Driving while Stupid

[Colin Giersberg]

This is a quote from a photography forum that I participate in.



Jbear2000

Here in Georgia, DWI isn't as big a problem as DWS. I see some crazy things and get angry when it gets too close to me and the one whom must be obeyed. There are a lot of stupid people behind the wheel - and they are every bit as dangerous as anyone who also shows their stupidity by adding too much drink or smoke to the mix.


Jbear, don't I know it. Try working around a paving crew on a busy 4-lane highway. I have done that the last several years, and it is amazing at how many people drive the speed limit (theirs, not ours). Drivers routinely pass beside us at less than 3' away from us, and they will be going 60+ mph, while talking on their cell phones, or texting or drinking, or be under the influence of alcohol or drugs and with some of them, all of the above criteria are probably met.
I usually walk alongside a paving machine, just inside the centerline stripe, and it sure is fun when 18 wheelers come by at speed, followed by some bored out of their mind driver, desperately trying to get around the truck. They weave back and forth, trying to find the right moment to pass, and guess what, that is where we are when they make the move. The results aren't pretty, as I am sure you know. We have nowhere to go, and our backs are usually to the traffic, so we don't see them coming. All it takes is to back off from the vehicle that they are following, especially the big trucks, and they just might see us in time to steer around or slow down enough to avoid hitting us.
Our speed limits are typically posted at 45 mph in construction zones, while workers are present. Even at that speed, if they hit you, too bad for you. Just a moment's inattention on our part, and we are dead. A couple of years ago, I was walking ahead of the paving operation, in my own little world at that moment, when a lady mail delivery person flew past me on my left side, only to turn off at a driveway just ahead of me. Well, I waited on her to come back out, and when she did, I let her have it with a strong verbal barrage about her driving. The bad thing about it is that she probably still does the same thing.
Several years ago, we had a new employee assigned to our office. After 6 months on the job, and definitely one of the most dedicated inspectors that I have ever been around, died. It seems that a lady with a mental problem managed to grab a set of car keys. Her caregiver was sick, and could not come by to take care of her, so she got the keys to her own car, and drove out of her apartment parking lot onto a 4-lane project where we were adding two lanes to an existing two lane road. After speeding past a new concrete culvert under construction, she hit the brakes, spun around and floored the accelerator. This resulted it the loss of control of her car. She ended up running off of the road at the culvert. Several of the contractor's personnel saw her and jumped out of the way, but John Collier was looking the other way, and the bumper of her car hit him in the back of the head. Death was immediate.
She is still free to do as she pleases, and will probably be until she dies. While I know that time is precious to us, and that we try to cram as much stuff into our lives every day, what is so bad about slowing down, especially when people are in close proximity to you and your car. You will still arrive in plenty of time, assuming that you left early to begin with. Even a few more minutes of travel time won't matter that much. The mad rush to get somewhere fast is bad. The difference of driving 70 mph instead of 60 mph is only around 10 minutes. Is time that important? We all need to think about that, not just for our own lives, but others as well.

Sorry to blow off steam here, but I felt that this was needed.

Regards, ALDOT (Alabama Dept. of Transportation), also known as Colin Giersberg, an employee of 30 years of service. jb

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Colin....You have my sympathy and understanding but...it's not just in your locale! We see it here too! We have two seasons in the mountainous areas of the western US....Winter and "Road Construction". Idiots with total disregard for safety live everywhere. Some 11 years ago when the large corporation I work for issued us cell phones, my running mate and I figured out we weren't as good drivers while talking on the cell phone. We on our own started pulling off the highway to use the cell phone. Some 8 years ago it became a corporate dictate. No cell phones while driving.

[Colin Giersberg]

I honestly don't think anyone drives very well while talking on a cell phone. I do realize that it is nationwide, and that just shows how much disregard the traveling public has for people in construction work zones. We seem to be invisible, except when we stop traffic.

Regards, Colin

[Chris Kennedy]

I hear you on this one. I actually didn't start driving until I was in my late 20's, and consequently, walked everywhere. I am absolutely amazed at how oblivious people can be to pedestrians. I can't imagine what it would be like to work in traffic -- it could be bad enough just walking along the shoulder on roads with no sidewalk.

