An observation from a normally oblivious guy

[NeonLX]

I only drive when I have to. I actually love to drive stuff (used to race cars & drive trucks back in the day), but if I can avoid filling the petrol tank, polluting the atmosphere with car exhaust, etc, I will. I commute daily via transit between our home and work, and we do a lot of shopping by using the bus as well. I also walk to a lot of places if I am able. Hey, it's "free exercise".

But living here in the U.S., I'm occasionally forced to drive and I've noticed that other drivers are becoming increasingly rude, impatient and aggressive. F'rinstance, I tend to accelerate fairly gently away from a stop sign or traffic signal because it saves petrol (and wear & tear on the vehicle). But this often seems to enrage people who are behind me. They will get right up on my bumper and start swerving from side to side as if to say "get the hell out of my way", then they'll stand on the accelerator and go roaring around me when they are able--and of course gesture at me in the process. I also see a lot more examples of people cutting other people off in traffic, and what I call "dinking at the light", where they'll race ahead of cars in the other lane when the signal goes green, then dart in front just to make sure they are in the lead. Invariably, the "dinker" will then make a left turn a few hundred feet down the road, thereby stopping all of the traffic behind him/her.

I could go on and on, but I'm wondering if others are noticing increasing rudeness and aggressiveness...not only in traffic, but also in public places like grocery stores and the like?

Maybe I'm just getting old.

[norton ash]

I don't drive. And I'm scared to ride my bike now because of oblivious (too old, texting, confused by byzantine intersections and lights) or aggressive drivers.

There are simply too many cars on the road. I notice all the parking on residential streets these days. Much worse than 20 years ago.

[brainpanhandler]

When people get in their cars and lock the doors their personalities change and usually not for the better. If we are all more stressed, cynical, depressed and agitated then I believe those traits are exacerbated by the relative anonymity of being locked inside a car where others cannot see us as well and where we believe we cannot be easily reached and punched in the fucking face like we deserve.



Personally I can't stand the mother fuckers with the stereos that vibrate my internal organs from a block away. ffs. Which makes me more stressed, cynical, depressed and agitated.

[Pele'sDaughter]

Neon, you're one of the least oblivious guys I know.

People are more stressed than ever and many don't handle it with grace. I like to drive fast but I also recognize that other drivers have the right to drive like they want to. I do resent when other drivers block or otherwise deliberately impede my progress. How the hell do they know why I'm driving fast; I may have an emergency, ffs. A friend of mine had car trouble on one of our N Texas freeways and had to fight his way over to the shoulder, because no one would yield. What if he'd been having a medical emergency. That was quite a few years ago, so maybe it's just that the relative anonymity of vehicles brings out the worst in people.

[NeonLX]

Yeah...this is all making sense.

I actually don't drive slow when I'm out on the highway. I've had my share of speeding tickets, generally on those long, straight county highways out in the middle of nowhere where you can let the car unravel. But I generally accelerate up to cruising speed with less than 1/2 of the go pedal. I've rebuilt enough trannies and engines down through the decades to know that the jackrabbit starts are brutally hard on a vehicle's innards. I also anticipate stopping at signals and whatev so I'm not having to jam on the brakes to haul the vehicle down at the last second. Lotsa wasted momentum in doing that.

I'm a considerate driver as well, 'least I think so. I do things like letting people merge or come over into my lane, following at a respectful distance, using my turn signal, and being patient when people are trying to turn safely (I really hate the SOBs and DOBs who honk at somebody when they're trying to be careful while turning).

[dqueue]

I could go on and on, but I'm wondering if others are noticing increasing rudeness and aggressiveness...not only in traffic, but also in public places like grocery stores and the like?

Maybe I'm just getting old.

I admit I drive like a maniac. Not quite a maniac, but I do drive fast. I also try to stay the hell out of people's way. So, I find myself pretty impatient with lurkers in the left lane, slow turners, people inattentive to a changed light. Well, okay, an angry alter comes out when I get behind the wheel, and it's ridiculous. I know it's foolish of me, and I aspire to let go, and go with the flow.

That said, I don't really notice people more aggressive while driving. More so, I notice people less attentive while driving. Endless distractions... cell phones, text messages, make-up, books, newspapers, food... These seem to encourage detachment from one's surroundings, unsafe at any speed, really.

