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Comparing NJ roads to other parts of the country is apples to oranges.
But you do have to be somewhat assertive (within reason) to drive in NJ. I guess its difficult to "get it" unless you are a native who grew up learning to drive here.
There are the idiots going at a snail's pace on the highway in every state. Its just that there are more of them here because of the population density.
i get it. i just don't think it's the proper way to drive. aggressive driving results in accidents. if you just sit back, leave a few minutes early, and drive 65-75 (or 55-65) on the highways, we'll all get there quicker. weaving in and out causes people to hit the brakes, which creates traffic.
one thing that confuses me - NJTP north, near exit 7 always traffic. doesn't matter what time of day. it only exists between the signs that flash "slow down, reduce speed, congestion".
any money that if they turn those signs off the traffic disappears. instead of slowing down to 10mph to read the sign, people would keep cruising along at 50-70.
I learned to drive in N.J. and drove there from age 17 to 31. It was a tough place to learn to drive b/c of the road rage, traffic, people who don't choose to use signals, etc.).
Then I moved to Vermont where drivers are much better at using signals and less likely to cut you off. There's also a lot less road rage. If someone thinks you're going too slow even though you're traveling at or above the speed limit, they'll usually just pass you, which is allowed even on roads with solid lines unless there is a "no passing" sign.
Today, some lady gave my husband the finger for switching into her lane (he used his signal and had enough space, but she appeared to be in a hurry and it obviously pxxxsed her off) and it was the first time we could remember that happening to us in years.
Now, whenever we go back to N.J. to visit friends and families I find it takes a while to get back into the swing of driving agressively again. Usually I'll just have my husband drive so I can avoid the stress.
As far as N.J. drivers being the worst, I would disagree. I live in a touristy area where we have visitors from all over the country and I would say N.J. drivers are no worse than Mass. drivers or Rhode Island drivers and they're not as bad as Canadian drivers imo.
new england drivers are a bit crazy.
as for the out of towners. i think that's just always true. tourists, from anywhere, in an unfamiliar place, are horrible drivers. but - if you just sit back and drive defensively, you'll get there. jeez. i sound like i'm 60. never mind - drive fast!
its tough talk? im not tough. i have a 45 mile commute, its good entertainment for me.
im generally dealing with people driving slow in the left lane. sometimes i will punish someone tailgating me by break checking them, man they always get soooo mad at that. but i have no temper, never get angry. "toughness" doesnt factor in.
im not really understanding your racetrack reference gramps.
If you aren't tough, you should probably find a hobby other than involving yourself in road rage incidents. Someday, someone might come see you about it.
If you aren't tough, you should probably find a hobby other than involving yourself in road rage incidents. Someday, someone might come see you about it.
what does that mean? im supposed to stop what im doing because someone might illegally attack me? i wouldnt expect someone to do that but im prepared for that.
Aren;t that bad. whys everyone complain bout us? i think the worst thing i see jersey drivers do is occasionally cut you off. on the highway, people use there blinkers.
i am driving in arkansas now, and people here are downright terrible. no one, NO ONE uses blinkers on the highway. the speed limit is 70, people regularly go 90-95. they brake check you even on the highway, even if there are cars behind you.
ive driven in manhattan for a awhile, and obviously theyre worse...do ineed to even explain? lol
pennsylvania drivers are the worst. they are all so slow, and they hog the left lane. the speed limit will be 65. person in the right lane will be going 63. left lane will slowly pass at 64 if we're lucky. and stay there. they take FOREVER to turn onto side roads. they slow down about a minute before their turn and crawl along at 2mph for the last half mile it seems.
massachsetts [by boston] has the worst driving ive ever seen, its all of the above meshed into one highway.
baltimore and the surrounding areas have tons and tons of weavers and traffic zigzaggers.
you dont get all that in jersey, and if you do they got those blue NY plates. so whats up with all the jersey drivers hate?
I have no idea what you talking about about PA drivers being slow. When I was on I195 few months ago, people were driving 75+on the right lane and the left was doing 85 to 90. My 3 hours trip was cut by 20 minutes. I didn't realize my car can do 90 and still so steady.
The craziest thing I see in New Jersey, and it's pretty crazy, is people honking, yelling and freaking out because the person in front of them is not going fast enough for their tastes, or not getting out of their way fast enough.
