Gridlock Mikey

PEOPLE WHO CANNOT DRIVE SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO! :MAD:

I don't mean the odd neglect for the highway code or the odd "suspect" overtaking manouevre, I mean like some people can't do maths or can't swim.

I was behind someone today, don't know if they were young or old, male or female and had to follow them for 3-4 miles.

During that time, the route took in, Roundabouts, Dual carriageway, City stuff and a bit of M1.

Now i'm not saying that i'm the best driver in the world on the road, however, I do believe that hesitation and lack of confidence in a car is potentially LETHAL.

If someone is not confident or even scared when they take to the road, They should have thier license taken off them.

This person was in a new shape Mondeo. I do NOT tailgate cos it puts people off (and covers ya scoob in stone chips ) We approached a large open roundabout with ample visibility. Traffic clear, I check my mirror, look off to the right, brake, change down, mirror, BRAKE abs TIME.

PLONKER HAD TREATED THE ROUNDABOUT AS A STOP JCT. Dangerous.

Dual Carriageway, 50 - 60 mph. Lorry inside lane, Mondeo inside lane, Me inside lane calming down after the r'bout moment.

40-50yrds away, Mondeo indicates to go into outside lane, Manouveres, I do likewise, now doing 75mph, drop back to 70 to allow Mondeo to pass the Lorry, unhassled and return to the inside lane. Lorry is doing 70, Mondeo 70 me now getting slightly aggitated but still not up the Mondeo's **** (Dangerous remember).

Mondeo decides that he cannot overtake, Will NOT exceed 70 and brakes, quite hard, so that he can tuck back in behind lorry. I brake, 70-50 V.Quickly

He pulls in, I floor it to get passed this madness, keeps my eye on the Mondeo cos ov it's history and yep u guessed it, just as I approach the blindspot, he/she starts to pull out again to have another go at the lorry.

I beep, they do one ov them quick swerve things, then cos i'd braked, a tiny gap had appeared and Mondeo went for it, I let him/her in 'cos they were all over the place so i figured i'd back off and let them settle down. Mondeo suddenly realised that in all the kerfuffle (!) they were now doing 80mph. ANCHORS HARD ON, ME ANCHORS ON AGAIN
now getting pi55ed off.

Trapped behind them into Nottingham. The only way past would have been to do summat stupid, so didn't

1st set of traffic lights. Stops not at the line, but 15-20 meters from it! More unexpected anchor work.

The list of in decisive actions this buffoon is quite impressive, they include;

Lane wandering, Stopping to let traffic out when it's not thier right of way (Confuses the whole jct), outside lane ALL THE WAY round a roundabout. Being oblivious to the massive que of cars behind them and finally, after all that, when i did finally get a good safe opportunity ( Slip road onto the motorway) to get by.......They FLASHED ME

Should be shot all of them.

Old people I can deal with, they is old and they ain't as quick as they used to be. That makes sense. New Drivers, I can deal with. It's new and you're convinced that you is gonna cop for an accident.

Lack of road sense and confidence, no excuse for being on the road. They are dangerous, unpredictable and selfish.

I'm not just saying this cos me car is a quick one, this would have happened to me in any car.

If you CANT drive, bugger off and get the bus.

Remember, by can't drive I mean possess the basic skills to be aware of the road, car and your abilities to get to the supermarket, NOT possess the skills to "do" Colin Mcrae in the streets of Monte Carlo

If i've offended anyone, sorry. If you are reading this and are one of those indecisive drivers (With a scoob ) Get a grip or get a bicycle.

No doubt you will all tell me to calm down, be more mellow, take it easy, etc. Those people who know me, know that this ranting thing ain't my style, but this just had to get out.

CHEERS

MIKEY (Feeling better now)

p.s. Condolencies to anyone involved with the WTC incident.. MADNESS

Disco

Dont calm down Mikey, you are quite right to be angry. I know exactly what you mean.

ScoobySnack

Feel that sums it up pretty well then... ]

Considering all that I think you did pretty well....actually I'm not sure now....

Then again I might agree, or shall I not

I just can't make my mind up


J

Nimbus

Hi Mikey (or can I call you Gridlock )

Did you get the guys reg number? Sounds like a good case for reporting to the Police. These are just the sort of drivers who cause accidents (but don't seem to get caught in them themselves .

I'm supprised you managed to restrain yourself from getting out of your car and telling them the error of their ways.

Respect due for your obvious restraint mate.

RAver

Ain't it just the truth!!

