Car Talk Guide to Civil Driving

Don’t be possessive of the road. Let others pass you even if you travel at or slightly above/below the speed limit. Make the effort to let people pass you by if they appear to need to.

On the interstate, the left lane is for passing and emergency vehicles only. If you aren’t actively passing someone, move over at least one lane to the right, even if you are exceeding the speed limit. (Why would breaking one law make it okay to break another.) Don’t try to limit anyone else’s speed. That’s one of the police’s functions.

Don’t tailgate!!! Tailgating is asinine and reckless.

Agree; this is one of the worst habits of drivers in my area. It slows down traffic on otherwise good 4 lane highwais. In Germany and other European countries they would flash their high beams indicating you should let them pass.

If all this did was slow down traffic, I might live with it. But it makes the highways by far more dangerous than anything on the current driving tips list. It produces congestion, cramming everyone together, getting on many people’s nerves and then produces those other kinds of problems (like tailgating and tempers).

I spend a lot of time on interstates and NONE of the dangers I encounter are produced by things like excessive speed. They are produced by people who have no idea how to use the highway.

Please understand that there is a red light a half block ahead and there is no need to tailgate me if I happen to be in front of you.

Please use your turn signal when right turning into a side road where I or someone is waiting at a stop sign to proceed.

If you habitually drive annoyingly fast then please don’t forget to run during the final portion of your trip after you get out of your car. Also, don’t forget to run back to your car.

Harley riders, please get a better muffler; don’t make me roll up my window while you go by.

One more, don’t drive in platoons on a two lane freeway so left lane hogs are then less of a problem.

There, I feel better!

Show your intention. Use your turn signals.

Tester

Get in the proper lane at least 1 block before you have to turn, and don’t pass me on the right just to get into the space between me and the car in front of me and turn left. And if you are using the center turn lane get in there early enough so you are not blocking the driving lane by trying a 90 degree turn, and when the light is red stop for it.

I had this happen not too long ago. I was turning left, had my signal on and everything. Guy in the oncoming lane has no signal on. Light turns green for us and we approach the intersection(small town city roads). I get about half way into the intersection to turn left, and the guy just sits there a little bit ahead of me. I sit there waiting for him to come straight, and inch forward some more. He still doesn’t move. After about 20 seconds or so, he decides to use his signal to let me know he’s turning left as well, so I make my turn so he can turn

When the light turns yellow, slow to a stop instead of speeding up. If the light has JUST TURNED RED and the other traffic hasn’t moved, this doesn’t mean its still OK to go.

If the lanes is for a right turn, don’t make a left turn just because you don’t want to wait in the right turn only lane.

I guess this fits under being a courteous driver, but it real bad around here (North of Boston).

Respect all trucks and give them room. I love it when people drive around me and them slow down on the highway when I am towing. Sure my 11,000lb rig won’t dent your car.

Don’t crowd motorcycles: just because we take up less space doesn’t mean you can invade it!

Do you push and shove and step on peoples heels and cut in line when you are inside a building? Do you slam doors in peoples faces instead of holding them open for others who are carrying packages? Do you breath down people’s necks? Do you block the aisles at the supermarket?

Don’t drive like that either.

Signal your intentions in time for others to slow down, change lanes, or whatever. If you signal your turn only 50 ft before you make the turn, you did me absolutely no good, I still had to nail the brakes to keep from hitting you.

If I or others stop accelerating and are just letting our cars coast, maybe it’s because we can see that intersection with a red light all the way from back here. It’s amazing how far forward you can see when you don’t drive with your head up your ass.

Left lanes are for passing only if the traffic is free-flowing. In non free-flowing traffic (rush hour), the left lane is needed just to carry the volume of traffic. If you don’t believe this, see what a mess I-35 turns into anywhere between San Antonio and Georgetown TX when only one lane is closed or blocked.

edit: I didn’t mean to tag racersteve’s posting, I just hit the wrong reply button.

Everyone should undergo a psychological evaluation before getting a license (and maybe an IQ test). Anger management classes for those that drive those jacked up pickups with big tires. :slight_smile:

You don’t need a high IQ to be a good driver any more than you need to be a genius to hit a home run.

I agree BLE, but it should at least be in the double digits.

One year during Lent (Catholic thing), I gave up cursing and being upset with other drivers. Talk about a major challenge!! 40 days of just shaking my head at the dipstick driving like a maniac and saying out loud to myself, “Poor fella, he must have a real emergency”.

Thank gawd THAT Lent is over with!!!

99.9 % of drivers would dis-agree with this. They would argue that ‘it costs too much’ but I retort that it already costs too much to NOT do this…
---- Learn to drive in the same manner as we learn to fly ----

Unless youall have your pilot’s license ( some of us in this forum do ) you may not recognize the massive importance of doing so.
-Driving class would include ; the basic mechanics of the internal combustion engine, fuel system requirements, brakes, tires, lights etc. ; The physical capabilities and non-capabilities of the machine. ; The procedures associated with emergency situations. ; The mental assessment of the driving evironment ( noise , distractions, passengers, traffic ). ; Traffic flow theory ( how your actions, or lack thereof, affect EVERYONE around you ). And more.

  • Drivers would practice these actions in real time with instructor on board.
    -Drivers would be re-tested every two years to keep their license current.
  • ALL drivers would learn this way and ALL current driver would need to re-school in this manner.
    -The liability insurance could be written on the DRIVER, not the car. Different drivers / different levels of ability / different rates no matter which vehicle is being driven, the driver’s actions would be liability covered. The comp & collision insurance could be written on the vehicle.

-Drivers would actually know their machine.

  • Drivers would actually know how to drive AND how NOT to drive.
    -accident rates would be cut in half, death rates would decrease, and insurance rates would fall along with that ( oops, don’t tell the insurance people they’re about to make less money )

Laws would need changed to effect this kind of driver licensure and it will be a very big job to do so, including the schooling infrastructure, but think about it.

I may have left out a lot of what can be taught & learned in the manner of getting a pilot’s license but visit any Cessna pilot learning center at most airports to see what’s involved in getting your pilot’s license, then apply that to automotive driving.
Another post here asked if learnig a stickshift makes us better drivers. I think the additional mental excercise is a key that contributes to making one a better driver. I know for certain, and watched it happen, that when I got my private pilot’s license, I changed the way I drive my trucks for the better.

Another turn signal post here.

You use turn signals to indicate what you are planning to do in the near future, not for what you are already doing in the present.
What you are doing in the present is already obvious to surrounding drivers. Signaling microseconds before making a turn does the people behind you absolutely no good. If signaling microseconds before making the turn or lane change was sufficient, then cars would have the turn signals activated by the steering wheel just like brake lights are activated by the brake pedal.

A good guideline is to signal about 15 seconds before your turn or lane change. If making a turn, your turn doesn’t start when you begin to turn the wheel, it starts the moment you begin to slow down for the turn ahead. You should already be signaling before you start to slow down.

Oh but that would require…thinking ahead ! Man, I’d like to slap some drivers too.
1st the turn signal.
2nd the lane change.
3rd slow to turn.

Yea, thinking ahead, what a concept. Not only do you use turn signals in time to actually benefit your fellow drivers, but it also significantly improves your gas mileage and brake life.

When approaching an interstate highway from an on-ramp, please YIELD to the traffic already on the highway…or, at the very least, look at the traffic on the highway to gauge your approach and entrance. Don’t just drive straight on like an automaton and expect cars on the highway to yield. THEY HAVE THE RIGHT-OF-WAY!