YEILD! As in SLOW the **** down!

[tollbaby]

So how come these jerkwad truck drivers ride people's bumpers?

My VERY first time driving on a highway, it was raining, visibility sucked, and it was WAY windy (driving a yaris hatchback... I don't know why, but these damn things just SUCK the wind right towards them and weave all over the place). This truck literally rode my ass, going 90 (km, not miles... about 55 mph). The limit on that particular highway was 80km... finally, I was petrified. He'd been following me for about 20km, and I was scared spitless. I pulled over into a gas station and let him go by... so he blasts me with his horn. Ugh. First and last experience with a truck up my ass, thank you. (now I just get out of the lane so they can get by and then pull back in)

[Becks]

A car was at a yield sign...and waited...and waited...and waited for oncoming traffic to have a break in the action.

Finally, someone who was waiting a few cars behind for quite some time shouted, "It says yield, not SURRENDER!!!"

I say that on the entrance ramp to Route 3 every once in a while.

[myswtghst]

The one note I will make about large trucks, is that, to my knowledge (and one of my best buds in college had two truck drivers in the family, dad and step-dad, he's the one who told me this) is that trucks, as would make sense given their size, take a while to both slow down and speed up. They generally pick a speed and do their best to stay at that speed, often times by switching lanes and occasionally tailgating or cutting off cars, since that's slightly easier, and more realistic, than continually speeding up and slowing down. I pretty much just try to stay out of their way.

[repsac]

On the subject of lights, ever have one of those times when you thought the opposing car's lights were on bright, only to flash yours and find out the hard way that they were dimmed. Oh yes, I didn't need to see. Not at all...

[protege]

They KNOW they cant' stop. Why get behind me in the slow lane and ride my ass? Do they not care that they'll probably kill me and my baby if they hit us? I guess it doesn't matter to them, seeing as how they are driving the much larger vehicle and are therefore safer.

I had one do that to me once, some years back. I was heading back to school, about 50 miles away. At the time, parts of the highway were being "repaired." As I'm coming out of the last construction zone, this one truck just kept getting closer. I floored the Tercel, but he was literally on top of me. I'm doing over 90mph just to stay out of the way, and he kept getting closer. As soon as the road opened up, he passed me as I slowed back down to around 70mph. Not for long though--he was forced to slow down on the next hill, and I passed him again. And no, I was *not* doing 90mph then. Didn't see him again after that.

As you can tell, I don't like being around large trucks. I've seen firsthand the damage that they can do--some of you might remember me talking about Grandma's accident. For those who don't know, she was rear-ended by a gravel truck in '94. The impact forced her car into the path of a semi coming the other way. The semi couldn't stop, and hit her head on She survived, but the car was pretty well, fucked up. (At the scrapyard, when I took the tarp off, the engine fell on the ground!)

[Rahmota]

repsac: yes i ahve found that out the hard way too. Rather grumping when a person's dim is brighter than some peoples high beam.

As for big rigs. I've got to say they have to try and keep at a constant speed. Taking into consideration the ups and downs of the road, load, road conditions etc. And while there are quite a few good drivers its the bad ones that people recall the strongest.

[RailroadMonster]

bad drivers in parking lots.

Once while I was pushing carts in the parking lot some lady backed right into me.

[Imogene]

Going along with this if the sign says do not enter or one way and it is not pointing the way your car is pointing then maybe you shouldnt go there?

I've seen this very thing happen far too often in a parking lot where the lanes only go one direction. I'll be driving up a lane, and suddenly have to hit my brakes as I see someone barreling toward me (admittedly, usually at or around 25 mph, but still). I know I'M going the right direction. And it's not like there are lanes in that parking lot that go both directions!

[ladodger34]

After working at a high school for about 8 months, lemme tell.. the scariest place to drive is through the student parking lot.

A mental picture if you will.. since my classroom is out in the boonies (portables were added over the summer), we have an auxiliary parking lot. Unfortunately, it's just a fenced off section adjacent to the student parking lot. Once we get out of the fenced off area, it's pretty much a straight shot through the main gate to the street. A hundred yards or so before the gate, there is a right turn from another area of the parking lot.

I've learned to drive very carefully near this right turn. It is a rare day that any of the kids stop before they make the turn. A kid saw me today and still didn't stop. I swear, these kids haven't learned that you need to at least check for other cars before making a turn.

[Hemily]

On the subject of lights, ever have one of those times when you thought the opposing car's lights were on bright, only to flash yours and find out the hard way that they were dimmed. Oh yes, I didn't need to see. Not at all...

that happens every time i drive my dad's car, he has a 1990 Ford Bronco on 33" wheels, it's a bit tall car, so the lights are higher up, but they're adjusted within the legal parameters, to not blind people, but they still come off as a bit brighe because of the height, people start flashing their lights at me, so i flash back, and watch them weave and almost drive off the road... dad mounted two extra lights in the grille, two huge round 1000metres lights, wich is connected to the high beam.


