Annoying Driving Habits to Avoid

Man. Where to start?

Slow down to a crawl for no discernable reason without indicating what you’re about to do- whether you’re stopping, double-parking, just had a heart attack, are texting your girlfriend, forgot how to drive, are lost and reading a map. Why not use your indicators, hazard lights or even put an arm out the window to indicate others can pass.

Use your mobile.

You can always tell when the driver of the car infront is on the phone, because all their actions slow to a stop. If they’re at a roundabout or set of lights, they will invariably fail to react in timely fashion to the situation, failing to pull forward as the lights go green, or a rare gap appears for them to join moving traffic.

Hog the middle lane of the motorway whilst travelling at a resolute 55mph, forcing others to go out and file past in the overtaking lane. Not so much an issue in the US where undertaking is permissible, but a serious bummer here. A law was passed recently to curtail this most annoying infringement, but it has so far very seldom actually been enforced.

Drive without the use of indicators.

This is manifest by drivers slowing or braking sharply without warning and then turning either left, right or pulling over infront of you without any with your or by your leave, forcing you to brake or take evasive action, whilst trying not to unseat the motorbike siting beside you, also oblivious to what is going on infront. This also extends to-

Use the right lane at a junction, which can evidently be used either to proceed straight ahead or turn right, without flipping the indicator to show your intention to turn right.

Pull out into traffic without indicating.

Indicate late; in extreme cases, only once the intended manoeuvre is already being executed.

Slip down a lane everyone knows is blocked further up, in a blatant attempt to queue-jump heavy traffic.

Decide that your vehicle is four feet wider than it is. This is a remarkable affliction that affects owners of SUV’s and Nissan Micra’s with equal frequency. How it manifests is that the driver travels down the middle of any give road and refuses to believe they can fit through a gap big enough for a Chieftain tank.

Take up two lanes at a time, either whilst driving, or whilst sitting at lights, perhaps afraid that someone might overtake you.

Use the wrong lane for the direction you intend to go, just because it’s emptier.

Move forward at a junction, yellow boxed or not, knowing that you will in all likelihood block the road for anyone wishing to cross that road when the lights change.

Believe you have right of way when there’s a bus stopped in front of you on a road too narrow to support a third lane. You don’t.

Believe that the road is your racetrack.

Park knowing you are blocking in other cars.

Nick a car parking space that someone is evidently waiting to reverse into.

(Motorcyclists in particular): drive as though you are a Custodian of the Road and Unofficial Traffic Officer, there to dispense lessons and condescension to all other (four-wheeled) road users.

Tailgate speeding ambulances.

Tailgate.

Believe that everyone else must be interested in your bangin’ iPod selection.

Expect everyone else to read your mind regarding your actions or intentions.

Believe that just because you know your local area like the back of your hand, that everyone else on the road will behave in a predictable manner.

Drive whilst having sex. Your attention is presumably not on the road, making it a hazardous activity. Other drivers inevitably slow to enable the taking of movies, reducing the backed up traffic to a crawl (see above point re: use of phones). You also stand the risk making others jealous and who knows what they might do whilst you’re otherwise engaged?