Driving etiquette - US Vs The Rest of the World 1

[StuckInTheMiddle]

I wanted to ask if anyone had opinions on the differences of driving etiquette throughout the US and the rest of world. Being a Brit who has lived/driven in both Europe and the US (New England) it never ceases to amaze me the shear number of people who change lanes without indicating, pull out of junctions without stopping, ignore general road etiquette, and have general 'road rage'. Maybe I'm just getting sentimental in my own age but I don't recall as many crazy drivers in the UK (I'm not saying there weren't any).

I was just wondering if anyone agreed/disagreed with this and also what people's opinions of the best/worst places to drive in the world would be?

Anyone got any opinions?

A,

 

[gbaughma]

I've seen it all over. I've driven out east (where people follow a "2 feet behind the car in front of you" instead of "2 seconds behind the car in front of you" rule)

Chicago (Saw a fist fight break out over someone not jumping the gun on a stoplight)

"up north" (where I am now) where people have passed me doing 60 MPH in the middle of a blizzard, where I couldn't even see to the end of my headlights (I passed THEM in the ditch a mile later)

"down south", where people don't let off of the gas even if they're on a one-lane road, someone coming towards them, cliff on one side and nothing (as in drop off of a mountain) on the other.

I had a lady make a left turn, on a red left arrow, right in front of me, on a highway the other day.

Personally, I use my turn signal. Constantly. Habitually. I'm anal about it... even if I'm coming down my ALLEY and about to turn into my GARAGE, I use my turn signal. I was just brought up that way. Go fig.

Oh, and you know what? If I'm doing the speed limit, I'm *NOT* going to break the law for you just because you're in a hurry. I'll get in the right lane (if it's 4 lane) if you wish to go faster. But you can blink your lights and lay on your horn as much as you like, I'm not speeding for you.

You may, however, receive the "Hawiian good luck sign".




Just my 2¢

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[AnotherHiggins]

The drivers in Paris absolutely frightened me. That was the craziest drving I've ever seen personally.

As for the States, Washington, DC sucks pretty bad.

Atlanta is terrible, but that is largely due to hours and hours of traffic.



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[Golom]

I've driven in the UK, the Middle East and North America and have been a passanger in a lot of other places. I don't find much to choose among the UK, the US, Canada, etc. Most people are reasonably good drivers with a few psychopaths thrown in just to liven things up.

The Middle East is an "extreme caution advised" zone. When you see a Mercedes 650SEL coming down the road and just the top of the driver's head appears over the dash board, you know that avoiding an accident is all up to you.

Places like Bangkok are really scary. I'm suprised that there's anyone still alive there.

 

[CajunCenturion]

Is there a language issue here, or should this topic be discussed in STC?

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[StuckInTheMiddle]

Anotherhiggins I have to agree with your Atlanta comment. I have relatives (in-laws) that hale from Atlanta and they always take great pleasure in reprimanding me for complaining about my 45 minute work commute when they have a 2hr commute in Atlanta. Personally I can't even imagine driving 4 hrs a day each day, that's cause for Road Rage!

I have to say that personally I found drivers in the South a little more courteous, but I haven't driven there often enough to notice.

Along these same lines another little 'bugbear' of mine is the lack of 'flashing of headlights' to warn the on coming motorist of a patrol car you just past parked in a very sneaky location.

Not that I speed (excessively) or condone speeding, I don't consider 45 in a 40 zone speeding. I've only on 2 occasions in the US had a driver warn of a pending cop in 'speed trap', whereas is Europe it was an almost daily occurrence. I always wondered if this was some sort of cultural divide or if most folks don’t care.

Also maybe it's because there are more police on patrol catching speeders in the UK, or maybe it's the 'anti-speed camera' sentiment that gets people there, who knows.

A,

 

[KenCunningham]

Have to agree with John (anotherhiggins) - Paris is scary stuff indeed. I've driven Hyde Park Corner in London many a time, but nothing prepares you for the French. As for the language issue, Cajun, perhaps it's the bad variety engendered by such behaviour!

 

[Grenage]

I don't think you can truly appreciate 'driving' until you've had to navigate Malta, they truly are quite mad. Then again, I did only see one accident while over there.


Carlsberg don't run I.T departments, but if they did they'd probably be more fun.

 

[edfair]

After 50 years of Atlanta driving Los Angeles freeways scare me.

 

[CajunCenturion]

Please keep the discussion on-topic, which for this forum is language, or take the discussion to a forum where this subject is on-topic.

