Driving Sighting on Myself

[Kogarashi]

::hangs head::

Just got back from dropping Hubby off at the train station for an evening event he has in another town. It's nights like tonight that really remind me why I don't like driving in cities.

There was a ton of traffic on the road outside the train station, including a line to get into the station's mini-lot for dropping off and picking up passengers. Hubby instead found a spot on the far side of the wide road (two lanes each way) where he could safely pull over, he hopped out, and crossed the street when the coast was clear. I got in the driver's seat, turned on my left blinker to rejoin the flow of traffic, and waited for an opening.

After a few cars, I saw a taxi in my sideview mirror that was slowing down, which would leave me a gap large enough to fit into. So I took it.

So, apparently, did a car in the other lane going the same way. They managed to stop in time, thank goodness, and laid on their horn (I'll accept that I deserved it), and I made sure to keep going so as not to completely block traffic. I swear, I saw no blinker on that car. I had no clue, and still have no clue, whether or not the taxi was slowing for me or for the car in the other lane.

And then on the way home, I pull into the left-turn-only lane to turn onto our residential street. I had just barely missed the protected left, so I pull slightly into the intersection to wait for a gap in the oncoming traffic so I can make my left on the regular green light. As I'm waiting, a vehicle coming the opposite direction turns into the other left-only lane, sans blinker. I think nothing of it, since a large majority of the people in this area don't bother signalling, especially when they're in obvious turn-only lanes.

That is, I think nothing of it until a gap in the oncoming traffic appears, I start to make my turn, and the other vehicle pulls out of its left-only lane to go straight instead. I'm going to catch it from my husband later if he hears our two-year-old repeating what I shouted at the other car, even if it was very mild as far as you guys' standards go. To keep the other car from hitting me, I gave my car more gas to finish the turn quicker, since I was already halfway through the turn and stopping would've just left me in the other car's path.

I hate it when other people don't signal.

[Summerfly413]

I had a bad driving experience the other night.
I was coming up to a 3 way stop, and was turning left. I came to a complete stop. I saw another car coming up to the stop across the street. They were going a little fast, but some people make quick stops. I proceeded to turn very slowly, watchng the car. They didn't even hesitate at the stop, they just kept going, and stopped feet from my car that was in mid turn across the intersection. I hit my horn for a good 20 seconds and then went on my way.
Scared me!

[otakuneko]

Where's the self-sighting? All I see is other drivers sucking.

[iradney]

Is your self-sighting because you don't have ESP??

[PepperElf]

yeah... how can it be a self sighting when the other driver didn't use his turn signal? and then was rude to you by blasting the horn.

you saw an opening, used your turn signal.... but you're in the wrong still?

the other driver is just an ew-driver

[One-Fang]

I agree with the others - no self sighting here. In the second case it's clear - they were in the wrong lane. In the first case, it's extremely unlikely that you could see the indicators of a vehicle in the right-of-two lane while you're on the left edge of the road. The other vehicles would've blocked that. It's the other driver's fault for not ensuring the lane he wanted to move into was clear - since you were in front of him he could see you and could have been expected to realise that car pulling out would take that gap.

Sucky driverage today - Mr Fang was running a duathlon, that included a bit where runners had to cross the entry driveway to the sports centre. I don't know why there wasn't a marshal there today, somewhat stupid on the organisor's part. But the suckage goes to two drivers:

One simply didn't stop, right as Mr Fang was coming up. Okay, it wasn't terribly close, nobody got hit, and he didn't even really have to slow down, but it was definitely TOO CLOSE. The car should have stopped.

The other was a driver, while I was waiting for Mr Fang to show up, who stopped and waved the runners through. However, they pulled up to the spot real quick and slammed on the brakes. Naturally, all the runners thought the car was going through, and very nearly stopped. When you're on an endurance race it sucks to have someone make you stop and have to take off again. Sure, they waved them through, but it would have been soooo much more considerate to simply slow down a bit earlier, making it clear they were going to stop and the way would be safe.

Sigh.

[Kogarashi]

The first is the self-sighting. The second was just a bonus.

I called it a self-sighting because I honestly don't know if the other car was signalling to take the space, or if the taxi was letting them in instead of me. I don't know how far behind me the other car was, so I don't know if they saw my blinker anymore than I saw theirs. And I pulled out a little fast, so as not to hold up traffic, which probably gave the other car little reaction time. I could quite easily see that other driver posting on here about how they were merging after someone left them a gap and some yahoo parked on the side of the road suddenly cut them off.

It certainly didn't help that it was both dark and very rainy.

That second car has no excuse, in my book. Especially for not signalling either the original intent to turn left (if there ever was intent) nor their sudden change of mind to go straight instead. Shame on them. Panic on me (two-year-old in the backseat).

One-Fang, I hate it when drivers roar up to a place they should stop and then slam on their brakes at the last moment. It always sends me into a panic when they do that at stop signs/lights, because I can never tell if they're going to run the stop or not. It happens often enough in this city.

[Gerrinson]

We have a lot of drivers here that use the turn only lanes to either go straight or to pass slower traffic.

We have a 2 lane road that cuts down to one lane straight and one turn only. People are always skipping the line for going straight by getting into the turn only and blocking it until the light changes, then going straight.

And further north, where it goes from 1 lane to 2, the beginning of the second lane is left turn only. People just hop out there and go straight on through using it to pass slower traffic. Waiting 50 ft for it to actually become a passing lane is apparently too difficult. Especially when I'm right behind the slower person and attempting to pass them (using the actual passing lane) and then almost get rear ended by some yahoo zipping straight through the turning only lane.

[powerboy]

I hate it when other people don't signal.

Same here. The other night I almost died. Dammit, no doing the happy dance, looking at you. But I made a right turn, when there was a gap in the traffic coming. As I get up to speed, a SUV decided that he wanted to turn into a parking lot right then. Never mind the fact that I was right there. So he got into my lane without using a blinker and him slowing way down. So I had to slow wayyyyy down. I laid into the horn and he stopped after got into the parking lot and got out and acted like wanted to fight

[telecom_goddess]

::hangs head::

Hubby instead found a spot on the far side of the wide road (two lanes each way) where he could safely pull over, he hopped out, and crossed the street when the coast was clear. I got in the driver's seat, turned on my left blinker to rejoin the flow of traffic, and waited for an opening.

I hate it when other people don't signal.

Now this is something I don't get.....I see people do it every day. Two people in car, the driver gets out and the passenger then moves into the driver's seat....why doesn't that person just drive in the first place instead of doing all this switching around crap? It seems silly to me.

[Kogarashi]

For me, it's often because I don't like driving in cities. I'm a country girl, used to windy country roads, and Hubby is city-bred and far more comfortable driving in them. I'm also lazy in a lot of instances and prefer not to drive if I don't have to.

[Broomjockey]

It may also be a long trip, and someone's concentration starts wavering. Or maybe one driver knows one area really well, and another knows a different area. Easier to switch rather than direct.