Driving related Pet Peeves?? What are yours?

While Driving:

1. Tailgating.
2. Running "burnt orange"/red lights.
3. Not taking turns in a merge.
4. Speeding in neighborhoods.
5. Other activities borne of rampant selfishness.

While Not Driving:

1. Leaving an engine running/idling when anywhere but at a stoplight. Really, this one gets me more than about anything else. Just turn off the car already! If you want to listen the radio, use the "ACC" setting.
2. Buying a gigantic truck/SUV when you really only need a car.
3. Other activities borne of profound lack of interest or of ignorance.

 

Lady Jane and I almost got totaled by one of those today. I was waiting for oncoming traffic so I could turn into my driveway. She was speeding (in a school zone) and literally ran up on to the sidewalk to avoid me.

 

I would have to say people that leave space, yet when you signal to get over, speed up. This guy did that to me once, so i signaled, and moved over....he got right on my nice person approaching a red light (thought he was going to hit me) and started following me. I drove back to the high school where i had just picked up my brother, got out with my breaker bar. He stopped, reversed and left,.....

Another one is drivers on cell phones of course, or ones with big SUVs or BMWs that think they own the road.

Havent seen this yet, but a lot of young drivers in my area drive expensive cars such as 2008 BMW M3 Coupes...and Mustang GT's with heavy list of mods. It just seems that they drive like they're trying to impress someone, so when they get stopped for doing 40 in a 25, i cant do anything but pull up and laugh.

 

I agree with just about all pet peeves with people on cell phones at the top of the list. I have had several instances then I look over at the idiot and see them on their cell phone.

People backing into parking spaces is the only one where I cannot see how this is somebody's pet peeve. Unless we pull straight through a parking space, we will all back up either before or after. I feel that it is safer to back into a space. The only time when I pull straight in is when I might hold somebody up by backing in, if it is a diagonal parking space, or if there is a sign telling people nose in. Have a good day!

 

(background: almost all roads in New Zealand are only one lane in each direction; to pass you either cross the centre-line into oncoming traffic, or wait for a passing lane. Freeway? What Freeway?)

Cars who are travelling slightly slower than me who speed up when they reach a passing lane, and then slow down again when it goes back to one lane.
Why does having a big open empty lane beside you make you want to drive faster?
Related are the people who realise they are going slow and holding up traffic, so they pull further off the road so people can pass - on a double yellow line, or with oncoming traffic, or where it is equally unsafe to pass! Congratulations, you have one wheel off the tarmac and are going really slow. Why not just speed up a little?

Not indicating is less of a worry - nobody indicates properly, so you just start by expecting them to do the worst thing possible and be pleasantly surprised when they fail to kill themselves around you.

 

1: People On Cell Phones. I have had 3 close calls since Jan.
2: People leaving shopping carts by their cars at the Super Market. They are too lazy to return them to the cart return area. :flame:
3: People Bitching About Gas Prices Driving SUV's and Speeding and Tailgating.

 

when the wife changes the channels on my Sirius.

 

1. No turn signals. Or, turn signals 2 seconds before turning. What's the point?
2. Speeding through yellow lights.
3. CELL PHONES. Even as a pedestrian, I make sure they see me before crossing the road. Get off of it! STOP TEXTING!
4. Tailgaiting.

 

I agree with ALL of those and would add:

5. Backing up on the highway after missing the exit.

6. Stopping in the merge lane. This one makes me wish I had a missle mounted to the top of my car...

7. Tailgaiting, especially when in a line of traffic (what does the guy expect me to do, leapfrog over several cars?) or approaching a stop sign/stoplight. WHY??????

8. Throwing cigarette butts out the window. Makes me soooo mad...

 

Stopping at a red light without leaving room for people to make a right turn (where right on red is legal).

Failing to match freeway speeds when merging (this one baffles me - in a country where being able to do 0-60 in under 10 seconds is a major selling point for cars, why do so many people creep onto freeways and only match freeway speed 10 minutes later)???

