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Given the majority of Wake County's population was not born in North Carolina and New York and NOVA are among top origins of transplants... I wonder what makes them suddenly lose their driving behaviors from there and start zig-zagging in NC?
I'm not sure, you can chime in if you have any ideas on why Raleigh and the Triangle have a higher number of accidents per capita than other major cities.
And the other factor is nobody here cares about the police - NC State troopers, RPD and others could care less about aggressive driving unless you hit somebody or your vehicle is on fire. (or perhaps you run into a speed trap on 540 toll where NCDOT Turnpike Auth pays officers overtime for speed traps there).
I'm not sure, you can chime in if you have any ideas on why Raleigh and the Triangle have a higher number of accidents per capita than other major cities.
And the other factor is nobody here cares about the police - NC State troopers, RPD and others could care less about aggressive driving unless you hit somebody or your vehicle is on fire. (or perhaps you run into a speed trap on 540 toll where NCDOT Turnpike Auth pays officers overtime for speed traps there).
I've seen some data models suggest metro areas with better public transit (like New York, Boston, and the DC area) are going to have lower accident rates per capita. When more of the population is taking safer modes of transportation like trains, less people are driving and thus crashing compared to an area where 100% of people are driving. In addition, the urban grid in more established metros results in lower travel speeds, easier driving maneuvers in a straight line, and more people walking or taking an Uber home after drinking versus driving their car due to the distance. We also have poor infrastructure and tons of non-signaled intersections on roads that used to be a rural highway that are now carrying a ton of cars like an interstate.
Haven driven in NOVA and Boston and NY, ppl at least slow down when it rains and snows there. Here, nobody slows down and still does zig-zag maneuvers.
Let’s see how many accidents the dummies on the road have tomorrow.
I kept looking for evidence of sarcasm. There were just as many dumb drivers in NY as down here, it just manifests itself differently. One of my lasting memories of NY/NJ was in March 2007, three months before we relocated. There was a late season freezing rain situation where black ice was forming everywhere. I had to drive from Long Island to northern New Jersey and was basically white knuckling it the whole time because of how treacherous the roads were. But cars kept flying past me not just driving at the speed limit, but many actually speeding. I counted a dozen spin outs during that drive including a few where cars were maintaining speed while basically whirling around like helicopter blades.
My issues living in NC are that when it snows, pickup trucks tend to drive like their wheels have super special traction capabilities while way too many mid and small sized sedans drive dangerously slow. The combination of big vehicles driving too fast with smaller vehicles not driving fast enough has consistently been my greatest concern.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Universe93B
I'm not sure, you can chime in if you have any ideas on why Raleigh and the Triangle have a higher number of accidents per capita than other major cities.
And the other factor is nobody here cares about the police - NC State troopers, RPD and others could care less about aggressive driving unless you hit somebody or your vehicle is on fire. (or perhaps you run into a speed trap on 540 toll where NCDOT Turnpike Auth pays officers overtime for speed traps there).
State troopers are typically active on 540, enough so that it affects how fast I'm willing to drive during peak trapping times. And one of my favorite forms of entertainment is driving through Wake Forest on Sunday afternoons on Capital, because they are always speed trapping. I love when someone goes flying past me knowing that there's an excellent chance they'll get nailed, and that's actually happened a few times. But watching the speeders stand on their brakes when they see the police cruisers setup is also kind of fun.
I rarely see State Highway Patrol. I took a picture yesterday of a car driving down the road with a license plate that expired in 2016. I see fictitious tags on a daily basis. There's someone in my neighborhood who has been driving around a Honda Pilot with the rear windshield busted out and taped up with a shower curtain - for MONTHS. Expired tags, engine knocking and black smoke.... good grief! No wonder our insurance rates keep going up. People know that there's no consequences for ignoring the traffic laws.
I'm not sure, you can chime in if you have any ideas on why Raleigh and the Triangle have a higher number of accidents per capita than other major cities.
Anecdotal story, but it still makes me chuckle, and may shed some light to your statistics (assuming they are true, which I don't doubt):
It was probably almost 20 years ago, but I was at a convention in Chicago for work. It was a big convention, so there were shuttle busses that took people from their hotels to McCormick Place. I was amazed at how the bus drivers were able to maneuver through the tight city streets. As we were sitting there, we witnessed a violent accident where a car drove through the window of a restaurant on the ground floor of a high-rise building. For some reason, our driver had to get out and help, so we were all left on the bus, a bunch of strangers from around the country and around the world, so the chitter-chatter started.
