Drivers Beware

I’m not the world’s greatest driver. I’d be lying if I pretended to be. I’ve been in an accident. I’ve gotten multiple speeding tickets. Do I consider myself to be a bad driver? Yes. But I am working on it.

Now that I’ve got that out in the open I shall continue…

Other drivers tend to bother me. And I mean that in a “I HATE OTHER DRIVERS” kind of way. Why, you ask? No one cares about driving anymore. There, I’ve said it. Driving is something we all take for granted. We drive and drive and drive and drive… Many of us forget to use blinkers, we make sudden stops, we cut in front of other cars. We forget that there are other drivers on the road. This in itself is a major problem.

Not a day goes by where I don’t drive past some sort of accident. Minor fender benders here, five car pileup there… it’s insane! People just aren’t paying attention anymore. They lack courtesy. And they’re ruining the road for the rest of us.

I don’t ask for much from other people. I’m not very demanding. But there are a few things I’d like to say today.

  1. Use blinkers. I’m not a psychic. I don’t know if you’re going to go left or right unless you give me some sort of sign. Blinkers are there for a reason, use them.
  2. Yellow doesn’t mean “slam on your brakes”. A yellow traffic light doesn’t mean you need to slam on your brakes. Chances are there will probably be someone behind you. By doing this, you increase the risk of an accident.
  3. A yield sign doesn’t mean stop. I don’t know how many times I’ve been caught behind someone on a highway on-ramp where they’ve stopped at a yield sign. Yield does NOT mean stop. In many cases, yield signs placed in areas near on-ramps tend to be placed around bends of some sort. During any given week, I see at least 1 accident caused by someone careening into another driver who has stopped for no reason at a yield sign. It’s retarded. Learn to merge. Other cars will work with you if you’re smart about it. Speed up or slow down. By completely stopping you impede traffic and increase the risk of an accident.
  4. Go the speed limit. One thing I cannot stand is getting stuck behind someone who refuses to go the speed limit. If you’re in a 55mph zone, that does NOT mean go 40. If you feel compelled to drive slow, let me pass.

Granted, these might be just petty whines, but valid ones. Too many people just don’t pay attention to the flow of traffic these days. Too many people are busy talking on cellphones or applying makeup or writing stuff down or looking for things on the floorboards. Pay attention. I don’t want to die. I’m sure you don’t either. Let’s keep an eye out for each other, k? You watch my back, I’ll watch yours. Together, perhaps, with a little common sense, we can bring safety back into driving.