Driving standards and use of indicators etc

[Flocke]

AIBU to think that driving standards are just getting worse and worse or am I just getting old and grumpy?

I've been driving for about 25 years. Obviously there has always been dickhead aggressive drivers around but it seems to be getting so much more common.

The main thing that irritates me these days is what I feel is a new trend for what an indicator means.

I was taught it is to signal what you intend/ would like to do, BUT, you can only DO the maneuver if it is safe and you are able to do so. For example. You wish to turn right but there is a stream of cars coming. So you indicate, and wait until there is either a gap or some kind person let's you out. Also if you want to change lanes, you were meant to check mirrors and then indicate when it is appropriate and THEN do the lane change.

But these days people seem to think indicating means you ARE doing this manurevre IMMEDIATELY and all other cars just need to move out of the way.

So many times on motorways especially you are driving along and a car decides they want to be in your lane and they just indicate and start trying to come over pretty much into the side of your car. It's worse in traffic. If you're in a slip road queue there's always many cars who decide the queue doesn't apply to them so they go right until the hatched section then try to push in. I recently had 3 cars all trying to get in and one guy was screaming at me for not letting him in that "HE WAS INDICATING!!!" And??? It's taken me 15 minutes to get along that slip road and 2 other cars had already pushed in in front of me alone (not counting the many others who pushed in in front of all the other cars) so why should i let him in just because he's indicating?? The other 4 cars (that I could see) behind him were also indicating. I guess I'm meant to just live on that slip road for the rest of the day letting everyone push in because they're indicating.

So is it just me noticing this trend?

YABU - indicating means you have instant priority over the rest of the world

YANBU - indicating doesn't mean you get to do whatever you want and should still wait where necessary

Maybe I just should be thankful people actually use indicators at times. They're still in short supply on roundabouts.....

Agree! But also so many see indicators as optional. There's a bastard junction near me where a side road joins a main road. The main road follows a sharp right bend, but just on the bend is the side road, so any car approaching the bend can either go straight ahead into the side road or continue on the main road around the bend. I'm often sitting for ages on that side road watching cars sail straight ahead into it, rather than around the bend, without indicating, meaning I could have pulled out if I had known their intention.

Also, what are the unseen powers in supermarket car parks that disable so many cars' indicator lights?

I was taught to indicate for pedestrians too. So often I am waiting to cross a road but waiting for a car - none of this pedestrians have right of way bollocks, I’m not stepping out in front of a car - it’s obvious I’m waiting to cross, at a T junction, and the driver turns off immediately before me without indicating. Makes me so cross, especially when it’s raining and I just want to get home. I’ve either got bags of shopping or a dog with me. Just bloody indicate - it’s not difficult.

I agree - and I do think driving standards have plummeted - basically because of an increase in aggressive and inconsiderate behaviouir.

I do realise that rules about what would have been considered 'undertaking' have changed with smart motorways etc, but one area I find scary now is the big spiral roundabouts. You will usually need to move lanes on these as you go round, but I find that, however much I check my mirrors and indicate, some prat will prevent me from getting into my lane and therefore make me miss my exit. Really horrible!

I get that you are complaining about people who perhaps indicate late and just barge in, but I find more issues with people who just ignore other people's indicators. I you're indicating in good time that you need (not just WANT) to move into another lane, the driver to your left should allow you to move in, surely?

I only passed my test a last month and other drivers not indicating or indicating as they are making the manoeuvre are causing me so much stress.

Yes I mean the aggressive drivers that indicate last minute then move pretty much as they're doing it. You can tell the type. If someone looks a bit lost or has realised their turning is coming up you can normally tell different "body" (car?) language.
But. I do also think that even if you miss your turning possibly through no fault of your own, you just need to keep going round again as annoying as it is. The fact that you even mention the fact you miss your exit means you're likely to be a nice considerate driver. Rather than just stopping in the middle of a huge roundabout and forcing your way over causing chaos.
Obviously in situations like those roundabouts people should be nice and let you in as it's how the roundabout is designed. But those same aggressive drivers are likely the ones stopping you.

I recently was approaching a small normal quiet roundabout (in a small town) and the person in front was the only car around. They clearly didn't know where they were going. So what did they do? They drove half way round the roundabout and..... stopped. Just stopped. It's one lane. I can't get round them. I beeped once and they just gave me the finger. They must have sat there for about 20 seconds. I'm guessing looking on their phone for directions. It's a fucking residential area. Just take one of the turnings and pull over!!!!! Don't just stop on a roundabout to find out what exit you need! Idiots.

I spend most of my time driving going
INDICATORS
ZIP MERGE

And I'm constantly on a loop of 'Don't bother to indicate - I'm psychic!' 😃

I've been driving since the early 90s. I don't think the general standard of driving is any worse today than it was then tbh. There were way too many bad/aggressive/clueless drivers then and there are still way too many bad etc drivers today.

I think driving standards nose dived around the Covid lockdowns and haven't really picked back up. The thing I have noticed most is lack of lane discipline on motorways. I mean there were always idiot middle lane hoggers but it seems so much worse now, especially at weekends.

