Things other road users do that drive you crazy!

[WD39]

popeyewhite said:

New one for me tonight: Audi RS3 beeped at me for not letting him out of a side road. For a few seconds I was swivelling my head left and right to work out who the beeper was and who the recipient of the beep was until I realised the beeper must be the guy I failed to allow to push in. Cheeky fecker. Beep.

APIS manual, section four chapter two. 'As a concession it is allowed to let other drivers out of a side road as long as their reg is at least three numbers below your own vehicle'.

[WD39]

Vipers said:

wildone63 said:

Cyclists who use push button zebra crossings and hold up the traffic so they can get from one footpath (where they are illeagly cycling) to the opposite one,instead of using the road in the first place.

People like my misses, see nothing coming and press the button anyway, then cross the road.

As you approach with no pedestrians in sight, the fekking lights go red.

I have done this myself, with no malice intended. It's all down to the timing.

[Otispunkmeyer]

Hovering around on your rear quarter on the motor way. Middle lane of course. Leaving you with not enough room to comfortably move out for an overtake and not going fast enough to get past you in anything like sensible time.

[PoleDriver]

I just thought that i'd share a very pleasant driving experience I had last week.
Between Monday lunchtime and Wednesday evening a colleague and I drove a total of just under 1,000 miles, between jobs. We were in a Mercedes sprinter van and most of the journey was on 2 or 3 lane motorways at speeds of between 90 and 110 MPH in various weather conditions.
In the whole of that journey we encountered 1 traffic jam (Road works) 2 MLMs and 3 tailgaters (behind the MLMs)

We did not see a single instance of road rage and not a single accident!

How I wish it were always like this!

[J4CKO]

Just nearly had a bump, my youngest is learning and I was taking him for some practice, giving him pointers as we go, we come up to "Lakeland" which is a homewares shop in Handforth, Sth Mcr and I said to "Watch it here, its full of Tupperware fixated pensioners and they can be a bit erratic".

Anyway, he ambles round the roundabout, and was a little slow to cancel the left turn, so I say "cancel the indicator" and he does, there was some grey hatch waiting to exit lakeland, 308 I think I said, "Watch him", and bugger me, out he comes without looking, eyes forward, my son deftly avoids him, and we end up alongside, stationary.

He winds his window down and I wind mine down, I asked him what he though he was doing, and he said "you were fking indicating"

So, my back was up then, chap of about 75, I said that he had indeed cancelled his indicator a bit slowly but did the little tiddly car with L plates not offer a clue that all may not be 100 percent yet ? "but you were indicating" so I pointed out that he would have been blamed for that as you cannot just go based on what an indicator is or isnt doing and that he has been driving a month and I expect you have been driving for decades and you still obviously havent cracked it, he had the right attitude so I gave it back.

Anyway, he sits there mumbling about indicators so I just go, "go on then" and he says "go on what" so I suggest he may like to proceed, "Ill stay here as long as I want" so I just instruct my lad to move off and say "you do that, stay as long as you want"


Amazing how most times you go past there isn't a problem but the one time I say to watch for pensioners driving badly, boom, right on cue, out he lunges.

[WD39]

PoleDriver said:

I just thought that i'd share a very pleasant driving experience I had last week.
Between Monday lunchtime and Wednesday evening a colleague and I drove a total of just under 1,000 miles, between jobs. We were in a Mercedes sprinter van and most of the journey was on 2 or 3 lane motorways at speeds of between 90 and 110 MPH in various weather conditions.
In the whole of that journey we encountered 1 traffic jam (Road works) 2 MLMs and 3 tailgaters (behind the MLMs)

We did not see a single instance of road rage and not a single accident!

How I wish it were always like this!

The only downside of the journey, it seems to me, was some blokes breaking the speed limit by between 20 and 40 mph. Other than that, as you say, why can't it always be like that?

Edited by WD39 on Sunday 23 October 16:16

[jamei303]

WD39 said:

The only downside of the journey, it seems to me, was some blokes breaking the speed limit by between 20 and 40 mph. Other than that, as you say, why can't it always be like that?

Edited by WD39 on Sunday 23 October 16:16

Sprinter vans are designed to handle best at 90mph+

[jamei303]

wildone63 said:

Cyclists who use push button zebra crossings and hold up the traffic so they can get from one footpath (where they are illeagly cycling) to the opposite one,instead of using the road in the first place.

Motorists who don't even know what a zebra crossing is.

[Drummond Baize]

People who hit the brakes when they see a sign warning them of speed cameras. Not braking for the cameras themselves, but for the bloody warning sign!

