When you have a passenger...
Discussion
...do you drive differently?
I've noticed a disturbing trend on the roads. Dangerous drivers with passengers. Sometimes seriously dangerous drivers (by that I mean dangerous enough for me to consider reporting them) with their children in the car. If they don't get killed to death there is the obvious risk that these youngsters will grow up to be just as bad behind the wheel as mummy or daddy and we'll have yet another teen aged statistic to mop up.
When I take my nephews anywhere I always make sure there's no eating, drinking, ipoding, hand held gaming, phoning, arguing, fighting or other distractions. Hopefully as well as leading by example (I'm not the best driver in the world but I'm no d
head either) and setting an example when they grow up and drive themselves maybe, just maybe they'll realise that driving the car isn't fifth on the list of things to do.
I also play observational games with them. Started out with "eye spy" when they were little but now as I'm looking ahead I'll ask them questions about what I see. "How many cars are waiting at the next junction?" "How many dogs is the lady up the road walking?" and "What colour is the car overtaking the lorry up ahead?" for example as well as asking them very basic Highway Code stuff. "I'm going to take the next right what should I do next?" I usually get a well rehearsed "Mirror, Signal, Maneuver" reply.
It's been noted at school that my older nephew is a lot safer on his cycle than other kids his age, this has been attributed to what I do when I take them out for cycle rides and give them lifts in my car.
I think it's too late for this generation after watching a bit of a BBC3 program last night where a new driver was doing 100mph on a motorway because his mates(?) were egging him on. If he's still got his licence after that he shouldn't bloody well have. This is an issue that the teen aged drivers who are moaning about insurance being too high, crashing and dying on our roads are the fallout of the generation of bad drivers that brought them up. The truly terrible drivers who are in their 30's now are the product of crap drivers from the 80's and so on.
So do you dive more considerately when you have a passenger or passengers on board or do you drive as per usual (whatever standard) and hope that it doesn't rub off?
I've noticed a disturbing trend on the roads. Dangerous drivers with passengers. Sometimes seriously dangerous drivers (by that I mean dangerous enough for me to consider reporting them) with their children in the car. If they don't get killed to death there is the obvious risk that these youngsters will grow up to be just as bad behind the wheel as mummy or daddy and we'll have yet another teen aged statistic to mop up.
When I take my nephews anywhere I always make sure there's no eating, drinking, ipoding, hand held gaming, phoning, arguing, fighting or other distractions. Hopefully as well as leading by example (I'm not the best driver in the world but I'm no d
head either) and setting an example when they grow up and drive themselves maybe, just maybe they'll realise that driving the car isn't fifth on the list of things to do. I also play observational games with them. Started out with "eye spy" when they were little but now as I'm looking ahead I'll ask them questions about what I see. "How many cars are waiting at the next junction?" "How many dogs is the lady up the road walking?" and "What colour is the car overtaking the lorry up ahead?" for example as well as asking them very basic Highway Code stuff. "I'm going to take the next right what should I do next?" I usually get a well rehearsed "Mirror, Signal, Maneuver" reply.
It's been noted at school that my older nephew is a lot safer on his cycle than other kids his age, this has been attributed to what I do when I take them out for cycle rides and give them lifts in my car.
I think it's too late for this generation after watching a bit of a BBC3 program last night where a new driver was doing 100mph on a motorway because his mates(?) were egging him on. If he's still got his licence after that he shouldn't bloody well have. This is an issue that the teen aged drivers who are moaning about insurance being too high, crashing and dying on our roads are the fallout of the generation of bad drivers that brought them up. The truly terrible drivers who are in their 30's now are the product of crap drivers from the 80's and so on.
So do you dive more considerately when you have a passenger or passengers on board or do you drive as per usual (whatever standard) and hope that it doesn't rub off?
Yes - clearing sick off the carpet is annoying, as is getting hit in the face by a crazy woman scared for her life.
To be fair I was doing 31mph in a 30 zone...
I make every effort to be smoother to be honest. I've been driven by people who make no allowance for the fact their passengers might not want to experience full bore acceleration in Tesco’s car park so I figure its common courtesy.
It's the same as everything else - children pick up what they see / how others act.
To be fair I was doing 31mph in a 30 zone...
I make every effort to be smoother to be honest. I've been driven by people who make no allowance for the fact their passengers might not want to experience full bore acceleration in Tesco’s car park so I figure its common courtesy.
It's the same as everything else - children pick up what they see / how others act.
Edited by TommyBuoy on Wednesday 3rd April 14:22
I saw the BBC3 programme you talked about last night and I have to say neither of those two should be on the roads, both were an accident waiting to happen. No awareness and no ability to be able to react to a situation as they were so distracted, and the 100mph on a wet motorway when you have just passed your test...at least wait until its dry before you do the top speed run that every lad inevitably does.
Vocal Minority said:
I'm generally more sedate when I have a passenger.
I guess for the above curtious reason
I do also, mainly because when I'm on my own I'm purely focused on driving and can go a bit quicker safely(and have nothing to do other than get to my destination). With a passenger I'm chatting so my driving style relaxes.I guess for the above curtious reason
Yes, deliberately smooth and gentle with passengers, much less overtaking 
But I refuse to bugger up my visibility/speed carrying by not crossing lines for the sake of people who are scared by that and don't understand that it is both safe(r) and legal.
Don't do my brake checks with passengers in the car, except once when my sister fell asleep (because my driving is that smooth).
But I refuse to bugger up my visibility/speed carrying by not crossing lines for the sake of people who are scared by that and don't understand that it is both safe(r) and legal.
Don't do my brake checks with passengers in the car, except once when my sister fell asleep (because my driving is that smooth).
Slow said:
Depends if its my mum im slower but mates dont mind faster driving.
However there is a 10 mile single track road to my house, at night i regularly do 60+ mph along it as i know it so well. Also the fact you can see headlights of oncoming cars at night.
I once found a drunk farmer trying to push his unlit black merc that had run out of diesel round one of my favourite corners. I managed to avoid killing him, parked, turned his lights on, pushed his car to safety and then drove him home. I regret not driving him to the police station instead.However there is a 10 mile single track road to my house, at night i regularly do 60+ mph along it as i know it so well. Also the fact you can see headlights of oncoming cars at night.
Anyway, it changed how I treat bendy roads in the dark - not all other traffic has headlights.
If I'm on my own in the car, then I will drive to a more "enjoyable" limit that I may not with passengers in the car. This is a lot to do with their preservation* as it is to do with respecting their comfort .... not everyone entering the passenger seats of the car is there for a white knuckle roller coaster adrenalin hit, and may just want to get to the shops safely and in comfort.
- Please don't reply to this with lectures about potentially endangering ones self and others, or deliberately exceeding posted limits or limits of adhesion. This is PH, and we all enjoy driving our machines. When we do so on the public road, we manage and mitigate the risks in a slightly different way than Doris will when driving her Jazz to bingo. Some would use terms like "reckless" to describe that, and it is undeniable that that may sometimes be the case. I personally weigh that risk in line with my limits, the conditions, the car, how busy the road is, and how visible the section of road is .... This may not always naturally corrulate with a sign posted speed limit determined by a commitee or local policy.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff