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Thread: Driving Each Other Crazy...

  1. #11
    Diamond Member Mike C's Avatar
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    I have had my licence for a long time now and I seem to remember that one of the major rules of the road after "keep left" was "be courteous". I don't think that is in the handbook any longer.
    No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. - Aesop "The Lion and the Mouse"

  2. #12
    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    I remember an employee who boasted he was the best driver in the company. He reckoned he had the fastest take-off technique at traffic lights, best handling skills when cornering at high speed, and best braking techniques when it came to stopping rapidly, especially in adverse weather conditions.

    He also had a pretty dim view of the driving skills of another employee in particular, who pretty much plodded his way around during the day.

    Kinda burst his bubble a bit when I pointed out the vastly different accident stats between him and the plodder.
    Guess which one had a pretty impressive tally of accidents, including a total write-off, minor fender benders, bumps and scrapes, and which employee had none?

    Number of kilometres per accident is probably the best indicator you can get, and with some exceptions, that'll include ones that "weren't your fault."

    I had one who kept getting hit from behind. Applying general principle, the fault was with the driver behind for failing to keep a safe following distance. But having to brake aggressively at the last moment because you had failed to anticipate events unfolding before you on a regular basis certainly doesn't help improve your odds of being smacked from behind any.

  3. #13
    Diamond Member Blurock's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by adrianh View Post
    Like people who try to get onto a highway at a low speed, I always get on at a speed which is a bit higher that the general speed on the highway (whatever that speed might be) so that when I merge I am able to drive my way into the lane without upsetting the flow of traffic.
    Worst are the people who actually STOP at an off ramp. I've had a few near misses due to observing and trying to anticipate the flow of the traffic on the freeway. Next moment this dooos in front of me slams on the brakes instead of merging into the traffic. Then you also have those morons who will not allow someone to merge from the left, but actually speed up to cut off the car entering from the offramp.

    The person who drives at a very low speed or very high speed compared to the rest of the traffic. Of course if it is too low then people get frustrated trying to pass and if it is too high the driver tends to weave in and out of lanes. High speed within built up areas are problematic because people misjudge distances.
    And the slow driver will sit in the middle lane and just wave people past on both sides of him/her. In KZN there are no "keep left, pass right" signs. The traffic authorities here have never seen the book as we all buy our licences at the local driving school...


    I find that one of the biggest problems on the road is situational awareness. People are not aware of their surroundings and do not plan for possible problems. You have continually think about things that might happen and your escape routes. The trick is to just to think "what if". People tend to assume that the other guy is going to do exactly what you expect...what do you do if they change their minds. The best is to assume that everybody else on the road may do anything at anytime and that you should be mindful of what you would do if it were to happen.
    A basic rule not taught by driving schools. Learners are not taught how to drive in the rain for instance. Maybe driving simulators can address this problem and when you have been involved in an accident, go back to simulator training to show that you are competent to handle unusual situations.

    I must also add that I think a huge problem is our own sort of "F*ck you, I do what I want" attitude. We don't care about obeying traffic laws because they are not enforced (unless you consider extorting money using remote cameras as enforcement)
    I cannot agree more. I do a lot of driving lately and am amazed at the poor driving skills displayed on the road. People are far too aggressive and impatient. They put themselves (and their passengers) in uncompromising situations and then blame someone else if an accident happens.
    Excellence is not a skill; its an attitude...

  4. #14
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    I drive really bad when i travel slow, i tend to loose focus on the driving and start thinking about what happened the night before just before i fell asleep or, the job i am going to, etc etc.

    when i drive fast, i concentrate and focus of what is going on around me.

    I have a heavy duty truck license code EC and a big bike license code A, can pretty much drive anything with wheels.

    Unfortunately because i spend some much time on the road i have become a real South African driver. When I drive my taxi, i drive like a taxi driver.

    I become one of those Aholes who everyone complains about. I get places, I put my indicator and i go, i drive right up the left side and push in right at the front, etc etc. You dont like do it, do it as well then you dont have to bitch about it. Nothing is going to change, this is Africa, if anything it is only going to get worse.

