Family Nearly Killed

[javadude]

Yesterday my wife was waiting to cross at a pelican crossing with my daughters. The traffic lights had turned to red and she was about to cross when a lorry went through the lights - the driver was on a mobile phone so wasn't concentrating. I can't believe how close I came to having my family wiped out by some stupid, irrisponsible driver.

Unfortunately she didn't get the plate or the name of the company.

[spike]

A very similar thing happened to my girlfriend not long ago. Unfortunately she was hit but only clipped causing a some nasty bruises but nothing life threatening. I think this should call for cameras on all pedestrian crossings, the number of people actually killed when quite rightfully crossing a road is scary. :(

[Claire G]

I hope they're all ok, I know they weren't hit but they must have been pretty shocked.

I agree, there should be cameras on all road crossings

[javadude]

I hope they're all ok, I know they weren't hit but they must have been pretty shocked.

They are thanks. It was just my wife that was worried by it - I don't think the kids realised - she's ok now.

I noticed in the mail yesterday (while applying my lynx) there was an article about people caught using a phone while driving will get fined £200. It's about time. I still favour my vehicle crushing idea though, perhaps with the driver still in after yesterday... (oops sorry that wasn't a very Christian thought)

[brn7y]

I agree, there should be cameras on all road crossings

Yep, what they could do is take the ones from the long straights in the middle of nowhere and use them!!

Glad your family's fine, but it's just today's drivers. I witnessed it on Saturday at a old style Zebra crossing (without lights). I had stopped and a girl was crossing, this guy in an X5 just drove through, looking at the girl as if she was in the wrong.

As a pedestrian you have to keep your wits about you.

[javadude]

Don't beemers always have right of way...

[tdiplc]

I fear that the problem is manyfold;

1) Driver education - the driving test is far too easy.

2) No Driving licence - I work in an area that is predominantly Asian, and it appears to be that as long as you know someone with a licence - that's good enough. If you don't know someone then you can buy one. The standard of driving in Manor Park, East Ham or anywhere around there is unbelievable- surprise surprise. No offence intended to any law abiding Asians.

3) Foreign drivers - nuff said!

[Loz]

TDI,

Having read the discription of your car and the neighbourhood your reside in, I'm at a loss to see how you have managed to hang on to your car for so long!!?? :duh:

There are bad drivers everywhere of all colours and creeds. Lets not get on a white cross burning in lawns type crusade.

Suffice to say that the world would be a better place if everyone took the responsibility of preserving life of themselves and others more seriously.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a sky diving lesson and need to have the Bull Bar on my GS300 painted Body coloured before sundown!

Loz

[Matthew_McNally]

Driver education - the driving test is far too easy.

absolutely Mark

loose all the cameras and make it

1 - harder to get on the road. Significantly harder. Very, VERY hard.

TONS of Motorway hours.

2 - harder to stay on the road. Yearly compulsory retests.

3 - easier to get kicked of the road. Get caught doing 25mph at 8:45am on a road by a school? Bye bye license (for a year or so)- you are too stupid to be on the road.

Drink driving?

Using the mobile?

Tailgating?

bye bye license.

driving is not a right - it is a privilege.

each and every one of us is in control of over one ton of metal, and the scope for seriously injuring / killing perfectly innocent people is frightening.

[ifraz]

I fear that the problem is manyfold;

1) Driver education - the driving test is far too easy.

2) No Driving licence - I work in an area that is predominantly Asian, and it appears to be that as long as you know someone with a licence - that's good enough. If you don't know someone then you can buy one. The standard of driving in Manor Park, East Ham or anywhere around there is unbelievable- surprise surprise. No offence intended to any law abiding Asians.

3) Foreign drivers - nuff said!

I'm an Asian myself and I was surprised at the comment you felt you had to make regarding Asians driving without a licence. I don't know of any Asian that drives a car without having a licence. I'm sure you made this comment innocently, but making sweeping statements like this can cause offence.

I live and work in a predominantly 'white' area and the amount of bad driving that goes on is unbelievable, but I never ever thought it was because of their colour that they drive the way they do.

But I do agree that a lot of foreign drivers (people who have recently been in this country) do need more driving lessons and should make the driving tests tougher.

