Got run off the road yesterday, pulling my fully loaded 28' trailer, by an old woman making a left turn. We were headed in the same direction, she slows down and pulls into the turn lane, then halfway back into my lane before making the left. Seems like old people and anyone with a handicapped tag will almost always do that around here. I could have made the turn without doing anything weird while pulling my trailer, but I guess a park avenue is a little too long...
Yeah, that happens a lot around here too. Someone tried it the other day in front of the cop car and almost got a face full of push-bumper as the result. Lucky for them I was paying attention... 
Any damage to your truck or trailer?
Around here you have to watch out for the double left turn lanes. Apparently 97% of the population doesn't know you're supposed to maintain your lane (inside or outside) through the turn.
Nope, no damage, just put the outside tires in the grass, the trailer fender is already gone on that side from a really fun blowout on the highway at about 80mph.
There is an intersection in town that, for whatever reason, allows U-turns. I have yet to see more than 5 cars successfully make the uturn in a single pass. I've been in town for twelvish years now. Of course, the lights run on a sensor, so you get to wait if you're coming from the other direction for cars to turn, back up, and finish the turn. BUT, no one seems to realize that the car in front of them won't make the turn in a single go, and crowd right in behind, further slowing the whole mess.
I'm not going to bring it up with the traffic people though, since they cannot trust me to make a left turn on solid green, ever since an elderly local did so without yielding, which resulted in her getting t-boned, and her husband, a beloved professor, dying in said accident. Not that there is over a quarter mile visibility, and a 40 mph limit...
I saw a berkeleying smart car parked in a handicapped spot in front of the grocery store last night. By "parked in," I mean one wheel was "in" the spot; the other three were not.
Having a weak (read 'smart') moment, I asked for permission, rather than forgiveness, to leave a note reading "Jesus berkeleying christ, you'd think with a car the size of a berkeleying postage stamp, you could figure out a way to fit it in a berkeleying parking space. I finally figured out who the berkeleying retard is that goes in the public restroom and can't hit a goddamned three square foot target with an 1/8" diameter stream of piss. Congratulations, you suck at life."
It almost would've been worth not getting laid for a week.
I almost creamed a lady in a similar situation. Following her along a 2-lane blacktop when, without signaling, she slowed and moveed halfway off the right side of the road. I assumed she was pulling over for something so I started to ease around on the left. NOPE, she was making an unsignalled left turn with a huge wide swing for no apparent reason, and totally shut the door on me as I was about to go around. To this day I don't know how I avoided hitting her, but I followed her to her house and sat in my car screaming at her until she went inside.
DILYSI Dave wrote: Around here you have to watch out for the double left turn lanes. Apparently 97% of the population doesn't know you're supposed to maintain your lane (inside or outside) through the turn.
You should see what the jackasses around here do with roundabouts. Enter on the outside, cut to the inside, exit on the outside.
And anyone who can't fit a Smart car into an American-size parking space should have their drivers license burned and the ashes fed to them.
GameboyRMH wrote:DILYSI Dave wrote: Around here you have to watch out for the double left turn lanes. Apparently 97% of the population doesn't know you're supposed to maintain your lane (inside or outside) through the turn.You should see what the jackasses around here do with roundabouts. Enter on the outside, cut to the inside, exit on the outside. And anyone who can't fit a Smart car into an American-size parking space should have their drivers license burned and the ashes fed to them.
If there's room and it is accomplished without touching the brakes, then props to them. Somehow I don't think that's what you are describing.
The local bump and paint shops love having roundabouts installes
GameboyRMH wrote:DILYSI Dave wrote: Around here you have to watch out for the double left turn lanes. Apparently 97% of the population doesn't know you're supposed to maintain your lane (inside or outside) through the turn.You should see what the jackasses around here do with roundabouts. Enter on the outside, cut to the inside, exit on the outside. And anyone who can't fit a Smart car into an American-size parking space should have their drivers license burned and the ashes fed to them.