Stay safe.

Cheers,

Chris

[Pat Germain]

Shortly before moving to Colorado, I was driving on I-64 near Patrick Henry Mall where my brother and I had just had lunch. I was in the right lane and a woman on a cell phone in an SUV blew past me in the left lane.

I looked left just after she passed me. She was suddenly in the grass, in the median. Yep, she was off-roading in the that SUV, baby! I'll bet it was the first time that vehicle had ever left the pavement. The driver's eyes were as big as saucers. She was heading for the bridge over Victory Blvd. But she was between the bridges. She did manage to stop before hitting the bridge guardrail.

And she still had her cell phone in her hand! How nice, because she was able to immediately relate the whole experience to whomever was on the other end.

But hey, I've driven in third world countries where it's amazing anyone ever arrives alive anywhere.

[Karl Brogger]

But hey, I've driven in third world countries where it's amazing anyone ever arrives alive anywhere.

Take a spin anywhere in the Orient. Yikes! Or watch an American navigate a round about.

I have to be easily one of the most distracted drivers ever.. I routinely watch movies in the pickup, (BTW in dash DVD player, worth every penny), I talk on the phone, eat, you name it, I'm doing it. Yet I've been in two car accidents. If you total the speed from the two car accidents it might add up to 3 mph, might being the operative term. T-boned a pickup once, stupid me, stupid ice, misjudged how slippery the entrance to a parking lot was and bumped him to the tune of $1200 in damage. That was the fastest of the two, and probably accounts for 2.75 of the total mph. The other time was with my beater vehicle, also ice related, but this time the back brakes aren't the best and the front tires are on ice while turning into angled parking spot. WHAM! Smoked a parked car at the blistering speed of damn near zero. No damage though, just a little scuffed road grime.:D

Point is that bad drivers are bad drivers. Driving isn't rocket science, don't hit the car in front, stay between the lines. If you can't juggle talking on the phone and driving chances are you shouldn't be driving anyway. If its close to zero visibility, roads are slippery, and have snow getting deeper by the minute, everything is off sometimes even the dash lights just so I can soak in 100% what's going on to keep the above rules in check. So maybe I'm a bit hypocritical.

You really want to be invisible, more so than a pedestrian? Buy a motorcycle.

[Chris Padilla]

California passed a hands-free law recently in regards to using personal devices while driving. Now everyone is wearing their special Bluetooth earring talking to, it seems, no one in particular.

I dunno if it has had an impact but at least both hands have the opportunity to be on the steering wheel....

[Frank Hagan]

Several states have the "headset" laws for cell phones. What the cell phone manufacturers haven't resolved is the problem of how to dial the phone while driving. If I try to dial the phone, I swerve all over the place.

One phone I had featured "voice commands". I went home and issued several voice commands and associated them with numbers. It worked perfectly in my family room for my family, emergency numbers, work, etc. But it never worked in the car. The phone did its best, but the difference between me programming it in an quiet environment and trying to use it in the car resulted in something like this:

"Call Bruce"
"Calling Mom"

Close phone, flip open again:

"Call Bruce"
"Calling Mark"

Close phone, flip open again:

"Call BRUCE! BRUCE!"
"I don't understand your command"
"CALL BRUCE YOU DUMB PIECE OF CRAP PHONE!"
"Calling Police"

[Dewey Torres]

This is exactly why the double fines in construction zone came about. I think it works for some (to take extra precaution in these areas) but of course not ALL not EVER.

DWS probably started with the horse and buggy!

[Greg Cole]

I have a HUGE personal pet peeve with driving distracted. I am constantly harping at my 18 year old set daughter as she's a text-o-holic.:mad:
Reading, eating, texting, blabbing on the phone, having a pet in your lap etc etc etc...
I used to like to say "shut up and drive", but it's more like just pay attention. People seem to think piloting 2500-4000 pounds of steel at high rates of speed is inherently so safe they need not pay attention.
I've lived through a couple of "good" crashes, I don't care to be the one to blame for one.. nevermind injuring (or worse) someone else.

