Submitted by MintyLacroix t3_z5r4hc in washingtondc
I just almost got hit walking through a cross walk. The car had a stop sign and I started walking so they could see me. The car basically played chicken with me, eventually almost tapping me as I walked by, but finally it stopped. Kind of left me feeling scared. These people are absolutely dangerous. I could have been hurt.
things are worse now in socal too. But in socal 90% of the time traffic is too slow and congested to be a threat
we made similar observations when we returned to socal for the summer. Every single time someone slowed to allow us to merge or waved us in we were like holy shit it's so much better here!
a lot of cognitive dissonance because our memories were that driving in socal sucked but realizing now it's because of traffic not because most of the other drivers think they're demolition derby racers
I remember when I first got to San Diego, my car stalled at a stop light. Instead of honking, the cars behind me just drove around me. I was stunned at the lack of honking and angry swear words as drivers passed. Another time, I stopped because there was an injured dog in the road. As I got out to go rescue the little guy, other drivers just...stopped and waited. Whaaaat...
That’s that patented SoCal chill for ya
I honestly think there's some cultural signaling around behaving like a piece of shit. It's a way for idiots to express their masculinity, independence and disregard for societal norms.
> It's a way for idiots to express their masculinity
2/3 entitled morons who nearly ran me over last week were women
I felt like SoCal drivers were bad because they weren't paying attention--too sun-baked or weed baked. Kind of like the way pedestrians would wander into the street without looking. I especially enjoyed it when parents would push their small children into the street in front of approaching cars. That's how I learned to drive super defensively. But yeah, ppl here seem to drive with homocidal intent.
That's kind of an unfair comparison. Car dependent areas are safer for pedestrians because there are no pedestrians. But I do agree that in the U.S. in general, not just in the DMV, drivers are entitled assholes. It's cause we have subsidized them for far too long and signaled that they, not pedestrians or cyclists, are what matters. And the second I say that I get accused of being elitist and anti-car. We can't even get a bike lane on Conn Ave without entitled drivers complaining.
You’re right. I guess I should clarify SoCal feels safer as a fellow driver (because… no one walks).
I've driven in almost every big city up and down both coasts, and I agree that DC drivers are doing some wild things. It's not just about being a pedestrian. There are way more people here than even NYC that just don't give a shit about being hit or hitting another car.
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Bro you think that doesn't happen here or something?
The DMV version is making a right from the left turn lane across three lanes at the light
From CA too (Bay Area flip flop w LA), and I agree.
It didn't use to be this bad. This is a post COVID phenomenon, additionally people have become phone addicted in a way that wasn't true just a few years ago.
Wish I could upvote this more
Maybe you need a second phone so you can upvote again.
Bloody genius
Ya if you ever want to be depressed, sit on the metro when it's on I-66 and observe how many of the drivers on the highway are on their phones. It's literally more than half.
Just go to any intersection with a traffic light. I'll bet you 70% of the time or more the person at the front of the line will take 5 secs or more to notice the green light and actually move, because they're on their phone. I never remember honking at an intersection when the light turned green pre-covid. Now it's atleast once per car trip.
True. That's bad, but that bothers me less than the thousands of people driving 75 mph on the highway while straight up playing on their phones.
> It didn't use to be this bad. This is a post COVID phenomenon,
Stress from things changing related to covid have people acting out in many public ways -- at restaurants, retail stores, and when driving.
The US doesn't have a lot of mental health resources and it's going to be a long haul to get back to something approximating 'normal' public space behavior.
Cops don’t enforce, when they do enforce the DA refuses to charge, and the DC City Council keeps weakening laws
I often walk through an intersection that always has a police presence and cars still will scream through a stop sign at 40 miles an hour (25 zone) almost hitting me and my dog, and the cops don’t do shit. It’s happened twice in the last two weeks. I really don’t understand it.
I’ve already tailored my walk to avoid dangerous intersections, but I can’t avoid this one.