 

I live this in Australia every time I venture out of the city. There is 100km of divided road north from Adelaide, 40km northwest, 80km southeast and the divided road ends just south of my place then if your lucky there might be a couple of passing lanes in the next 500km outside that. I'm heading to Townsville in a week, 3000km away, I'll be lucky if I have 50km of divided, 4 lane road. At least it is all sealed.
this week I'm off on a 3000km round trip, over half on unsealed roads in hired 4x4s.
The behaviours you describe are also familiar. How about the double white barrier line crawler. When there is a double white line they drive 40km/h below the speed limit then when you could pass they speed up, and they carry on even with a line of cars stuck behind back to the last bend.

 

I think that I would have to say the worst pisser-offer that I can think of would be the people that assume that because the light is green they can make the left-turn regardless of any other traffic at the intersection.

 

Almost forgot the super important people that "have" to either pass over double yellow lines, around stopped school buses, or create their own lane on the shoulder just to get around 1 or 2 cars. Seems like they are always running late for a red light, that's where you always find them again.

 

i've read through this thread and the lady eating chinese food WITH chopsticks during rush hour/highway driving is the most amazing to me. i'm asian and i wouldn't even dare to try that. wow!

i agree with most of the pet peeves here, but i have one...........i get completely frustrated when people dont merge to the right side before making a right turn. then, they make the right turn and end up in the LEFT lane....................ohhhhh man.



oh, and as many have said here..............GET OFF THE F-ING PHONE AND DRIVE!

 

Today I stopped at a STOP sign. Cross traffic had no sign. Some driver, on the cross street, pulls up to the intersection and stops. I'm waiting for them to go since they do not have a stop sign. We both wait and wait. BTW, this driver is to my right so even IF there were a stop sign they would still have the right of way.

Finally, I start to creep forward, trying to be ready for anything. Slowly I get through the intersection, say some bad words to myself, and go on my way, very POd. This kind of behavior puts everyone at risk.

I swear, some people learned the rules of the road from a comic book.

Bob

 

Good point Bob -- Now, maybe this varies from state to state, but I learned, as you did, that at an unmarked intersection, one yields to the vehicle to one's right.

Yet, I find that many otherwise good drivers, believe that the one who gets to the intersection first has the right of way.

A sign of the times -- me, me, me !

 

I think you are misinterpreting the rules of the road. Most right-of-way rules dealing with cars on the right use a qualifier such as "arriving at approximately the same time", although some don't. Otherwise a car to the left could be stuck indefinitely while cars to right continue to arrive at the intersection. A vehicle in the intersection always has right-of-way, so you have to wait for the intersection to clear. While that is happening, another car can pull up to your right. Obviously this could continue, and that is not the intention of the right-of-way rules. It works like this for four way stops:

1) Pedestrians always have the right-of-way at the intersection, even if there is no marked cross walk.

2) Any vehicle in the intersection has right-of-way over all other vehicles.

3) For vehicles arriving at about the same time:

3a) Vehicle to the left must give way to the vehicle to the right.

3b) From opposite directions, the a vehicle turning left must yield.

3c) For four vehicles, drivers must signal and agree who will go first. In some jurisdictions priority is given to vehicles not turning, or those going north and south.

Often there are some gray areas not completely spelled out by traffic laws, in which case local customs take over, at least until you end up in court.

Tom

 

Maybe this is a pet peeve about parking, rather than driving, but I really hate it when some group of destructive imbeciles walks down the street, smashing up cars as they go, causing thousands of dollars of damage in minutes.

A treehouse in the forest is starting to sound better every day.

 

My particular peeve .....

Where the hell are the Damn Flying Cars we were promised!!!

During my childhood, reading Popular Science / Mechanics, and other publications as well as shows on TV, I specifically remember numerous experts saying by the year 2000 man would be enjoying the benefits of traveling via FLYING CARS!!!

Well its 2008 and I want my Damn Flying Car!!!

My second choice would be a Barcelona Red 2008 Pkg 5!

Oh wait, I already have one...
Never mind!!


73 de Pat KK6PD