“I’m done with this thread.”
Really? Was it not going fast enough for you? Is this you flashing your lights at it then?
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what about tailgaiters who go way beyond the speed limit and demand to clear the lane yesterday?
Let’s call it following at an unsafe distance then.
I think what you need to realize is that, despite your job depending on speed, the world doesn’t revolve around you.
If the horn beep/light flash doesn’t work, then my advice for safest driving would be suck it up and stay a safe distance back. You’re not going to lose your job over it.
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Not sure there are any histrionics here.
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Ugh.
Did your taxi meter replace your irony meter?
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Actually, following too closely can lead to WORSE traffic - at least when traffic is heavy (because it makes it hard for other traffic to merge). There’s some good reading about it here: http://www.smartmotorist.com/traffic-and-safety-guideline/traffic-jams.html
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For me, I get annoyed when I’m at or above the speed limit and not in the passing lane and someone is driving too closely behind me. The reason I get annoyed is because that person is not driving safely and they’re doing it around me (and often my family).
Of course, most of the time there’s no accident, but driving, like most aspects of living in society, involves certain agreements of consideration. Safe driving is an important consideration. Tailgating is unsafe driving, and that’s inconsiderate. Inconsiderate behavior is reasonably annoying to many people.
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I’ll throw my 2 cents in:
Cars both brake and break…if they do either hard enough then the person up your ass is going to be in your back seat.
I typically drive at some vague idea of the speed limit. Usually like 10 or 15 over (obviously traffic and location play a part in this. I don’t do 45 in a school zone with kids playing outside kind of thing.) On multilane roads I’ll pass you in any lane that’s open. I don’t “flash” people cause that’s fucking stupid. As far as tailgating, I will do it if you are going below the speed limit. I factor the amount of time I need to get places based on that speed, not going 10 or 15 below it. In general I ride what I feel like is a comfortable distance to stop behind people…for most people that’s roughly 4-5 car lengths. But why not like 7 or 10? Because most people won’t invest in tires worth a shit and can’t stop worth a damn anyway. You want to feel safe in a car, invest in good handling/gripping tires. I’m not talking spending big money on summer ultra high performance, but something good. I’ve never caused an accident, and yes I have been brake checked on the interstate (once by some a-hole in a 70’s land barge…even riding less than 20’ behind him it wasn’t hard to slow down.) Oh and that one time I was rear ended…it was by someone not paying attention and noticing I and the other 3 cars ahead of me were stopped.
And if someone did this to me, I’d put it in reverse and drive around them. No actually this wouldn’t happen because I tend to back off at on ramp merges so I can accelerate and move over two lane and pass you on the far left.
Also drivers have a very subconscious reaction to being passed. If you are close to them they typically will speed up, at least some. Once you get about 10-15 car lengths in front of them they resume their normal speed. My favorite is people who play the I want to go faster game so I can pass you in an opening…I rarely find people who will go fast enough to achieve that - and I drive a Corolla.
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Agree 100%. Even as I type this I’m having to constantly pump the brakes cuz the car ahead is doing 10 mph below the limit in the passing lane! Idiot!
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You don’t see the histrionics because you only quoted what I said. People’s lives!!! Here is what you said:
In my state, you can drive 5-10 mph over the speed limit on the freeway. I generally don’t go more than 5 over though. Sorry to disappoint you though, since you were having so much fun with the absurd narrative you inferred from things I didn’t even say. You definitely sound like the type of self-absorbed asshole that would sit in the passing lane going 10 under to keep the road safe though.
black leather finger-less driving gloves and a pink tie. it is obvious this guy does not give a fuck what other people think.
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As a former delivery person, I have had to deal with a lot of traffic, different kinds of drivers, and traffic laws.
I don’t know about where you are, but the few US states I have lived in and read the laws of have specified what constitutes tailgating. Them issuing you a drivers license at all is conditional to you agreeing to abide the traffic laws as they exist, and your license is valid only so long as you agree to those terms. Whether or not you think the label might be pejorative is your own personal problem.
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I don’t know why the video of the OP is referred to as any kind of road rage. On the contrary, the driver seems quite calm.
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I grant that this is a rare case, but I had several tail gaiters and people honking in anger with me in the last week because I was hauling un-fired pots (super fragile) to the only kiln I can use, 40 miles away from my studio. The thing is, you never know what’s up with the person who is maybe driving a bit slow or cautious (I was driving the speed limit, but braking early and cornering very very slowly.) Maybe they have a pregnant lady having a contraction in the car, maybe they are hauling fragile un-fired pots hither and yon, maybe their grandma who has cancer is in the back seat. Seriously, don’t be a jerk, consider the person going slow has things going on.
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I’ve recently found that turning on my left turn signal, (while tailgating and flashing my high beams) and then honking, if necessary, will get the slow-pokes out of the passing lane… YMMV
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oy, this thread.
the issue, at base, is that automobiles are a horrible idea by nearly every metric. this thread illustrates how the cage activates the aggressive, lizard instinct. the cage disables the very human and civil ability to simply say “hey, buddy, do you mind if I get around you right quick?” to your fellow citizen. reasons enough to put a moratorium on driving. but, our economy is rigged on oil (and yes, the military, but there is a sizable interaction) and the culture re-enforces dependance on cars so much that this dependance is assumed and seldom questioned.
that said, my take is as follows: whether on foot or some form of vehicle, when one is in a public space, it is no longer about “me,” it is about “we.” traffic must flow. it is both common sense and common courtesy to not impede others that must also use that space (i.e. do not stand in the doorway, neither literally nor metaphorically.) also a matter of common sense and common courtesy: an automobile can kill (and often does, somewhere in the top 15 of US deaths, IIRC) so aggression and jackassery are uncalled for. between these two maxims, the appropriate response to many traffic situations can be made. if you are dawdling and traffic inches up on you, they are not “tailgating,” you need to get your head in the game. conversely, if you think your time is more valuable than the rest of the folks on the road so that you are justified in driving aggressively, then you are the problem. in either case, letting go of one’s ego is required, something most folks struggle with mightily in any situation, and exacerbated by the cage. I include myself here. I am much happier to have sold my last car over a decade ago.
as my man Mike D once said “let’s give each other a hand out there.” this was in reference to a ferocious slam pit, but sage advice for most situations. but if you can quit driving altogether, that would be super.
thanks.
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I have a better solution. I just turn my windshield cleaning nozzles on and spray them. They change lanes every time.
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Yep, low-level Taiwan gangster trying to intimidate.
It seems to be Taipei according to the comments. Licence plates appear to match. Yeah… this is pleasure of not living in America: not all your choices are coloured by the knowledge that you could be shot at any time.