The police aren't allowed to pursue, when they do pursue they get charged with murder if the person running away crashes and dies.
If your boss said "This is your job, but don't do it, if you do your job you'll go to prison for the rest of your life and you'll be sued personally so your wife and kids will suffer too " would you do anything other than sit there and collect a paycheck?
Stealing a quote from someone else (would attribute but can't remember their name): DC progressiveism is just libertarianism with extra steps. If no one ever suffers consequences for breaking the law, you might as well just not have the laws in the first place.
Cops don't do shit because they've been told to not do shit. City pols are spending too much time listening to defund/ACAB activists and not enough time looking out for the rest of us.
Y’all get what you voted for
Which is interesting because I don't think I've ever heard defund or ACAB activists ever agitate to stop enforcing traffic laws, but I have seen a lot of calls to stop treating the police as judge/jury/executioner for nonviolent crimes.
>I don't think I've ever heard defund or ACAB activists ever agitate to stop enforcing traffic laws
Getting the police out of traffic enforcement is one of the pillars of anti-police activism. You see it on this sub with people who try to claim violent traffic behavior is solely an infrastructure problem, or that traffic enforcement should be handled administratively, like parking enforcement. It ignores the inherently violent nature of the kind of behavior OP is talking about.
> I don't think I've ever heard defund or ACAB activists ever agitate to stop enforcing traffic laws
It's literally like the first tenant of the defund people.
BS. Most "defund the police "types ride public transit and actually care about lessening congestion and pollution. The aggressive drivers are entitled conservative car drivers.
DC’s Police Reform Commission would beg to differ with your assertion that curtailing traffic enforcement is not part of the defunding and/or reforming the police movement.
https://wamu.org/story/21/04/28/proposal-would-give-ddot-not-dc-police-traffic-enforcement/
This is the root cause honestly. I largely don't see any change outside DC's borders. If you don't enforce the law then lots of people are not going to follow the rules.
But is society breaking down. Not even close yet. People will start to vote to fix this stuff well before that it, posts like these are the start of public opinion shifting enough to demand political action in favor of law and order. Things will have to get much worse first though as the leadership in DC is phobic of the people being punished being minorities at a higher rate than the population demographics. For a number of reasons that will be the outcome when enforcement is ramped back up.
>the DA refuses to charge
Let's just be clear here: this is the Presidentially appointed United States Attorney and not a local official. The USAO is not accountable to the mayor, Council, or any other local elected official.
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I ride a motorcycle and can see down into cars as they pass. It’s shocking how many people are on smartphones. Not just when they come to a stop, but all the time. Not just looking at directions but texting or even watching videos.
That, and as many others have mentioned there’s no enforcement in DC.
I saw someone on 270 holding their phone next to their steering wheel and WATCHING NETFLIX WHILE DRIVING! I honestly couldn't believe it, who could possibly think that's a good idea?? I didn't realize people were going to such extremes to stay "entertained" while driving. Just listen to a podcast or something!
I was almost hit by a driver who was doing their make up and kept swerving into my lane on Connecticut Ave. Absolute insanity happening on the roads lately
When I first moved to DC three years ago, I was shocked at how aggressive drivers were (speeding up when they see you in a crosswalk...etc), but I regularly see cars now running through red lights, making right hand turns without even looking up (even when the wall light is on for pedestrians!). I want to say it's stupidity but I feel it's entitlement and believing they're the most important person on the road. As a result, everyone must simply adapt around them.
Foreigner from a small town here who drives here. I don't know if it's an American thing, a DMV thing, or a city thing. Either way driving here takes a lot of effort.
Between the people not paying attention and the people who cut in front of me, I'm honestly terrified of driving.
Bad drivers (driving culture in the US is really bad) and some horrible horrible street designs from the 60s the DDOT is very very very slowly getting around to fixing.
