Topic: Whats worse.....?

[CBJoe]

1. Someone merging into you on the Highway

2. Someone merging into you on the Highway...AND making it out to be your fault via making faces, obscene hand gestures, and tailgating.

And All I did was honk my horn to let her know that there was a living person in the magical space she wanted to occupy.
I'm sorry ma'am.... next time i'll keep my thumb off the horn so that your poor nerves aren't being tested.

I can accept a mistake, but not reflecting the blame on others.  I've been that guy who didn't see the other driver and I sure as he%$ wasn't pissed at the other person for my mistake.

Sorry for the rant... but that tweaked me the wrong way today.

I hope everyone else had a pleasant and save ride home from work 

Cheers...Joe (angry Joe)

[SD750F]

CBJoe,

I think the real problem is the Yield sign that is posted on the on-ramp should be a little more specific to aid with individuals with comprehension problems. Maybe something like "YIELD, YES DUMMY YOU ARE SUPPOSE TO YIELD!"

Scott

[mattcb350f]

'merge with traffic, don't make the traffic merge with you'

...one of the few good pointers that was told in driver education when I got my drivers license.

Drivers these days are self centered. If it makes you feel any better Joe, we have the same problem here in Canada.

 Matt.

[333]

No, the real problem is that it isn't against the law to be stoopid.  They're all over the place.

My example had a little different ending.  10ish years ago, a woman tried to merge into me.  In her defense, it was an entrance into the left lane, so she was probably confused.  Traffic was bumper to bumper, moving about 15-20 mph.  I am driving an Astro van.  She came down the ramp fast, and just as she got her nose in front of me, she braked hard and planted her right front corner of her car into me, just in front of the rear wheel.  When the cops came, she said I had been in the right lane and changed lanes into her after she supposedly merged.  She got the ticket.  It gets better.  When the court date arrived, I was told when I got there that the case would be dismissed because of it being a first offense.  I left, pissed.  And if it hadn't been such an ordeal getting into the building, I would have gone back.  As I was walking to my van, I saw her car(personalized plates, so I was sure) and it was parked on a corner.  ON a corner.  And over the curb, actually on the sidewalk.

Stoopid..

[nickjtc]

.............except that here in BC you are expected to be courteous and move over if another vehicle is merging from your right. And if the lane beside you is full of vehicles that means you are the one who has to slow down to let said merger into traffic.

Don't you just love it when a merger then proceeds to do 30kph below the posted speed limit.

Our 'final'  (or Class 5) road test includes a short highway speed component, where the examinee is supposed to show competency at 'accelerating with authority'. I've lost count of the number of times where the driver has actually slowed right down prior to entering an empty highway. This invariably results in a 'Dangerous Action ' and goodbye until the next test.....

[CBJoe]

No, the real problem is that it isn't against the law to be stoopid.  They're all over the place.

My example had a little different ending.  10ish years ago, a woman tried to merge into me.  In her defense, it was an entrance into the left lane, so she was probably confused.  Traffic was bumper to bumper, moving about 15-20 mph.  I am driving an Astro van.  She came down the ramp fast, and just as she got her nose in front of me, she braked hard and planted her right front corner of her car into me, just in front of the rear wheel.  When the cops came, she said I had been in the right lane and changed lanes into her after she supposedly merged.  She got the ticket.  It gets better.  When the court date arrived, I was told when I got there that the case would be dismissed because of it being a first offense.  I left, pissed.  And if it hadn't been such an ordeal getting into the building, I would have gone back.  As I was walking to my van, I saw her car(personalized plates, so I was sure) and it was parked on a corner.  ON a corner.  And over the curb, actually on the sidewalk.

Stoopid..

For some reason this reminds me of a Frank Zappa Quote:

“The problem with the world is stupidity. I’m not saying there should be a capital punishment for stupidity, but why don’t we just take the safety labels off of everything and let the problem solve itself”

[CBJoe]

.............except that here in BC you are expected to be courteous and move over if another vehicle is merging from your right. And if the lane beside you is full of vehicles that means you are the one who has to slow down to let said merger into traffic.

I realize that my description was a bit vague...  We were on the highway at a point where the left lane ended.  I was in what was the middle lane.  She raced up to get as far ahead as she could and appeared/merged after the dotted line disappeared.

Joe

[mystic_1]

When people tailgate, I slow down.  99% of the time they get the message and go around.

mystic_1

[Steve F]

Wouldn't it be great if they had license fees and testing here like they do in Germany??  You go to school for I don't know how long, and then you pay something like $12,000 for a license.  That would keep MOST of the morons off the road   Then there's the illegals that would drive without a licnese anyway, not to mention no insurance.

[Caaveman82]

If they stopped keeping licenses in a candy jar at the front of the DMV and put a lot stricter rules in force we'd be alright. Like one accident no license for a year. DUI or DWI you loose it first time for half a decade, second? 10 years. etc. etc.

Just sayin...

[Rsnip988]

When people tailgate, I slow down.  99% of the time they get the message and go around.

mystic_1

+1 I do the same thing

Then there's the illegals that would drive without a license anyway, not to mention no insurance.

For some reason NC gives illegals a licence if they can show proof of insurance, which a lot of them drop the next day after getting licence or registration.
Not all but a fair amount do from what i hear from my state trooper and cop friends

RKS

[nickjtc]

We have a graduated licencing system for novice drivers/riders, which is a three step process:

'written' test to get a learners permit
one year of 'practice' followed by a road 'vehicle handling' test
two more years of practice, followed by the 'final' road test

I have the 'pleasure' of overseeing the progress of drivers/riders through the second and third steps. The problem is that we only get to see a snap shot of the driving capability of the examinee. They can suck it up for the half to three quarters of an hour they are under assessment, and then drive like c#ap afterwards.

Unless, that is, they do something spectacular during their assessment. I had a young gal turn left on a red light, off the Trans Canada Highway (against two lanes of traffic), last week. A pucker factor of about 9.9. I love the way they look at you all innocent-like at the end of the assessment.......

A new immigrant to Canada who can prove evidence of experience in the form of an existing drivers licence gets to challenge the final road test only. It's usually quite interesting. I wouldn't want to raise the ire of certain ethnicities, but suffice it to say that when we know we are assessing people from certain countries we know we are in for an entertaining drive.

[mattcb350f]

.............except that here in BC you are expected to be courteous and move over if another vehicle is merging from your right. And if the lane beside you is full of vehicles that means you are the one who has to slow down to let said merger into traffic.

That's what most do here in Ontario, but the slowing down bit to allow traffic to merge is what annoys me. There is not a vehicle built today that isn't capable of accelerating to traffic speed in the length of an on-ramp to facilitate a merge at traffic speed. The traffic shouldn't have to slow down.

Trucks are the exception but they're not the problem. It's the mouth breathers who just wonder into traffic obliviously.

 Matt.

[nickjtc]

There is not a vehicle built today that isn't capable of accelerating to traffic speed in the length of an on-ramp to facilitate a merge at traffic speed. The traffic shouldn't have to slow down.

Absolutely.

[tramp]

people don't understand they have to give the right of way to merge
i always love the look i get when i can't move over to make it easier for them to merge
like it's my fault