ALT-6 Whatever Happened to Driving Etiquette
What Ever Happened to Driver Etiquette?
Behind the Wheel and in a Vacuum
Sometimes that what I think when I see a driver talking on their cell phone, eating a sandwich or putting on make-up. It's as if the driver is sealed in their own little world. Well, I guess that's true to a point. For some of us, this is an extension of our living room. Some people feel that they can do whatever they want, however they want and when they want.
The other driver-type in a vacuum are the ones who are not necessarily comfortable in this vacuum world, but are distracted nonetheless by children or other passengers as well as other drivers. Then there are the ones who think that it's their God-given right to drive as if it's a free-for-all-NASCAR world. What are the common denominators?
Not thinking of the other driver. Not asking yourself, 'what's the one thing I don't know?' And the other....what ever happened to Driver's Ed? Shouldn't we substitute this obvious lack of basic road education?
Now, for certain, I have some bad driving tendencies (even though I attended Driver's Ed). For example I love to drive faster than most people do. This can be bad to go against the established speed. But I have my own form of justification: I won't weave in-and-out of traffic and change lanes more than is absolutely necessary.
What happened to courtesy? It started to go out the window when the pace of our lives increased. And here's the rub: just because someone else is not courteous to you doesn't mean that you shouldn't be courteous and drive responsibly. I know this is difficult to accept, but....I know that when I place myself in another's position I tend to extend them a little grace. They mess up. They're weird sometimes. Just like me.
There is a definite need for basic driving education out there. A driver that turns a corner and doesn't stay in the proper lane and instead swerves way out into a different one is asking for someone to crash into their car. Oh, and the accident wouldn't be their fault, by the way (snicker, snort). But it happens every day and in every city. Why do drivers think that this is ok today? This basic information is a basic accident avoidance skill. Not to mention that by doing this they disrupt the flow of traffic. When we see someone do it to us or right in front of us, we think, "Now there's someone who's only thinking about their own little world, 'cause they're certainly not thinking about mine!"
I believe that taxpayer monies should be spent in each state to educate drivers. Education through the good old-fashion Public Service Announcement would work just fine. One of the PSA's should say something like, "this ain't NASCAR, people!"
