Unbelievable drivers

LSWCHP said :

What sort of nutter does F1 style driving in a Tarago, of all things?

Those angry middle-aged freaks who can’t afford a prado or pajero?

I have to say that if I was going to get into some road-raging, crazy driving and general badassness as described in this thread, the Tarago would not be my vehicle of choice.

What sort of nutter does F1 style driving in a Tarago, of all things?

Or is it the case that this person is like the Western gunslinger who goes into a bar and orders Sarsparilla? Hard ore to the max, they’ve got a people mover and they’re not afraid to drive it erratically.

Very Busy said :

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

I’ve memorised this vehicle too due to the tool behind the wheel. I’ve seen it many times driving dangerously with no regard for other road users. Saw it one morning rushing down Drakeford Drive in peak hour weaving in and out of lanes, cutting people off. Then moved from the far left lane, across all three lanes to turn right into Athllon Dr.

Was chased around Florey by a tool in a metallic light green Tarago a couple of years ago – taking my then 5 year old son to a birthday party. My crime was to “toot” as the guy was about to pull out in front of me from a side street. The road rage went on for 20 mins. Had to drive to Belco cop shop to lose the guy. His missus was sitting in the passenger seat spaced out the whole time. At the time, I thought that this would not end well…..

Exiting south from the Parkway onto Hindmarsh Drive, there’s the slip lane but also the left lane at the lights for turning left. The number of people who block the slip lane by giving way to cars turning left from the lights into the middle lane is … frustrating.

totally agree!

i spend most of my day driving on the canberra roads for work, i am a fairly patient driver who sticks to the speed limit, and see quite a lot of idiots on these roads such as:
– ALOT of slow older drivers, i am respectful but its hard not to get annoyed when you get stuck behind one thats going 20kms or more under the speed limit and i drive a truck which thus prevents being able to change lanes sometimes as it takes me a bit to speed up
– People constantly trying to come up the side of my truck when we are about to form one lane, so many people do this,i have clearly got right of way as my truck is in front, and they always end up having to slam on thier brakes, idiots! my truck isnt a big one so its not like they are going to be stuck going slow behind me, patience people!
– Cars parked in loading zones, come on, be fair, us workers in trucks need those zones to park in, because our vechiles are hard to park,and we need access to places to do our work, i am constantly having to do laps as i always find cars in them.. however it does make my day when i come across one with a ticket on it =)
…also, utes and 4wds that park in loading zones while theyre getting lunch, you annoy me, you may be technically allowed to park there but while you do that a poor truckie is risking an $80 fine just to do thier work, why cant people be considerate and only use them if theyre actually loading or unloading goods

I actually come across a lot of police during the day in my travels from one side to the other, they are out there

And unfortunately its like racism, the bad canberrans are the ones that give us a bad name in regards to driving,i am originally from the coast, and oh boy, i dont know what it is but when canberrans get to batemans bay they seem to get so confused on the road,i always find myself getting annoyed at them, this one time a car was sitting at the lights in front of kfc, held up a line of traffic waiting to get onto the main road for 8mins or more as they were not sitting close enough to the lights, they werent on the sensor,after flashing,beeping and yelling at them to move forward they finally did, i could not believe the stupidity

JC said :

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

That wasn’t around 3-3:15 by any chance? The reason I ask is I had a similar experience with a green Tarago yesterday too. I was driving along Archdall Street in Macgregor doing the 50km/h limit when a green tarago started tailgating me and swaying left right I presume in an effort to make me speed up.

Then we both turned left onto Obsourn Drive, being a fast accelerator I got away from it until I hit the speed limit and stopped accelerating and sure enough the Tarago was back up my arse. Same thing when we turned onto Florey Drive. At the Florey Drive roadworks we got stopped for 5+ minutes and once on Southern Cross Drive and the start of the dual carriageway I tried to move to the left as early as I could but the goose was in such a hurry and tried to come up my inside (bear in mind due to the roadworks we were on the wrong side of the road and had to cut back to the correct side). Once past she (and yes it was she driving) disappeared into the distance, only for me to pass her at the Kingsford Smith traffic lights where she was waiting to turn right towards William Hovell.

It was earlier in the day when I saw the Tarago do its stuff, but I reckon it’s probably the same car. Your description of the driver’s behaviour is exactly right. And a female driver eh? Good to see equal opportunity in motorised mayhem.

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

I’ve memorised this vehicle too due to the tool behind the wheel. I’ve seen it many times driving dangerously with no regard for other road users. Saw it one morning rushing down Drakeford Drive in peak hour weaving in and out of lanes, cutting people off. Then moved from the far left lane, across all three lanes to turn right into Athllon Dr.

