best bit of driving ive ever seen (can you feel the sarcasm?)

[ltd]

Keepleft the above cases highlight a couple of things, but as you have raised the issue I'll offer my opinion. I agree whole heartedly that we need to make it mandatory to have triangles and hazard lights to warn everyone of approaching danger, and I agree that we need to ensure drivers move their cars out of traffic flow after an accident, incident and/or any other predicament which causes one to stop traffic flow. Would you agree, that we should target everybody highlighting the dangers and potential hazards to stopping for any reason through say, an ad campaign. I mean, these jerks can put ads on tv about how great they are looking after the water, trains etc, but no community service announcements. Maybe you could use your position to make things happen and even then highlight the benefits of safety triangles etc.

[new2ford]

Originally Posted by Keepleft

(I hope you wouldn't want him to also run back down the road and put his triangle out though Keepleft!) NOT in that circumstance - of course no,

I was infradig here Keepleft, not serious! Not everybody thinks instantly hazard lights if something else is occupying their minds like whether nut in Camry is about to step out with a gun which was probably going through the Lexus driver's mind in an event of such off the planet irrationality. The Camry driver should not have a licence at all ever because of mental instability.

[MITCHAY]

Originally Posted by ltd

Actually, this has prompted me to ask another question. We have all been subjected to right lane hogs who as far as the "ignorance is bliss" scale is concerned; measure orgasmic, but how many of us have ever seen anyone get pulled over for this law?
I mean, we can make as many new laws as we like but unless they are enforced they are useless. The number of P platers I've seen with turbo wrx's, Holden SS and HSV's, Nissan GTR's and the like is astonishing. They still brandish the P plates and yet there is never any policing of this so called law. The guy killed last night, if that VL was a turbo (as reported on sunrise) then what would the P plater be doing driving it. Isn't this part of the new law to protect P platers from themselves? Farken Stoopid as far as I'm concerned - especially since the policeman has been replaced by a camera that will solve all of the traffic woes. Morris Dilemma needs to remove his head from shiek taj's *** in his Lakemba electorate and not be afraid to lose the muslim vote by getting police to solve these problems. My 3 cents (yeah, there was more than 2 in that).

Really they aren't enforcing the power restrictions? I would of thought they would make a bucket load of cash off this law.

Hell it aint even illegal here in the ACT for me to drive my WRX and nearly every single cop gives me a look as to say "you **** up your butt is mine" lol.

You can place as many laws as you want down, but rarely are they any good as a preventative measure, rather as a consequence.

[zetec]

I had the same thing happen to me. I once got overtaken by a ******** on a bike at some stupid speed on a 2 lane highway, I was on the limit happily overtaking slower cars in my right lane and he just rips up the middle line between the 2 lanes. When he pulled in front of me I gave him a couple of quick flashes to remind him he was being a tosser, he hits the brakes almost instantly and I had to slam mine on in the right lane, from 100km/h to almost 30. He then started playing smart **** wiht me and not letting me accelerate, whilst cars are passing us on the left, thinking he was being tough or something... what a ****wit.

I ended up overtaking him on the left, then he floored it and cut me off again, then ****ed off. Had I not been driving a decent car, I'd have simply nudged his rear tyre and sent the ***** sideways at 40km/h, he was begging for it and I would have been fully within all legal protection to do so...

[LUXO_8]

Originally Posted by Caseterritory

Sept/Oct Girl on Melbourne road driving along in OT lane 3of3 Princes Hwy Melb to Geelong when her bonnet flies up. Stops and Gets out, runs to emergency lane where another car stops to help her out. Man & wife have to stop hard to avoid rear ending her car but get hit from behind by empty AVGAS Tanker. They do not escape instant fireball which also burns truck, but truckie Ok. As Ok as can be expected anyway. Girl on mobile screaming. Freeway blocked rightly for 6 hours......