[boxedin]

J4CKO said:

Just nearly had a bump, my youngest is learning and I was taking him for some practice, giving him pointers as we go, we come up to "Lakeland" which is a homewares shop in Handforth, Sth Mcr and I said to "Watch it here, its full of Tupperware fixated pensioners and they can be a bit erratic".

Anyway, he ambles round the roundabout, and was a little slow to cancel the left turn, so I say "cancel the indicator" and he does, there was some grey hatch waiting to exit lakeland, 308 I think I said, "Watch him", and bugger me, out he comes without looking, eyes forward, my son deftly avoids him, and we end up alongside, stationary.

He winds his window down and I wind mine down, I asked him what he though he was doing, and he said "you were fking indicating"

So, my back was up then, chap of about 75, I said that he had indeed cancelled his indicator a bit slowly but did the little tiddly car with L plates not offer a clue that all may not be 100 percent yet ? "but you were indicating" so I pointed out that he would have been blamed for that as you cannot just go based on what an indicator is or isnt doing and that he has been driving a month and I expect you have been driving for decades and you still obviously havent cracked it, he had the right attitude so I gave it back.

Anyway, he sits there mumbling about indicators so I just go, "go on then" and he says "go on what" so I suggest he may like to proceed, "Ill stay here as long as I want" so I just instruct my lad to move off and say "you do that, stay as long as you want"


Amazing how most times you go past there isn't a problem but the one time I say to watch for pensioners driving badly, boom, right on cue, out he lunges.

I'm more troubled by the low rent language, this is Handforth. Even the staff are posh.

[PoleDriver]

WD39 said:

PoleDriver said:

I just thought that i'd share a very pleasant driving experience I had last week.
Between Monday lunchtime and Wednesday evening a colleague and I drove a total of just under 1,000 miles, between jobs. We were in a Mercedes sprinter van and most of the journey was on 2 or 3 lane motorways at speeds of between 90 and 110 MPH in various weather conditions.
In the whole of that journey we encountered 1 traffic jam (Road works) 2 MLMs and 3 tailgaters (behind the MLMs)

We did not see a single instance of road rage and not a single accident!

How I wish it were always like this!

The only downside of the journey, it seems to me, was some blokes breaking the speed limit by between 20 and 40 mph. Other than that, as you say, why can't it always be like that?

Edited by WD39 on Sunday 23 October 16:16

See! There you go, making assumptions again! Nowhere in my post did I say that we were in the UK! At no time were any speed limits broken!

[WD39]

PoleDriver said:

WD39 said:

PoleDriver said:

I just thought that i'd share a very pleasant driving experience I had last week.
Between Monday lunchtime and Wednesday evening a colleague and I drove a total of just under 1,000 miles, between jobs. We were in a Mercedes sprinter van and most of the journey was on 2 or 3 lane motorways at speeds of between 90 and 110 MPH in various weather conditions.
In the whole of that journey we encountered 1 traffic jam (Road works) 2 MLMs and 3 tailgaters (behind the MLMs)

We did not see a single instance of road rage and not a single accident!

How I wish it were always like this!

The only downside of the journey, it seems to me, was some blokes breaking the speed limit by between 20 and 40 mph. Other than that, as you say, why can't it always be like that?

Edited by WD39 on Sunday 23 October 16:16

See! There you go, making assumptions again! Nowhere in my post did I say that we were in the UK! At no time were any speed limits broken!

It looks like a motorway / autobahn, mph / k/ph confusion. (or were you setting a trap?)

[PoleDriver]

WD39 said:

It looks like a motorway / autobahn, mph / k/ph confusion. (or were you setting a trap?)

Obviously!
But I was pleasantly surprised at how a different attitude to driving a) made for a much more enjoyable experience and b) yielded no carnage despite other cars passing us like we weren't moving, even when there was heavy rainfall!
( And I'm really sorry WD39 but I had a tenner on who would respond to my post, and I won!)

[WD39]

PoleDriver said:

WD39 said:

It looks like a motorway / autobahn, mph / k/ph confusion. (or were you setting a trap?)

Obviously!
But I was pleasantly surprised at how a different attitude to driving a) made for a much more enjoyable experience and b) yielded no carnage despite other cars passing us like we weren't moving, even when there was heavy rainfall!
( And I'm really sorry WD39 but I had a tenner on who would respond to my post, and I won!)

Donated to charity I hope.

[Vipers]

Drummond Baize said:

People who hit the brakes when they see a sign warning them of speed cameras. Not braking for the cameras themselves, but for the bloody warning sign!