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

That wasn’t around 3-3:15 by any chance? The reason I ask is I had a similar experience with a green Tarago yesterday too. I was driving along Archdall Street in Macgregor doing the 50km/h limit when a green tarago started tailgating me and swaying left right I presume in an effort to make me speed up.

Then we both turned left onto Obsourn Drive, being a fast accelerator I got away from it until I hit the speed limit and stopped accelerating and sure enough the Tarago was back up my arse. Same thing when we turned onto Florey Drive. At the Florey Drive roadworks we got stopped for 5+ minutes and once on Southern Cross Drive and the start of the dual carriageway I tried to move to the left as early as I could but the goose was in such a hurry and tried to come up my inside (bear in mind due to the roadworks we were on the wrong side of the road and had to cut back to the correct side). Once past she (and yes it was she driving) disappeared into the distance, only for me to pass her at the Kingsford Smith traffic lights where she was waiting to turn right towards William Hovell.

dazzab said :

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

I’d like to put forward another candidate after watching yet another driver failing to give way to TWO ambulances today. Hard to believe but true.

I was sitting at one of those temp lights that control traffic when half a road is closed so there’s only one lane that has to be shared by drivers heading in both directions. After a long wait sitting at the red light it turns green. But looking ahead I could see TWO ambulances enter from the other end even though they would have the red light. So I waited. But that’s not good enough for the driver behind me who pulls around me, gives me ‘the look’ and heads down the road only to come head to head with the two ambulances which he’s now blocking. Surprise!

I’ve seen something similar, and am regularly amazed at just how unobservant many drivers are.

GBT said :

While I do think there are some people who are overly cautious and seem to be in a perpetually fearful state while behind the wheel of a car, they are just one subset of inconsiderate drivers and thankfully not the majority.

Exiting south from the Parkway onto Hindmarsh Drive, there’s the slip lane but also the left lane at the lights for turning left. The number of people who block the slip lane by giving way to cars turning left from the lights into the middle lane is … frustrating.

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

I’d like to put forward another candidate after watching yet another driver failing to give way to TWO ambulances today. Hard to believe but true.

I was sitting at one of those temp lights that control traffic when half a road is closed so there’s only one lane that has to be shared by drivers heading in both directions. After a long wait sitting at the red light it turns green. But looking ahead I could see TWO ambulances enter from the other end even though they would have the red light. So I waited. But that’s not good enough for the driver behind me who pulls around me, gives me ‘the look’ and heads down the road only to come head to head with the two ambulances which he’s now blocking. Surprise!

Onceler said :

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

William Hovell is the perfect place for point-to-point cameras. As a road its not too flash hot (there is a huge stretch that is 90km/hr with no lane divider, no lighting, kangaroos that basically live on it) yet a huge portion of the people on it treat it like a race-track.

It also doesn’t suffer from the defects of the current p2p cameras and the suggested ones, in that between Drake Brockman Dr and Coppins Crossing Rd there are no turnoffs, roundabouts, lights, etc, so it would actually give a fair and true reading for every driver using that stretch.

Today’s prize goes to the driver of a metallic light green Toyota Tarago, number plate beginning with YWH and ending with 000. Heading east on William Hovell Drive, then south on the Tuggeranong Parkway. The guy has skills, and was throwing that old bus around like a go-kart. Speeding, tailgating, crazy lane-changing to get past slower traffic. Made me think that a special “Tarago Cup” race series could rejuvenate Australian motor sport. (V8 supercars are a pretty boring, right?)

GBT said :

Driving a little under the speed limit is not an offence. Driving slowly at construction sites is not an offence. I’m not sure what you mean by someone getting “confused by yellow lights” but is it perhaps because they stop when you don’t want them to? And a little more patience on your part might help you cope with those drivers you perceive to react too slowly or who are overly cautious for your liking.

Driving a little under is not an offence, no, but driving at a speed that obstructs other road users and impedes the flow of traffic is, which many people are guilty of.

I assume the yellow light comment was about panic breaking where you are behind someone and as soon as the light goes yellow they hit the brakes even though they have plenty of time to go through and are quite close to the lights.

For the record I was previously responding to A_Cog’s comments at #6 but stuffed up the quotes.

….

It is interesting that A_Cog did not list speeding, red light running and not indicating (early enough and long enough) as an irritant although they did at least list tailgating. I suspect you both need to take a chill pill and start thinking about others on the road before yourselves.

Innovation, I suggest you re-read my comments. I stated some people were guilty of panic braking which in no way implies most people. As for the other comments I was just clarifying what I was assuming A Cog meant by his comments so your most of your comments directed at me were a waste of your time.