I am often silently shouting “use your bloody indicators” at roundabouts. I’ll be approaching a roundabout and see that a car to my right is about to enter the roundabout with no indicator on so I crazily assume that they can’t be taking the first exit and therefore I have to stop and wait for them but oh no they are actually taking the first exit and there was no need for me to stop at all. I think some people thing that if there is no one BEHIND them that indicators aren’t necessary.
And I agree with a pp who mentioned that indicators aren’t just for other vehicles but also signify your intentions to pedestrians too.
And for those who do actually indicate - you are meant to do it BEFORE you move. What is the point of using them at all if you do so at the exact same moment that you move??

I have noticed a massive increase in the number of people who don't indicate, or who do it incorrectly. People changing lanes on the motorway with no signal (or signalling when they're halfway across) is a common sight here, too.

A few weeks ago I was almost T-boned by an arsehole who doesn't understand how to use a roundabout. He was in the outside lane and indicating to exit to my right so I started to move, but he didn't turn off and almost went into the side of me.

(I know the rules; diagram duly attached 😂)

I agree, and in part I think lack of traffic police is a part. Also cars that do many things for you (lights, tell you when to change gear, for example) cannot help although introduced with the best of intentions.

BMW and Audi drivers seem to be the worst, indeed when I can cross a road near me where there is a left hand turn, respond differently if one of them is coming, and the stereotype is true.

I don't think standards have gotten worse, I think there's just more people on the road. If you go for a drive and encounter 100 other drivers, and only 1 of them is a dickhead, then it's not too bad, but if you encounter 500 drivers, then suddenly you've had to deal with 5 dickheads in a single drive.

All indicating at roundabouts should be banned.

So many people do it incorrectly that it creates more danger not less.

Wow they still use indicators in your area? I've currently got two dents where people just drifted over whenever they felt like it.

We've got tons of roadworks lately, plus two very local parts where there are permanent merge/zipper lanes to stop junctions getting blocked. People either straddle both lanes to make sure you can't "overtake" or you get abuse and refusal for trying to use them correctly.

There are a lot more dickhead drivers on the road over the past few years. You have to have swively eyes on stalks as well as be able to read minds. So many people just don't bother with indicators at all. BMW and Audi drivers are the worst.

One idiot stopped dead at a green traffic light recently. Nearly crapped myself. Of course she just gave me the middle finger when I objected. Then just sat there for the whole cycle to go around. Wtf stops at a green light?!

I frequently find that I'm the only one indicating out of a group of vehicles.

I've had my licence a long time. For me, it's muscle memory to flip the indicator when I need to make a manoeuvre. For others, I think they don't bother so often that it no longer even occurs to them to use the indicators.

Don't get me started! People who have no idea how to use roundabouts. People who just drift from lane to lane without indicating. People who don't seem to understand right from left. And the complete fools who drive down the street that I live on the wrong way! It's a 1 way street, the signs are all there!

In london, the driving standard is ABYSMAL omg

This would have been your fault as you're not meant to go unless you are sure the other vehicle is turning

Rule 104
You should also

• watch out for signals given by other road users and proceed only when you are satisfied that it is safe
• be aware that an indicator on another vehicle may not have been cancelled.

I think lack of traffic police is a part
I agree. I think that over dependence on cameras and the focus on speeding as the ultimate sin, to the detriment of other offences is a bad thing. Actual trained traffic cops do a much better job as they can use discretion, spot dangerous behaviour other than speeding, plus of course actually advise and influence driving at the time.
I remember many years ago when I was a newish driver I got pulled over for speeding on the motorway. It was early morning in excellent weather conditions and the road was virtually empty so not wildly dangerous but yes, I was breaking the law. I got a firm talking to, at least as much for the fact that I hadn't slowed down when they were behind me as for the fact I was speeding. That made the officer think I wasn't using my mirrors as much as I should be and maybe wasn't concentrating fully - fair point. Anyway, they told me off and let me go on my journey, driving better than I was before. I actually learned something from the experience. Nowadays I'd probably have driven home regardless and then got a fine in the post 2 weeks later. Call me a cynic but I think one method actually improves standards and one is a great revenue stream! I'm sure that finances are at the heart of it. Cameras are cheap and make money. Traffic police are expensive. But if we want driving standards to be better we need more real people out there to enforce them.

Mine is 'What the fuck are you doing? Indicate!' 😂

Too many people with licences they bought in their home country or no licence at all since there is no one to check.

DP is from southern Italy and considered going back home to buy his!

Oh, and I followed a van for about a mile the other day and the left indicator was just on constantly. Then they turned right.

I agree driving standards have deteriorated significantly in the last few years.

Probably due to a combination selfishness / laziness / lock-down / lack of knowledge / lack of police / being a twat. etc.

I especially hate people:

• Driving over mini-roundabouts, like they are just "theoretical"
• Cutting the corner when turning right, and then being surprised there's a car coming.
• Driving over the unbroken lines on a motorway exit, because they left it too late.
• Not giving pedestrians the right of way when turning into a junction.

Roll on self-driving cars....