On the topic of people who don't yield...

i hate pedestrians, simply because they're idiots, no walking isen't idiotic, but they keep thinking they have right of way, they'll pass the white stripes where they're supposed to go over the road, then wait til the biggest car they can find gets near, then jump out infront of it, acting all snotty because the car had to slam it's brakes to avoid the suicidal maniac... err.. i mean pedestrian.

cars yielding is just as bad, just yesterday, i had a car suddenly blast past the front of my car, he was supposed to yeild for me, and i recognized the car, a purple e21 BMW 323i... my best friends car... i called him and told him he's an idiot

[ahanix1989]

Student parking lot at the only high school in the area. I'm driving a fullsize van.

Principal says: For safety reasons, you have to have the front of the car facing in the stall
I say: It's dangerous for me to back out of the stalls that way.
Principal says: The police say you have to have the front of the car facing in the stall.
I say: It is unsafe to back out.

[Rapscallion]

i hate pedestrians, simply because they're idiots, no walking isen't idiotic, but they keep thinking they have right of way,

Oddly enough, in the UK the law is that pedestrians have the right of way over motorised vehicles on all roads save for motorways. Legally, a car has to yield.

However, cars have the right of weight.

Rapscallion

[IT Grunt]

Oddly enough, in the UK the law is that pedestrians have the right of way over motorised vehicles on all roads save for motorways. Legally, a car has to yield.

However, cars have the right of weight.

Rapscallion

It's the same way in the US, legally cars must yield to pedestrians. The problem is the idiots who think that simply because they do have the right of way, cars coming at them at speed can stop on a dime, for as you say, they have the right of weight.

For instance:

I'm driving down a city street, 25 MPH or so, and up ahead, about 100 yards I see somebody stepping out into the street. I've got plenty of time to stop. No issue here.

Then you have this scenario:

I'm driving down a city street, 25 MPH, and some braindead moron steps out from between two parked cars no more than a few feet in front of me. I don't know about anyone else's reaction time, but for me, he's road pizza. (This is theoretical, I've never hit anyone, but there's been some times where this has happened and I /barely/ had time to stop.)

Pedestrians need to realize that, yes, they have the right of way, but that doesn't mean they can expect cars to overcome Newton's laws of physics. An object in motion tends to stay in motion, and if you don't give said object plenty of time to stop, it's going to stay in motion right over you and leave a greasy smear in the process.

[LewisLegion]

I remember one accident I saw. Okay, who DOESN'T know that when turning right, a big transport semi has to swing far to the left in order to make the turn? Not to mention, all big trucks around here have huge yellow signs on their sides and back ends describing this necessity and how NOT to be cuddled up to their right hand side as they're making a right hand turn.

Well, this big truck was making a right hand turn. He was cocked because the light was red, in that distinctive, hard to miss C shape with blinker going madly indicating he is, in fact, making a right hand turn. Just before the light turned green a bronco decides they want to go straight through when the light turns green, from the right hand turn lane, that the truck is mostly occupying. The bronco actually drove half into the shoulder trying to cozy up to the truck, inching forward.

Light turned green, truck went forward in its turn, trailer hit the side of the bronco as it straightened out, dented the hell out of the side of the bronco, knocked off the mirror, scraped off all the paint, rocked the SUV and scooted it several feet into the shoulder and nearly into a ditch.

I don't think the truck even knew he hit anything. The SUV, as soon as the truck cleared, made a dangerous U turn and headed very speedily away in the opposite direction.

Yeah, bad enough you do something stupid to cause an avoidable accident like that, but then you run? Yeah, the truck didn't notice you, probably would not even realize he hit something at all, but dude, six of us are sitting at the stoplight behind you and just saw your stupidity in all its glory.

AND we saw it coming long enough to write down your idiotic license number. Not to mention that intersection has a camera.

Can you say busted for hit and run? I knew you could

Moral of the story...a big truck can crunch you like a tin can and sometimes not even feel a bump. Wise drivers give them wide berth and much respect.

[skeptic53]

the scariest place to drive is through the student parking lot.

Second scariest: hospital parking lot. Dear Hubby, who has done 99% of the driving for the 55 years they've been married, has a bypass operation or whatnot. Dear Wifey is coming to visit, piloting the 1966 Pontiac Bargemobile, barely able to see (looking through the steering wheel) and barely able to reach the pedals. She drives 2.5 mph down the middle of a 2-way access road, barely misses pedestrians in the marked crosswalk, bumps over the curb turning into the lot, sideswipes a brand-new Dodge Viper while parking, mixes up the brake & gas and crashed into the car parked facing her. Then she has a full-on panic meltdown and winds up in the ER herself.

True story, just the most dramatic example of dozens of similar near-disasters.