While I do think there are some people who are overly cautious and seem to be in a perpetually fearful state while behind the wheel of a car, they are just one subset of inconsiderate drivers and thankfully not the majority. And while I see a lot of instances of bad driving and have been known, on occasion, to be guilty of, I try not to get too worked up about it

parle said :

…
They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home…

er no, you don’t exceed the speed on the signs, even when the ‘workers have gone home’.

While a road is under repair it can no longer handle traffic safely at its normal speed so the limit applies full time, please don’t tailgate someone in a roadworks zone to ‘educate’ them otherwise!

thanks parle. yes!

and another +1 to jethro – i had a good friend who learned to ride a motorcycle while living in sydney, then later got a car pilotage licence in canberra. a much safer, more attentive bike rider than car driver. i don’t feel near as safe as passenger in the car as i do pillion on the bike. mad, but i put it down to the wide open paddocks we call ‘roads’ hereabouts…

Do they wonder why pointing RPGs at US military vehicles is such a popular pastime in Iraq?

EvanJames said :

A bunch of us watched in disbelief a few weeks back, when the army or police blew something up along Majura Road. Quite a number of assorted emergency vehicles were rushing to get to the explosion, and the number of cars that did the correct thing were few and very far between. We witnessed cops in particular pulling some pretty dangerous manouvres in frustration we assumed. Drivers just seemed to have NO concept of pulling over to the left and stopping.

Just another example though, that if something’s not enforced, scumbags will do what they can get away with.

Maybe the following Youtube clip should be made part of ACT’s emergency services training…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1smaQgXcxM

Well I think after my experience this morning with a person acting completely insane in their car, tailgating, overtaking on double unbroken centre lines, and trying to ram the side of my car, I will be looking at installing a GoPro camera in my car so that I can hand the footage over to the police in future.

Rawhide Kid Part3 said :

Jethro said :

parle said :

…
They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home…

er no, you don’t exceed the speed on the signs, even when the ‘workers have gone home’.

While a road is under repair it can no longer handle traffic safely at its normal speed so the limit applies full time, please don’t tailgate someone in a roadworks zone to ‘educate’ them otherwise!

It’s funny (or scary.. I’m not sure which)… At most roadworks they leave the reduced speed limit signs up 24 hours a day for this very reason.

Yet on Southern Cross Drive at the Florey Drive intersection where the current roadworks are they cover the reduced speed limit signs up every day and put the place back to regular speed limits.

This despite the fact there was a fatality at these roadworks a few weeks back. Furthermore, the changed road conditions (closed slip lane, reduced visibility caused by roadworks barriers) remain after the workers have gone home. It is a dangerous intersection at the best of times and the presence of closed lanes and sight-obstructing barriers makes it even more so.

If there was ever a roadworks area that needed the reduced speed limit to remain even after the workers have gone home, it’s this one.

Yet other roadworks which don’t seem to have the same hazards in place keep their reduced speed limits 24 hours a day. (I’m thinking places like Parkes Way/William Hovell outbound at the Glenloch Interchange when there were roadworks on the off-ramp to the GDE but not on the main stretch, but the main stretch had reduced speeds 24/7).

It’s almost like there isn’t a proper policy regarding roadworks speed limits.

You don’t have to wait for the reduced speed signs to be displayed before you slow down. If it looks dangerous SLOW DOWN !!

Yeah. I do.

But driving at 40 in a zone marked 60 in Canberra is an invitation to be tailgated by some bogan in a Commodore flashing their lights and abusing the crap out of you.

I enjoyed driving in Sydney. Indicate and you are given space for about 3 seconds to move.
Adelaide, it feels like many drivers are on valium. They would not mix well.
What they have in common is disappearing lanes on major roads.
In Sydney, its lane markings. In Adelaide, its the original planned roads that now, the left lane is blocked with cars at the local shop or the right lane is blocked by a car waiting to turn into the side street. Look ahead, anticipate and above all be patient if you get caught out.
In both cities, drivers cooperate but in very different ways.

Canberra, so many people learnt to drive in different cities with different driving cultures that clash.
Personally, I learnt my road rules in Adelaide but got my licence here. Never had a problem driving at 100 in a 100 zone, possibly because after years of cycling, 100 in a car never seemed that fast.

Slumlord said :

Notice all the incidents posted here are on the northside. Nuf said.

Yes those southsiders tend to get a bit confused when they drive over to the north. Probably can`t see out their frosty windscreens.

Rawhide Kid Part3 said :

You don’t have to wait for the reduced speed signs to be displayed before you slow down. If it looks dangerous SLOW DOWN !!

Whilst this is of course true and something I myself exercise when using this intersection, it doesn’t help that you are trying to navigate this reduced visibility intersection (which I notice tonight is now partially in darkness due to the lights on Florey Drive not working) with other vehicles zooming past oblivious to any danger.

