Why are Seattle drivers such a--holes? (appointed, neighborhood, legally)

[motoman]

I was just in Seattle for five days for vacation. I had a great time, other than Seattle drivers.

A few things:

1) People drive slow as snot. Has anyone in Seattle anywhere to go? I have never seen so many peopl afraid to even get up to the speed limit.
2) I have never seen so many people cut others off. You want to change lanes? Hell, just do it without looking. It's the Seattle way apparently.
3) Seattle drivers apparently are highly offended if you decide you want to drive faster than them. In my entire life I have never had so many people purposefully speed up to keep me from going around them as I did in my 5 days in Seattle. What the f---?

The city itself is pretty cool, and the people nice, until you get them behind the wheel of a car. And then the rules change.

What's the deal?

By the way, I am from LA and I think LA drivers are so much more considerate than Seattle drivers. I just don't understand it. How could people who are so seemingly laid back outside of a car be such jerks while driving? Is it pent-up anger they are afraid to express otherwise?

[VeronikaW]

As a CA transplant, I have to say, the people here drive like crap. I was never afraid to drive on the freeway in CA, but I seriously fear for my life anytime I have to drive on the freeway here.

Don't forget the people that will come to a complete stop in 60MPH traffic because they realize they want to get off the freeway.

V. =)

[jwb123]

It's the passive-aggressive nature of the Seattlite.... it's part of the culture...

[motoman]

Originally Posted by Jenbar

It's the passive-aggressive nature of the Seattlite.... it's part of the culture...

Yeah, I can see that. It just confused the hell out of me.

[jwb123]

I'm not saying it's a good thing!! It annoys me how passive-aggressive people are there... but it is what it is, and you don't even really see it until you are gone.

[MaikeerinWA]

Maybe it's different in Seattle proper, but as a former resident of LA and the San Francisco Bay area, I'll take the Seattle suburban drivers any day, when it comes to politeness and not using one's vehicle as a weapon.

Originally Posted by motoman

I was just in Seattle for five days for vacation. I had a great time, other than Seattle drivers.

A few things:

1) People drive slow as snot. Has anyone in Seattle anywhere to go? I have never seen so many peopl afraid to even get up to the speed limit.
2) I have never seen so many people cut others off. You want to change lanes? Hell, just do it without looking. It's the Seattle way apparently.
3) Seattle drivers apparently are highly offended if you decide you want to drive faster than them. In my entire life I have never had so many people purposefully speed up to keep me from going around them as I did in my 5 days in Seattle. What the f---?

The city itself is pretty cool, and the people nice, until you get them behind the wheel of a car. And then the rules change.

What's the deal?

By the way, I am from LA and I think LA drivers are so much more considerate than Seattle drivers. I just don't understand it. How could people who are so seemingly laid back outside of a car be such jerks while driving? Is it pent-up anger they are afraid to express otherwise?

[70Ford]

It's not any different in Atlanta, St. Louis, Denver, or New York.

Hey! At least the drivers don't stop and curse you like they do in New York. I have yet to have that happen in Seattle. The worst thing I've seen is people don't give each other the room to merge and flow.

They just bunch up and creep along. Which really buggers up traffic.

The city doesn't have the transit system to handle its' amount of recent growth. It is only going to get worse. At least you don't have to drive it every day. Now you can enjoy California, and its' wide open, friendly highways. Yeah, we all dream that one day, our traffic will be just like L.A.'s.

Worst Cities For Traffic - Forbes.com

NPR: Study Finds L.A. Traffic Worst in U.S.

[Alexia319]

There are bad drivers everywhere, but you notice them more when you have to take the freeway, where there's more potential for serious damage. Then again, your concept of "bad driver" probably differs from mine. There are people who consider anyone who obeys the speed limit a bad driver.

[motoman]

Originally Posted by Alexia319

There are bad drivers everywhere, but you notice them more when you have to take the freeway, where there's more potential for serious damage. Then again, your concept of "bad driver" probably differs from mine. There are people who consider anyone who obeys the speed limit a bad driver.

True. Everyone has their own definition of bad. But what I saw in Seattle just didn't make any sense. It was the first place I have ever been where people seemed to literally be afraid to exceed the speed limit. And then when anyone did it was like it was their job to slow you down by cutting you off. As if, "No way buddy are you going to get anywhere faster than me."

I would be behind some guy doing 30 in a 40. I go to pass him on the right, and then he speeds up to keep me from getting around him.

I had another guy, who I passed very legally on two lanes that merged into one, that honked and flashed his bright lights at me for a mile or so, only to honk at me again as he turned into a neighborhood. WTF?

Then another guy that was driving slow as snot, below the speed limit, pulled into the left-most turn lane at a red light. I pulled into the right-most lane of the two left turn lanes. As we turned from the red light, he gunned it to try and keep me from getting around him. WTF?

A lady in the HOV lane was doing 60 along with all the other traffic. No one was in front of her for a good mile or so. I try and go around her and she speeds up to keep me from getting around her. So I get back behind her and she speeds up to 80. WTF?

Then I had more than one person whip over in front of me on the highway without even giving a glance, as if they were in a hurry, and then proceed to creep along with the flow of traffic, blocking a wide-open lane. I saw this same thing happen to many other people.

What I gathered from the whole experience is that people in Seattle get REALLY upset when they see someone driving faster than them and do whatever they can to get in that person's way. It's like they are self-appointed traffic cops.

I was sometimes driving 70 down the highway (which are all 60 mph) and people were looking at me like I was driving at the speed of sound. It was the most bizarre thing I have ever seen in my life.

Sure, I've experienced this type of behavior elsewhere, but I experienced it more in the 5 days I was in Seattle than in the entire 3+ years I have been in LA or the 32 years I spent in Dallas. Just freakin' odd.

[motoman]

Originally Posted by 70Ford

The city doesn't have the transit system to handle its' amount of recent growth.

Are you kidding? There is so much excess capacity on Seattle roads it's absolutely ridiculous. The problem is that people drive extremely slowly and leave FAR too large of a gap between them and the car in front of them.

I am not saying I enjoy LA traffic. Who does? All I am saying is that Seattle drivers/traffic is very odd indeed.