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Old 09-07-2010, 08:45 PM
 
Location: Centreville, VA
154 posts, read 374,196 times
Reputation: 120

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OK, I can tell I am not the OP's favorite type of driver - I do not try to "enforce" traffic laws and speed limits but I readily concede I do not drive fast, I am not aggressive in trying to get through lights and I do not accelerate rapidly.

Why? Mostly because:
a) traffic sucks anyway and I refuse to stress myself out by being in a hurry. I have enough aggravation with my job and daily living without getting worked up trying to get places fast when I'm not going to get there much faster anyway. I really don't care if I get to work or home 5 or 10 minutes later. I'll get there when I get there. You to can train yourself to think this way if you get into a habit of doing it. As soon as I get into this idea of rush, rush, rush - I end up stressed out and pissed off at all the other drivers, the lights, VDOT, everything.
b) I've gotten burned too many times with tickets. This area is crawling with police departments and agencies and I really can't afford to be throwing away money. I understand it's an affluent area and some people don't care - but I do. Since I undertook my "careful" driving regimen about 15 years ago I have had 1 ticket. Saved myself a lot of money. And I've been through many many speed traps crawling along at 5-10 over...
c) driving aggressively results in accidents... and I've been in a few... one really embarrassing crash while making that last second charge through an intersection. Well, I decided no more of that either. So I'm super careful. And other than a couple of parking lot incidents I haven't had any accidents in the last 15 years.
d) I really don't care to get into the drag race to see who gets to the next red light first. Sure, maybe every other time I might actually make the next light but so what? The light will turn green again. It always does...

Oh, I will get out of your way if I see you coming but I might not be as quick as you like... it's ok, blow your horn, flip me off... I won't take it personally.
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Old 09-07-2010, 09:21 PM
 
Location: Marshall-Shadeland, Pittsburgh, PA
32,617 posts, read 77,614,858 times
Reputation: 19102
Quote:
Originally Posted by newgatedenizen View Post
Oh, I will get out of your way if I see you coming but I might not be as quick as you like... it's ok, blow your horn, flip me off... I won't take it personally.
This is really my only major driving pet peeve here. I drive Route 7 every morning between my home in North Reston and my office in McLean, and inevitably there are always people who drive 50-55 (the speed limit is 55) in the left-hand lane because they are going to turn left onto Lewinsville Road miles down the roadway. What's so wrong with driving in the right lane and then flipping on your blinker when you get nearer to your turn and merging into the left-hand lane? If I'm in the left-hand lane and see someone in the right-hand lane flip on their turn signal, I consciously try to create a gap in front of me to permit that person to merge into my lane, figuring they likely want to turn left soon. Most others (contrary to popular belief) will do the same. How do I know this? I routinely stay right if I'm not planning on driving quickly, and I've NEVER had trouble having someone letting me merge here. NEVER. Sometimes two or three cars may pass, but then that fourth one will flash his/her high-beams and let me in.

Now, I'm not claiming YOU in particular are guilty of this, but, yes, I do tailgate those people who do 50 in the 55 zone in the left-hand lane of Route 7 for this very reason. Most states have signs posted that say "Slower traffic keep right." Why Virginia doesn't boggles my mind. Maybe this is a North vs. South thing, with we Northern transplants knowing to stay right and pass left with the Southerners thinking "I'll drive whatever speed I want in whatever lane I want?" Needless to say Route 7 is wickedly notorious for aggressive driving.
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Old 09-08-2010, 08:04 AM
 
Location: Virginia
18,717 posts, read 31,086,150 times
Reputation: 42988
Quote:
Originally Posted by RestonRunner86 View Post
Needless to say Route 7 is wickedly notorious for aggressive driving.
That's not been my particular experience. Of course, it depends on what you're used to. I'm used to cities that have much crazier drivers than here. I'd say Rt. 7 is notorious for being slow at rush hour and having gridlock in a few sections. I'd be careful about getting aggressive there, unless you want to learn a hard lesson about how expensive tickets are. If you really want to drive faster, take the tollroad. It's cheaper than paying traffic tickets.
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Old 09-09-2010, 07:32 AM
 
Location: McLean, VA
790 posts, read 1,881,215 times
Reputation: 557
And the person who crashed into that restaurant in Adams Morgan last night was....from Maryland. As I said, I don't even wait for the location when I hear a TV report on a car crash into a building.
PostLocal: Washington, DC Area News, Traffic, Weather, Sports & More - washingtonpost.com
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Old 09-09-2010, 08:05 AM
 