....and the same should be said for roundabouts. They're such an efficient way of moving traffic through an intersection, IMHO. Unfortunately, most people are too berkeleying stupid to figure out how they work. See also: 4-way-stops. I used to drive 5 miles out of my way to work to avoid a 4-way-stop, as I'd inevitably be punching my steering wheel and hanging a finger out the window with the tires smoking otherwise.
In reply to poopshovel:
next time, print out one of these, cut it out and leave on windshield of said car...
http://www.youparklikeanshinyhappyperson.com/notices/notice_1.pdf
DILYSI Dave wrote:GameboyRMH wrote:If there's room and it is accomplished without touching the brakes, then props to them. Somehow I don't think that's what you are describing.DILYSI Dave wrote: Around here you have to watch out for the double left turn lanes. Apparently 97% of the population doesn't know you're supposed to maintain your lane (inside or outside) through the turn.You should see what the jackasses around here do with roundabouts. Enter on the outside, cut to the inside, exit on the outside. And anyone who can't fit a Smart car into an American-size parking space should have their drivers license burned and the ashes fed to them.
Nope, the roundabout has two lanes, and when going through it you are supposed to use 1 and change lanes 0 times. These guys are using 2 and changing lanes 2 times.
They made some one lane roundabouts here, they were very cute with nice flower pots and lampposts. They are also a bit small so they first few trucks to go through remoed the fancy lighting. One fire truck touches a different curb with each wheel at the same time. You'd think somone would have stopped by the firehouse with a tape measure at some point.
Roundabouts are popular here for "traffic calming" purposes. The locals who can afford in the nearby communities cant figure out how to drive in one so they just stop in the middle until they figure it out.
GameboyRMH wrote: You should see what the jackasses around here do with roundabouts. Enter on the outside, cut to the inside, exit on the outside.
I always° do that. It's like taking the racing line through it.
(° Okay, I always do that if the roundabout is empty. Not in traffic.)
Every see someone use a suicide lane correctly or successfully? Neither have I. I think I'm the only one in town.
My brother in law does the wide turn. Both left and right turns. When I asked him why he said it was because he "drove big trucks". I found out it was 25+ years ago in a single axle lumber delivery truck for one summer. Yes, he is an shiny happy person.
Appleseed wrote: Every see someone use a suicide lane correctly or successfully? Neither have I. I think I'm the only one in town.
I don't even know what those are.
Suicide lane? Is that line a runaway truck ramp? Or is it a shoulder...?
I just spent the day driving a Penske box truck, I took all the turns on the way home WAYYYY too wide in my diminutive Saturn, speaking of wide left turns.
Suicide lane is the middle lane in a road where cars and enter either direction for the purpose of turning left.
Duke wrote: I almost creamed a lady in a similar situation. Following her along a 2-lane blacktop when, without signaling, she slowed and moveed halfway off the right side of the road. I assumed she was pulling over for something so I started to ease around on the left. NOPE, she was making an unsignalled left turn with a huge wide swing for no apparent reason, and totally shut the door on me as I was about to go around. To this day I don't know how I avoided hitting her, but I followed her to her house and sat in my car screaming at her until she went inside.
My wife is the lookout while I write colorful things on the windows in the dirt. I even make sure my fingers are greasy sometimes, so it REALLY sticks on good. Plus then the rest of the world knows how bad the offender sucks. Nothing like a little public humiliation.
You wanna see something awesome? Dodge Ram diesel rolling coal going straight across a round-a-bout. Ended with a Donkey Punch to a Saturn. I would imaging the diesel driver was in a hurry. I was on my GSX-R1000 and successfully avoided the mishap.
People not paying attention and using all available lanes? Got followed home tonight (went to 7/11 where there was an officer first, that stopped them). Some shiny happy person was rather unhappy that they tried going straight through a construction zone that had both lanes shift exactly one lane left, and then back one lane to the right not 200 feet past. Older pickup came up beside me, then tried to not make the shift to the left. Didn't like me kicking his truck. Tried to tell the cop that I was a hooligan. Thankfully, I know the cop.
I should get over it, but those wide back-and-forth turns drive me nuts. Are they having second thoughts about which street to turn on? Did they lose their trailer a few miles back without noticing?In Wisconsin we call them "hay wagon turns."
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