Manners / car rage

[ThomCat]

I've been enjoying the eating in supermarkets and parking in maother and baby spaces when you don't have a baby conversations and wanted to start soemthing on manners when driving, or in general really.
Does it infuriate anyone as much as it does me when you pull in for someone and they drive past without so much as a nod of the head?
Also I was trying to pull out onto a road last night, turning right, so getting through one lane and into the other, and the car behind me beeped. I looked in my mirror and this woman was shouting 'Just bloody go'! Go where? Did she want me to just pull out into the fast moving traffic and hope the cars driving towards me slammed on their brakes in time to prevent me and DD being crashed into??!!
Why are people so rude? I come across bad manners whilst driving at least a few times every week.

Yes the driving age is 15, at least it was when I got my licence. I don't know about the awful driving we're always accused of though, have you tried driving in London? I think the road conditions are just different. I remember DH's white knuckles when we left Auckland on our first trip there together. There I was, hurtling down the highway cheerfully at 100km/h (the speed limit) and dh was demanding I slow down because there were no crash barriers or hard shoulder. Wuss!

Drivers are definitely worse in NZ - despite low speed limit. In London drivers will actually stop to let a car turn right or even do a U-turn - no way could you do that in NZ. Drivers are slow, unpredictable, pass on the left, overtake in dangerous conditions, refuse to merge properly, never stop for pedestrians unless it is an official zebra crossing, don't know how to use roundabouts properly - no wonder the accident rate is so high. I find driving in London much less stressful than Wellington!

I learnt to drive in the South east (Hitchin) and found the driving in London much better that wehn I moved up to the North West (Bolton).

My theory at the time was that the sheer volume of traffic in the South East meant that if you weren't assertive, then you didn't survive (or at least, would stop driving!). I found drivers in Bolton much less predictable - and therefore more dangerous. And the number of times I saw people run red lights in the North West astonished me! (if you were to do that in London, you'd pretty soon be in an accident!)

Now I'm back in Glasgow, I'd say the dirving was somewhere in between. But we do get spoiled up here - what we call a traffic jam, poor sods in the South East would call "just heavy traffic"!

I love sitting at big busy traffic lights and when someone annoying looking starts to cross I rev my engine so they think the lights are changing and have to run. Tee hee!!!

I really should have my license revoked I know

i thought we had solved this one a few weeks ago? it was decided no one was allowed on the roads but me

as women drivers are crap - except for me, young men are crap and dangerous pillocks with the boom boom music and the neon lights in the finned ford cortina !tut

cyclists are stupid

motorcyclists are dangerous and stupid

trucks and lorries are ok if in one sodding lane
and white van drivers are WA**ers

i was at a junction in brighton ( was this you?) and you know when you have been waiting for soddin ages and no bugger will let you out?

so i edged out and inch at a time - eventually this merc actually swerved to get round me and his missus in the pasenger seat was swearing and looking very cross - I HANDLED IT LIKE THE GROWN UP I AM - i stuck my tongue out and drove off sharpish!

don't all shout at once but the worst, most inconsiderate, thoughtless etc etc drivers I've ever come across are mums on the school run. they'd run you over as soon as look at you, open the car doors right into the middle of oncoming traffic, never never give way to anything ever, stop in the middle of the road while waiting for their precious ones to emerge from the school gate, park on double lines, and so on.
Hope I don't end up like that

Had the same conversation with dh today Morocco!

People who smoke and drive.

On the way back tonight this idiot was too busy trying to light her fag that she didn't realise she has halfway over my side of the road, until I beeped at her. dozey cow

SamboM

I thought only men did that...

It's a good job guns aren't widely available in this country as I've always wanted to shoot people who do that to me (I'm obviously very annoying looking ... and watch too many Arnie films).

Thomcat, when I read your post I thought that was me! (I hope it wasn't!).

I always seem to get behind silly women in silly little cars, who stop at completely empty roundabouts & won't pull out unless there's nothing coming for a mile or so. Then once I'm on the roundabout I always get the old git who is turning left so doesn't have to stop pull into my lane. EVERY day this week!

mammya, here the lights are mainly 3 way, so they stay red for ever. You can bet that the second they change to green, some burk of a pedestrian will decide to step off the pavement. They can't manage to wait till their light is green.