[Joe Chritz]

I am by profession a police officer (Deputy Sheriff actually but potato/potatoe) and as a part of that I am also an accident investigator for serious accidents. I also spent two years on a dedicated traffic enforcement team, half of that on a motorcycle.

Suffice it to say I have seen a lot of driving stuff that would make anyone really amazed. I couldn't begin to guess the number of accidents I have been on professionally over 14 years. I would have to do some serious searching and counting just to find out the ones that were fatal. With very very few exceptions all were caused because someone was driving dumb, either drunk, distracted, mad, lost or any other number of factors.

Sorry about your guy, I would have been pushing for Negligent Homicide if that was my case, but even that wouldn't get much time locked up unless the driver had a serious prior record.

Drive safe and keep those eyes open always.

ETA: When I used to speak at drivers ed classes I told all the kids, driving is an act in itself. Do it until it is done. Put the phone, the book, movie or argument down and continue when you get to where you are going.

Joe

[David Freed]

DWS probably started with the horse and buggy!

That scenario had a built in safeguard. The horse was smarter than the driver and it didn't want to run off the road, hit things, etc.

[Ken Garlock]

Here in Texas the speed limit is regarded as a recommendation. Any limited access highway is typically driven 5 to 15 mph over the posted limit.

EXCEPT when there is anything larger than a gum wrapper in the road. I have never seen drivers so interested nothing as they are here. Often you don't have any idea of why there was a mile long stop&go as you get to the point where traffic breaks loose and speeds up. They call it rubber necking, I call it stupid.:mad:

The police contribute to the stupidity also. If there is any type of accident the police, EMT, and fire department show up and make it a point of blocking a 3 or 4 lane roadway. I am not complaining about the need to render help, but I am complaining about blocking the entire roadway. Often there will 3 or more police cruisers just setting there blocking traffic. Clearly they could line up in a row several of those idle cruisers thus forming a barrier and direct traffic past the accident. I am also in favor of signs around road work that specify the driver is to maintain a specific speed. I have seen road work on interstates when there is a large sign instructing drivers to maintain 35 or 40 mph. If 20 mph is good for school zones, it is more than adequate for highway repair.:(

Of course there are valid exceptions such as hazardous material spills.:eek:

And while we are talking about DWS, why does Oregon still have a precambrian 55 mph speed limit? Even more interesting is that the state legislature has authorized speed limits up to and including 65 mph. The ODOT apparently thinks it doesn't need to implement the higher limits. This leads one to wonder who is in charge.:confused:

End rant.

[Belinda Barfield]

As a female, my peeve is those who like to apply makeup while driving. It is impossible to apply mascara without looking in a mirror. Let's see, looking in the mirror = not watching the road. We have really heavy dump truck traffic in the area where I work. For some reason, the majority of dump truck drivers here are women. There's nothing like meeting a dump truck on a narrow, two lane road, and realizing the driver is talking on her cell phone, eating a biscuit, and trying to drive a loaded truck at the same time. I'm weighing in on the side of drive . . . just drive, and do everything else when you aren't driving.

[James Jaragosky]

I am by profession a police officer (Deputy Sheriff actually but potato/potatoe) and as a part of that I am also an accident investigator for serious accidents. I also spent two years on a dedicated traffic enforcement team, half of that on a motorcycle.

Suffice it to say I have seen a lot of driving stuff that would make anyone really amazed. I couldn't begin to guess the number of accidents I have been on professionally over 14 years. I would have to do some serious searching and counting just to find out the ones that were fatal. With very very few exceptions all were caused because someone was driving dumb, either drunk, distracted, mad, lost or any other number of factors.

Sorry about your guy, I would have been pushing for Negligent Homicide if that was my case, but even that wouldn't get much time locked up unless the driver had a serious prior record.

Drive safe and keep those eyes open always.

ETA: When I used to speak at drivers ed classes I told all the kids, driving is an act in itself. Do it until it is done. Put the phone, the book, movie or argument down and continue when you get to where you are going.

