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Or if the floodgates of new people from all over the country ever slow down enough for people to get used to each other and meld their styles of driving, you might see less issues.
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I'm not blaming people from other places.
Conflicting statements. As others have mentioned, I’ve been cursed out by people with “southern” accents, and many of my neighbors are from NY, NJ, TX, PA and they comment on the state of driving in this area. Many people in SoCal don’t have insurance (or a license or a green card for that matter), so they have to drive decently to avoid getting stopped or in an accident. Others don’t want their already high insurance rates to go up. Maybe people around here have gotten too comfortable with breaking traffic rules (or completely disrespecting other drivers) and they need a wake up. And don’t get me started on the blatant cell phone use while driving.... Once the cops start getting tough and consistent with enforcing laws, aggressive driving should decrease regardless of where the drivers are from.
Conflicting statements. As others have mentioned, I’ve been cursed out by people with “southern” accents, and many of my neighbors are from NY, NJ, TX, PA and they comment on the state of driving in this area. Many people in SoCal don’t have insurance (or a license or a green card for that matter), so they have to drive decently to avoid getting stopped or in an accident. Others don’t want their already high insurance rates to go up. Maybe people around here have gotten too comfortable with breaking traffic rules (or completely disrespecting other drivers) and they need a wake up. And don’t get me started on the blatant cell phone use while driving.... Once the cops start getting tough and consistent with enforcing laws, aggressive driving should decrease regardless of where the drivers are from.
I tend to agree with you here. From my experience (take it for what it's worth), I think many "native" or nearly natives are just as bad at driving if not worse than many transplants. It's no surprise and we've talked about it before on here, that Triangle area traffic enforcement is not on par with many other areas of the country. It could be because we have fewer troopers/police/deputies per capita than other areas, but it's very noticeable to me that traffic enforcement is few and far between.
I find that municipal police departments in Morrisville, Cary, Apex, Garner, etc. usually are more visible, but you don't see the same amount of speed and aggressive driving enforcement here as you do in other parts of the country. This is my perspective as a former LE officer from another state.
I believe that good driving habits become bad and bad driving habits get worse when traffic violations are not enforced.
After 40 years in Los Angeles, I can safely say that more people on the road DOES NOT equal more fits of road rage or higher incidents of aggressive driving. Let me give you some perspective: LA metro population is something like 11 million people now. Yet, since I’ve been in NC (9 months), the level of aggression and ignorance is not only noticeable, it’s surprising. Driving with a cell phone in your hand in CA will land you a big fine, and cops will nail you for it. Tailgating will either get you 1) a break check from someone who will either sue you or beat your ***, or 2) pulled over by a cop and ticketed for that and everything else they can find.
Why do people follow rules? Simple, they fear the consequences. Make the consequences tough and enforce them, and you have more conformity. So maybe if the cops would stop putting empty cars in grocery store parking lots and put them on the road with officers behind the wheel, you may have less stupidity on the roads. Or maybe get some big shot personal injury attorneys to come to town and start suing the pants off aggressive drivers.
Quote:
Originally Posted by RedZin
Or if the floodgates of new people from all over the country ever slow down enough for people to get used to each other and meld their styles of driving, you might see less issues.
The roads here HAVE gotten more aggressive. They were not always this way.
I'm not blaming people from other places. I'm blaming the combining of driving styles. I know LA gets people from everywhere, but it's easier to blend in when you have 11 million people than when you have a million and at least half of them are from someplace else, many having moved here less than a few years ago.
It does make a difference.
This area is starting to remind of of Fort Bragg in terms of how it feels to drive here.
I too concur with these, and, Capital B's point about Right Turn on Red bullies.
I never considered that it might be due to a mix from a lot of other places, like skiers and snowboarders, sometimes they don't mix well due to their styles.
I am all for laws like CA's.
Drove past a guy immersed in his cell phone during rush hour driving down Weston Parkway.
I recently moved back here from San Francisco and my car insurance rates increased by $800/yr for two vehicles. Was not expecting that but it’s probably a reflection on the “quality” of driving that goes on here.
I recently moved back here from San Francisco and my car insurance rates increased by $800/yr for two vehicles. Was not expecting that but it’s probably a reflection on the “quality” of driving that goes on here.
I lived (and drove) for 32 years in Wake County/Raleigh and never once had hail or hurricane damage...Never had a garage, either.
Interestingly enough, when you drive in the more rural counties in NC, the aggressive and bad driving seem to be much less prevalent. More courtesy and a much nicer, slower pace. That was one of the main reasons I left Wake County and moved to the mountains. My blood pressure is much lower up here, even though we do have our share of bad drivers (and people from other states), there just aren't as many of them crammed in up here.
When we traded in our car last year the dealer noted hail damage. It was small enough that it wasn't obvious, but if you got it in the right light, it was there. Frustrating cause it gave those dealer scumbags a leg up.
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