[brn7y]

TONS of Motorway hours.

Not everyone stay near a Motorway, I'd have to drive 140 miles down to Glasgow to drive on a motorway.

[Matthew_McNally]

TONS of Motorway hours.

Not everyone stay near a Motorway, I'd have to drive 140 miles down to Glasgow to drive on a motorway.

well I'm afraid that's the price you would have to pay if you wanted to drive under my rules.

I wish some of the fools I see everyday on the motorway had been driven 140 miles (and 140 miles back) to learn how to drive on a motorway, than just be left to their own devices.

rant warning

don't get me started on morons on the motorway

:P

[brn7y]

Well I will know not to vote for you when you run for Goverment!

[tdiplc]

I'm an Asian myself and I was surprised at the comment you felt you had to make regarding Asians driving without a licence. I don't know of any Asian that drives a car without having a licence. I'm sure you made this comment innocently, but making sweeping statements like this can cause offence.

I live and work in a predominantly 'white' area and the amount of bad driving that goes on is unbelievable, but I never ever thought it was because of their colour that they drive the way they do.

But I do agree that a lot of foreign drivers (people who have recently been in this country) do need more driving lessons and should make the driving tests tougher.

No offence inteded ifraz!!

I do not care what colour a face is, it's the attitude that is important.

Maybe it's a London thing then, but I was not speaking on an assumption.

Bad drivers are all colours - but most of the illegal drivers appear to foreign.

[rhaines]

Don't normally post on here as predominantly TOC but thought I'd throw another spanner in the works for this particular post....

I used to drive extensively for work all around the country and agree that bad driving isn't anything to do with race, there are just a large number of bad drivers out there.

The comment which caught me was that off the majority of bad drivers appear to be foreign, IMHO it would unfortunately be more likely that the larger number of bad foreign drivers would more likely to be caused by foreigners driving in Britain being more likely to be the targets of the police.

Just my 2p.....

[peter-flint]

O.K. lets get in on the act, if the term tailgating means making some air head aware of your presence near their little world, without all the light flashing and fist waving, then put me in that category, I have been driving long enough not to be dictated to or held up by some pontificating moron who thinks he is a better driver and wants everyone who is stuck behind him (yes, 99% of them are MEN) to be taught his bad habits.

A GOOD DRIVER will realise that the car behind is there because, (A) it was probably travelling faster than him (B) would like to continue at the same rate, and would therefore pull over and allow traffic to flow smoothly.

Shall I start on the bottom burpers who decide to brake for no reason because some one is "leaning on his fence"

[Matthew_McNally]

O.K. lets get in on the act, if the term tailgating means making some air head aware of your presence near their little world, without all the light flashing and fist waving, then put me in that category, I have been driving long enough not to be dictated to or held up by some pontificating moron who thinks he is a better driver and wants everyone who is stuck behind him (yes, 99% of them are MEN) to be taught his bad habits.

A GOOD DRIVER will realise that the car behind is there because, (A) it was probably travelling faster than him (B) would like to continue at the same rate, and would therefore pull over and allow traffic to flow smoothly.

Shall I start on the bottom burpers who decide to brake for no reason because some one is "leaning on his fence"

no sorry Pete.

a GOOD DRIVER will always leave a safe stopping distance between himself and the car in front.

no matter how fast or muppet like the car in front is being driven.

I **** loathe tailgating.

why should I be killed because someone else is not capable of driving 2 seconds behind me.

[UltraViolet]

Agree with Matthew - driving too close is agressive and dangerous - there is no place for it.

If someone decided they are going to drive too close - I will brake simply to increase my own safety gap to allow for the fact that the muppet behind isn't leaving any.

[Matthew_McNally]

Agree with Matthew - driving too close is agressive and dangerous - there is no place for it.