Thank you.

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[CRilliterate]

My cousin moved from Ohio, Acron to NY, NY...
Can you IMAGINE the difference? Can you imagine impact on person? He was NY style driving in about 3 month wuth finger showing and all...it was hillarious to see transformation of the village oy driver to a NY-pro!
I personally will not drive OR PARK in NY myself...

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[Dollie]

CC, as far as language is concerned, maybe my mentioning my frequent usage of the International Symbol of Ill Will (aka sign language) while driving would keep this on-topic?

 

[CorBlimeyLimey]

Language??? .... The media is the message!

The car is the media and the way it is driven expresses the drivers attitude. I have had many "conversations" with other drivers while the highways & biways.

[Cheers]

 

[Dollie]

I'll be happy when I can get my front-end mounted bumper sticker launcher and I can communicate more effectively.

The "I break frequently and for no apparent reason" is going to be in much higher demand than the "I don't know how to use a blinker" sticker at this point.

 

[AnotherHiggins]

hrmph.

I noticed what forum this was in just after my first post. I'll try to wax locutious as to be on topic.

I arrived in Paris at around 8AM, drunk.

We hailed a cab to take us to our hotel, a non-touristy spot southeast of the Eiffel Tower (I think it was in the 7th arrondissement).

While driving through narrow cobblestone streets that were clearly not built for cars, we were cruising along about 40-45 mph, four cars abreast. At times, we drove (at speed) with two wheels on sidewalks to pass other cars.

At one point, the four ‘lanes’ collapsed into two. Rather than merging, we sped along on the right and cut-off another driver just before we hit a parked car. Then we were cut-off by a police car at the last possible second before he slammed into the parked car. Traffic immediately came to a standstill, and we nearly rear-ended the policeman. Our driver slammed the car into park, got out, and proceeded to hurl French obscenities at the cop while making lots of hand gestures.

Good times, good times.

I witnessed 5 or 6 accidents while there. And that doesn't include one car 'tapping' another. And their version of 'tapping' is not limited to bumper-to-bumper contact. One car's bumper might 'tap' another car's door while trying to park.

Needless to say, we took the metro a lot.

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[StuckInTheMiddle]

Ah yes, I have experienced the driving in Malta. Not only was it just as bad as some of the Paris stories here what I especially liked were the road conditions, our hired car hit a pot hole like you have never seen before and it destroyed the front axle, the very next day we passed by the same stretch of road and the pothole was filled with the carcass of a dead dog. That childhood memory has stuck with me to this day. I apologize for starting this slightly off topic post, and I have got out of it what I wanted to know - That bad drivers are everywhere, thanks all!

A,

 

[CRilliterate]

I think I've mentioned this already but I am still seeing that bumper sticker every morning which says 'Are you following Jesus this close?' I think it is brilliant!

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[addy]

Well, I'm from the UK but I have driven in the US, both in FLorida and LA.

Florida wasn't too bad - not very different from the UK. A few bad drivers and a few impatient drivers but nothing to get worked up about.

Then I drove in LA, where I found that unless I reacted to a traffic light going green in the same time, or slightly quicker, than Michael Schumacher on the start grid of a F1 Grand Prix I was subjected to a barrage of horn blowing. If I even dared to pause at a red light when turning right I was treated like an imbecile.

However, LA compares incredibly favourably with Rome. I have never seen anything like it. I have never driven there but have only ever walked around it. You take you life into your own hands every time you need to cross a street. I never once saw a car which wasn't dented or scratched. Or one that was doing less than 30 MPH over the speed limit.

Crazy place.

 

[flapeyre]

Addy -

When you refer to LA, do you mean Los Angeles, California? ("LA" is the postal abbreviation for the state of Louisiana).

I was born in New Orleans, and that can be a white-knuckle driving experience, especially now, with 40% or so of the city's traffic signals still out (the underground wiring and electronic controllers for many of them were flooded by the post-Katrina levee breach and need to be replaced, and it's a slow process).

Nothing petrifies me as much as crossing the Huey P. Long Bridge (built in 1935, with 9-foot traffic lanes - trucks passing other trucks prohibited). They do have plans to widen it, but that's not for another 5 years or so.

Fortunately, I rarely, if ever, need to take that route any more.

Feles mala! Cur cista non uteris? Stramentum novum in ea posui!

 

[addy]

flapeyre - I meant Los Angeles.