Do you warn other drivers?

I'm an asshole driver, but I am not proud of it. I need some sort of intervention, but lately I've been breathing through the realization that my bullying (lights flashing, tailgating, beeping even) doesnt' cause others to get out of my way nor does it help me meet my goal. Maybe it's a safe way to assert myself, but at stupid one, too. As far as flashing to warn others of the cop I just passed, yes I do this as a signal to them to stop being a dick.

It takes one to know one.

 

yup phi,

i'd back off that shit. you never know when the other guy's going to be strapped and angrier with bigger teeth.

reminds me of a funny story:

30-something years ago, apparently my sister and her friend were out swimming at Myrtle Beach (redneck heaven, for those that don't know) and some Yankee (no offense, but let's call it the way it is. Socks yanked up his knees, bad mustache kind of guy. probably had a metal detector.) rolls up and starts surf fishing right next to my sister and her friend.

beach is wide open, asshole has to pick that place.

dad asks him, politely from what i've been told (which is statistically unlikely. i know my dad ) if he would move down.

Dick-boy pops off with something like "It's a free beach, buddy. I can fish here if I want"

Dad says "ok. you're right" and starts lining up beer cans behind him.

I think after about the 3rd 22 went into the sand, dad said something like "It's a free beach, and thank God for that..."

I'm pretty sure we were packed up and headed home before the cops showed up. At least no one went to jail.

So watch it when you start to mouth off. You might run into someone I'm related to brother...

/pig

 

I usually drive 75 to 85 on expressways, in the daytime when the roads are dry. I rarely get stopped by police -- it has been years since the last time.

Here's some possible reasons:

(1) I don't have a red car, that is, an eye-catching, infuriating, ticket magnet. Red cars, particularly powerful ones, are designed to make other people curse at them. Police officers are human and respond to this, so red cars get a wildly disproportionate amount of attention from law enforcement.

(2) Nowadays, going 80 on an expressway is no big deal. There are people out there driving well over 90. Police parked in the median with radar guns ignore you, because they're waiting for that guy, and he'll be there any moment now.

(3) Severe budget cuts in this state mean fewer police -- that's not a good thing, but it's the reality. Meanwhile, traffic volume keeps growing. Even if the local population is decreasing, miles driven per person per year is up tremendously year after year.

(4) Since the speed limit for trucks is lower, and the fines are much higher, the most revenue-enhancing policing strategy is to ignore cars and focus on trucks. Moreover, a close look at a stopped truck is likely to turn up even more violations, piling on even more fines.


(Note: almost 100% of my driving is in-state. None of this applies to California, where I have zero driving experience.)

 

If we are talking about a speed differential of an individual driver. Regardless of posted speeds, if one driver is seriously out of alignment with others, whether faster or slower, it can create a hazard. If everyone is within a few mph of each other, things tend to flow more smoothly.

 

No, it's not a safe way to assert yourself, and yes, it's stupid. There are people out there who carry loaded firearms within easy reach in their vehicles. In my state it's legal .

 

This is why a lower speed limit for trucks (as we have here on expressways) makes little sense.

 

Pass or effing BE passed. Move the hell over, or my lights will fire on the back of your skull!
Needless to say, I have a long commute. My therapist suggested I take the train.
--- merged: Dec 12, 2013 at 6:47 PM ---

It's not legal to shoot the gun at another driver, though.

 

My wife & I got caught in a road rage incident once. The guy followed us for 20 miles, doing every asshole thing possible--using his brights, blowing his horn, cutting in front of us, etc. At the time we didn't have cell phones. If my car had had power windows and my wife hadn't been in the car, I'd probably still be in prison. I had a loaded & cocked revolver in my lap when he decided to pull away.

 

been there before brother. white boy in a 4x4 with a trailer hitch. i've been SOOOOOO tempted to just stop and let me car take the grill off some guy trying to pop off.

my friend has an old 70's beater chevy that can (and has) run over things like parking meters. just get on his ass and see what happens.

 

First of all, trucks are huge. They tend to be seen by other drivers. They also tend to stick to the right lanes and not drive too erratically. But one of their big issues is their stopping distances. A new car at 70 mph will stop in 140-170 feet in perfect conditions. A truck loaded with 80000 lbs needs more like 500-600 feet at 70 mph. Big difference. Re your piece about red cars. I believe that is a myth. But if you have any studies showing otherwise please feel free to add them. But i think your comment about red cars being designed to infuriate others is a bit overblown.

 

I'm not avoiding our original question, but I'm mostly going on what I've been told by a state traffic engineer and admittedly light on citations (try searching for anything on safe speeds, it's a massive shitstorm of "think of the children" versus angry libertarians. ) They had a day to lobby the state legislature this year and one of the requests they made was for speed limits to be set by best practices rather than statutory limits. One of his big gripes is that limits are set at 50 or 55 when design allows for 70-75. I'll do my best to get you some hard statistics.

This is exactly what I was referring to in my previous post. My gripe isn't much with enforcement (although I don't think monetary penalties deter anyone from driving unsafely and the practice in CT of giving the nicest cars to troopers with the most tickets rubs me the wrong way,) it's with unrealistic limits that create an unsafe speed differential. The exception is the spot on I-95 in CT where the limit drops from 55 to 45 because that's what's safe for 45000 pound trucks where state troopers sit around the curve running radar every few weeks to run up their ticket counts. The design speed of that curve is only 65mph because of reduced sight line, but it's signed for 45.

 

@msd, thanks for responding. I fully agree roads should be set to the 85ty percentile. Consider that some of the limits were set 30-40 years ago and cars are much safer than they were during that time. However, people haven't changed, and there arw plenty who are just as irresponsible as they were 30 years ago. But now their cars are much faster.the fastest I was able to get my 1985 Subaru up to was an indicated 105 going down a huge interstate downslope. My charger tops out at just over 150. As far as deterring speeders, how would you recommend that? Money works. It hurts people and makes them pay attention. Lectures generally don't work on some people. For the record, I have not written anyone for less than 10 mph. Though I have given verbal warnings for less than that.

 

Resource-wise, I don't think that speeding should be a priority - it's only the extreme cases that are a serious safety problem and need to be immediately addressed- the biggest dangers are tailgating and weaving. I'm a huge fan of enforcement by aircraft, from up there it's easier to see who's going with the flow and who's the dangerous asshole. While I don't tend to follow the speed limit if the flow of traffic is faster, I don't tailgate, I don't weave unless I'm actively avoiding a safety risk, and I don't pass on the right unless it's clear that captain dumbass has no intention of moving out of the passing lane and I have enough of a sight line ahead and behind that I can see it's clear for me to do so and anyone sentient enough to get a driver's license can figure out what I'm doing because I actually use my turn signals.

 

Got a dui. Came off of someone driving with their high beams on. The vomit all over the inside and outside of his door was kind of a giveaway. A dui is a good weekend (for me).

 

I bet that was a sight. Gross.

 

A few mornings ago we lost one of our patrol cars. Fortunately our trooper wasnt seriously injured. He was on the shoulder on a motorist assist. Had his overheads on, on a 55 mph highway. He was rear-ended by a young motorist.