Driving and Car Etiquette

[Hawkwatcher]

This is a topic that can cause much frustration. How many of us have been cut off in traffic? The following are some ideas for making driving more polite.

1) Turn signals.  Please use them.

2)  Pay attention to crosswalks and other places pedestrians might be present.

3) No Tailgating

4)  Do not follow other cars for fun.  When my husband and I were in college, when had some people decide to follow us around a small college town.  We drove to a police station. They pulled up behind us.  A police officer came out to find out what was going on.  They claimed that they did not mean to scare us.

5) Please do not play your music too loud while driving.
 
6) Passengers should avoid backseat driving.  While there is nothing wrong with speaking up if there is immediate danger of an accident.

7) Passengers should respect the driver's rules. Passengers should ask for permission before eating or drinking in the car.  They also should clean up any
messes they make.

Any others?

[Dandy Andy's Daddy's Love]

If you know the driver smokes in their car and you are uncomfortable with that, do not accept a ride from them and expect them not to smoke.

The driver determines the choice of music. "No music" is a legitmate choice.

[Hawkwatcher]

If you know the driver smokes in their car and you are uncomfortable with that, do not accept a ride from them and expect them not to smoke.

The driver determines the choice of music. "No music" is a legitmate choice.

Do not lecture the driver or try passive aggressive stunts if the driver does smoke.

Do not mess with the settings on the radio without the driver's permission.

[Lisbeth]

If a car in the lane next to you puts their turn signal on to indicate that they wish to move into your lane, do not immediately speed up to prevent them from moving over to your lane.

Yellow lights mean "slow down" - not "speed up so as to avoid having to stop at a red light."

Shouting at drivers and making third-finger gestures at them is rude, period.

Don't talk on your mobile phone while driving-it distracts you, puts others on the road in potential danger, and is illegal in many places like New York.

[marcel]

Now, let's have some positive driving etiquette

There is nothing wrong with thanking a person that slows down for you, or otherwise makes room for you in traffic (even if you have a right of way anyway.)

[VorFemme]

If the person ahead of you STOPS when the light turns red - don't gesticulate wildly at them because you had to STOP instead of running the red light behind them.  (The light was turning red just as I got to the cross walk.)

To top it off, there had been a fire engine coming up behind us - so I had not wanted to be in the intersection if it came through and needed to make a turn...........I had passed the guy a little earlier - his stereo was so loud that he couldn't have heard Godzilla and Mothra having a fight.

The fire engine turned left BEHIND us into a strip mall - I turned right on the red and got out from in front of him, turned into a grocery store parking lot, and got back on the same road - about six cars or so behind him.  I didn't want to have a confrontation.........or a collision because he wanted to "teach me a lesson" by stopping in front of me when there was no red light. 

[MDefarge]

If you know the driver smokes in their car and you are uncomfortable with that, do not accept a ride from them and expect them not to smoke.

The driver determines the choice of music. "No music" is a legitmate choice.

If the driver is nice enough to let you pick the music for awhile, choosing something you *know* the driver hates will result in an automatic revocation of the privilege.

If someone is nice enough to drive you someplace, it incurs a lot of goodwill if you offer gas money (especially if you asked them and they did not spontaneously offer you a ride)

If someone drives you *very* often you must offer them gas money and if they decline it is a very nice gesture to do something nice and unexpected for them.

EDT - it is rude to take advantage of a driver to the point that *they* have to ask *you* for gas money - they are doing you a favor.

[Lisbeth]

If you are riding in someone else's car, keep it clean!  Take your belongings with you, and respect any rules they have about not eating, drinking, or smoking while in the car.

[Black Delphinium]

The heat/AC should be treated like the radio: it is the driver's to set at their discretion. Not to say that you can't ask to turn it up/down/on/off/open the windows, but it should be a discussion, not a demand.

[gollymolly2]

Driving way under the speed of traffic is just as rude/dangerous as driving way over the speed of traffic. If you're not a confident driver, practice in a parking lot, not on the freeway.

[kareng57]

8.  If you have the right-of-way, then take it.  If you are on the through-street, don't signal (i.e. by madly hand-waving) the driver stopped at a stop sign on the cross-street that he/she can go ahead while you wait.  No matter how nice you want to be, it will just confuse the whole situation.  And if the other driver finally gives up and goes ahead - he/she will be automatically in the wrong if a mishap occurs.  Rules of the road are there for a reason.

[ginlyn32]

If you are carpooling or otherwise have others in the car besides yourself, remember that there are others that may need to eat, drink and use the bathroom.

Ask often if your passengers need to use the bathroom or stop to streach or eat. I find myself often having to remind my DH that he has other people in his vehicle and we are HUNGRY and need to PEE!

ginlyn

[geordicat]

If you are riding with someone and giving them directions, it's nice to let them know of a turn *before* you approach the turn.  "Turn left at the light" said about a block before is acceptable.  Screeching "TURN LEFT TURN LEFT!" as you pass the turn is not cool.

If someone is picking you up, please be prepared and ready to go when they show up.  When they show up at your door is not the time to announce you still need to shower and get ready.

[Black Delphinium]

If someone is picking you up, please be prepared and ready to go when they show up.  When they show up at your door is not the time to announce you still need to shower and get ready.

However, if you are picking up a friend and they say "I'll be ready at X", don't be mad/impatient if you show up half an hour or more early and they still need that time to shower and get ready.

[geordicat]

If someone is picking you up, please be prepared and ready to go when they show up.  When they show up at your door is not the time to announce you still need to shower and get ready.

However, if you are picking up a friend and they say "I'll be ready at X", don't be mad/impatient if you show up half an hour or more early and they still need that time to shower and get ready.

Definitely agreed.