Joe
I worked in a office with a ex police officer that lived outside the metro area.
His commute was about 40 minutes down a two lane highway, mostly through farmland.
One morning he says to me you will not believe what I saw today.
He then tells me that on his way into work he was passed by a woman with one foot up on the dash painting her toe nails while talking on a cell, the phone that was trapped between her neck and ear.
The speed limit on the road was 50 he was doing 60 and she was passing.

[Rob Russell]

You really want to be invisible, more so than a pedestrian? Buy a motorcycle.

You want it worse than a motorcycle?

Try commuting to work on a bicycle. Even with hi-vis clothing, 2 bright red "blinkies" in back that can be seen from 1/2" a mile away and a bright headlight in from that I run at all times - I've almost been hit a number of times.

[Mike Wilkins]

You guys have hit on the exact reasons why the Autobahn highway concept will never work here in the US. Saw a program on the History Channel on this highway system, and one of the experts lists inadequate driving education, lack of decent highway maintenance, drivers doing things other than driving while driving as reasons why our roads are unsafe.
Be careful out there guys.

[Joe Chritz]

Sorry to block the road Ken but you will just have to wait until the bodies are removed.

Twice now I have had to jump out of the way to keep from getting hit. Once my car got hit and I know of several others who have had vehicles hit as well. Those vehicles were blocking were the people were standing so it isn't hard to figure out what would have happened otherwise.

People should slow down dramatically for anything unusual in the roadway, the fact that it took legislation to make it common here is appalling. On a 60 MPH roadway to slow to 30 MPH will add a whole 30 seconds to travel time if you have to go for a half mile.

Michigan DOT drops hundreds of thousands of dollars into construction zone enforcement to keep speeds reasonable. On the grants working for 6 hours I would regularly stop 15-20 cars and that is only the ones that were still over the regular 70 MPH limit (making them 15+ over).

Vehicle travel is only complicated because of the 15% of the people who can't drive without aid. Those 15% make life difficult for the other 85%.

Joe

[Chris Padilla]

You want it worse than a motorcycle?

Try commuting to work on a bicycle. Even with hi-vis clothing, 2 bright red "blinkies" in back that can be seen from 1/2" a mile away and a bright headlight in from that I run at all times - I've almost been hit a number of times.

I have! The biggest issue we face as bicyclist is that drivers here are not used to seeing us on the road. Lottsa times, drivers have no clue how to react around bicyclists on the road.

Sigh...it will take time and education.... Thankfully, most of my bicycle commute is on bike paths through parks and dedicated bike paths where no vehicles are allowed...or would go.

[Dennis Peacock]

You want it worse than a motorcycle?

Try commuting to work on a bicycle. Even with hi-vis clothing, 2 bright red "blinkies" in back that can be seen from 1/2" a mile away and a bright headlight in from that I run at all times - I've almost been hit a number of times.

You are exactly correct.!!!!! My motorcycle safety course instructor is a Little Rock Motorcycle Police officer that is nationally certified to teach motorcycle safety. I asked during my class as to why cagers (people who drive cars/trucks) don't see people riding motorcycles. His reply was something like this:

"The real question is....why can't people see a police officer coming with red/blue lights flashing, headlight flashing, turn signals flashing, and add a 952 pound white Harley Davidson to that list as well as a siren SCREAMING at them and they STILL pull out in from of us. So you tell me."

The biggest complaint from people riding motorcycle? Way too many people out there driving a car, talking on the phone, texting on their cell phone, and never paying attention to anything around them. A biker friend of mine got ran off the highway by a woman that was texting on her phone and she decided to switch lanes NEVER seeing him LOOKING at her through her window to try and get her attention. He woke up in the median with a broken arm and a broken back. The driver of the car? Never even stopped...she drove away and left him there. :mad: :mad:

[Art Mulder]

You want it worse than a motorcycle?

Try commuting to work on a bicycle.

Been There, Done That. Do it every workday, for that matter. I only go about 4km (2.5mi) to work, which is a real blessings. Regardless... about 6 years ago I deliberately changed my route so that I now only ride on secondary roads to get to work. I used to drive about half a mile on a moderately crowded 2 lane rd with a 30mpg/50kph speed limit. Enough. It isn't worth the risk. Too many impatient people who don't know how to drive around cyclists.

