There's 3 threads on here today already dedicated to bad driving - and I see it on a daily basis (as I'm sure many of us do) - but what's causing it?

Impatience? Poor knowledge of highway code? Arrogance? Ignorance?

Some people seem to genuniely believe that they have the indestrucable powers of Captain Scarlett!! And I can't honestly say it's restricted to one type of car.

On the way home from work I can almost understand - but usually the worst driving I see is on the way to the office - are these people so dedicated to their jobs that they'd risk life and limb just to get there?

It seems to be getting worse and worse - or has it always been bad and I'm just getting older and older...?

 

interesting query...

personally i believe its a combination of many things such as training and experience (or lack thereof), reflexes, vision, roadsense, character...

but i believe of all these and the umpteen more we could (and probably will) think of, the main reason is lack of consideration for other road users...

weve probably all had a moment where weve caused ourselves to apear as 'bad' drivers to others though surely...?

even PSL...?!

 

I don't think it's limited to driving, people are aggressive and harsh to eachother wherever they are. I commute and I see terrible behaviour every day, people just don't seem to give a sh*t about anyone but themselves anymore.

 

Sorry, I am a superb driver ...............

The problem these days is that everyone thinks that everyone else is an **** and shouldn't be on the roads!!

It's a traffic congestion problem - the quicker the £5 a litre petrol price arrives, the better!! I want the roads clear for me and other well off expert drivers.

Pete

 

IMO it's because road safety has been distilled down to "don't break the speed limit", as long as you stick to that, you can pretty much do anything else you like.

 

I'd agree with that.
Remember Top Gear was talking about it last year. They showed (actor) being drunk/drugged up behind the wheel of a Focus RS doing 29mph, and a old Granny doing 35mph.
Granny gets flashed, fined etc. Another criminal brought to justice, while boozed-up/drugged-up lout is a fine upstanding member of the community.

Bobby's back on the road stamping down on bad (not just fast) driving.

Plus, I would personally like to see the driving test much, much harder. I would be quite willing to take the tougher test. Anyone, like probably most of us on here who are pretty good drivers should have nothing to fear from it. Those who we know quite clearly shouldn't be on our roads will be stopped from doing so.
Custodial sentences for those who are uninsured, no tax, no mot, no license, should be applied. Not just a £100 fine.

 

Greedy impatient southerners,thats who i blame.Well,when im down south that is.

 

Women.

 

True - but most of us would acknowledge we'd screwed up - maybe with an apologetic wave. There's plenty of mention in the threads today - and I've seen it myself - where the driver that screws up and forces you to brake/ swerve then hurls abuse at you as well.

I'd agree with that too - I spent a year commuting to central London - never again! It wasn't the journey that put me off, it was the other commuters! Rude, agressive, and lord help you if you stood in 'their' spot on the platform - or took 'their' seat!

 

The only thing thats caused me to drive badly is when I 1st met my girlfriend she gave me head at 90mph. I defy anyone not to swerve all over the place!!

 

Last week waiting on a 3-deep platform at Oxford Circus, I was about to step onto the tube that arrived when I was pushed a foot sideways by some woman in a business suit telling me she was "there first"

 

The causes of deplorable driving should be manifest to all but the interminably dull. Gender must as surely play a role as mental faculty and manual dexterity. Women given to driving must assay their skills at the wheel of a motor carriage lest their time be better utilised in front of the washing rack and mangle.

 

I still can't forget the time I was on my way home from work, on a two way road which is always busy and never moves because of traffic. I came to a downward hill that goes into the town I live I was rolling down the hill slow because the traffic wasn't going anywhere infront of me anyway and some women nutter pulled out and tried to over take me!? This road was rammed with traffic she wasn't going anywhere because of the traffic infront of me so why do it and put other peoples lifes in danager!? If a car had come up the other way she could have caused a massive crash!

I was so mad I wanted to punch her but the guy behind me jumped out and went bonkers instead. What annoyed me is that she was sticking her fingers up at me and shouting abuse!! I was just thinking it could have been my family coming up the other way!