After the Derecho blew through the DC region a few weeks ago, leaving large swaths of the area without power, I was shocked. What was shocking was that drivers actually stopped at darkened intersections. I saw courteous behavior. This extended beyond the roads, and to some of the stores. There, people lacked connectivity with their handheld devices, and they generally engaged their environment with a friendly mien.

[Burnt Hill]

I am a polite driver also.
I love to coast alot to save gas.
I lay off the accelerator as soon as I see a stop sign.
My wife hates the way I drive, yet I am the one with no accidents.
But what I really wanted to say was,
I hate being behind the guy who lets everyone else merge, he's being nice to everyone but those behind him!
The rule should be you let one car in, two if they are coming from both sides.

[DrVolin]

Lane merging, especially in a construction zone, is a wonderful study of cooperator/defector systems.

[Burnt Hill]

And the guy who rides the parking lane as far as possible, instead of merging at the ramp!
I'll be yelling at the cars ahead of me, dont let that sob in!

[Forgetting2]

And the guy who rides the parking lane as far as possible, instead of merging at the ramp!
I'll be yelling at the cars ahead of me, dont let that sob in!

Funny. I do that too. And I'll just about run into someone who tries to abuse the one car merge rule.

As for the OP, I have the impression that people are getting more rude: on the road, in the supermarket, the coffee shop, or just about anywhere else. Curious if there's an actual trend, or if my patience has just worn thin. Maybe both.

Then again, I live in Los Angeles. Never been the friendliest place.

[MacCruiskeen]

When people get in their cars and lock the doors their personalities change and usually not for the better. If we are all more stressed, cynical, depressed and agitated then I believe those traits are exacerbated by the relative anonymity of being locked inside a car where others cannot see us as well and where we believe we cannot be easily reached and punched in the fucking face like we deserve.

I.e., driving a car is just like being on the Internet (aka the Information Superhighway).

[JackRiddler]

Automotive cculture has always been a violent mess. It probably is getting worse, due to increased density of the traffic.

[JackRiddler]

Automotive cculture has always been a violent mess. It probably is getting worse, due to increased density of the traffic.

If you really want to observe car drivers at their worst, get on a bike.

[jingofever]

If you really want to observe car drivers at their worst, get on a bike.

I've heard that people in cars will throw things or even get very close to bikers, sometimes forcing them off the road. It blows my mind. Those people should be executed.

[Nordic]

Yeah, here in LA lately there have been some bicyclists deliberately hit by cars. One well known case downtown LA at night that was witnessed by quite a few people. The other night a woman was hit on the PCH and killed. Both of these were hit-and-runs. Riding a bike around here is terrifying. My wife was once in the emergency room in Santa Monica and there were several other people in there as well, all of them cyclists who had been hit by cars. Some of them seriously injured.

Back in Colorado I would run into this when out on my bike, except it was usually on almost-deserted streets, where redneck assholes in pickup trucks would want to fuck with the guy on the bike.

Traffic around this neighborhood in Los Angeles has just been getting worse and worse the last year or so. They keep building condos everywhere they can squeeze another complex of them in, which is probably not helping. And if they'd time the fucking streetlights here that would help. I think I could get elected the Mayor of Los Angeles simply running on a campaign to time the fucking streetlights.

The 405 freeway, which cuts north/south right through the heart of this part of the city is a huge problem. It's a giant obstacle. There are only a few places you can cross it, and they're all gobbed up with unsynched traffic lights and entrance and exit ramps. They're a fucking nightmare. The 405 freeway might as well be the Mississippi River for how easy it is to get across it. But it was put there to help traffic! And now they're spending a billion or two dollars WIDENING IT. Yes, WIDENING IT. So it can carry even MORE CARS. Just so fucking stupid.

They are building a light rail metro line a block from my house now, too. Which is turning into a construction nightmare rather quickly. Sure it's a good thing but in the short term it's just godawful. Also they ripped out this half-mile long wall of trees and bouganvilla and other wonderful plants to put it in. This wonderful 30 foot tall wall of flowering vegetation just RAZED almost overnight. I turned the corner one day and it was gone. The view was completely different, empty and ugly as shit. And suddenly there seem to be a lot of shady looking people cutting through there on foot. It's like they only go where the ugly is. When the beautiful trees and vines and flowers and shrubs were there, there was none of this shady element.

I'm getting back to my old misanthropic roots. Which means it's more and more difficult to put up with this enormous stew of humanity here.