Here in Ontario, a Bicycle is classed as a vehicle under the Highway/Traffic act. Which means that legally I have the same right to the road as any other vehicle. I bet most people don't realize that. Doesn't matter, it's an argument that I'd "lose" every time I tried it against a 1 ton hunk of metal+rubber. :cool:



You are exactly correct.!!!!! My motorcycle safety course instructor is a Little Rock Motorcycle Police officer ...
"The real question is....why can't people see a police officer coming with red/blue lights flashing, headlight flashing, turn signals flashing, and add a 952 pound white Harley Davidson to that list as well as a siren SCREAMING at them and they STILL pull out in from of us. So you tell me."

One of my more prominent "head scratching" moments happened just a few months ago. I was approaching a stop light on my bike. I was passed by a school bus. They left a full half lane :) ... but wait. They started to pull over as soon as the nose of the bus passed me. By the time the tail end of the big orange bus went by I had jammed on the brakes because that bus was about to force me over into a parked car.:mad: And bus drivers are supposed to be trained?

But enough ranting. :rolleyes:

The fact is, 95% or more of the drivers who pass me, do so properly, and safely. But the bozos are the ones you remember. Last summer I cycled 1300km (800mi) in two weeks as part of a national sea-to-sea bike ride for charity along with about 200 other folks. It was a great time, and most people where great. But I can still tell you almost word-for-word the obscenities that some trucker in MI yelled at me as he passed by.

Most drivers are great. :)
But too many aren't. :(

...art

[Colin Giersberg]

There are quite a few bicyclists that ride around here, and yes, sometimes they get hit with the usual injuries and death. Bike lanes are pretty much non-existent around N. Alabama, but Tennessee seems to make allowances on some of the 4-lane highways that I have driven, specifically U.S. 64 in Giles and Lincoln Counties.

As far as police patrols in construction zones, Alabama does it too. A few years ago, one of the troopers working a bridge replacement project stopped only those drivers going over 70 mph in a 35 mph zone. He stopped over 40 drivers. Driving now is a madness. Have you ever noticed how crazy some people drive in certain types of weather. The worse it seems to be, the faster they go, darting in and out of traffic. It's a wonder there are still so many people on the road.

While I don't know about other areas, traffic lights here are merely suggestions. If you get a green light, you had better wait and make sure that it is safe to go, otherwise it is crunch time.
I had been waiting at a light near my house one time, where I was in the second vehicle from the light. The light changed to green, and the guy in front of me proceeded into the intersection. He had just cleared the outside lane (4-lane highway), and I was nearing the intersection when a "brilliant" driver shot between me and the guy in front. Had I not seen the other driver coming, I would have been hit on the drivers side, resulting in death or a very serious injury.

The problem here is that N. Alabama has such a diverse population. Huntsville is the largest city here, and being known as the "Rocket City" and having the 2nd largest research park in the country, the area has a lot of people from all over the world. They come from India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Germany, England, and most of the other countries on Earth. There is also a very large Hispanic population in N. Alabama, working in several chicken plants, and in plant nurseries. With all of the different traffic laws that they were familiar with, and being ingrained into them, the come here to drive and work. It sure does get interesting to say the least.

I sure wish I knew the answer to the problem, but I don't. Whatever the answer is, it wont come easy.

Regards, Colin

[Bob Moyer]

This topic is my # 1 button pusher!!!!

The last two accidents I have been in were both because someone hit me while on their cell phone; the last one was a contractor who was doing a bid on the phone; writing down details when he hit me from behind when traffic slowed.

However; the one that still gets me is the woman who almost took my door and arm off when she entered a parking space while I was opening my door.

She was a sales rep for an insurance company in a leased mini-SUV; she never got off the phone during the entire incident; when she hit me she was on the phone with someone in her office who took down all my information and continued to do business while that was occurring. The claim was settled without a problem since her conversation was being recorded. While I was collecting info she was getting it from the person on the phone.