But guess it’s all academic anyway because even if the limit was reduced 90% of the people wouldn’t take any notice anyway. Bet however if one fell into the hole now made by the removal of an island, which is near on impossible to see due to the lack of lights they would be the first to whinge.

Jethro said :

It’s funny (or scary.. I’m not sure which)… At most roadworks they leave the reduced speed limit signs up 24 hours a day for this very reason.

Yet on Southern Cross Drive at the Florey Drive intersection where the current roadworks are they cover the reduced speed limit signs up every day and put the place back to regular speed limits.

This despite the fact there was a fatality at these roadworks a few weeks back. Furthermore, the changed road conditions (closed slip lane, reduced visibility caused by roadworks barriers) remain after the workers have gone home. It is a dangerous intersection at the best of times and the presence of closed lanes and sight-obstructing barriers makes it even more so.

If there was ever a roadworks area that needed the reduced speed limit to remain even after the workers have gone home, it’s this one.

Yet other roadworks which don’t seem to have the same hazards in place keep their reduced speed limits 24 hours a day. (I’m thinking places like Parkes Way/William Hovell outbound at the Glenloch Interchange when there were roadworks on the off-ramp to the GDE but not on the main stretch, but the main stretch had reduced speeds 24/7).

It’s almost like there isn’t a proper policy regarding roadworks speed limits.

It’s astonishing that they put this intersection back to 60 after hours.

As you’ve said, after the over cautious approach of glenloch interchange it’s crazy they now decide to raise the limit in one of the most dangerous intersections in Canberra.

Someone’s already dead, although not sure if the roadworks were a factor. If they were, or if there’s another serious accident then someone’s going to have blood on their hands…

Sure people can slow down even though the signs tell them they don’t have to, and a lot of people do. But there are also a lot of people out there who think a 60 zone means you can do 70.

As for the whole Canberra drivers thing, I reckon Canberra drivers have a much higher rate of confirmation bias than anywhere else.

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

Tooks said :

It’s probably based on the fact that we see this kind of behaviour every day around Canberra, and yet sometimes don’t see marked police for weeks at a time.

Depends how often and where you drive I suppose. I think most people grossly overestimate how many police cars are on patrol at any one time though.

If people are committing these offences (red light running, illegal u-turns, parking offences etc) in front of police cars, then I think that’s pretty poor. But if he’s complaining about non-existant police not enforcing road rules, perhaps that’s not fair.

I think it would entirely fair to say that the number of police patrols relates directly to the priorities and resourcing of those who run the show.

Personally, bad driving doesn’t bother me that much. I tend just to have some music going and do my own thing anyway. If people want to do something crazy, I just get out of their way and let them go.

That said, I think having a greater marked police presence would probably settle a lot of people down. But until the government is ready to pay for it and support it it isn’t going to happen.

Agree with you on all of that. Most bad driving doesn’t particularly bother me. Expect the worst of most drivers and you won’t be surprised (you’ll also have better situational awareness and be better prepared for when they cut in front of you/tailgate/run red lights etc).

While the police meet the KPIs (or most of them) set by the government, then that govt is not going to spend money on drastically increasing police numbers.

Jethro said :

I really do think Canberra drivers are worse than those in other Aussie cities.

My purely anecdotal evidence, from experience of driving for years at a time in other cities is:

Adelaide: For the most part, courtesy rules, or at least it did about 30 years ago.

Melbourne: A little too unpredictable. Some good, some bad, can’t trust ’em.

Sydney: With all their curvy roads, they’ve got be be on the ball. They do tend to drive defensively. Put a blinker on, move, because a gap will be there. If you see a blinker come on, make a gap!

Canberra: Arrogant. Put a blinker on, the idiot in the other lane WILL try to push you out!

AND Canberrans always drive faster in the rain. Is it because they think that they can get home without getting quite as wet?

Jethro said :

parle said :

…
They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home…

er no, you don’t exceed the speed on the signs, even when the ‘workers have gone home’.

While a road is under repair it can no longer handle traffic safely at its normal speed so the limit applies full time, please don’t tailgate someone in a roadworks zone to ‘educate’ them otherwise!

It’s funny (or scary.. I’m not sure which)… At most roadworks they leave the reduced speed limit signs up 24 hours a day for this very reason.

Yet on Southern Cross Drive at the Florey Drive intersection where the current roadworks are they cover the reduced speed limit signs up every day and put the place back to regular speed limits.

This despite the fact there was a fatality at these roadworks a few weeks back. Furthermore, the changed road conditions (closed slip lane, reduced visibility caused by roadworks barriers) remain after the workers have gone home. It is a dangerous intersection at the best of times and the presence of closed lanes and sight-obstructing barriers makes it even more so.