I must say that the problem on the roads today is that there is no "test" or monitoring for concentration levels whilst driving. Speed is attacked with a vengance as the #1 public evil (with respect to WTC bombing comments by Mr Blair) whereas the real problem is that a lot of motorists are only giving the job a tiny amount of their brain.. It is for most just another routine daily task -done in autopilot mode I suspect..
I tend to like to drive enthusiastically but safely -however I nearly always have to limit my enjoyment these days and drive defensively in order to preserve my no claims record and car!
You really have to drive -concentrating FOR the other motorist these days!
I had a thought this morning coming to work, we ought to ban/fine any traffic that can't make reasonable progress down good roads in good visibility -say 60 mph minimum on inter-town roads, with limits lower through bends maybe.. (these would be minimum speeds not maximums) That would stop the w@nkers that hold everyone up doing 40mph on single carriageway national speed limit roads for feckin' mile after mile!! Maybe we could utilise the gatso's to catch those b@stards transgressing?!!
Also has anyone else noticed: as you drive a bit quicker how many c**ts coming the opposite way feel the need to use both sides of the road around bends to procede @ their stately 30-40 mph?????
Nice to know we haven't lost our sense of proportion in this period of crisis..
As you say "Rant Mode Off"

shunty

Gridlock Mickey - & the worst part about it, if you crashed into that motor or any other, what's the first thing anyone will say "it's one of them sporty cars, must be his fault"

I am a great analyser on the road (wife goes mad ) BUT I am sick of seeing people being led by mph limits, & not paying attention, reading the road ahead.

how many people do you see doing 40+ mph in a 40 limit with no houses, no parked cars on the road & a big straight line for as far as the eye can see (where they could safely do 50-60) THEN they are on another 40 mph road where its cars parked both sides, built-up area, & twisty stuff....they will still do 40+ mph

Imagine: you don't own a performance car & you see pics of a crash, 1 fiesta & 1 scoob....be honest, what's the average person gonna think straight away?

just my 2 penneths worth.

shunty

McMiata Man

Mikey, I agree with everything you say, absolutely no need to "mellow". We spend sooo much on running our cars or paying for morons who don't pay, it's only natural for us to get angry when some tw@t in front of us drives like they're wearing a blind-fold.

The ironic thing is that it's YOU that's made out to be the mad-man suffering from road-rage. I hate the whole "rage" labeling thing. If someone barges in front of you in the post-office queue is that post-rage, or if some-one selfishly slams a shop door in your face is that shop-rage. It's just human nature to get pi55ed off.

It's frightening how many things other drivers do that pi55 me off:

Sinaling right at a round-about then going straight on
Bunching up on "A" roads to prevent anyone else from over-taking
Crawling along a road looking for an address when there's traffic behind them
Clapped-out un-taxed motors belching poisonous fumes at you
Tail-gaiting me when there's traffic in front of me anyway!
Very old drivers who can hardly SEE! pulling out of junctions in front of you and NOT accelerating.

The list goes on and on.

I was a DOT driving instructor and I know for a fact that a lot of instructors are ONLY interested in getting pupils through their tests. After that they don't give a damn, it's just another success to mark in their books. So there's some fundemental driver training being missed here.

Getting back to the subject though, I have found that in that situation it's worth actually stopping your car and waiting for 10 minutes or going a completely different way, even if it takes longer.

At the end of the day it's YOU that will be made out to be the nutter!

I've fitted twin air horns to my MX5, it helps trust me

555 ADY 555

Sorry... [Mondeo driver]

DMB

Mikey

with you all the way on this one

Rikki23

The one thing that gets me more than anything, nervous drivers etc. are ignorant, uncourteous drivers.

Agreed: the nervous, hesitant drivers are a hazard and should not be on the roads. However it is the completely thoughtless, self-minded people that wind me up...

* Pulling out in front of you and making you brake when it is clear that there is nothing behind you for miles.

* Stopping at the roadside or turning in to a road/braking without indicating.

* Coming to a small section of dual carriageway and the person overtaking you then cutting you up to get back in, just to get one car ahead of you.

* driving 5 m from your rear bumper or for that matter from the car in front

* diving down the outside of you and cutting you up as roads filter from two lanes to one

* doing 65.5mph to overtake a car on the inside lane of a dual carriageway that is doing 65mph

grrrr...just a bit of thought and courtesy would go a long way

better stop there for now

ChrisB

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Bunching up on "A" roads to prevent anyone else from over-taking<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Exactly the sort of stuff we came across in Wales. Four cars doing 40 in a 60 limit.

Even in a Scooby, you can't always get all four, although two can be done safely. However, if you try it, you have to 'lean' on somebody to make space to get back on your side of the road.

I don't like doing this as it annoys them and I don't want reporting to the Plod even if they are partly responsible for the situation.

Does me nut.

ChrisB.

Orville

Since I've had a new baby I have really grown to notice and hate tailgaters. I do not drive slowly but always try to drive safely. Why is it that when you have a bright yellow Baby on Board sign on your back window t0ssers think they can intimidate you to drive faster/more dangerously for them. Last Sunday I was doing 40 in a 30 zone (with baby) and some 4rsehole was driving about 1ft behind me. So I slow down to 20 mph (to both annoy him and to make his/my life safer) and as soon as the first min roundabout appears I stop my car, get out, walk to his car and threaten to bash his head in if he gets within 20 feet of me again.