I think framing the issue as “car culture” in the US is the best way to discuss the ongoing traffic violence we’ve been seeing in cities like DC. It’s almost akin to the gun culture we have - ie a mass shooting ever so often that it normal when it shouldn’t be. A car crash that kills a cyclist, pedestrian and/or driver is normal and for some reason there isn’t a way to stop it from happening cause some folks are so car dependent. A glimpse at Nextdoor or the comments on Washingtonprobs gives some insight into the mental gymnastics that never places the blame on drivers.
Another wild conjecture is the issue being bike lanes that cause traffic and car crashes - when increasing transit option removes cars from the road.
Yep. And things like being in your phone, driving fast, rolling stop signs, and doing dangerous maneuvers is popularized and normalized by car commercials and everyday behavior.
Yeah - also I was born in dc and raised in pg. and I think my experience growing up in the suburbs is similar to a lot of Americans. Specifically, getting a license and being able to drive and having access to a car even though it was a minivan or a 20 year old clunker. This also meant I envied classmates who got nicer cars and wanted that too. Literally seduced into thinking that owning a car meant being an adult and the nicer the car the more successful I must be.
And now I ride around a used single-speed I bought on Craigslist for $150.
100% agree. Compare this to transit safety standards. Metro has one derailment 14 months ago where no one was killed and we sidelined the majority of the fleet for 14 months. 45,000 Americans die in car crashes/yr and we build more highways.
Because the laws in DC are not enforced and are concurrently being diluted by city council. Surprised you are just noticing.
Pretty harsh way to say, "Yeah, I feel the same."
Yeah, some people in this sub constantly try really hard to be witty pieces of shit and mostly just manage the latter part.
It’s because our infrastructure sucks and prioritizes cars over people
I’ve lived in DC over 15 years, and the infrastructure has gotten better over the years in terms of non-car transport becoming more favored, not worse. But the last three years it’s gotten so much more dangerous out there with antisocial behavior from drivers.
The infrastructure is just a tool they are now using, not the cause.
Infrastructure is an enabler, build it better and these people won’t feel safe driving like assholes.
You’ve lived here for 15 years (just like me) and you think the infrastructure has gotten better? We must be living in two different cities. 2019 and prior, I commuted using metro but upon becoming a disabled cane user who can’t stand for longer than a couple mins, I cannot physically do that commute - especially a transfer. Elevators broken or escalators broken and I’m SOL. The infrastructure is awful here compared to other cities.
You're absolutely right on metro, my apologies my comment wasn't very clear. I was thinking (but didn't write) more in terms of bike lanes being added, scooters becoming available, and some pedestrian improvements (but not nearly enough).
There have been incremental improvements on that end, but metro has indeed degraded in service and options for those with limited mobility have lessened, not increased.
No, infrastructure has always sucked. Antisocial and violent driving at the level we're seeing now is a new problem.
fuck careless drivers
Imagine dealing with this with a wheelchair. Cars are so tall these days I’m not convinced any vehicle can see me.
The consequence for this shouldn’t be jail time or a fine—it should be seizure of the vehicle and a lifetime ban on holding a drivers license again. There is absolutely no legal right to operate a motor vehicle—it’s a privilege that has gotten completely out-of-hand. There are cameras everywhere in DC, it’s easy to tell whether it’s aggravated or accidental. I agree with OP that it’s increasingly the former, and without any consequences (nobody ever pays the fines, cars will drive around with like 5-figures in owed fines) this behavior will only get worse and the bodies will continue to accumulate.
Also, bollard-protected pedestrian zones. Absolutely no reason any private vehicle ought to be downtown.
One of my neighbors legitimately died after getting hit by a car on Friday. Y’all be extra EXTRA careful on K street NE.
I live at 9th and K and I actively avoid walking or cycling down K. Between the moron drivers, bombed out tarmac, and disappearing bike lane, it’s an absolute shitshow. I go to I St, cycle all the way down to 2nd, then cut back to K at the underpass if I head downtown. Even as a very experienced cyclist, I do not trust riding a bike on this section of K.