Allmost rear ended a beema once, I was probably a tad close, but anyway, we are crusing along, I am in cc at 70 and slowly catching the beema, intending to pull out and breeze past, as we rounded a slow bend on the dual carriageway, he slammed on the anchors, thinking WTF.

As I passed him I noticed the reason, he had spotted a camera just around the bend. now he wasnt quite doing 70 so why on earth did he brake.

Some have absolutely no idea of their speed, and probably no idea of the speed limit, so slow down just in case.

[Alex_225]

Drivers merging onto or changing lanes on motorways who assume it's their God given right to manoeuvre because they are indicating.

Saw a handful of drivers over the weekend join the motorway with the assumption that someone would move out of their way. Saw a newish Golf join and then have to brake hard whilst up the rear end of the car in front as he just presumed space would be made for him. Don't seem to factor in the give way marking as he was joining.

Also, indicating then assuming people will move into the next lane. Had a guy start indicating from lane one as I was passing in lane two, indicator came on as I was level with his rear bumper so I carried on past him and let him come out behind. As I went past he was waving his arms and mouthing off because I hadn't moved into the next lane let him out. Again, when did that become a rule!!

[jet_noise]

Alex_225 said:

<snip>
Saw a handful of drivers over the weekend join the motorway with the assumption that someone would move out of their way. Saw a newish Golf join and then have to brake hard whilst up the rear end of the car in front as he just presumed space would be made for him. Don't seem to factor in the give way marking as he was joining.

Hilarious (at least until there's an accident) when such entitled try this with large artics. Recently I was behind same in lane 1 at a joining slip. The gap 'twixt me and the artic was the proverbial 2 seconds, motorway was busy, traffic in lane 2. A Volvo XCsummat was alongside the truck for almost the whole length of the slip before realization dawned that a). the slip road is ending, b). even a Volvo is not going to "win" against 40 ton(ne)s. c). There's easily a big enough gap behind the artic. Hard braking, puff of smoke and Volvo slots in to the gap. Arrgh!

[Skii]

People who use the marked lanes for motorway junctions to queue jump, then brake to rejoin the motorway causing traffic leaving the motorway to stop.

They'd be first against the wall.

[Alex_225]

jet_noise said:

Hilarious (at least until there's an accident) when such entitled try this with large artics. Recently I was behind same in lane 1 at a joining slip. The gap 'twixt me and the artic was the proverbial 2 seconds, motorway was busy, traffic in lane 2. A Volvo XCsummat was alongside the truck for almost the whole length of the slip before realization dawned that a). the slip road is ending, b). even a Volvo is not going to "win" against 40 ton(ne)s. c). There's easily a big enough gap behind the artic. Hard braking, puff of smoke and Volvo slots in to the gap. Arrgh!

There's a few videos online of those types losing the battle with lorries where they've just assumed they'll be let in because they're indicating.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not so stubborn that I will refuse to move over. Quite the opposite generally speaking in that I'll try and accommodate joining traffic etc. It's just that fact that people assume they'll be given way to and plan their driving assuming that people will give way to them.

Had a chap in a Fiat 500 who was a insisted on staying left (which is good) but the motorway was busy at the time so he was literally changing lanes the entire time (which is bad!). Anyway, he merges from lane one at X speed and as I'm approaching him at probably 10mph more I indicate and go to overtake into lane three. Again as I get level with his rear bumper he indicates and just starts moving. Totally misses the big silver saloon car that's literally next to him until I hit the horn, he then pulls in behind and tailgates me. Then continues on his lane changing journey.

Edited by Alex_225 on Monday 24th October 10:59

[swisstoni]

Alex_225 said:

jet_noise said:

Hilarious (at least until there's an accident) when such entitled try this with large artics. Recently I was behind same in lane 1 at a joining slip. The gap 'twixt me and the artic was the proverbial 2 seconds, motorway was busy, traffic in lane 2. A Volvo XCsummat was alongside the truck for almost the whole length of the slip before realization dawned that a). the slip road is ending, b). even a Volvo is not going to "win" against 40 ton(ne)s. c). There's easily a big enough gap behind the artic. Hard braking, puff of smoke and Volvo slots in to the gap. Arrgh!

There's a few videos online of those types losing the battle with lorries where they've just assumed they'll be let in because they're indicating.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not so stubborn that I will refuse to move over. Quite the opposite generally speaking in that I'll try and accommodate joining traffic etc. It's just that fact that people assume they'll be given way to and plan their driving assuming that people will give way to them.

There's a bit of give and take required here. The joining driver has to look in front and to the side for a gap. Sometimes the road layout means that there is very little time to look. The driver already on the motorway has the best view of what's going on.