TaviaRS

There are 2 others which annoy the hell out of me, both involving junctions:
1. The inconsiderate g1t who pulls out in front of you when there is absolutely nothing behind you and then accelerates like a dog with no legs
2. The muppet (no offence intended to members of other fora!) who wants to turn right out of a junction, pulls accross ypour lane thus holding up your carriageway until there is a space for them to get out. Why do they get upset when you sit approx 1/2" from their drivers door and hoot, having emergency braked from the speed limit??

Rant over, thanks

Fosters

TaviaRS, re your point 2. I do that all the time. I make sure there's enough room for the lane I'm creeping into has enough room for approaching drivers to slow and stop safely.

If done correctly, it's a safer way to turn right onto a *busy* road. If it's not too busy or nose to tail, I wait patiently for a gap or a nice driver to make a gap.

mik

I don't know what you are all complaining about.....

If they kept under 70mph then they WERE - by definition - being completely safe. No wonder they panic-braked when they realised they had hit 80mph.....they KNEW that at 80mph you ARE unsafe.

Jeeeez.....don't you guys know it's speed that kills??

mutant_matt

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by Nimbus:
<B>Hi Mikey (or can I call you Gridlock )

Did you get the guys reg number? Sounds like a good case for reporting to the Police.[/quote]

Without wanting to sound offensive Nimbus M8 but, what planet are you living on???

Seriously, if you report stuff like this to the Police these days they just don't want to know - they will do NOTHING if you report bad driving/near misses etc.

They may take note if you report that they were speeding however

Matt

Adam M

Fosters I agree with you. I do that too.

It is a rule that you fail your driving test if you casue someone to brake at a point where they would not otherwise have needed to.

If turning right out of a junction, I always block the first lane, btu only if it is clear. If theer is no approaching driver when you block the lane, it is not a failure. It is actively encouraged and far more prudent. You do fail however if you block the lane of a car making good progress towards you.

TaviaRS

Fosters / AdamM,

Yep, agree that it is fine if there is nothing coming and you are impeding no-one. If that's the case I will let someone out into the traffic. Its just when they see you coming and then proceed to drive out that it gets me.
Jon

Nimbus

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by mutant_matt:
<B> Without wanting to sound offensive Nimbus M8 but, what planet are you living on???

Seriously, if you report stuff like this to the Police these days they just don't want to know - they will do NOTHING if you report bad driving/near misses etc.

They may take note if you report that they were speeding however

Matt [/quote]


If the driver was commiting a driving offence then surely it is a good reason to report them? Dangerouse driving, driving without due care and attention? Speeding isn't the only offence. Oh, and if you read Mikeys post, at one point they were doing 80mph, so you can report them for speeding as well

It sounds like this guy was an accident waiting to happen.

And another thing Matt. I did take offence

Veracocha

Why is it that the thought of those incompetant ****** gets up your nose so badly your blood just boils. I can't stand those useless idiots that cause crashes, stress, time, loss of hair etc etc. They are SCUM! SCUM! SKUM! The blank look they give you when they have just literally run you off the road and you are looking at them for some sort of apology. What do you get? An upturned nose! ****ERS!!!

Just needed to get that off my chest.

Gridlock Mikey

Cheers for not making me feel like a leper dudes. I thought it was just me

I was half expecting a barrage of abuse for intimidating a nervous driver or lack ov patience. I'm glad everyone seems to have got my point.

Scoobynet members ROCK

MIKEY

carl

LOL @ mik.

I agree with him. Surely the government must shoulder some of the blame for this sort of driver for creating an environment where it is seen as more dangerous to travel at 75 mph than it is to stamp on the brakes. How many people do you know who have been prosecuted for stamping on the brakes? (And if you hit them it's your fault -- you should have left adequate room according to the speed and conditions).

THOMO

mikey you have entered the longest post ever.number 1 .approx 200 words excellent.i fell to sleep trying to count.

yhe chod

I HATE DRIVERS WHO INDICATE RIGHT AT LIGHTS JUST BEFORE THEY TURN GREEN. I HATE DRIVERS WHO BRAKE LAST MINUTE BECAUSE THEIR NOT READING THE ROAD AHEAD[NOT CONCENTRATING].DRIVING SHOULD BE SMOOTH PROGREESS MINIMUM BRAKING ,READING THE ROAD AND KEEPING IT FLOWING MAN ITS A FEELING-ITS A PASSION FOR DRIVING YOUV"E EITHER GOT IT OR YOU HAVN"T PEAPLE WHO HAVN"T SHOULD BE DRIVING DERESTRICTED MILKFLOATS