Which states have the worst drivers?

That’s what I say about Boston Drivers.

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"Whitey,
I haven’t been to all 50 states yet, but the most dangerous drivers I’ve seen were in the corridor between Washington, DC and Baltimore, MD. Those drivers did things in front of my semi that I would only contemplate if I was suicidal, like cutting me off and then braking hard. (The stopping distance of even a moderately loaded semi is more than twice as long as that of a car.)

I have been in 48 states plus Canada with 18 wheelers and do have to agree with you I think the parts you said plus 90% of the new england states area, Also add in southern Ca,

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+1
I have driven in about half of the US states, plus eastern Canada, and I have to say that the most dangerously-aggressive drivers whom I observed were in MA. Even after several decades of driving on the NJ Turnpike, the PA Turnpike, and other state tollways, nothing prepared me for the Kamikaze drivers on the Mass Pike, heading toward Boston.

Even on local roads, the amount of rudeness and aggressive behavior that I encountered in the Boston area was truly appalling. As but one example, a few times I was waiting at a red light in the right lane (which was designated for right turns on red AND going straight ahead on green), and even though I hadn’t signaled a turn and was waiting for the light to turn green so I could proceed, Massholes honked at me. Apparently, if THEY want to turn right on red the car in front of them should too, even if the car in front of them isn’t signaling for a turn, and is waiting for the light to turn green so that he can drive straight ahead.

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That’s a typical Masshole.

Years ago NY thruway (I-90) had a bridge wash just west of Albany. Took 2 years to rebuild. NY built a work around road. During the holidays that section was always backed up. And the reason for the backup (EVERY SINGLE TIME) was a bunch of cars would go off into the breakdown lane and then try to cut around the slowed traffic due slowed traffic. And EVERY SINGLE TIME…EVERY ONE OF THOSE VEHICLES HAD MA PLATES…EVERY SINGLE ONE…I refused to let one of those punks cut in front of me. They were being inconvenienced for a total of 20 seconds if they just stayed in line. Rude punks. I know some guys (and girls) who drive like that. Their attitude is “Oh Hell.”

Back when I was still working I saw something that made no sense to me I don’t remember which states but it was in new england during rush hour the breakdown and emergency lane was a legal driving lane I have always wondered what if someone has a breakdown what do they do or if a emergency vehicle had to get through how did that work? luckily I never was there when somthing like that happened.

In the metro areas in Minnesota the freeway shoulder is for buses. Works ok sometimes but I can’t imagine the debris picked up on the tires. On the side streets though, buses have the right of way, so they will just pull right out in front of you.

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I agree. In a different thread, I discussed how fast driver in this area drive. They must approach 100 mph, almost doubling the speed limit. Even on days at or below freezing with wet roads, people exceed the speed limit. The weather doesn’t matter to some. They weave through traffic no matter what the weather is like. The one positive thing I can say is that they pass by quickly and are gone.

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IMHO Texas and “traffic enforcement” don’t belong in the same sentence. I’ve never seen folks in Missouri drive across the grassy area separating the highway and the access road because there wasn’t an exit handy but I’ve seen it multiple times in Texas. I’ve also never received a ticket in Texas, possibly because I was driving as if I had sense, which meant a good 5-10mph slower than the surrounding traffic.

I’m reminded of back when Missouri first adopted “right turn on red after stop.” Illinois had had it for several years at the time. One local TV news crew made it sound like piloting the Space Shuttle. Who knew?

I’ve seen that in states other than Texas. It happens a lot in rural areas where a farmer might need to fix a fence and not have a better route to get to where it needs to be fixed. In Florida, you want to make sure you don’t do that kind of thing in front of a state trooper, but people still do it when traffic comes to a standstill.

BTW, driving with the flow of traffic is actually safer for everyone than driving slower than the flow of traffic, but you keep doing whatever it is you’re doing if it makes you happy. I’m sure your insinuation that I am without sense wasn’t accidental, but don’t you think you should get to know me before you call me senseless?

I completely agree you because in many ways it’s the “perfect traffic storm”

Build the major Eastern Highway I95 between 2 major cities, 30 minutes apart with very limited options to expand the highways.
Weather that can include rain, snow and ice all in one 30 minute trip
Lots of commuters between the cities, add in the annual migrations of the “Snowbirds”, the “Election New Arrivals” and the temporary postings from overseas (Lord help you if you’re near a car with Diplomatic tags) and you’ve got an exciting mix.

But as a “frequent flier” on those roads the solution is simple, assume that every car is driven by a trained monkey, give them lots of space and smile as you pass them by as they’re sitting in a ditch. :grinning:

Yeah, it may cost me 15 minutes but my record is clean, my insurance company loves me and I’m saving lots of money on premiums.

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In such situations I remain in the “slow lane” and keep pace with the surrounding traffic. I drive sensibly in contrast with the folks around me who are trying to break the sound barrier on land. I have no idea if you’re one of them. :wink:

I do understand though. About four years ago my wife was driving and we were somewhere in Oklahoma at night. She was freaking out because she hadn’t seen a sign lately and didn’t know what the speed limit was. I wondered what was hard about simply keeping pace with traffic.

There is no slow lane on I-95 between Baltimore and DC. Guaranteed someone will be in your bumper in no time, no matter which lane you are in.

My co-pilot liked to use the GPS, now phone to monitor the speed limit and my speed. I would get regular reports if I was exceeding the safety zone. It’s a wonder I made it all these years. I did fall on my head once so maybe that helped.

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I have found the GPS app on my phone is useful to see what the speed limit is if I don’t see any signs.

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And they’d be welcome to go around. :wink: I generally keep pace with other traffic but I’m not going to be ridiculous about it.

I wouldn’t take it; there’s the B-W Parkway and other choices; leave 95 for the semis and tourists.

I do take B-W Parkway. Drivers can’t go as fast there, but they still go fast. Lots of drivers go over 70, but even now, there’s too much traffic to get much faster. When I mentioned drivers going around 100, it wasn’t on 95, it was on MD-32. Still limited access, and not as wide as I-95. There are also more bottlenecks on the B-W than I-95.

The sad part is that in most “built up” areas there’s no good choices, only the least bad.

We’ve been building these Interstates for 50 years now, a great accomplishment, but in ten years the highway is more overcrowded and traffic is worse than it was before. The road get’s built, farms become “developments”, more drivers, more cars, more congestion, more lanes added, rinse and repeat until there’s no more room to do it anymore.

The interesting thing is that I’ve seen a lot more kids (anyone under 30) moving from the suburbs to the inner city and become “one car families” because they’re not willing to make the daily commute. Whether that continues after they have their own school age kids I don’t know.

It’s the great paradox. You build more lanes to relieve traffic congestion, and incentivize more people to drive, leading to more congestion.

It just goes to show car culture is only sustainable until you reach a certain growth point. Young people see this for themselves, which is why so many of them don’t even own one car until they start a family.

Two of my children did that. One moved back to the suburbs and the other, unmarried one still lives downtown. Around me, suburban schools are much better than downtown, unless you consider private schools. Private school tuition is a bit much compared to the housing cost differential between our county and the city. Car insurance and parking are better outside the city too. When I visit my daughter, I need to get a parking pass from her to display in my window so that I can park more than a couple hours without a ticket.