If there was ever a roadworks area that needed the reduced speed limit to remain even after the workers have gone home, it’s this one.

Yet other roadworks which don’t seem to have the same hazards in place keep their reduced speed limits 24 hours a day. (I’m thinking places like Parkes Way/William Hovell outbound at the Glenloch Interchange when there were roadworks on the off-ramp to the GDE but not on the main stretch, but the main stretch had reduced speeds 24/7).

It’s almost like there isn’t a proper policy regarding roadworks speed limits.

You don’t have to wait for the reduced speed signs to be displayed before you slow down. If it looks dangerous SLOW DOWN !!

Tooks said :

It’s probably based on the fact that we see this kind of behaviour every day around Canberra, and yet sometimes don’t see marked police for weeks at a time.

Depends how often and where you drive I suppose. I think most people grossly overestimate how many police cars are on patrol at any one time though.

If people are committing these offences (red light running, illegal u-turns, parking offences etc) in front of police cars, then I think that’s pretty poor. But if he’s complaining about non-existant police not enforcing road rules, perhaps that’s not fair.

I think it would entirely fair to say that the number of police patrols relates directly to the priorities and resourcing of those who run the show.

Personally, bad driving doesn’t bother me that much. I tend just to have some music going and do my own thing anyway. If people want to do something crazy, I just get out of their way and let them go.

That said, I think having a greater marked police presence would probably settle a lot of people down. But until the government is ready to pay for it and support it it isn’t going to happen.

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

Tooks said :

EvanJames said :

Onceler said :

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Chuckle. An entertaining account, but the red light running is just another in a long line of “too hard to enforce” for the plod, who camp out behind speed measuring devices and breathalyzers instead.

Queuing across intersections, running red lights, tailgating, pulling up in “do not stop” zones at schools, u-turns at traffic lights, the list goes on. Too hard to deal with, so significant numbers of “drivers” treat them as road suggestions and ignore them.

So, what are the stats on how many TINs are handed out for what offences in the ACT? Presumably you know. Or is this just another one of your baseless, anti-police whinges, which you are so adept at?

It’s probably based on the fact that we see this kind of behaviour every day around Canberra, and yet sometimes don’t see marked police for weeks at a time.

Depends how often and where you drive I suppose. I think most people grossly overestimate how many police cars are on patrol at any one time though.

If people are committing these offences (red light running, illegal u-turns, parking offences etc) in front of police cars, then I think that’s pretty poor. But if he’s complaining about non-existant police not enforcing road rules, perhaps that’s not fair.

Tooks said :

EvanJames said :

Onceler said :

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Chuckle. An entertaining account, but the red light running is just another in a long line of “too hard to enforce” for the plod, who camp out behind speed measuring devices and breathalyzers instead.

Queuing across intersections, running red lights, tailgating, pulling up in “do not stop” zones at schools, u-turns at traffic lights, the list goes on. Too hard to deal with, so significant numbers of “drivers” treat them as road suggestions and ignore them.

So, what are the stats on how many TINs are handed out for what offences in the ACT? Presumably you know. Or is this just another one of your baseless, anti-police whinges, which you are so adept at?

It’s probably based on the fact that we see this kind of behaviour every day around Canberra, and yet sometimes don’t see marked police for weeks at a time.

EvanJames said :

Onceler said :

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Chuckle. An entertaining account, but the red light running is just another in a long line of “too hard to enforce” for the plod, who camp out behind speed measuring devices and breathalyzers instead.

Queuing across intersections, running red lights, tailgating, pulling up in “do not stop” zones at schools, u-turns at traffic lights, the list goes on. Too hard to deal with, so significant numbers of “drivers” treat them as road suggestions and ignore them.

So, what are the stats on how many TINs are handed out for what offences in the ACT? Presumably you know. Or is this just another one of your baseless, anti-police whinges, which you are so adept at?

EvanJames said :

Onceler said :

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Chuckle. An entertaining account, but the red light running is just another in a long line of “too hard to enforce” for the plod, who camp out behind speed measuring devices and breathalyzers instead.

Queuing across intersections, running red lights, tailgating, pulling up in “do not stop” zones at schools, u-turns at traffic lights, the list goes on. Too hard to deal with, so significant numbers of “drivers” treat them as road suggestions and ignore them.

…and will continue to do so until we have some sort of meaningful enforcement.

Onceler said :

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Chuckle. An entertaining account, but the red light running is just another in a long line of “too hard to enforce” for the plod, who camp out behind speed measuring devices and breathalyzers instead.