Note: I usually have a camera with me; I actually had photos of her on the phone while she was in the suv; as well as the scene and the damage.

I also, had it with the contractor; let me say; both of them did not like the fact that I was taking photos.

[Al Willits]

The list of DWS goes on to motorcycles and bikes too, weaving in and out of traffic on a motorcycle, riding two abreast while going down a parkway at 10 mph when there's a bike path 20 foot over, not stopping for stop signs, or any other signs for that matter, list goes on.

Maybe if the local law enforcement would pay a little less attenion to catching speeders and making money for the city, and went after the DWS people, we'd have less accidents.

btw I was hit on a motor cycle and left lay in the street, he saw me and just kept going after hitting me, it was about 2 in the morning.
Oh...he had no lights on btw and came out of a alley and tee boned me.
Breaking my foot in 8 places.

There's one DWS driver I wish I could find.....

Al

[Kevin Arceneaux]

A few things:

Honolulu - NEVER, Ever go when the light turns green if you are the first in line. The yellow is real long and there is a gap between yellow and red. Running red lights is a sport there.
Honolulu - There is a retirement condo with a bus stop across the street. Problem is that it is in the middle of a block of a 4 lane one way street. They pick them off about 1 every 6 months.
Honolulu - When you cross the Ala Moana canal, you can take a right to miss a light getting to where I was staying. The only problem is people will step of the sidewalk and NEVER look to see if someone is coming. I had a couple of close ones there.
Port Fourchon - To get risers to and from the docks, we have to move them across a busy road. This means we have a forklift at each end of a 60' riser and a flagman. When I got here the flagger had an old dull red vest and a red flag that fell off of a oversized load. It was a 50-50 shot that traffic would stop. People, on a couple of occasions, run off the road and through a fence while talking on the phone. We now have the right vest, flags and large "flagger Ahead" signs.

[Gene O. Carpenter]

That scenario had a built in safeguard. The horse was smarter than the driver and it didn't want to run off the road, hit things, etc.


Plus the horse knew how to get home even when the driver was tanked out of his gourd!
Gene

[Kevin Arceneaux]

Plus the horse knew how to get home even when the driver was tanked out of his gourd!
Gene

The fellow who worked for my Grandfather actually got a DWI while riding a horse over the limit.

[Paul Demetropoulos]

Take a spin anywhere in the Orient. Yikes! Or watch an American navigate a round about.

I have to be easily one of the most distracted drivers ever.. I routinely watch movies in the pickup, (BTW in dash DVD player, worth every penny), I talk on the phone, eat, you name it, I'm doing it. Yet I've been in two car accidents. If you total the speed from the two car accidents it might add up to 3 mph, might being the operative term. T-boned a pickup once, stupid me, stupid ice, misjudged how slippery the entrance to a parking lot was and bumped him to the tune of $1200 in damage. That was the fastest of the two, and probably accounts for 2.75 of the total mph. The other time was with my beater vehicle, also ice related, but this time the back brakes aren't the best and the front tires are on ice while turning into angled parking spot. WHAM! Smoked a parked car at the blistering speed of damn near zero. No damage though, just a little scuffed road grime.:D

Point is that bad drivers are bad drivers. Driving isn't rocket science, don't hit the car in front, stay between the lines. If you can't juggle talking on the phone and driving chances are you shouldn't be driving anyway. If its close to zero visibility, roads are slippery, and have snow getting deeper by the minute, everything is off sometimes even the dash lights just so I can soak in 100% what's going on to keep the above rules in check. So maybe I'm a bit hypocritical.

You really want to be invisible, more so than a pedestrian? Buy a motorcycle.

Good points Karl, what brand of DVD player do you recommend?

[Joe Chritz]

Animals are a state specific thing. Some states, MI included don't consider an animal a "vehicle" and you can't have a operate while intox if you are not operating a vehicle. A horse drawn (or other animal drawn) implement is a vehicle and the OWI statutes apply normally.

Not that I necessarily suggest riding your horse around half in the bag, it is hard enough when sober. Although, it might help to be a bit looser if/when you get an unscheduled trip to the ground. ;)

Joe