Yahoo Autos Top 10 Most Annoying Things Other Drivers Do
It's a known fact that everyone reading this is an above-average driver — and that each of us always displays deep and abiding civility toward our fellow travelers. So we're sure you won't recognize yourself in any of the items listed below.
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But what about all those other jerks on the road?
What things do other drivers do that annoy you most? Here's our list, with an invitation to share your pet peeves below.
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Tom and Ray Magliozzi
Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers
1. Talking on a cell phone
When you're talking on your cell phone, you're as likely to cause an accident as when you're legally drunk. Now, what's your excuse? What's more annoying than a driver who's willing to risk your life so he can pick up his General Tso's chicken without waiting? Even when distracted drivers don't cause a wreck, they weave from lane to lane, create confusion in intersections and generally drive slower than other drivers around them while they're trying to do two things at once, leaving a gang of irate drivers in their wake.
Don't Be a Jerk: Put the phone down while you drive. You know about voice mail, right?
2. Driving too fast for road conditions
Just because a speed limit is 65 mph doesn't mean that's always the right speed. Snow, ice or rain can dramatically reduce your car's braking and handling abilities, as well as limit visibility. The right top speed for those conditions is that at which you feel safe and in control and able to react in time to anything that happens up ahead. That could be 40 mph. Or zero mph.
Drivers who fly past you at 50 mph when conditions call for 15 mph are not just risking their own lives — they might take you with them. If they lose control, they could easily spin into you, knocking you off the road and down an embankment. Or, at the very least, they could cover your windshield with a thick film of slush or rain, leaving you temporarily blinded. Annoying? We'd say so.
Don't Be a Jerk: There's always someone driving like a jerk in bad weather. And if you notice you're passing everybody, you're the jerk.
3. Not cleaning snow off their cars
How would you feel if someone heaved a 3-foot-diameter, 40-pound dinner plate at your windshield? Not too swell, we're guessing. Well, that's exactly what happens when a rooftop of snow and ice on the car in front of you goes airborne. In addition to soiling your trousers, such unwelcome crash-landings have been known to shatter windshields. In some states, it's even against the law. In all states, it's a sign of thoughtlessness.
Don't Be a Jerk: Take five minutes to clean the snow off your car before you drive away. You'll see better, and you won't inadvertently launch an attack on the cars behind you.
4. Not signaling when turning or changing lanes, or leaving a signal on
Signaling your intentions is one of the most basic acts of courtesy one can engage in. If we can't predict what other drivers are going to do, we can't make informed decisions about what we should do, and the result is mayhem. And insurance claims.
But besides being dangerous, not signaling is also downright obnoxious. It says, "Your safety doesn't matter to me, and I'm more important than you are." It's rather telling that signaling one's intentions is pretty much universal in the animal kingdom. And if hyenas can manage it, can't you?
By the way, leaving a turn signal on, while an act of omission, can be just as dangerous.
Don't Be a Jerk: Use your turn signals, Bub.
