Atlanta drivers are one of the worst!Lets make it a felony (construction, school)

[sedimenjerry]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Here is one study that sticks on the Millennials.

But in my opinion there are terrible drivers in all age groups. Folks need to slow down and pay attention.

Millennials, Not Teens, Are the Most Dangerous Drivers

Teens still cause the most wrecks. They have very strict penalties for doing anything wrong so it's no surprise they text less than 20 somethings that are more experienced and aren't under watchful eyes of parents all the time.

[samiwas1]

Originally Posted by Gunion Powder

Atlanta was in the top 10 for automobile-pedestrian deaths from 2003-2012.
https://www.wired.com/wp-content/upl...ous-cities.png

The posts in this thread are reflective of a pro-car attitude you'll find throughout the Sunbelt and other autocentric cities. Neither man nor beast shall impede the precious flow of traffic.

I don't know how the "Pedestrian Danger Index" is calculated, but Atlanta appears to have a lower per-capita pedestrian death rate than cities lower on the list.

And also, how is the "percent of people commuting by foot" figured? The number of people commuting to work? Because Orlando has a LOT of people milling around on foot, but they very well may not be considered in the commuting numbers since they are going from hotel to restaurant, and not heading to work.

[gold15]

Several times on city streets THIS WEEK, I've witnessed drivers turning onto a road perpendicular to the one they are traveling on, from a CENTER lane (not a curb lane). It's like "OOPS, this is my intersection, let me just swing the steering wheel and let the chips fall where they may."

I'm not claiming this is unique to Atlanta, but I 'clare I wish a ticket or two were written around this stuff.

That, and turning without signaling.

D*mn everyone behind and around me, this is all about me.

Though it's dangerous, the number of cars that proceed through a traffic signal after it turns red is almost laughable. Not for the danger, of course, but watching 4 to 5 MORE cars go after the red amazes me.

In 18+ years of living here, I've yet to see blue lights follow any of these occurrences.

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by gold15

Several times on city streets THIS WEEK, I've witnessed drivers turning onto a road perpendicular to the one they are traveling on, from a CENTER lane (not a curb lane). It's like "OOPS, this is my intersection, let me just swing the steering wheel and let the chips fall where they may."

I'm not claiming this is unique to Atlanta, but I 'clare I wish a ticket or two were written around this stuff.

That, and turning without signaling.

D*mn everyone behind and around me, this is all about me.

Though it's dangerous, the number of cars that proceed through a traffic signal after it turns red is almost laughable. Not for the danger, of course, but watching 4 to 5 MORE cars go after the red amazes me.

In 18+ years of living here, I've yet to see blue lights follow any of these occurrences.

Yeah, I see that center lane turn all the time also, and it's freaking frustrating.

What bothers me is that so many people don't know where they're going, or how to get there. Or aren't aware of their route, aren't putting themselves in the correct lane well before they get to that intersection.

Probably distracted drivers.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by gold15

Several times on city streets THIS WEEK, I've witnessed drivers turning onto a road perpendicular to the one they are traveling on, from a CENTER lane (not a curb lane). It's like "OOPS, this is my intersection, let me just swing the steering wheel and let the chips fall where they may."

I'm not claiming this is unique to Atlanta, but I 'clare I wish a ticket or two were written around this stuff.

That, and turning without signaling.

D*mn everyone behind and around me, this is all about me.

Though it's dangerous, the number of cars that proceed through a traffic signal after it turns red is almost laughable. Not for the danger, of course, but watching 4 to 5 MORE cars go after the red amazes me.

In 18+ years of living here, I've yet to see blue lights follow any of these occurrences.

One thing that does seem unique to Atlanta is people doing left turns thinking they have right of way over people doing right turns from the opposite direction. If not for driving defensively, I probably would have been in a half dozen accidents over that.

Another thing that is unusual in Atlanta is people driving on the wrong side of the road for long distances to get to the left turn lane. That is really common in the Cheshire Bridge to Clairmont and North Decatur to I-85 area.

[primaltech]

Originally Posted by bu2

One thing that does seem unique to Atlanta is people doing left turns thinking they have right of way over people doing right turns from the opposite direction. If not for driving defensively, I probably would have been in a half dozen accidents over that.

Sometimes the right turner has a yield sign, which means the left turner has the ROW. This is actually the case for a number of intersections around the metro, particularly where there's a merge with low visibility.

But yes, a lot of (bad) drivers probably don't know who has the default ROW in that instance, when there's no yield sign for the right turner. That or they don't care, and just plow right through.

[CCATL]

Originally Posted by gold15

Several times on city streets THIS WEEK, I've witnessed drivers turning onto a road perpendicular to the one they are traveling on, from a CENTER lane (not a curb lane). It's like "OOPS, this is my intersection, let me just swing the steering wheel and let the chips fall where they may."