Please take note of responsibility to all other road users and their families.

i was pretty sure they actually hit her car as well........then the truck hit their car causing the fireball......

the first lady was the cause of that one and shouldnt have a licence........ who in their right mind stops their car in the middle of a freeway because their bonnet flew open.............

[photn]

Originally Posted by ltd

Saw a similar thing happen on parramatta rd ashfield today, and the consequences were an overturned hilux and a 3 times over written off camry station wagon.

Guy in a Hilux 4wd gets a blow out and stops in the middle lane. Car behind (older style camry - not curried (equivalent to rice maybe?)) has no time to stop and goes up the back then into a power pole. Hilux flips on its side, Parramatta road closed. Thank God nobody was killed.

Similar thing happened to me on the M5 a couple of months ago in the E-tag lane. Guy in a camry goes down the right lane (a 70km/h no stopping zone), realises he doesn't have a tag and then stops, reverses and can't understand who is shouting at him on the PA system that is fixed along the distance of the concrete barriers. A semi almost ran up the back of him. Got his licence plate, called the cops (so did the m5 people) and half an hour later he was arrested for reckless behaviour, licence cancelled on about 8 charges. Apparently, it happens often with a certain section of the community who can't read the yellow signs that say do not stop, do not reverse.

As for the degradation of our society as mentioned in an earlier post; has anyone else noticed how fewer and fewer people indicate to change lane anymore?

For sure. i drive into the city Via parra road on a tuesday..and im getting cut off left right and center by pricks that don even use there indicators, and what makes it worse is that they dont have any brake lights. and they wonder why you horn them. like seriously...

[drcook]

theres some driving 'gold' out there....

the lexus didnt put his hazard lights on, but i take it he was trying to understand what the camry was doing and didnt realise the camry was actually going to stop (and they were stationary for maybe one or two seconds before accelerating)
I was only in the fast lane because i was passing a car in the centre lane who was passing a car in the left lane.
Although in hindsight it would have been better for the lexus to just give up on the camry and pass him using the centre lane, its amazing how some drivers just daydream until your right up their tale, then they 'awake' and move over, and the lexus wouldnt of been able to predict that the camry was going to do such a stupid thing.

[Bill_R]

Originally Posted by new2ford

Edit: Bill R saw your post - I'm assuming certain things but if the Camry driver then got behind the Lexus and flashed him it rather looks like the Camry driver got upset at being flashed at. I know its made by Toyota but I'd class a Lexus as the car of choice of moderate people who can think a bit, possibly less likely to be a tailgater.

possibly, yeah, but we are all basing our assesment on assumptions and categorising according to what people drive.

there was a time I'd flash my light to overtake but that was years ago when roads weren't developed the way they are now and you'd get people crawling on the old Pacific Hwy.

[new2ford]

Yes I know there are huge assumptions there Bill R and one is naughty to stereotype - I can only go on drcook's description plus what you see regularly on the road. Personally I think a lot of tailgating isn't aggressively intended but sadly the only way in Australia that you can draw attention to the fact that you want to pass somebody in the right lane (and then you have to wait about 5 days for such types of drivers to actually look in their rearview mirror). Flashing lights or using the horn is more than likely to draw some psychopathic response depending on the personality (of lack thereof) of the other driver. I believe failure to keep left is in fact the cause of a lot of tailgating here. I still suspect the Lexus driver was a relatively innocent party.

Originally Posted by ltd

I mean, we can make as many new laws as we like but unless they are enforced they are useless. The number of P platers I've seen with turbo wrx's, Holden SS and HSV's, Nissan GTR's and the like is astonishing. They still brandish the P plates and yet there is never any policing of this so called law.

Thats because those that already had their P's before the law came in can still drive whatever car they want.

[bencat]

Originally Posted by drcook

if i'd been the lexus i would of followed him home. not done anything after that. just followed him home and played with his head.

A word ot the wise, I did that once or twice in my younger year, followed this bloke home after he did the usual cut me off, me flash lights, him stamp on brakes, me avoid collision, me follow him, him speed up then do the stamp on brakes again etc..