Queuing across intersections, running red lights, tailgating, pulling up in “do not stop” zones at schools, u-turns at traffic lights, the list goes on. Too hard to deal with, so significant numbers of “drivers” treat them as road suggestions and ignore them.

devils_advocate said :

Damn. I clicked on this article expected a new Ken Block video.

*grumble*

GYM5 is due for release on 9 July (midnight for us).

As a counter piece of anecdotal evidence, I was quite impressed by the parting of the kilometres long river of cars banked up on the GDE the other morning to let a fire truck through down the middle.
And as another counter to my own counter, I am disheartened by the level of incompetence that must have caused the accident in the 40km/hr zone out front of one of the multistory car parks in Woden this afternoon.

Damn. I clicked on this article expected a new Ken Block video.

*grumble*

p1 said :

KB1971 said :

& I thought only cyclists did the wrong thing on our roads………….or is it the car drivers right because they pay rego?

😛

Cyclists drive cars too. Maybe it was a cyclist in a car?

Or the bus. I took the bus this morning , am I guilty by association for the red light the bus driver ran this morning? Maybe I sat funny in my seat or looked too long at someone……..I am evil!

KB1971 said :

& I thought only cyclists did the wrong thing on our roads………….or is it the car drivers right because they pay rego?

😛

Cyclists drive cars too. Maybe it was a cyclist in a car?

This morning at about 9:45, I noticed a whitish Nissan Navara ute with a pushed in rear bumper, heading east on Belconnen way between the Bindubi St intersection and Gungahlin Drive. Just tootling along in the left lane, doing about 60 km/h (not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s an 80 zone). 60 on that stretch is a bit slow for me, so I go past him but stop for a red light at the Gungahlin Drive overpass. Suddenly Mr Navara’s drugs kick in, and coming from behind he puts on an impressive burst of speed, roaring through the lights at least a full second after they’d changed to red. Strangest driving I’ve seen in a while, but I have noticed that running red lights is getting quite popular.

Driving a little under the speed limit is not an offence. Driving slowly at construction sites is not an offence. I’m not sure what you mean by someone getting “confused by yellow lights” but is it perhaps because they stop when you don’t want them to? And a little more patience on your part might help you cope with those drivers you perceive to react too slowly or who are overly cautious for your liking.

Driving a little under is not an offence, no, but driving at a speed that obstructs other road users and impedes the flow of traffic is, which many people are guilty of.

I assume the yellow light comment was about panic breaking where you are behind someone and as soon as the light goes yellow they hit the brakes even though they have plenty of time to go through and are quite close to the lights.

VYBerlinaV8_is_back said :

+1 jethro

Canberra drivers are ridiculous. Blind, slow, selfish, stupid. They tailgait all the time, jealously guarding the empty space in front of them. They sit on 50 in a 60 zone, or 80 in a 100 zone. They sit in the inside lane and don’t move to the outside lane. They can’t merge. They react slowly. They are confused by yellow lights. They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home. They are overly cautious to the point of actually making traffic more dangerous. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve lived in several cities both in Australia and overseas. Perhaps the harshest thing I can say is that Canberra drivers are worse than the diplomatic cars I see. I’m sorry, I know some of you will think that last comment is going a bit too far, but it’s true. You’re all that bad. I feel Mr Gillespie’s pain and frustration.

Dont you have to slow down at construction (aka roadworks) if the limit is signposted – even if the workers have gone home and not bothered to cover up the speed limit signs?

The rest of what you’ve said seems about right though.

Notice all the incidents posted here are on the northside. Nuf said.

& I thought only cyclists did the wrong thing on our roads………….or is it the car drivers right because they pay rego? 😛

A bunch of us watched in disbelief a few weeks back, when the army or police blew something up along Majura Road. Quite a number of assorted emergency vehicles were rushing to get to the explosion, and the number of cars that did the correct thing were few and very far between. We witnessed cops in particular pulling some pretty dangerous manouvres in frustration we assumed. Drivers just seemed to have NO concept of pulling over to the left and stopping.

Just another example though, that if something’s not enforced, scumbags will do what they can get away with.

+1 jethro

Canberra drivers are ridiculous. Blind, slow, selfish, stupid. They tailgait all the time, jealously guarding the empty space in front of them. They sit on 50 in a 60 zone, or 80 in a 100 zone. They sit in the inside lane and don’t move to the outside lane. They can’t merge. They react slowly. They are confused by yellow lights. They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home. They are overly cautious to the point of actually making traffic more dangerous. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’ve lived in several cities both in Australia and overseas. Perhaps the harshest thing I can say is that Canberra drivers are worse than the diplomatic cars I see. I’m sorry, I know some of you will think that last comment is going a bit too far, but it’s true. You’re all that bad. I feel Mr Gillespie’s pain and frustration.

