Honking old lady

[fma_fanatic]

This happened yesterday as I was leaving the grocery store. As I was pulling out of my parking space, a car came barreling up behind me and slams on the breaks, just narrowly missing hitting me. Glancing into my rear view mirror, I see it's a little old lady. The classic little old lady who can barely see over the steering wheel. Lovely.

As I pull up to the light, she pulls up behind me and starts honking on the horn. She wants to turn right and I'm going straight. The way the light is set up you can either go straight or right in one lane, left in the other. However there is no room to turn right if someone is first in line.

She stops honking on her horn and gets out of the car, hobbles up to my car and demands that I let her turn right. I roll down my window enough to tell her that I'm going straight, and that if she wants to turn right, she'll have to wait her turn. She gets mad and mumbles something and goes back to her car, and proceeds to honk her horn at me again. A few seconds later, the light turns green and I drive forward.

Honestly..if she'd wanted to get to wherever she was going so desperately, she could have gone to the other entrance/exit and gone that way.

[blas]

Oh my god, she actually got out of her car and went to scream at you?

What if the light had turned green, and she was standing there next to your car, with all the traffic behind her?

I can't believe how ballsy that was. You never know who is crazy and is packing something. Stay in your freaking car.

[Pagan]

She stops honking on her horn and gets out of the car, hobbles up to my car and demands that I let her turn right. I roll down my window enough to tell her that I'm going straight, and that if she wants to turn right, she'll have to wait her turn.

My response would have been, "And?....."

Or, "That's great. Just wait until the light turns green and you can."

[Exaspera]

Ah, that infamous headless driver.

[mikoyan29]

Back in the days of my stick shift that would be one of those times where I might suddenly forget how to balance the clutch and accelerator....

[LillFilly]

I hate that. I don't HAVE to turn right on red, especially if I'm 'concerned for my safety' Sometimes I'm tempted to just make them wait!

[ADoyle90815]

I hate that. I don't HAVE to turn right on red, especially if I'm 'concerned for my safety' Sometimes I'm tempted to just make them wait!

That's true, at one intersection, it's safest to wait for the light to turn green, as there's heavy traffic on that street, as well as people making perfectly legal U turns. If you're that much of a hurry, there's the parking lot you can cut through.

[fma_fanatic]

That's true, at one intersection, it's safest to wait for the light to turn green, as there's heavy traffic on that street, as well as people making perfectly legal U turns. If you're that much of a hurry, there's the parking lot you can cut through.

Yeah, this intersection is sort of this way because it's a main thoroughfare of sorts.

[PepperElf]

yep cos sometimes those people making right-on-red turns don't care to check if there's oncoming traffic with an advance-green light.


and i pissed off one guy back in va cos he was honking at me to go go go cos he wanted to make a right hand turn and i was just sitting there. i ignored him and when the light turned green i went straight.

[bhskittykatt]

I get honked at like that all the time...it's almost a weekly thing. I have to cross a main road to get to work. Most people are turning right. Sorry, I'm going straight. If they have a small car, they can usually squeeze by me (I pull as far to the left in the lane as I can, 'cause I'm nice like that), but if they're in a truck or SUV, sorry, you gotta wait!

[Exaspera]

Another example of selective knowledge. Yes, if you are allowed to go right on red, you can. However, only if there is no oncoming traffic! You don't just turn right in front of everyone.

[Jack7957]

Oh my god, she actually got out of her car and went to scream at you?

What if the light had turned green, and she was standing there next to your car, with all the traffic behind her?

I can't believe how ballsy that was. You never know who is crazy and is packing something. Stay in your freaking car.

Done that. It was a trucker though. Leaving the parking lot at work (large manufacturing facility) making a left turn towards the highway. It's a long green for the other direction, like 2-3 minutes. He got out of his truck to tell me I needed to pull forward to trigger the sensor. Since I work there I already know this. As he's telling me this, I point up towards the light and just say "lights green dude", move my foot from the brake to the gas, and left. I saw him pretty much sprint and jump into his cab in my rearview.