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Do you think anyone that passes a driving test from the DMV in any of the states would be able to confidently drive and park anywhere in the United States? Specifically talking about busy urban areas like Manhattan, LA, DC, Chicago.
IMO, the hard part of driving in dense urban areas is not that there are people everywhere or whatever (that's just like driving in a large parking lot), it's making sure you're in the correct lane when you have a turn coming up ahead or your lane turns into a turn-only lane. In heavy traffic, your lane might be totally stopped while the lane next to you is zooming along at 30+ mph, which can make it dangerous to merge in. But this happens in non-downtown parts of cities and suburban areas too.
No. Driving in Manhattan is a culture shock to anybody who hasn't grown up in the area but in general driving in large cities is a different ball game than Algona, IA.
Immediately be confident anywhere? Of course not. As the previous poster mentioned, in areas with dense buildings and heavy traffic, you first need to become familiar with the layout or you will find yourself constantly missing turns, being on the wrong side of the road for your freeway entrance, etc.
It is difficult to get used to areas which are a maze of one-way streets, when you come from an area with few or no one-way streets. I speak from personal experience here.
On the other hand, I'm used to packed, multi-lane freeways moving at high speed, but I've also seen that people from less congested areas can be quite anxious about driving on LA freeways. I've even known a couple of fairly young people who live here and have no trouble driving around the 'burbs but refuse to get on the freeway.
And, speaking generally, some people are fairly confident about driving no matter where they find themselves, and others are nervous Nellies. So you can't make a statement about "everyone."
Location: Miami (prev. NY, Atlanta, SF, OC and San Diego)
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Driving in Manhattan and Miami are “unique” places that are unlike any other cities I have driven in here in the States that make almost anywhere else a walk in the park.
No, seeing tourists driving in NYC is a terrifying thing. You need a certain hyper-awareness in the city that you do not practice elsewhere either in small towns or highways. Same with most other major cities like Boston.
I rarely drive. But I had to rent a car to drive from upstate NY to NYC once. It was a bit unnerving but I did for two days. If you're coming from a large metro area, I think you'll be fine.
Do you think anyone that passes a driving test from the DMV in any of the states would be able to confidently drive and park anywhere in the United States? Specifically talking about busy urban areas like Manhattan, LA, DC, Chicago.
Most people in Manhattan don't drive.
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