Why do people keep trying to drive into me??

[Food Lady]

This is the second time this has happened in the mall circle as I was going to my store. The only difference is that this time I didn't get hit. There is a T intersection on the way in and I someone was in the left turn lane as I pulled up in the right turn lane. I had to slam on my brakes so hard that the anti-lock kicked in. Why? The huge SUV thing was trying to drive into my lane. I managed to get through and turn and go on my way without being hit. But as I was driving away from the scene of the almost accident, I saw that car behind me. The driver had decided to go ahead and make that right turn from the left turn lane anyway.

[Seanette]

Sounds like the police should be taking an interest in this intersection as a public safety hazard.

[Food Lady]

Well, the other one was on the other side of the mall. I just don't understand why this is a thing in this state. People don't signal nor look and it's just.... how they do things here.

[notalwaysright]

Food Lady, twice in one day I had people try to hit me. Unless I'm crazy, if I'm turning right, and a person is turning left, I have the right of way even if the other car was there first. So I come up to a stop sign, wanting to turn right onto the main road. Another car is waiting to turn left onto this same road. When there is a break, I make my turn. I see the other has made the left turn, and I have to speed up to avoid them turning into me. I'm fairly sure they are supposed to yield to me, even though they arrived at their stop sign first. Hopefully?? (this was not a four-way stop)

The same day I was trying to get out of the grocery store parking lot, and some lady in a mini van turns left in front of me. I had no stop sign, I was just driving straight. She was turning very very unsafely into my lane. What makes it worse is that the lane she was cutting across is the lane that cars use to get into the grocery store parking lot. So it's super busy. Hope you didn't have your kids in the van with you, lady!

[wolfie]

People are idiots, ignoring the presence of other vehicles. I've seen on one of these " worst drivers" reality shows footage from a police dashcam. Officer gets out of the car to approach the driver he pulled over, looks over his shoulder, and dives over the guardrail - immediately followed by the camera's point of view whirling around. Yep, somebody drove onto the shoulder and didn't see a police car with its lights flashing. The guy who was originally pulled over probably got a warning - cop had bigger fish to fry.

Couple years ago, a brand new luxury SUV (salesman was taking a customer for a test drive) changed lanes to get around traffic backed up from a gas station, without looking to see if the next lane was clear. It wasn't - I was there. Minor cosmetic damage for me, every panel on the left side of his vehicle ripped open by the wheel studs on my steer tire. Still, it delayed me enough that I missed my delivery appointment. How can someone not see an 18 wheeler in the next lane?

[bainsidhe]

This is a thing everywhere, unfortunately. Although certain businesses seem more prone than others, and I'm not surprised your mall parking lot is one of them. People tend to either
1) Not pay attention
2) Are impatient

Leaving the gas station this morning, I was waiting for traffic to clear so that I could make a left turn. The large pickup behind me didn't like waiting, so he cut around my left side to make a right turn in front of me. Fortunately traffic hadn't cleared yet, otherwise I might have been pulling out just as he turned in front of me.

[Pixelated]

I think some people don't recognize things outside their little worlds as actual objects (or people). I saw a woman calmly roll through a stop sign at a local mall the other day and nearly hit an incoming vehicle. If they had collided, I'd have been more than happy to pull off to one side and volunteer myself as a witness. The damn stop sign has been there for YEARS. She had no excuse at all for her actions.

[Food Lady]

If they had collided, I'd have been more than happy to pull off to one side and volunteer myself as a witness.

This warms my little heart. EWism doesn't just happen inside the stores but on the streets as well.

[raw1989]

Sorry I had someone back into my mini van that was dark blue for crying out loud but last night I almost ran someone over if your doing 50 on the interstate in the fast lane when the speed limit is 65 and everyone is doing 80+ I might just run you over now with that said get OUT of the fast lane.

[Pixelated]

... last night I almost ran someone over if your doing 50 on the interstate in the fast lane when the speed limit is 65 and everyone is doing 80+ I might just run you over now with that said get OUT of the fast lane.

I'm one of those slower drivers although I don't ever drive THAT far below the limit. But believe me, I used to stay in the right-hand lane whenever I was on a high-speed highway. Even when I was on the older highways (two-lane ones) I used to be quite happy to pull over if traffic built up behind me, and let everybody else go past.

notalwaysright, in the last accident I was involved in, the woman DID have her kids in the car. I was on a one-way street, heading for an intersection; she was backing her van out of a parking space at a curve in the road, right beside a school. Because it was a one-way road and because I was going to make a left turn at the intersection, I was further to the left than I would have been otherwise. She backed up, apparently without looking, because *WHAM* -- right into the driver's side of my car. I wasn't injured, but I could barely get the damn door open to get out and trade info. She kept pleading with me not to get insurance involved ("My husband will cover the repairs!") Yeah, no, lady. Your hubby might ... then again, he might not.

[An Haddock]

It must be your....


magnetic personality.

[Ophbalance]

Food Lady, twice in one day I had people try to hit me. Unless I'm crazy, if I'm turning right, and a person is turning left, I have the right of way even if the other car was there first. So I come up to a stop sign, wanting to turn right onto the main road. Another car is waiting to turn left onto this same road. When there is a break, I make my turn. I see the other has made the left turn, and I have to speed up to avoid them turning into me. I'm fairly sure they are supposed to yield to me, even though they arrived at their stop sign first. Hopefully?? (this was not a four-way stop)

Actually, doesn't matter if it's a 4 way. It's whomever arrives first. At least it is in NC. The drivers handbook might clarify for your state.

[notalwaysright]

Actually, doesn't matter if it's a 4 way. It's whomever arrives first. At least it is in NC. The drivers handbook might clarify for your state.

I've been looking for a definitive answer to this situation, and I must need to brush up on my google-fu because it's been hard. Because yes, if it was a four way stop, then the oncoming car would have had the right of way. But we were both turning from side streets onto a main street which does not stop. My whole driving life I've always thought that the right turn would go first, because the left hand turn could have additional traffic that they need to wait for. This is the closest article I've found, and it's not from my state. However, it does show that this is apparently a very confused issue, even for police! I will keep looking, because I'm really curious.

[raw1989]

here if u pull up to a stop sign at the same time the person the to right goes first per the hand book however we all know in the real world that does not happen.

[Jetfire]

There should be something in the handbook, since it is a 2 way stop with through traffic. The general rule of thumb is "Whoever gets to the stop first goes." but as you pointed out, the person turning right might get the break in traffic before the person going left.


As for magnetic vehicles, this happened in my city last Friday. I wasn't on that bus (but I had been on it 10 minutes before).

From what I saw on FB, it was probably yellow light racing. The bus was trying to get through before the light went red, and the car coming out misjudged the bus's speed and thought they could make it. I'm not sure if that's what really happened since the car damage is awkward to recreate the incident from (I think it got pushed into a light pole and that's what smashed the side, but the way the car would be turning would put it on the other side of the island)

I haven't heard any further updates about that accident; but I could tell when I was out on Saturday, the bus drivers seemed a bit extra cautious.