Strange driving annoyances

[pits]

Poor wiper control, mildly spitting and they're trying to fling asteroids away, or middle of summer and the rear wiper is on and it hasn't rained for weeks, do they not look in their rear view mirror?

[yellowjack]

Hazard lights used by morons who are parked in properly marked parking bays. You know the ones. You're driving along and see a right hand indicator flashing on a parked vehicle so, now aware of the potential for them to pull out in front of you, you slow down. Only to get alongside to see that a) the driver's seat is empty, and b) it's the hazard lights on, not an indicator. Clue: If you are properly parked in a bay set aside for parking, then you are not a "hazard", so stop using "hazard lights", eh?

[legless]

km666 said:

Lorries slowing down to a snails pace up hills. You've got gears and you're not pulling an oversized load, crack the fk on drive.

I used to regularly drive a 26t rigid curtainsider. With a mighty 220bhp - not uncommon.

Fully laden, it had a power/weight ratio of 8.46bhp/tonne. To put it onto context, that's about the same ratio as a professional cyclist.

[CoolHands]

Yeah but that was in 1931

[Robb F]

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

[Randy Winkman]

Robb F said:

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

[Robb F]

Randy Winkman said:

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

Exactly, unfortunately most don't extend the same courtesy

[CoreyDog]

pits said:

Poor wiper control, mildly spitting and they're trying to fling asteroids away, or middle of summer and the rear wiper is on and it hasn't rained for weeks, do they not look in their rear view mirror?

To be fair there, that can be down to auto-wipers.

Our car doesn't have a setting to clear the screen every few seconds (Brain is still asleep, can't think of the right word, intermittent?). It has auto, fast or rapid. Auto is crap, slightest bit of moisture and it decides that a monsoon is positioned over the car. In very light drizzle I just move the stalk now to clear the screen when it's needed... I miss older cars.

[Hol]

swisstoni said:

I’ve got a list a mile long, but the ones that wind me up at the moment are the ones who, approaching a motorway turn-off, will not get in L1 to leave.

Not for them an orderly filter off the motorway. Oh no. They are a bit to cool for that.

They will hover out in L2 waiting for a magic gap to appear in L1. If it doesn’t, they will dive for the exit at the last second causing a load of braking.

There’s an example of this near me and there must be a shunt a day at it.

We have an A road notorious for that type of ste near to us. The A229 where you exit for the M2 from Maidstone at Buckmore Park.

It’s obviously worse in rush hour, but no matter what time of day you get some -beans pulling left at the chevrons at the last instant and making the people behind swerve to avoid the rear of their car that is now protruding.

When I commuted that junction for a number of years, you got to recognise the same cars every day, so these people weren’t making mistakes.

Before they marked out the lanes on the subsequent roundabout to force people to move out a lane as they passed each junction, you used to get the Kent equivalent of central Rome, as every other car wanted to use a different lane for the same exit.

Edited by Hol on Tuesday 7th December 09:38

[paulrockliffe]

Randy Winkman said:

Robb F said:

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

Don't understand this at all, if you're going right, the car that pulls alongside you isn't blocking your view to the left. If you're going left the car that pulls up to the right of you is going to block your lane when it pulls out, so you just go when they go and if they've fked up they'll take the hit.

Unless you're one of these that pulls up at the junction a yard or two back and then struggles to see what's going on?

Anyway, there's lots of bellendery out there, the only one that really annoys me is those that ignore all the "Merge in Turn" signs. The Council spent your money on that second lane and they did it because there's a pinch point just up from a roundabout, if you don't use both lanes it blocks the roundabout for traffic going across it. Which then creates another pinch point that backs up to the next round about and blocks that as well.

I once practically forced my mother in law not to block the roundabout but to go down the second lane instead, then she refused to go to the merge point, where the merge is really efficient because everyone knows what's going on, and indicated about 15m after the roundabout and insisted on joining the queue of roundaboutblockers. Would have been really dangerous, if incredibly polite, except no one uses the second lane, so her stopping dead in a live lane for no reason isn't a problem. But OMG.

Would happily have the Police sit there removing licenses from anyone that refuses the outer lane, ie anyone that didn't turn left.