I don't mean in situations where the person in front is really doing something unusual, like stopping for no reason in the middle of a lane, or driving inordinately slow, or anything like that. It happens when folks are just driving normally. I've seen this on highways like 80, when there is a lot of congestion and the guy in front is going maybe 72 or 73--someone will pull up behind them, tailgating them, then the guy in the back will start honking and yelling because he wants to go faster than that.
I've had people do it to me, too, including in situations like once when I was on 9, in a right lane, getting ready to make a right turn into a fast food place, and someone in the lane to the left of me, who was behind me, comes up along the side of me honking and yelling at me because he wants me to slow down and give him way to make a right turn. I just laughed. Who knows why he wouldn't just slow down instead and get behind me, or even try to race and cut in front of me if he's in such a hurry. Honking, yelling, and wildly swinging his hands around didn't work.
I've only seen people doing this in New Jersey, and I've seen it a bunch of times now. I just saw it happen on 80 again this past Wednesday morning. Take a chill pill folks.
we don't slow down to 30mph for no reason at all, and then accelerate up to 70, only to slow down to 20. every person that's ever visited me in NJ has asked why people slow down, speed up, slow down....etc etc... for miles at a time. it drives me nuts.
I've seen that all over, actually, although not quite that exaggerated. I notice it because I'm a cruise control driver when traffic is light enough to make it practical. With that, I regularly notice many of the same people go flying by me, then slowing way down in front of me so that I have to pass them, then maybe their going 10 mph faster than me for a few minutes so they have to pass me again, then they slow down again and I have to pass them again, then they go flying by . . . and on and on. I'd love to know what the heck they're doing. I really don't get why most folks do not use their cruise control, but most folks I see on the highway do not seem to . . . it's usually the most obvious on hills, as everyone slows down going up them then comes barreling down the other side, and that's noticeable on even slight hills.
Jersey drivers are crazy on a national level- Yet the NYC metro area had the 2nd lowest traffic related death rates, Philly CSA was #6 (Boston ws #1). So whether or not we're crazy, we're pretty cautious in comparison to most states- Out of stateters can't handle NJ, which is why we catch a lot of crap for it. FL had the worst drivers I've ever seen in my entire life- Coincidentally FL's metros had the highest traffic death rates.
Jersey drivers are crazy on a national level- Yet the NYC metro area had the 2nd lowest traffic related death rates, Philly CSA was #6 (Boston ws #1). So whether or not we're crazy, we're pretty cautious in comparison to most states- Out of stateters can't handle NJ, which is why we catch a lot of crap for it. FL had the worst drivers I've ever seen in my entire life- Coincidentally FL's metros had the highest traffic death rates.
Yeah, I do have to say that it's extremely rare that I see accidents up here--NJ, NY, CT, PA, etc., and I routinely drive all over the place sightseeing and hiking. I've been living here for 15 years now. In fact, I've only seen an accident where a car was completely totaled--where it looked like someone could have easily died in the wreck--once here in all of that time.
However, I was raised in South Florida, and I saw accidents all the time there. There were times when it seemed like there was a backing-up-traffic-for-10 miles accident on I-95 somewhere between West Palm Beach and Miami every day. And many of those had cars that were totaled, where it looked like someone might have easily died in the wreck.
Now maybe it's just that the Northeast clears out accidents incredibly fast, but it's hard to believe that they'd be so fast that I'd almost never see them. It seems like as crazy as the drivers here can be, enough of them are safer so that they avoid big problems.
Yeah, I do have to say that it's extremely rare that I see accidents up here--NJ, NY, CT, PA, etc., and I routinely drive all over the place sightseeing and hiking. I've been living here for 15 years now. In fact, I've only seen an accident where a car was completely totaled--where it looked like someone could have easily died in the wreck--once here in all of that time.
However, I was raised in South Florida, and I saw accidents all the time there. There were times when it seemed like there was a backing-up-traffic-for-10 miles accident on I-95 somewhere between West Palm Beach and Miami every day. And many of those had cars that were totaled, where it looked like someone might have easily died in the wreck.
Now maybe it's just that the Northeast clears out accidents incredibly fast, but it's hard to believe that they'd be so fast that I'd almost never see them. It seems like as crazy as the drivers here can be, enough of them are safer so that they avoid big problems.
Yeah, it's not often you see a totaled car wreck. I can speak on your behalf about FL- I once visited FL for a 2 in a half month period and I saw more car accidents on the road during my visit than I did 5 years living in NJ. (That's what it felt like anyway)
Here's the link: I'm sorry I didn't post it before, I thought I did.
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