NationStates Jolt Archive

I had some errands to run today, and by great misfortune got behind a driver who was straddling the line between two lanes, blocking both lanes of traffic. When she (yes it was a woman, so am I) finally moved over into the right lane, still dithering somewhat, I moved up to take her place. Apparently, this bothered her, because she started to move back into my lane, nearly pushing me into oncoming traffic. Rather than get in an accident, I pulled back and let her in. Then the idiot stopped in the middle of the road, got out of the car and started walking towards me! My daughter (a mistress of the one-finger salute) and I both started yelling at her to get back in her car and start driving (there had to be at least 20 cars behind us). She finally did, but damn!

This is probably the single worst experience with idiot drivers I've had, but there have been many others - both men and women. Is this just California, or do they exist elsewhere in as great numbers?

I had some errands to run today, and by great misfortune got behind a driver who was straddling the line between two lanes, blocking both lanes of traffic. When she (yes it was a woman, so am I) finally moved over into the right lane, still dithering somewhat, I moved up to take her place. Apparently, this bothered her, because she started to move back into my lane, nearly pushing me into oncoming traffic. Rather than get in an accident, I pulled back and let her in. Then the idiot stopped in the middle of the road, got out of the car and started walking towards me! My daughter (a mistress of the one-finger salute) and I both started yelling at her to get back in her car and start driving (there had to be at least 20 cars behind us). She finally did, but damn!Probably smoked too much weed.

Crappy drivers are a universal phenomenon.

Just a few days ago an apparently more than 80-year old drunk man drove his thirty year old Holden from one side of the road to the other (over all lanes) in a feeble attempt to drive in a straight line. When he finally left the road and drove the front of his car into a ditch (he was only going 30km/h or so) I left him and sped off.
No point in helping people like that.

Florida driving is the worst. 70 year old men driving 25 in a 50 zone in the LEFT LANE!!!

By god, enough to drive a man to drink!

When she (yes it was a woman, so am I)...

Well there's your problem, hun. Lol. I've been in three accidents in my lifetime, all three of which were not my fault, and in all three the other driver involved was a woman.

Anyhow, haha, New York drivers are, in my opinion, the worst. It isn't when you're driving in NYC that they are bad, but when they go other places and drive with that same goddamn attitude.

California is the automobile capital of the world, more cars here than anywhere on the planet. Even if we have no more bad drivers by percentage than anywhere else, the concentration would make them more noticable.

And just because we are California I think we have a higher than normal percentage of loose nuts behind the steering wheels of the cars that grace our roads.

California is the automobile capital of the world, more cars here than anywhere on the planet. Even if we have no more bad drivers by percentage than anywhere else, the concentration would make them more noticable.

And just because we are California I think we have a higher than normal percentage of loose nuts behind the steering wheels of the cars that grace our roads.

Hehe, you said Loose Nuts.

Nah, you get motoring morons everywhere. Cal just has more cars and therefore more idiots.

We had a halfwit here who decided that the traffic cones and LANE CLOSED signs didn't apply to him. He discovered that heavy machinery does not get out of your way.

Last week while commuting home from work I was stopped at a red light. When the cross traffic's light turned red two cars ran it. No big deal, my light still hadn't turned green. When I got the green light to go, a van decided to run the red light at the intersection at extreme speed and almost creamed my car. I had to slam on the brakes. It took quite a bit of self control to keep from doing something stupid and illegal. In the end I just passed them while giving them the finger and yelling insults.

Minnesota's drivers are among the worst.

California is the automobile capital of the world


Actually, Michigan is, and we have the license plates to prove it :p

http://www.whitworthfamily.org/images/1997-Jan-Old_Car-AZQ-65.JPG

But yeah, you get crazy drivers everwhere. The worst I've ever seen are the women in Kuwait. In Kuwait women can drive, but can't make eye contact with men. So to make sure they don't make eye contact they just change lanes without looking.

Nah it's everywhere.