[thiscocks]

HustleRussell said:

Annoying me lately is people waiting to join a road from a side road etc, you slow and give them a signal to let them out, but for some reason they aren't in fact ready to go. Sometimes they are inexplicably staring the other way at the car coming from the other direction which is miles away. I have seen people position their cars on petrol station forecourt exits which appears very much that they are intending to leave but they're just sat there doing something else, phone etc. Or they're just generally incredibly slow and ponderous, and they don't go thinking the gap isn't big enough when it very certainly is by the standards of 99% of people.

That's why I don't let people out any more. It's much quicker and less hassle for all parties if you don't.

[cmvtec]

paulrockliffe said:

Randy Winkman said:

Robb F said:

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

Don't understand this at all, if you're going right, the car that pulls alongside you isn't blocking your view to the left. If you're going left the car that pulls up to the right of you is going to block your lane when it pulls out, so you just go when they go and if they've fked up they'll take the hit.

Unless you're one of these that pulls up at the junction a yard or two back and then struggles to see what's going on?

Anyway, there's lots of bellendery out there, the only one that really annoys me is those that ignore all the "Merge in Turn" signs. The Council spent your money on that second lane and they did it because there's a pinch point just up from a roundabout, if you don't use both lanes it blocks the roundabout for traffic going across it. Which then creates another pinch point that backs up to the next round about and blocks that as well.

I once practically forced my mother in law not to block the roundabout but to go down the second lane instead, then she refused to go to the merge point, where the merge is really efficient because everyone knows what's going on, and indicated about 15m after the roundabout and insisted on joining the queue of roundaboutblockers. Would have been really dangerous, if incredibly polite, except no one uses the second lane, so her stopping dead in a live lane for no reason isn't a problem. But OMG.

Would happily have the Police sit there removing licenses from anyone that refuses the outer lane, ie anyone that didn't turn left.

There's a roundabout near me that this happens on frequently. It's part of the South Shields one way system, but for a huge distance before it, people don't use the LH lane. It did used to be a bus lane, but hasn't been for ages now. After the roundabout it merges into one (very wide) single direction lane. If you DARE take the left lane at the roundabout, the local fannies love to stop you merging.

[paulrockliffe]

cmvtec said:

There's a roundabout near me that this happens on frequently. It's part of the South Shields one way system, but for a huge distance before it, people don't use the LH lane. It did used to be a bus lane, but hasn't been for ages now. After the roundabout it merges into one (very wide) single direction lane. If you DARE take the left lane at the roundabout, the local fannies love to stop you merging.

I can imagine where you mean almost exactly. I don't go South Shields very often, but I know it's plethora of roundabouts.

[Psycho Warren]

Randy Winkman said:

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

The person approaching a t junction to turn right should position just left of the centre line or if turning left, to the left to allow other drivers to get to the junction. Its literally on dozens of sites

[SkodaIan]

swisstoni said:

I’ve got a list a mile long, but the ones that wind me up at the moment are the ones who, approaching a motorway turn-off, will not get in L1 to leave.

Not for them an orderly filter off the motorway. Oh no. They are a bit to cool for that.

They will hover out in L2 waiting for a magic gap to appear in L1. If it doesn’t, they will dive for the exit at the last second causing a load of braking.

There’s an example of this near me and there must be a shunt a day at it.

You also get the opposite if this in some places, with that big bridge over the Avon on the M5 past Bristol being one of the worst.
A few people start getting into the left hand lane slotting in between the lorries early just in case there is a queue, so lane starts to slow down a bit, so more join them thinking it's the queue for the junction, despite that not even being signposted yet.

The end result, a queue of stationary cars about 2 miles before the junction and lorry drivers making really dubious lane changes to not get stuck in the queue. By the time you reach the exit, the traffic is often then completely free flowing again, even up the slip road!!

[Gad-Westy]

FiF said:

Gad-Westy said:

3. People who don't cling to the centre line when turning right at a busy t-junction meaning there is no room for the car behind to slide past to make an easier left turn.

Whilst the other 4 items posted were very valid ones, as is no3 quoted above, I'd like to add a little extra to this one.