It is true ... the driving age here is 15 ... can you believe it? Mind you they have to drive with someone in the car who has a full license (IE someone over 17)
Agree with sibble on the driving standards in NZ ... they are bonkers ... mad ... nutters ...
My pet hate are those who peep their horn behind you the second the light goes green ... makes my blood boil!
Oh.. they also don't have laws about driving whilst talking on the phone ... nearly everyone I see is talking and driving at the same time!

Have a great new NZ one, happened 3 times so far this week. It is quite rural where we are so you can cruise at 100km without seeing many cars until the van/truck/pick up (usually) pulls out of a side turning/drive right in front of you rather than wait a nanosecond for you to pass. But it's Ok becasue they then swerve onto the gravel (no path) to the left so you can swerve past them. On a bend or hill!!!!!
ARRRGGGHHH Need to invest in one of those hands with the fingers up people had years ago, what happened to those and was it the right finger. Anybody have one please send.

Oh and to add insult to injury I now have to sit a written driving test. Sample Q109 which is true

1. Alchohol makes you drive better
2. ...has no effect on way you drive
3. ...makes you react faster
4. ...slows down your reactions

Even better - if you miss your turning on motorway should you

1. reverse
2. do u-turn
3. wait for next

!!!!!!!

I hate:

1. Sunday drivers, those that are normally about 107 and wear peaked caps and generally have no idea that anyone else is on the road

2.People who can't reverse park, or try to attempt to reverse park into a huge space, holding up the traffic and still fail miserably

3. People who don't indicate on/off roundabouts and have absolutely no idea which lane to go in even when there are huge white arrows telling them

4. People who suddenly reach their destination and stop without indicating

5.People who completely blank you when you pull into a space to let them go. I normally stick my fingers up or stick my tongue out

6. When the lights go green and people tend to just sit their dithering in their cars, not even apparently in gear and eventually decide to drive off (normally old gits)

7. Drivers who drive up my backside - if this happens, I normally slow down to about 20 mph till they get the message

8. Drivers who have no idea that speed limits are in place, that is, they do 40 mph everywhere regardless whether its a 30 or a 60.

However what I do like are drivers who don't realise that on some roundabouts they can go straight over in 2 lanes but still insist on queueing up the left lane which means a smaller queue for me to get in. And also I think its hilarious when people queue up in the left lane to go left or straight over but don't realise they can go in the right lane and go right round the roundabout therefore missing about 40 cars still queueing up!

can I add - idiots who are in the inside lane on the motorway and then suddenly realise they need that exit - cut across three or more lanes of traffic to take the off ramp!!

People who will not give way on a roundabout and almost smash into you ( with dd in the car) then scowl and mouth abuse at you for not getting out of their way.... happens often - mini roundabout into our street.. number of times I have almost been wiped out because they are speeding down the hill - never mind that I am already on and almost around .....

cranky people in hurry who drive like maniacs... had one yesterday - beeping cause I wouldn ot push into a line of traffic on same mini roundabout.. just mouthed at her to bite me and decided to sit a bit longer... then had a nive truck driver let me out BUT not her... forcing her to come out behind him and chuggggg up the road. Oh how I loved.... ( okay I need to get out more!!!)

I do not like people who cut me up either - but my aunt taught me the best way to get revenge (particularly on country roads). First overtake said car asap. Then drive very very slowly whenever it is impossible for them to overtake, and very, very fast when they might have a chance. She did this to some wxxxer all the way from Somerset to London once. I thought the guy was going to spontaneously combust.

Ghosty, there may be a law prohibiting the use of a mobile phone while driving here, I'm not sure (is there?) but if there is, many, many drivers don't know or don't give a . I see sooooooo many of them.

I was off with a cold yesterday and it was great to come back to a load of ranting women, doesn't it feel good to have a virtual sream up!! Very funny girls, I know it's not funny when you're in the car, believe me I've just used my horn twice on the way in(!) but great reading all your posts, my headache is still there but I don't mind as much! xx

Don't laugh sibble, I've seen cars do all of those on the A2

Sibble, it used to be that there were only 4 versions of the written test (multi-choice) in NZ, and everyone was given the answers - you just memorised all of them and got one of the versions on the day. Is this still the case?

And the driving test used to consist of driving round the block and trying not to hit a cow on the way. Actually I think there was a question about what to do if you encountered a flock of sheep.