Actually, Michigan is, and we have the license plates to prove it :p

http://www.whitworthfamily.org/images/1997-Jan-Old_Car-AZQ-65.JPG

But yeah, you get crazy drivers everwhere. The worst I've ever seen are the women in Kuwait. In Kuwait women can drive, but can't make eye contact with men. So to make sure they don't make eye contact they just change lanes without looking.

Please tell me you are not serious.
Actually, I would believed that would happen in the middle East since the have an referendum coming up in Saudi Arabia to Allow women to drive but sweet christ that's stupid.
You really have to wonder about religious people sometimes

If you want aggressive drivers, come to Toronto! Forget about the gun violance, we have drivers who put our gun-toting ass-wipes to shame!

People are meat shields for practice!

Green means go, yellow means don't stop, and well, red, let's just say, that red doesn't have the conventional meaning and people get very irrate at red lights.

In fact, the last time my father picked me up from school, while stopped at a busy intersection, this douche behind us started to honk at us because we weren't riding the bumper of the poor wanker in front of us.

Is this just California, or do they exist elsewhere in as great numbers?
I haven't taken any long term studies on this, but I do know that here in North Carolina people seem to be pretty courteous most of the time. We stop with extra space between our car and the car ahead so drivers can turn left from the oncoming lane. We make all sorts of allowances for the velocity-challenged ( mostly older drivers ). We stop at the scenes of accidents to see if we can help. Etc.

Perhaps it's just the more relaxed approach to life, or perhaps it's a regional thing, but I like it ... a lot! :)

Yes we ave SUV drivers (universally annoying) here too, though this may be due to Californian influence.

Yes we ave SUV drivers (universally annoying) here too, though this may be due to Californian influence.
It could also be the feeling that because they are higher up that they are better. :rolleyes:

It isn’t just California there are people like her all over the place. If you want some real fun try driving in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Oh sorry, you can’t drive there as women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia. L

West Virginia has kind, reasonable drivers throughout the entire state, with the exception of those who come in state for the Universities.

I always find driving in California is a pleasant change from the wackos we have here, in Atlanta.

I've not been far enough south in Florida to get the full treatment, but I understand the snowbirds are easily the most awful drivers to be found anywhere.

It isn’t just California there are people like her all over the place. If you want some real fun try driving in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Oh sorry, you can’t drive there as women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia. L
I was in Yemen a few months ago and it rained. I like to make fun of the drivers in Atlanta, because every time it rains, they behave as if it's the first time ever that they have seen rain.

Not so in Yemen. This really was the first time ever that folks had seen rain. I just pulled over and watched the circus. By the time it was safe to drive again, the roads bore a faint similarity to the 'Highway of Death" coming out of Kuwait City in 1991.

I live in California, but have most of my family in Florida and have gone many, many times. The Floridians drive much worse than the Californians.

I used to think Melbourne drivers were bad, but then I moved to the United States. I tell you, about 60% of the drivers in Maryland apparently have no clue what that little lever next to their steering wheel is for. They certainly don't use to to indicate - ever! Half the time when people are changing lanes they don't even bother to check if someone's next to them first. So you'll be driving along in your own lane minding your own business and the guy next to you just starts crowding you out - no head check, no indication, no nothing. Then they get mad if you beep to let them know you're already in that bit of road they're encroaching on.

Then there's the preponderence of 4WD's here in the US. Gods, I hate the wankers who drive those things. They take off like a sack of spuds, they also don't believe that an indicator is anything they need to use, and they almost completely block your view of the rest of the road. I just keep hoping that the high price of petrol will convince people to buy smaller cars.

*feels better now, having got that off my chest*

Hey, now, some people need 4WD's to survive. Until very recently I lived about 10 miles outside of town on a back country road. When you get a foot of snow overnight its nice having 4WD to be able to get to town without ending up in one of those 6 foot deep ditches. In fact, just the other day I was driving to my grandmothers house for Christmas down a back road and the snow drifts had completely covered the road in almost a foot of snow. The Jeep sure came in handy that day.

But yeah, most people don't need them, especially if they live in an urban area.