Carla..

 

Come again?

 

Not a problem - women can multi-task so using a mangle and driving at the same time present no major problems.

I've also never understood people putting their lives - and more especially - others lives at risk for the sake of being 1 or 2 cars ahead. There was another dreadful crash this weekend killing 6 people - bad driving isn't just anoying - it's also lethal. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cumbria/5097302.stm

Stevecotton - I can well believe it - I hurt my foot quite badly and was hobbling trying to get from Marylebone to Picadilly Circus in the rush hour and was pretty much stampeded out of the way every day - often with people cursing and swearing as they had to veer around me. I'd walk tight to the wall and I promise I'm not a big person - but the lack of any sort of patience and understanding was incredible.

 

Pure selfish agression DBW!

Les

 

Immigration. Pure and simple.

 

Agree, also due to the often unrealistic limits with cameras everywhere (and generally more vehicles), traffic is built up wherever you go and so the less patient drivers do try and make time up where they can.

 

I'm not surprised. I once slipped on wet stairs and badly bruised my ankle at Seven Sisters tube, thought I'd broken it. Shuffled to the side of the stairwell to inspect the damage. About 100 people saw me fall really badly and sit there in a lot of pain, not one person stopped to ask if I was ok.

2 minutes later as I'm still sitting on the stairwell some do-gooder offers me a handful of coins, she thought I was begging

 

Sounds about right - did she give you enough for some neurofen and a bandage....?

 

Little people aswell,like midgets,they cant even reach the pedals!!

 

I was confused at first But no, just another free ride to the hospital in an ambulance, my second in 3 months that year

God I hate people.

 

I believe if you look at society as a whole - lots of poeple lack basic common sense (eg: queuing mentality), with an increasing dependancy on someone or something to tell them what to do and how to do it. As a result, they lack the thinking "outside of the box".

Think about it more deeply - how many jobsworth do you meet? How many people do you know who aren't capeable of doing their job properly, who have self inflated self worth, thinking the world owes them something?

Do you ever question the reasoning as to why you are told to do something, or why certain rule or regulation applies? Or do you just accept it because its there?

You see, some of it trickles down to the thought patterns associated in driving. A signs say do 30mph. But WHY 30mph? If there is a solid no overtaking line, does it mean no overtaking and nothing more?

I could carry on:

If a vehicle 4 cars infront of your starts braking, do you carry on as before until the car directly infront to brakes? Or did you even notice the vehicle 4 cars ahead was braking?

Do you block junctions in heavy traffic? theres a space infront of you, so you just fill it, right? I mean, is moving 15ft further foward really that important to you?

When on motorways, do you do what speed everyone else does, speed up, slow down, speed up? Then why moan about your cars fuel consumption? Or do you pick a speed and stick at it - traffic prevailing, of course.

Upon seeing an obstruction, junction, traffic, island or whatever that means you have to slow right down or stop, do you bumble along at 60mph then wait until your close enough and brake. Then stay sationary with your foot held on the brake pedal until you can pull away again? Do you every wonder why your discs warp and pads wear out? Or do you, upon seeing the need to stop ahead, start to slow down, using engine braking, and gently brake to a fast running pace 100 yards short of the junction, island or obstruction so you can time a gap in traffic allowing you to pull away without out the need to stop and stay stationary?

Simple thinking. Which the average numpty driver does not use. No matter what their level of intelligence is.

 

Well said! Some days I dream of moving to a desert island away from all this madness! No cars, no nutters, no nothing!

 

Two words - DRIVER ATTITUTUDE (Re road craft)

If you have the right attitude .......you will take you thumb out of your **** and get your self trained to drive defensively.

A fairly simple concept...However beyond the grasp of most of the populus who seem to think they have some kind of magic forcefield around them....untill they kill some one.

Steve

 

If there is a rule, or someone tells me to do something, of course I will question it initially, I am sure there are not many around who won't do that. I my case if it is sensible I will follow it quite happily.

Les