h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It isn't difficult. It make a potentially dangerous situation (driving) a lot more safe. And it is ettiquette to let people know that they either want to come in front of you or are going to change lanes. There's nothing more annoying than an idiot (usually in an SUV and often on a mobile) drifting slowly from one lane to your lane in front of you on the freeway.

It's rude not to indicate before you change lanes. But worse, it's maddening when you're waiting to turn and the car on the road you want to turn onto doesn't signal. You could have been on your way ages ago, but no.



Ste

Totally agree, am I right in thinking you're across the pond? only I don't know of any freeways in Britain, just car-packed dual carriageways! I used to have a window sticker: "Warning- driver uses flashing orange lights to signal intended direction" or something like that until it became an MOT failure issue to have window stickers. Now I just have the obligatory "Baby on board so get off my roof, fool" placard swinging away.

Roundabouts are the most annoying. You can be sat waiting for some idiot to drive over the roundabout and the moron turns a left without signalling. Yeah, I should be charging those people £20 an hour for lost revenue while I sit waiting for them to NOT pass me.

People not signaling can send me into fits of screeming when I'm driving. In Winnipeg, its rediculous! People will, without a signal, cross 2 lanes of traffic, get into the turning lane and turn the corner, and no one has any idea what they're doing. Almost as bad, they'll travel for blocks with a signal light going, and not turn. I've got so I don't trust anyone. Signaling or not signaling, I wait till I SEE what their intention is before I put my life, and that of my little red truck in their hands! Sometimes I think its open season on little red trucks out there.

One thing; if you are being gracious and waving a person through, telling them they can turn left (in America, over there it would be right, I guess) before you, make sure the person in the lane next to you agrees... I was making a left turn out of a parking lot, and a guy in the lane closest to me waved me through, but the guy in the next lane over, that I had to cross to turn left, didn't konw about it, and I couldn't see him coming... *crunch*

*mumbles*thatguysoliedtomeandpeopleshouldlielikethatcauseit'smeanandthatguywasastupidmoronIwishIcouldhavejust5minutestohollerathim...*

But I'm not bitter...

Drivers signalling their intention for the benefit of pedestrians would be nice. We are classified as "road users" under the Highway Code and as the same text states that you must indicate for all parties falling under that description I feel somewhat vexed when a driver scowls at me after nearly killing me with a non-indicated turn.

I'd like people to signal correctly at roundabouts... it'd probably bring about the apocalypse, but as a driver, cyclist and pedestrian I would appreciate it greatly.

I'd also like to see cyclists obeying the highway code...

I have been known, as a pedestrian, to signal with an outstretched arm when approaching a zebra crossing, to show that I am or am not crossing. I try, when not crossing, to be well away from it on the pavement, but this isn't always possible. I don't really know if this helps drivers, but if there's a chance it does, I will continue to do so.

I think all road users - be they pedestrians, cyclists or drivers should try to keep to the Highway Code and also to the idea of being helpful and courteous to other road users (signalling, not driving/walking in cycle lanes, stopping at lights etc.)

I notice many pedestrians just cross a side road without really looking - if there's a car indicating to turn then unless there's way too much traffic for it to turn, I will wait. I'm safe on the pavement and a turning car may potentially hold up traffic or said traffic might start crossing lanes to get around it. Better to let the item which can potentially cause more problems to go first (even if it isn't causing a hold up at all.)

signalling your intention to pull out into another lane on the motorway is definitely a good idea. some eejit in a white van (of course) couldn't be bothered to do this but pulled right out in front of my mother and she ended up going straight into the crash barriers on the central reservation. a 360 degree flip-over later and her car was a complete write off. amazingly enough, she walked away - but it could have had a much worse result.

I see many of these each day, as a motorcycle rider, people dont see you. So they will always, without indicating, just pull out right in front of you, or even better, try to pull out INTO you. After riding for a while you can nearly always tell when people are going to do it, but I shouldnt have to avoid them, they should be watching for me in the first place...

Oh yes, I know what it's like for bikers, I've been on a few motorcycles runs with my dad and countless little trips just with him on his harley... you should always watch for bikers, cause it's so much more dangerous for them. You've got a nice steel cage around you, and they've got... leather, and maybe a helmet if they aren't trying to look "cool". (By the way, if you own a motorcycle, always wear a helmet, it's just common sense)

But, on the flip side, I have been driving in my car and had bikers do some amazing stupid and rude things. Just yesterday, in fact, I was driving on the highway and then out of the blue had to slam on my brakes because a genius on a "crotch-rocket" was passing me by squeezing between me and the car to my front passenger-side corner. I'll admit that most bikers don't pull stunts like this, but almost every guy on a crotch-rocket I've seen tries stuff like that. Just begging to get in a wreck, if you ask me. If you want to wreck, go ahead, just don't involve me, ya know?

Always wear a helmet on a motorbike in the UK, it's illegal not to...

Drivers do the same thing to cyclists by the way, and we're even less visible than motorbikes if that's possible. I nearly got squashed between a large lorry and a foot-high kerb a couple of months back, a very frightening experience indeed.

And now a couple more beefs:

I walk to and from work, and try and cross a street at a pedestrian cross walk. TRY to cross! Its nothing to have 10 or 12 cars go racing right through. When one lane finally stops, the jerk in the second lane - its a one-way street - scowls or signals his displeasure at the audacity of me walking out in front of his car.

Right now we have huge puddles at the curbs - the spring melt is on. It would be really nice if drivers, particularly city buses showed some compassion for people on the sidewalks that are getting drowned as they go roaring by.

"Always wear a helmet on a motorbike in the UK, it's illegal not to..."

I think it is in a few states, but it's not nationwide yet. It should be though, and not just those itty-bitty "brain buckets", but the real things that might actually _protect_ your head...

I'm very surprised it's not been illegal in America for ages. I guess it's because of this whole 'free country' thing, you've got some people who don't want to be forced to do anything even if it's going to save their lives.

speaking as a commuter in dublin (Ireland that is) how do you know when your on the motorway.

The traffic jam is two lanes