I'm not claiming this is unique to Atlanta, but I 'clare I wish a ticket or two were written around this stuff.

That, and turning without signaling.

D*mn everyone behind and around me, this is all about me.

Though it's dangerous, the number of cars that proceed through a traffic signal after it turns red is almost laughable. Not for the danger, of course, but watching 4 to 5 MORE cars go after the red amazes me.

In 18+ years of living here, I've yet to see blue lights follow any of these occurrences.

I bike to work, and basically see this daily. I NEVER go right when the light turns green, because almost every time I'm at an intersection, I see multiple people trying to go through the red light before the light on the other road turns green. This is especially the case for green turn arrows. Everyday at the corner of Decatur St/Jesse Hill (where Grady is), I watch this happen. Even worse, most of the time, these people end up blocking the intersection because they tried to get through a green light "before" it turned red and just sit in traffic in the middle of the intersection. I have never once seen a cop pull someone over for going through a light or blocking an intersection/crosswalk in this town.

WHY IS TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT HERE SO TERRIBLE?????? I feel like I'm becoming an angry old man about this stuff, but I've never seen it this bad in other cities. Nobody ever gets pulled over here, it's maddening.

[gold15]

Originally Posted by CCATL

Even worse, most of the time, these people end up blocking the intersection because they tried to get through a green light "before" it turned red and just sit in traffic in the middle of the intersection. I have never once seen a cop pull someone over for going through a light or blocking an intersection/crosswalk in this town.

WHY IS TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT HERE SO TERRIBLE?????? I feel like I'm becoming an angry old man about this stuff, but I've never seen it this bad in other cities. Nobody ever gets pulled over here, it's maddening.

I haven't seen it this bad either. I'm with you, if drivers saw cops quickly roll-up behind some of these violators to pull them over, or even if some of us violated the rules, got pulled, and were subsequently able to tell coworkers/friends/neighbors, "Man, I got pulled over this morning for doing XYZ," there may be some tempering of the behavior.

But alas, as you stated, zero enforcement.

I too get a little frustrated at the self-importance and disregard for others, but also that these people don't seem to realize they might be cutting 45 seconds off of their trip. It's just not that serious.

When it comes to the turning onto a cross-street from a thru lane, I've really gotten to the point that I think a lot of drivers think that's a legit move.

I was originally licensed in NC where driver education ("driver's ed") was required up until age 18. Post 18, you could just study the signs and sit for the multiple-choice test. Since the prevailing culture was to get your license ON your 16th birthday, it was a big deal.

I hear quite a few younger people today aren't as excited about driving on eligibility Day 1, and some of them may be foregoing driver's ed. Of course over time, they just become drivers and not 'younger drivers'.

https://dds.georgia.gov/driver-educa...ed_links-576-0

Am I required to take a driver education course to obtain my Class D driver’s license?

It depends on your age at the time you apply for your Class D Georgia Driver’s License. If you are 16 years of age, you will be required to show proof that you successfully completed a driver education course approved by the Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS). In addition, you must have completed a total of 40 hours of supervised driving, 6 hours of which must be at night. If you are age 17 or older, you will not be required to show proof that you completed a driver education course. However, you will still be required to have completed a total of 40 hours of supervised driving, 6 hours of which must be at night.

“Supervised driving” refers to driving experience obtained under the supervision of an individual that is at least 21 years old, possesses an unexpired Class C Driver’s License, is seated next to the driver at all times while he or she is driving, and is capable of exercising control over the vehicle if necessary.

No log is required for supervised driving.

[toll_booth]

Originally Posted by SAAN

The only solution to metro Atlanta wreckless drivers at this point is many unmarked police cars in traffic and having the word get out, and that will stop much of the stuff you see on the expressways daily.

The other solution to speeding is speed cameras, just like they have on the DC beltway and other areas of the nation, that would pretty much put and end to the 80-100mph drivers on 285 and other expressways that rip in and out of lanes to maintain that speed.

I honestly dont think law enforcement cares in metro Atl anymore about safety. When the speed limit was 55, cops would clock people every other day, but since it was raised to 65mph, I hardly ever see any cops clocking anymore, out side of a few on 400, but thats still every couple of weeks. Even Doraville Police dont seem as active on 285 anymore.

I remember when a Doraville cop perched on the Peachtree Industrial-285 bridge was almost a daily feature.

I'm glad the maximum speed limit was raised to 65 there, but I wish cops would more strictly enforce aggressive and distracted driver laws.

[bmw335xi]

Every city has a thread about their area having the worst drivers lol