+1 from me.

ScienceRules said :

Does anyone have any actual evidence for this notion other than “it’s what I reckon”? I mean it IS the common wisdom but are we really worse than Sydney drivers for example. And how do you define “worse”?

Depends what you mean by “actual evidence.” I doubt you’ll ever get objective evidence as to do so you’d need an objective definition of bad driving, which would seem to be difficult given the varying subjective definitions bandied about on RA, followed by a survey to see how drivers measured up to that definition.

If you’ll accept subjective evidence, I was recently down in Melbourne driving on a major road (Sydney Road for those who know it) just before sunrise on a week day, in misting rain that was making the roads slippery and visibility difficult. Everyone, except for one Richard Head, was driving at the speed limit, leaving space between them and the preceding vehicle, opening a gap to allow people to change lanes when they indicated they wanted to, and generally driving to the conditions. Would this happen in Canberra? Not from my observations.

And you know what? I got to my destination faster than I usually do when driving the same route at the same time on a dry road and in good visibility.

Jethro said :

I really do think Canberra drivers are worse than those in other Aussie cities.

My theory is that the lack of traffic and good roads makes people a lot less attentive when driving. If you are driving in Sydney or Brisbane you have to be paying full attention to your surroundings simply because there is so much going on. Driving in Canberra probably lulls a lot of people into auto-pilot.

Does anyone have any actual evidence for this notion other than “it’s what I reckon”? I mean it IS the common wisdom but are we really worse than Sydney drivers for example. And how do you define “worse”?

It’s the wankers who refuse to move to the left in front of an ambulance because their turnoff is just 500 metres up the road that poop me off. Also well meaning folks who stop and mount the centre median instead of pulling over to the left forcing the emergency vehicle to stop completely. Just move to the left please!

Oh and never, never, NEVER move through a red light to make way for an emergency vehicle, you’ll give the crew palpitations! Just stay there, they’ll find a way around you.

And a million thanks to almost every driver who does the right thing anyway!

Jethro said :

It’s funny (or scary.. I’m not sure which)… At most roadworks they leave the reduced speed limit signs up 24 hours a day for this very reason.

Yet on Southern Cross Drive at the Florey Drive intersection where the current roadworks are they cover the reduced speed limit signs up every day and put the place back to regular speed limits.

This despite the fact there was a fatality at these roadworks a few weeks back. Furthermore, the changed road conditions (closed slip lane, reduced visibility caused by roadworks barriers) remain after the workers have gone home. It is a dangerous intersection at the best of times and the presence of closed lanes and sight-obstructing barriers makes it even more so.

If there was ever a roadworks area that needed the reduced speed limit to remain even after the workers have gone home, it’s this one.

Yet other roadworks which don’t seem to have the same hazards in place keep their reduced speed limits 24 hours a day. (I’m thinking places like Parkes Way/William Hovell outbound at the Glenloch Interchange when there were roadworks on the off-ramp to the GDE but not on the main stretch, but the main stretch had reduced speeds 24/7).

It’s almost like there isn’t a proper policy regarding roadworks speed limits.

I sent an email to Canberra connect about this very subject not long after the roadworks started. If ever there was a roadworks that needed reduced limit 24×7 this is one. The other example I gave them was at the same time they were re-doing a bus stop pad on Kingsford Smith Drive near Belconnen Way. Despite all the work at the pad being off the road and the workers clearly gone for the day the limit was 40km/h, yet Florey Dr it was 60 as the workers had gone.

Just this week they have started removing the traffic islands at the Florey Dr roadworks so now there are a couple of holes, so the need for 40km/h 24×7 is even more urgent.

Of course Canberra connect didn’t reply.

Golden-Alpine said :

I was amazed yesterday by the number of cars without headlights on in the fog. I am also noticing more and more of drivers tail gating.

I am trying to get into the habit to leave more and more room between me and the car in front, not only to give me more room to stop but also to accommodate those behind me.

+1

One of the valuable lessons I learned while riding a motor scooter was that the only space I could control is the space in front of me. If you’re tailgating me, I’ll just allow your space as well as mine. The rule of thumb my father taught me was 1 car length per 10mph.

PatMan said :

Jethro said :

Spykler said :

Jethro…That’s not a theory, that’s a long standing fact.

This is where HenryBG will explain to you the scientific meaning of the word theory.

Wrong…HenryBG is too busy researching every single possible negative aspect about Muslims to waste time with such basic stuff. Now, if Canberra roads were being flooded with Muslims I think we’d see Henry at his articulate best!

Climate change denying Muslims on bikes who send their kids to public schools.

