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This has a lot to do with some issues. It seems many people never drive before they got here and they are very very timid. They drive vastly too slow for conditions (and no I'm not talking about the speed limit or just under) and seem to take defensive driving to the next level where they assume all other drivers will suddenly do things that would be very hazardous to their own life and most of the time physically impossible and drive accordingly. I've seen people wait forever at a stop sign, waving people on, then a minute later do something completely crazy like change lanes without checking to see if it is clear but doing it below the speed limit. There is a person in my neighborhood that will literally wait at the end of the street if there are any other cars driving on it (there is room for a parked car and for two cars to pass going 15-20 MPH) It takes them at least 45 seconds to back down their 100 foot driveway and it's not because they are worried about hitting a pedestrian)
I call them cautiously dangerous.
I drive slowly and carefully. It has saved my butt countless times from jerks pulling out of driveways and running red lights.
With great vision but poor depth perception, I avoid all roads with merges.
I agree with the comments made about truckers and people who drive stupidly around trucks.
Rule One: DON'T DRIVE NEXT TO A TRUCK.
When you drive OTR (over the road), it's common to see a BAD truck / car accident each day. One of my biggest fears is seeing a mommy van with a sheet draped over the driver's side window and the truck turned over, laying like a dead dinasaur across the medium. No one thinks it'll happen to them, but it happens EVERY day.
Rule Two: DON'T DRIVE IN A TRUCK'S BLIND SPOT.
Do NOT drive next to a big rig. PASS them. The driver can be distracted. Something may happen in front of him and he has to swerve and there's your dumb behind trying to see what he looks like in his side mirror.
And in bad weather... snow, heavy rain? It's better to pull over than to drive next to a truck in bad conditions.
Don't let it. NC had the best, most courteous drivers I have ever experienced. That is why insurance rates are lower there than the nutty driving states.
This is why I and many others do not weigh posts in a negative light equally to those in neutral or positive light. Moving from where you are now to the Raleigh area will be a big driving upgrade. There is so little traffic and better drivers compared to here.
Don't let it. NC had the best, most courteous drivers I have ever experienced. That is why insurance rates are lower there than the nutty driving states.
This is why I and many others do not weigh posts in a negative light equally to those in neutral or positive light. Moving from where you are now to the Raleigh area will be a big driving upgrade. There is so little traffic and better drivers compared to here.
Thanks for that, NPG! Yeah, I'm sure any area will have its problems...but no place can be worse than Florida. I have a 20+ mile commute to deal with, so I'm sure I'll find out pretty quickly. I'm a courteous driver myself. Also, insurance! I've done a few quotes and the rates are really low. FL car insurance is sky high, and I read that NC is one of the states with the lowest rates.
Thanks for that, NPG! Yeah, I'm sure any area will have its problems...but no place can be worse than Florida. I have a 20+ mile commute to deal with, so I'm sure I'll find out pretty quickly. I'm a courteous driver myself. Also, insurance! I've done a few quotes and the rates are really low. FL car insurance is sky high, and I read that NC is one of the states with the lowest rates.
Yep, our rate dropped a ton when we went from MA to NC and then back to around MA levels when we moved to FL. It's not so much that other places are high, as it is that NC is low. Super low.
If you turn your turn signal on here, generally you'll see people in the lane you want to merge into speed up to prevent you from coming over. Go to back out of a parking space and instead of waiting, people will speed by with your butt half out in the lane. Lot's of "me me me" mentality here, not evidenced in many other places around the country.
Yep. x 1000
Also 4-way stop rules seem to be an urban legend in the minds of many clueless drivers around here.
"There is a car in front of me at this stop sign, the car at the other stop sign to the right just stopped at the line...clearly I need to ride the bumper of the car in front of me and blow past the stop sign instead of letting the person to my right take their turn...herp derp herp derp derp"
I agree with the comments made about truckers and people who drive stupidly around trucks.
Rule One: DON'T DRIVE NEXT TO A TRUCK.
When you drive OTR (over the road), it's common to see a BAD truck / car accident each day. One of my biggest fears is seeing a mommy van with a sheet draped over the driver's side window and the truck turned over, laying like a dead dinasaur across the medium. No one thinks it'll happen to them, but it happens EVERY day.
Rule Two: DON'T DRIVE IN A TRUCK'S BLIND SPOT.
Do NOT drive next to a big rig. PASS them. The driver can be distracted. Something may happen in front of him and he has to swerve and there's your dumb behind trying to see what he looks like in his side mirror.
And in bad weather... snow, heavy rain? It's better to pull over than to drive next to a truck in bad conditions.
This is really good advice. I can't believe all the people I see dawdling along next to semis. I accelerate and get past trucks as fast as I can. I'll even wait for the car in front of me to get past the truck before I attempt to pass.
For all the aggression of NYC/NJ drivers, there is a method behind their madness. Once I adjusted, I knew what to expect. I usually took the subway when there.
NC drivers seem to lag behind drivers in other areas in certain respects some of which were already mentioned in this thread..
- Failure to yield to emergency vehicles. I've seen drivers challenge or block ambulances, fire trucks, police in pursuit, and even threaten to ram a funeral procession when they grew impatient.
-Tailgating; already mentioned here and self explanatory. Large pickups are particularly bad about this.
-General stubbornness; difficult to merge. Cars will move to the left lane to avoid slowing or speeding up to accommodate entering traffic. If this isn't possible, a "showdown" occurs.
-Failing to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks or parking lots. They drive too slow in the highways, then can't wait to go 40mph in the parking lot
Quote:
Originally Posted by rory breaker
You think whipping in and out during traffic is bad here? Try the 405 in LA.
It's true that there is a great deal more traffic volume on the 405/101, but it seems as the drivers have adapted better to congestion and acquired more sophistication to deal with road conditions. Despite the thousands more drivers I come in contact with, the "per capita" occurrences of the behaviors I mentioned above just are just far less.
Quote:
Originally Posted by veganwriter
Women are the worst with this last one... too many want to flirt or be seen... WHILE DRIVING 70+ MILES AN HOUR DOWN THE ROAD!!! !!! You can't have a "moment" while driving 70+ miles an hour down the road!!!
Enjoy it while you can, young man....
Quote:
Originally Posted by Francois
-with that comes mix of drivers from many disparate places, each with their own "style", and the different styles don't mix well (a given driver is too aggressive for some and too passive for some others)
That's a good point. We can probably both remember a time when farmers stopped by the side of a country highway "conversatin' ", oblivious to others around them.
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Driving STUPID around trucks
!!! You can't have a "moment" while driving 70+ miles an hour down the road!!! 