If someone decided they are going to drive too close - I will brake simply to increase my own safety gap to allow for the fact that the muppet behind isn't leaving any.

thanks UV - but afraid I must issue with the braking.

if you even just show your lights to someone driving to close, you may cause them to brake hard.

this then ripples down the chain.

at the very best - this causes holdups, traffic problems etc.

at the worst - well, guy behind you slams on, guy behind him plows into the back on the guy behind you. this impact moves the cars into the middle lane, in front of the oncoming truck, which then jacknifes across the motorway, etc etc etc.

if someone is tailgating you - just move out of their way if it is safe to do so.

if you can't - then reduce your speed, by taking your foot off the throttle, and increase the gap in front of you to 4 seconds. Drive for the tailgater. That way - should a urgent stop be necessary - you can use 2 seconds slowly braking, before braking harder. Hopefully, this will prevent the tailgating muppet from plowing into the back of you.

[GCHQAgent]

I think the idea of having cameras at crossings is not going far enough, instead we should have smart bombs attached that just blow drivers up when they go through red lights or fail to stop at pedestrian crossings. I'm not being sarcastic either.

And I agree the driving test is too easy I've said in a past post that I think part of the reason is that driving is considered a right and not a skill or privilege. I think a good way forward would be to start issuing grades (A through to E) and people with grade E are considered high risk and grade A are considered safe. High risk drivers should be banned from driving in certain areas or at certain times (areas with lots of pedestrians, school children, elderly people or during peak hours).

I also think speed should not be linked to safety, that concept is flawed in so many ways I wouldn't know where to begin to explain. Things such as carelessness and wrecklessness destroy lives and constitute bad driving, those are the real factors which should count in a driving test and there are psychological tests which can be done to assess how altert, careless or wreckless a person is or can be. You might be doing 40 in a 30 zone at 3am when there's no one around yet you'd be breaking the law when in all probability you're less of a risk then than when you're driving the next morning through a busy area at only 25mph. Then again, if you're doing 40mph in a 30 zone when you're in a busy area (risks from pedestrians and other cars) you're not just breaking the speed limit, you'd be being careless and oblivious to your environment - that is the most dangerous thing about speeding.

I feel making motorway driving a compulsory part of the driving test would be a sensible idea, currently learners aren't even allowed onto motorways yet immediately after they pass their test they are. I took pass plus and gained some useful information which new drivers without pass plus won't know.

[Mitch]

I fear that the problem is manyfold;

1) Driver education - the driving test is far too easy.

2) No Driving licence - I work in an area that is predominantly Asian, and it appears to be that as long as you know someone with a licence - that's good enough. If you don't know someone then you can buy one. The standard of driving in Manor Park, East Ham or anywhere around there is unbelievable- surprise surprise. No offence intended to any law abiding Asians.

3) Foreign drivers - nuff said!

ok i do have to agree with the fact of how the driving tests are too easy and i only passed mine 2 years ago but it aint all ppl who have just passed there tests.

my cousin passed hers 2 month ago or so and she got a new 206 for first car and trust me she aint very good.

BUT I TRULY RESENT THAT COMMENT ABOUT FOREIGN DRIVERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Java you should ask your wife if the lorry driver was white or looked foreign.

TDI im suprised at that comment you made and as was said by ifraz it was probably meant innocently but i can assure u its not just foreign drivers.

my family are 95%greek cypriots and myself aswell as them do not drive like idiots.

i understand what you mean bout ppl who may have only been in this country for a month for example as they may have a licence back in there country and think its ok to drive like they would back home. but as we all know each country(or state if you live in the USA) have different rules and regulations for the road!

[javadude]

Java you should ask your wife if the lorry driver was white or looked foreign.

I didn't mention it originally because it was irrelevant - there are plenty of bad drivers of all races out there.

Another winge of mine is: How can people be so stupid to have their children unsecured? (Anyway I love the opportunity to tie my children down so they can't move and misbehave! Sometimes I think I need to drive with gags on them too for some peace.)

[Matthew_McNally]

I wouldn't have even answered the question jd.

Have to issue a "moderators warning" here.

we will all have to accept that people of all races can be bad drivers - and keep this thread on the topic that javadude started.

or we'll lock the thread.

can't be sitting here discussing which skin color has the worst driving skills.

[javadude]

You're right - not worth mentioning even when asked so I've edited my post!

[Matthew_McNally]

You're right - not worth mentioning even when asked so I've edited my post!

thanks Chris - that makes a lot of sense