He finally pulled over near a house after about 20 minutes so I screeched to a halt with the intention of giving him a mouthful and a few fingers to make my point, well, half a dozen blokes rush my car, I stomp it and they jump in his car and chase me! Ended up pulling up at a cop shop, didnt stop them from hopping out of their car and rushing me, coppers put a stop to it but it was way too close for comfort.

Here's what you do....

Get their rego number and start having some fun...

1) Contact the EPA and tell them you saw him flicking ciggy buts out of the window..

2) Report him for road rage, but leave no name as your 'too afraid of retribution'

3) Contact any and local council and report him dumping rubbish somewhere that you can see some

[MITCHAY]

Originally Posted by BlackLS

Thats because those that already had their P's before the law came in can still drive whatever car they want.

But a cop can't tell that just by witnessing a P plate, they have to pull them over to run the particulars to see if they are breaking the law.

I think that might of been one ltd's points is that they aren't pulling anyone over or not many so could they know at all.

[Shonky]

I give a quick "courtesy flash" if people are hogging the right lane... if they dont get the message the spotties and High beams go on until they move.

Flashing the high beams doesn't seem to work anymore. I did that once and got the finger!

It basically says that there are "special" drivers out there who will do whatever they like. In Europe the Camry driver would have been run off the road.

[Walkinshaw]

What about a sign on the motorway "failure to keep left 6demeret points $870 fine"

That'd get some attention right?


And we wonder why we have so many accidents on our motorways (and why they are so terribly slow). We allow brain dead untrained idiots to use them. A licencing system like Germany would go a long way to aleviating allot of these attitude problems, That combined with adiquate motorway patrols.

[Bill_R]

Originally Posted by new2ford

I believe failure to keep left is in fact the cause of a lot of tailgating here.

I agree it's an issue but it definitely isn't the only cause around here with one lane and no overtaking opportunities and doing about 10 km/h above the speed limit you still get it. end up on abit of tight, twisty road and it's usually obvious they have no idea how to corner - leave them for dead.

the failure to keep left unless overtaking is an issue and always has been. the response to tailgate is just as sensless and is what introduces danger.
When it comes to the crunch, if a driver is not keeping left and using the overtaking lane when not overtaking and a driver is behind him (regardless of the distance behind) then that driver is also not overtaking and also not keeping left while overtaking. "I want to overtake but he won't let me" isn't an excuse. It's a simple case of two wrongs don't make a right and not letting your ego take over - slow down, increase the gap and move to the left lane yourself. You'll probably find you get past and you don't introduce danger into the equation. If you dont' get past then - big deal - does it really matter? The only person that can get frustrated is you and that's also in your control.

there is simply no point in trying to force or persuade another driver to do what you want them to. By taking control of what *you* are doing and keeping an eye on but basically forget that driver you end up with control over the situation.

This isn't a situation where you are in a race and trying to force another driver into a mistake. In those cases drivers know the other driver, they might know their weakness, often they have feedback of how that driver and car is performing, they know what is around them if they need to put the car off the track and, hopefully, the safest place to put it. You think about those things when you race - you plan it. Unfortunately now you need to also know what part of the sand trap you can drive through to get back on the track. That's what you need to do if you find yourself wanting to tailgate - think and plan the safest way to approach it.

[new2ford]

You're quite right Bill R but it is my observation that many do tailgate to draw attention to the fact that they want to pass. Personally I've long since given up on it and adopt the pragmatic approach as you said - if they show no signs of moving over I pass on the left. Accepting that its the 'Australian way' until driver education improves. Ironically often just as you are moving to the left the driver in front suddenly wakes up and does the same thing!

I agree tailgating on a single lane road is utterly pointless, just inviting a rear ender. Its intimidating and stupid to try to 'push' another driver along, better to wait until a multilane section. But most of what we've been discussing in this thread relates to multilane roads.

[Gadgetman]

bloody toyota drivers. I hate them.