Jethro said :

Spykler said :

Jethro…That’s not a theory, that’s a long standing fact.

This is where HenryBG will explain to you the scientific meaning of the word theory.

Wrong…HenryBG is too busy researching every single possible negative aspect about Muslims to waste time with such basic stuff. Now, if Canberra roads were being flooded with Muslims I think we’d see Henry at his articulate best!

parle said :

…
They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home…

er no, you don’t exceed the speed on the signs, even when the ‘workers have gone home’.

While a road is under repair it can no longer handle traffic safely at its normal speed so the limit applies full time, please don’t tailgate someone in a roadworks zone to ‘educate’ them otherwise!

It’s funny (or scary.. I’m not sure which)… At most roadworks they leave the reduced speed limit signs up 24 hours a day for this very reason.

Yet on Southern Cross Drive at the Florey Drive intersection where the current roadworks are they cover the reduced speed limit signs up every day and put the place back to regular speed limits.

This despite the fact there was a fatality at these roadworks a few weeks back. Furthermore, the changed road conditions (closed slip lane, reduced visibility caused by roadworks barriers) remain after the workers have gone home. It is a dangerous intersection at the best of times and the presence of closed lanes and sight-obstructing barriers makes it even more so.

If there was ever a roadworks area that needed the reduced speed limit to remain even after the workers have gone home, it’s this one.

Yet other roadworks which don’t seem to have the same hazards in place keep their reduced speed limits 24 hours a day. (I’m thinking places like Parkes Way/William Hovell outbound at the Glenloch Interchange when there were roadworks on the off-ramp to the GDE but not on the main stretch, but the main stretch had reduced speeds 24/7).

It’s almost like there isn’t a proper policy regarding roadworks speed limits.

I’ve seen this so many times, mostly on Canberra ave heading to Queanbeyan. How do people justify risking someones life to get home 2 minutes earlier. Because that’s what they are doing not letting an ambulance through it could mean the difference between saving someone or not. I had someone try to over take me in the turning lane for the Woden cemetery the other day, but that was more risky for them than me, so I wasn’t too bothered.

…
They slow down at construction sites even when the construction has finished and the workers have gone home…

er no, you don’t exceed the speed on the signs, even when the ‘workers have gone home’.

While a road is under repair it can no longer handle traffic safely at its normal speed so the limit applies full time, please don’t tailgate someone in a roadworks zone to ‘educate’ them otherwise!

Can’t wait..

Spykler said :

Jethro…That’s not a theory, that’s a long standing fact.

This is where HenryBG will explain to you the scientific meaning of the word theory.

Jethro…That’s not a theory, that’s a long standing fact.

I was amazed yesterday by the number of cars without headlights on in the fog. I am also noticing more and more of drivers tail gating.

I am trying to get into the habit to leave more and more room between me and the car in front, not only to give me more room to stop but also to accomodate those behind me.

Another annoyance, indicate then brake people!

I really do think Canberra drivers are worse than those in other Aussie cities.

My theory is that the lack of traffic and good roads makes people a lot less attentive when driving. If you are driving in Sydney or Brisbane you have to be paying full attention to your surroundings simply because there is so much going on. Driving in Canberra probably lulls a lot of people into auto-pilot.

Genie said :

That intersection is terrible. I travel through there almost daily and have lost count at the amount of cars I have to give way to running the red light….

Just face the facts Canberra drivers are terrible…

Was almost a statistic there on Saturday afternoon- a clueless idiot in a white Commodore was doing warp speed through the intersection going towards Charnwood, he ran the red and I only just caught the white flash out of the corner of my eye..If I didn’t….Goodnight Irene.

That intersection is terrible. I travel through there almost daily and have lost count at the amount of cars I have to give way to running the red light….

Just face the facts Canberra drivers are terrible…

Now that would be a case of the blind leading the blind!

Every day you see stupid things like this. Yesterday I saw a classic on Gininderra Drive at Evatt in the ‘morning peak’ yesterday. P plater in the left hand lane heading east. 4WD tunrs left out of William Webb Drive, which is ok as they have their own lane and starts to accelerate, as they are legally allowed to do. P is now in the middle lane ALONG side the 4WD and starts to indicate, then as the other vehicle wasn’t slowing (nor should they either) he decides to speed up and at the very last minute gets in front and cuts across to turn onto William Slim Drive. I reckon they would have been mm’s away from getting cleaned up in the process.

Until the very last moment the 4WD would not have had any chance what so ever to see the P platters indicators, and as mentioned above even if he did see the indicator was under no obligation to let the P platter in. All the P platter had to do was, heaven forbid take the foot off the accelerator and pull in behind. Not sure what it is they are teaching them these days, but plain stupidity is clearly one of them.