People who, when you're at the give way line turning right out of a one way street and therefore over on the RHS of the road, then drive up alongside on your left, thus both blocking your view to the left and stopping other traffic who want to turn left from proceeding. What do they use to keep their ears apart?

I agree that if it is the type of junction where visibility will be compromised or your vehicle is high enough to block line of sight, then what you have said is definitely valid but certainly there are lots of exceptions. Sight angles generally dictate that what you've described above is much more of a problem if you're the car waiting to turn left and someone parks up on your right. I admit, I'd probably normally not do that unless I'm in a much lower car that the other driver will just look straight over. I think the reality is lots of drivers don't give any of these variables the slightest bit of thought at all.

[Robb F]

paulrockliffe said:

Randy Winkman said:

Robb F said:

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

Don't understand this at all, if you're going right, the car that pulls alongside you isn't blocking your view to the left. If you're going left the car that pulls up to the right of you is going to block your lane when it pulls out, so you just go when they go and if they've fked up they'll take the hit.

Unless you're one of these that pulls up at the junction a yard or two back and then struggles to see what's going on?

Alas, your lack of understanding doesn't give me xray vision allowing me to see through the car next to me whilst waiting to pull out, and I'm not stupid enough to blindly hope the car to my right has judged the gap correctly

[Blackpuddin]

Robb F said:

paulrockliffe said:

Randy Winkman said:

Robb F said:

Psycho Warren said:

Robb F said:

When you're waiting at a wide T junction, and someone wanting to turn the opposite way to you pulls all the way up alongside you, blocking your view of the road. So now you have to wait for them to go before you can.
Now I sit right in the middle so they can't fit round.

You are in the wrong.

You will find it in the highway code about moving over to just left of the centre line to allow other cars past. Every driving school in the land teaches that as well. (Minor to major and mjor to minor).

I don't care

Are you two talking about the same thing? (Just a question.)

By the way, if I understand Robb F correctly, I'm with him. If someone is already waiting to pull out and I then arrive, I try to stop so that I'm not blocking their view.

Don't understand this at all, if you're going right, the car that pulls alongside you isn't blocking your view to the left.

Yes it is. Last time this happened to me it was a DPD van who came up alongside me as I was waiting to go right. Not only did he block my view to the left, he then proceeded to turn right in front of me! In his defence he did wave to say sorry.

[cmvtec]

paulrockliffe said:

cmvtec said:

There's a roundabout near me that this happens on frequently. It's part of the South Shields one way system, but for a huge distance before it, people don't use the LH lane. It did used to be a bus lane, but hasn't been for ages now. After the roundabout it merges into one (very wide) single direction lane. If you DARE take the left lane at the roundabout, the local fannies love to stop you merging.

I can imagine where you mean almost exactly. I don't go South Shields very often, but I know it's plethora of roundabouts.

Imeary Street, one of the main routes into town.

It's a pain sometimes, although they're slowly being eradicated in favour of lights.

[FiF]

Gad-Westy said:

FiF said:

Gad-Westy said:

3. People who don't cling to the centre line when turning right at a busy t-junction meaning there is no room for the car behind to slide past to make an easier left turn.

Whilst the other 4 items posted were very valid ones, as is no3 quoted above, I'd like to add a little extra to this one.

People who, when you're at the give way line turning right out of a one way street and therefore over on the RHS of the road, then drive up alongside on your left, thus both blocking your view to the left and stopping other traffic who want to turn left from proceeding. What do they use to keep their ears apart?

I agree that if it is the type of junction where visibility will be compromised or your vehicle is high enough to block line of sight, then what you have said is definitely valid but certainly there are lots of exceptions. Sight angles generally dictate that what you've described above is much more of a problem if you're the car waiting to turn left and someone parks up on your right. I admit, I'd probably normally not do that unless I'm in a much lower car that the other driver will just look straight over. I think the reality is lots of drivers don't give any of these variables the slightest bit of thought at all.

Agree devil is in the detail regarding the junction layout and possible sightlines. The particular jn that I'm thinking about, just to clarify as didn't explain it properly, you're on the RHS indicating right, then someone pulls up on your left *also indicating right*. Then try and race you out of the junction. It's as if they don't realise it's a one way, or think you're waiting to pick up from the hairdressers or something. It's damned irritating anyway.