    The biggest problem with people on the road is they are toooo busy worrying about what everyone else is doing on the road, skrik that someone might take the gap in front of them, or the taxi driver pushing in 30 cars in front of then, than focusing on getting to their destination. I am a lot happier driving amongst taxi drivers than half the tossers on the road.

    Wake up, drive fast, drive defensively and focus on what you are doing and stop worrying about every else on the road, you will be a happier person with less road rage.

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  6. #15
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    by the way, getting your nikkers in a knot only gets you worked up. The person you are ranting about had already forgotten about you within 2 minutes of the incident. I use to be super aggressive with huge road rage, getting into blows on the side of the road, now i just smile and take the gap, i have have insurance

  7. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by ians View Post
    Wake up, drive fast, drive defensively and focus on what you are doing and stop worrying about every else on the road, you will be a happier person with less road rage.
    I fully agree with you. My moer gets totally stripped when people keep pushing etc. I make a point of concentrating on something else so that whatever is going on doesn't get on my nerves. It sure ain't easy but it does help...f*ck 'm, let the rest of them f*ck up their own Chi....I'll rather try to relax and watch them battle it out!

  8. #17
    Gold Member Houses4Rent's Avatar
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    This cannot be answered so easily. It depends... E.g. I was working part time for years as a youngster for rental car companies in Germany. Often long distances on the Autobahn pedal to the metal (traffic permitting), often close to or beyond 200 Km/h. Never had an accident. This was not really a problem as all people in Germany have to take a lot of driving lessons before they do their test (skill). Even driving lessons on the Autobahn are compulsory. Roads are generally good (road quality) and most cars are good too (technical standards). The law is usually abided by and the fast lanes are really the faster lanes. That is all very different here, however most cars here are advanced too now even in RSA.
    It was quite a challenge when the Berlin wall fell and the Trabbi's came onto our roads. They outside shell is not made from metal. Some called it cardboard. They were slow (100 km/h max at a push) and their drivers had no idea that others can easily be double their speed. I am sure that caused lots of accidents back then.

    Today I am riding a 170cc scooter since 6 years which developed my foresight/awareness much more.

    I also have a heavy duty truck license code EC and a big bike license code A. I can pretty much drive anything with wheels up to 20 tones.

    Luckily nowadays I do not spend much time driving any more. Our family car only clocks up 10000km a year.


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  9. #18
    Diamond Member Blurock's Avatar
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    Speed does not kill - stupidity does.

    When I was younger I always drove fast on the open road (never in town!) and tried to beat my previous best. Never had an accident. On the autobahn there are sections with no speed limits. The only accidents that happen is because of stupidity when people do not switch their lights on and slow down in misty conditions. Statistics confirm that the autobahn is the safest road in the world.

    On our roads one has to negotiate obstacles travelling at anything from 30 kph to 100 kph. There are countries where they have a minimum speed on certain roads. It won't work here because we allow horse drawn carriages and broken down jalopies on the road.
    Excellence is not a skill; its an attitude...

  10. #19
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    Don't kid yourself, speed kills. Although I love driving fast, there is no denying it. The faster you go the more likely you are yo get into serious trouble if something goes wrong. Sh1t happens, tires burst, animals run across the road, oncoming traffic overtake into your lane, the other guy falls asleep and crosses into your lane...etc

    I used to drive a Nissan 200SX Turbo and I soon realized that it's better for me to sell the car because the urge to drive at 200km/h + is going to get me or somebody else killed.

    My mother in law rolled her car one night when her left front tie rod snapped on her Jetta. Thankfully she was wearing her seat belt.

    The bigger picture is that we cannot decide which laws are ok to break. One person thinks its ok to speed, another that it is ok to skip a robot etc.

  11. #20
    Gold Member Houses4Rent's Avatar
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    The biggest problem in my mind in RSA is not wearing a seat belt, not using children/baby seats etc. Even at slower speeds this will cause much more harm than without them.
    Even silly traffic cops do not wear them - so much for leading by example. Do yourself a favour and count how many people wear a belt. Just look at the drivers of oncoming traffic in urban traffic. You will be horrified.

    My bad is not wearing a belt in the back seat as I have not formed an automatic habit about it, but then I can count these occasions in my one hand. In the front the reach for the belt is automatic.
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