It happens the world over, believe me. I see incidents like that you describe all the bloody time.

I have come to the conclusion that bad drivers are a universal phenomenon; however, this manifests itself in different ways depending on your locale. For one thing, people here in Columbus, OH stop for no reason, forcing miles of cars to stop behind them. In Miami, FL, I am pretty sure turn signals are illegal. Don't even get me started on upstate New York.

One of the most infuriating things I've ever seen was on I-25 between Colorado Springs and Denver. There were several cars who had run off the road for whatever reason, and people would slow down to 30mph or so (75mph being the speed limit) to gawk at the cars. There wasn't any damage done to them, they just weren't on the road. The normally 1 hour trip took 3 hours that day, and I had a plane to catch.

I used to think Melbourne drivers were bad, but then I moved to the United States. I tell you, about 60% of the drivers in Maryland apparently have no clue what that little lever next to their steering wheel is for. They certainly don't use to to indicate - ever! Half the time when people are changing lanes they don't even bother to check if someone's next to them first. So you'll be driving along in your own lane minding your own business and the guy next to you just starts crowding you out - no head check, no indication, no nothing. Then they get mad if you beep to let them know you're already in that bit of road they're encroaching on.

Then there's the preponderence of 4WD's here in the US. Gods, I hate the wankers who drive those things. They take off like a sack of spuds, they also don't believe that an indicator is anything they need to use, and they almost completely block your view of the rest of the road. I just keep hoping that the high price of petrol will convince people to buy smaller cars.

*feels better now, having got that off my chest*

Agreed. Except that it's everywhere I have driven in these United States.

Statistically, Rhode Island Drivers are the worst, with the most road fatalities and traffic violations of any state. Not to mention that absolutely no one here uses a blinker. Literally...

I'll find a site to prove it.

http://www.turnto10.com/automotive/4541164/detail.html

Here it is....only my local news station, but its proof none the less.

I had some errands to run today, and by great misfortune got behind a driver who was straddling the line between two lanes, blocking both lanes of traffic. When she (yes it was a woman, so am I) finally moved over into the right lane, still dithering somewhat, I moved up to take her place. Apparently, this bothered her, because she started to move back into my lane, nearly pushing me into oncoming traffic. Rather than get in an accident, I pulled back and let her in. Then the idiot stopped in the middle of the road, got out of the car and started walking towards me! My daughter (a mistress of the one-finger salute) and I both started yelling at her to get back in her car and start driving (there had to be at least 20 cars behind us). She finally did, but damn!

This is probably the single worst experience with idiot drivers I've had, but there have been many others - both men and women. Is this just California, or do they exist elsewhere in as great numbers?

I grew up in San Diego, and learned to drive across SD, LA and Orange County. I am now driving in Basrah, Iraq.
I really miss SoCal.
Try having people driving on the wrong side of the freeway at you. Try to dodge donkey carts while in traffic.

I grew up in San Diego, and learned to drive across SD, LA and Orange County. I am now driving in Basrah, Iraq.
I really miss SoCal.
Try having people driving on the wrong side of the freeway at you. Try to dodge donkey carts while in traffic.


Hope you get back soon. And unscathed.

Quebec drivers are supposed to be the worst in Canada.

One of my friends is from Ottawa and he says that between the people from Hull and the people with diplomatic immunity, the driving is awful.

Of course in the city I drive in most often, many of the drivers got their lisences in pakistan and india, so they're pretty terrible too. :S

That's the problem with cars: they take people wherever they want to go, so the whole wide world gets to experience the joy of some people's unique approach to driving.
I love rush hours in Paris. So much fun to watch... Driving rules are too restrictive. You should let people express their creativity on the road a little more because that's definitely not what they're lacking ;)

Back when I lived in Chicago I thought we had bad drivers, because they were mainly agressive and rude. Then I moved to Texas.
Maybe it is becuase a large percentage of my area is Asian, I dont know. But drivers here have a tendancy to stop in the middle of traffic for a good 10 seconds, then make up their mind. Pulling over is not an option.