One person commented on our bus driver (a lady, small in stature) and about how aggressive everyone was in Chicago. He mentioned about how he thought it was funny that our driver gave someone the finger for switching lanes.
Someone else chimed in that they were from New York, and in New York everyone used their horns too much.
Another, from Boston talked about how in Boston, nobody respected the painted lanes.
This went on for a while, and I listened. One city after the other recalling their claims to the "bad drivers hall of fame", and telling us what we could expect to experience if we attempted to drive in their cities.
Finally, I spoke up. I said "well I'm from North Carolina, and everyone is moving to our city. We have drivers from Chicago, From Boston, From NYC, From NoVa, etc. When you drive in NC you don't know who is on the road, and you never know WTF to expect from anyone."
They all roared in laughter, but the point was valid, and I think it might answer your question. The problem here is that we are melting pot of bad driving habits, and since there are many different regional influences, I think wrecks are even more likely to happen, just out of lack of predictability.
I haven't read the entire thread, so I apologize if this has already been answered...But what's up with the people who turn their hazards on when it's raining (or hardly sprinkling)? We were on 440 tonight (speed limit 60) and 3 different cars occupying 3 different lanes, all side by side, going about 30-35 MPH with their hazard lights flashing. I didn't even have my wipers on at this point, but I see this all the time here. Maybe they had bad tires, who knows? But if it's barely raining, why reduce your speed by half on an interstate and turn your flashers on. This practice seems more dangerous to me. I see this all the time and just don't get it here. I'm from TX, but my wife is from here and says she has seen this since she was a little kid.
I haven't read the entire thread, so I apologize if this has already been answered...But what's up with the people who turn their hazards on when it's raining (or hardly sprinkling)? We were on 440 tonight (speed limit 60) and 3 different cars occupying 3 different lanes, all side by side, going about 30-35 MPH with their hazard lights flashing. I didn't even have my wipers on at this point, but I see this all the time here. Maybe they had bad tires, who knows? But if it's barely raining, why reduce your speed by half on an interstate and turn your flashers on. This practice seems more dangerous to me. I see this all the time and just don't get it here. I'm from TX, but my wife is from here and says she has seen this since she was a little kid.
That does seem irrational. Hazard lights flashing is particularly disruptive to those with "older" vision since the flash isn't abupt but tends to act like expanding rays of light, over and over. The poor drivers behind that spread of cars have no way to avoid that visual disruption. I even know a military vet who might go into seizures with this situation.
The only time I've seen drivers who can't handle the rain put on flashers where it might be appropriate is where they are pulling over to the right to stop, often under a bridge. There the single car with flashers warns you it isn't moving so you don't accidentally follow it.
That does seem irrational. Hazard lights flashing is particularly disruptive to those with "older" vision since the flash isn't abupt but tends to act like expanding rays of light, over and over. The poor drivers behind that spread of cars have no way to avoid that visual disruption. I even know a military vet who might go into seizures with this situation.
The only time I've seen drivers who can't handle the rain put on flashers where it might be appropriate is where they are pulling over to the right to stop, often under a bridge. There the single car with flashers warns you it isn't moving so you don't accidentally follow it.
Using Hazards in normal rain does not make sense, but using them in extremely limited vision makes huge sense. Whether driving in Fog, Downpour of rain, or whiteout snow, it helps people to see you sooner.
Example, I was driving in a downpour coming out of Norfolk a few months ago. Could barely see 100 yards. Some people were pulled off on the side of the road, some were moving at a crawl, some at a safe speed, and some too fast. I (and 90% of the other drivers) had hazards on for that, otherwise you could run up, or get run over by another driver.
Blanket statements don't always work, and people need to think situational.
(and BTW, as I understand it, without actual proof, People who are prone to seizures are not legally allowed to drive, as it's a hazard to others on the road. I know someone who has an employee who is not legally allowed to drive for a period of time after a seizure, they have to get transportation to get to work from a friend, Uber, or whatever they can arrange. I'm not saying it's right or wrong just sharing what I have been told by someone who lives it, but if it's reported, I'm pretty sure they are not legally supposed to be driving.)
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