Location: DMV
10,125 posts, read 13,986,059 times
Reputation: 3222
Quote:
Originally Posted by austindoxie1972 View Post
And the person who crashed into that restaurant in Adams Morgan last night was....from Maryland. As I said, I don't even wait for the location when I hear a TV report on a car crash into a building.
PostLocal: Washington, DC Area News, Traffic, Weather, Sports & More - washingtonpost.com
Okay, so because this one lady made a poor decision in judgment that automatically makes Maryland drivers worse? That doesn't make sense. Have you driven in DC? Honestly have you really really driven in the city? Anybody that has driven in DC and Maryland would almost always agree that DC drivers are far worst than Maryland drivers.
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Old 09-09-2010, 08:27 AM
 
Location: Metro Washington DC
15,432 posts, read 25,814,526 times
Reputation: 10450
That accident was due to alcohol (drunk driving). What's that got to do with Maryland. Virginia has idiotic drunk drivers too.
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Old 09-09-2010, 08:32 AM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,660,053 times
Reputation: 9394
Quote:
Originally Posted by dkf747 View Post
That accident was due to alcohol (drunk driving). What's that got to do with Maryland. Virginia has idiotic drunk drivers too.
I'm not agreeing with austindoxie about Maryland drivers but there was a comment upthread about, how everytime you watch the news and they show the clip about someone driving through a house, restaurant, store, etc. it is always a Maryland driver.
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Old 09-09-2010, 08:37 AM
 
Location: McLean, VA
790 posts, read 1,881,215 times
Reputation: 557
I lived in DC for 10 years (on Upton Street, right off Connecticut, about where it dead ends into Rock Creek Park). Drove every day. Never had a accident. Or a problem.
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Old 09-09-2010, 01:10 PM
 
Location: DMV
10,125 posts, read 13,986,059 times
Reputation: 3222
Quote:
Originally Posted by austindoxie1972 View Post
I lived in DC for 10 years (on Upton Street, right off Connecticut, about where it dead ends into Rock Creek Park). Drove every day. Never had a accident. Or a problem.
Ok just because you never had an accident doesn't give a free pass for the rest of the city. That is you! You very well maybe a great driver, but I'm telling you I've witnessed some bad driving there. You don't represent the whole city. Have you driven in SE? I mean not Capitol Hill, SE, I mean Anacostia SE? Congress Heights SE? Or how about Shaw? How about Mount Vernon Square? Benning Road? These are some of the places I had to travel through so I seen a good portion of the city.

Check out this article:
Costliest states for auto insurance - MSN Money (http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/insurance/p63954.asp - broken link)

This shows who has the highest insurance rates: DC is #3 in the nation, Maryland is #14, and Virginia is #40. Of course there are some natural reasons for DC being higher, since there are more jobs so that means more traffic, more intersections, more people, and less spread out than Maryland or VA. And yes I know there are other factors that contribute to DC high rate besides accidents, but it definitely isn't helping.
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Old 09-09-2010, 01:38 PM
 
Location: Silver Spring,Maryland
884 posts, read 2,642,395 times
Reputation: 641
Quote:
Originally Posted by RestonRunner86 View Post
This is really my only major driving pet peeve here. I drive Route 7 every morning between my home in North Reston and my office in McLean, and inevitably there are always people who drive 50-55 (the speed limit is 55) in the left-hand lane because they are going to turn left onto Lewinsville Road miles down the roadway. What's so wrong with driving in the right lane and then flipping on your blinker when you get nearer to your turn and merging into the left-hand lane? If I'm in the left-hand lane and see someone in the right-hand lane flip on their turn signal, I consciously try to create a gap in front of me to permit that person to merge into my lane, figuring they likely want to turn left soon. Most others (contrary to popular belief) will do the same. How do I know this? I routinely stay right if I'm not planning on driving quickly, and I've NEVER had trouble having someone letting me merge here. NEVER. Sometimes two or three cars may pass, but then that fourth one will flash his/her high-beams and let me in.

Now, I'm not claiming YOU in particular are guilty of this, but, yes, I do tailgate those people who do 50 in the 55 zone in the left-hand lane of Route 7 for this very reason. Most states have signs posted that say "Slower traffic keep right." Why Virginia doesn't boggles my mind. Maybe this is a North vs. South thing, with we Northern transplants knowing to stay right and pass left with the Southerners thinking "I'll drive whatever speed I want in whatever lane I want?" Needless to say Route 7 is wickedly notorious for aggressive driving.


^5

Slower driver to the right! --these signs need to be in Maryland AND Virginia. When I get in the left lane my main intention is to pass AND to speed up. It NEVER fails that someone will be over there just cruising like they have no place to go.
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