In a two week period, I was almost hit three times. All three of those incidents took place on campus property. Two of them at the same intersection. I actually stopped driving for a few days because I couldn't handle the stress and anxiety I felt after the third (really close) incident.
Today, while pulling into the Maceys in Provo, I almost T-boned a senior citizen because she completely ignored the stop sign. The white line on the road that says "stop." The giant red sign that says "stop." The fact that it's a four-way intersection and her direction of traffic has stop signs while mine did not.
I don't know how much more of this anxiety I can handle. I'm already on pins and needles when I travel because I have a baby in the car. I'm not sure how to make sure I can keep her safe when I have no control over what others do on the road.
Things that annoy the heck out of me:
*When I'm already going 5 mph over the speed limit (the most I'll push it) and the car behind me is so close I can barely see the bottom of their windshield in my rearview mirror.
*Cars that change lanes in the middle of an intersection. (Which is illegal in MO (where I took driver's ed.), but apparently is not here in UT. I know. I've called the DMV. It's "frowned upon" but not actually against the law. Although if a policeman is feeling particularly sassy that day, he can pull you over for "reckless driving.")
*Cars that don't stop at stop signs
*Cars that decide that their time is more valuable than everyone else that's going in the opposite direction by turning left even though they weren't even close to the intersection by the time the light turned red.
*Folks that drive cars that are bigger than they can handle. For example, the truck that's not between the parking spot lines or the car that constantly drives in two lanes of traffic.
3 comments:
And this is why, when my parents come out here, they turn all the driving over to us :)
How stressful! And I think that it would be really hard to adjust to having a baby in the car and thinking about their safety all the time.
Driving in Utah was one thing I forgot that I hated so much until we came up there. : )
Also, switching lanes in the middle of an intersection is definitely also illegal in SC where I grew up. Hate that, too.
And yes, let me add a couple more driving pet peeves:
1) People who don't use turn signals, especially when they are switching lanes on the interstate.
2) People who USE their turn signals right as they are already moving into your lane in front of you--more of a "hey, you'd better slow down because I'm coming in" than an "I'd like to get over at some point when it's safe".
3) People who don't turn on their lights when it's very cloudy and dim and especially when it's rainy or (like as we were driving back to AZ) driving snow--and especially all those people who have WHITE CARS.
4) People who don't slow down in inclement weather (such as semi-blizzard conditions, also in their white cars, also not signaling and trying to get in your lane).
The sad thing is that a lot of things are subjective in driving, meaning, there is no absolute YOU MUST DO THIS ACTION WHEN THE CONDITIONS ARE SUCH (like whether or not to turn on your lights when it's cloudy and rainy or snowy). People think, oh, I can see fine. They just don't stop to consider that other people CAN'T SEE THEM, and they are also combining other unsafe acts like not slowing down and not using their turn signals and things like that.
I could rant more. But I won't. : )
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