cut people off in his electric wheelchair. One day he is going to get run over.