Seriously. I frequently cross K at 10th while walking my dogs or heading to Union Market. I’ll definitely be triple checking before I cross from here on out.
Good luck! I honestly feel like it’s gotten kinda rough around this corner the last few months. People driving like animals.
The hideously bad road pavement conditions don’t help. People serve to avoid destroying their car in an 8 inch pit, which is understandable. Meanwhile that road is useless for cyclists.
because, OP, I think it actually might be (breaking down). we continue to be less and less reasonable, and after two years of covid isolation at home, less sociable. we continue to increase the hubris, entitlement, self-centeredness and selfishness. our patience has significantly decreased due, imo, a a kind of PTSD due to all of the above, so we keep circling the bowl. and we in the capital area are in the center of it.
> after two years of covid isolation at home
Almost nobody was isolated at home for two years though.
And worse yet we are continue to self-impose isolation. People refuse to get out and socialize again and instead keep advocating for work from home, further exacerbating, IMO, isolation and anti-social behavior.
People with chronic illnesses have been advocating to work from home for decades and thankfully it’s more the norm now post-pandemic. I’m very chronically ill and could never work in an office full time again. This isn’t anti-social it’s called survival.
Obviously there have to be exceptions. But the vast majority of ppl who work fron home don't have chronic illnesses.
You are vastly uneducated. 4 in 10 adults have at least 1 chronic illness. i have 11. when you get 1 they often essentially latch on to other weakness to cause related or comorbidity illnesses.
In the last year I’ve begun thinking that I genuinely hate driving and would never drive again if given the choice. I went to visit family in the Midwest last week and realized that I actually don’t hate driving, I just hate driving around DC. Drivers are so unaware and unpredictable that I feel like I always have to be on high alert and so defensive just to protect myself from someone else smashing into me. Turns out, it’s not like that everywhere and doesn’t have to be like that here, either. Unfortunately I don’t know what it would take to change it at this point.
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I drove “home” to the Midwest this summer. Been doing it since I moved out here in 2010.
It’s no better there. If anything, drivers are worse but there is just less traffic. And more people (proportionally) drive SUVs and trucks there, so the terrible drivers are more dangerous. And the stroads are worse and more plentiful, too.
At least here we have the option of not driving. I've never owned a car in DC and have been just fine. In most of American driving is literally the only way to get anywhere. When I visit my parents I can't even buy milk without driving.
Yeah, I used to live in SW VA in the mountains and driving out there was a joy. Here it's so mentally exhausting. Even driving in the suburbs is easier than DC.
I moved across DC this summer, and the amount of red lights I saw completely ignored was astounding. I would drive two or three carloads of things every day, and over the course of a week I said fuck it and found a route between my two homes that was less terrifying. Especially sickening was that the worst intersection where this was happening already had a ghost bike.
There’s also just absolutely no adherence to stop signs in any capacity. A 4-way stop? Forget it. “It’s my turn when I want to go.”
Big main character energy
This has happening all over the country and it’s much worse in some places than others. It’s not just DC, unfortunately.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/27/upshot/road-deaths-pedestrians-cyclists.html
Society isn’t breaking down, DC government just sucks so badly and refuses to do anything about it.
This isn’t just occurring in dc though.
It’s occurring in places which have similar governance to DC…
Sadly most US cities focus on driver convenience over pedestrian safety.
My hometown has 700 people in it. People are constantly complaining about cars speeding down streets and blowing stop signs. Suffice to say, the governance is very different than DC.
Does your hometown have anything nearing the resources DC has to fix this situation? Does it have a stated commitment to making streets safer? At least the local government is probably honest about what they stand for.
Please provide a single piece of evidence to support this.
Jacksonville is run entirely by Republicans, and traffic deaths are up massively:
According to the report, there were 207 fatal car accident in Jacksonville, including 50 pedestrians and 47 motorcycle crash victims in 2021...Compare that to 166 fatal crashes in 2019 and 143 in 2018.
Sorry to let facts get in the way of your narrative.
Huh, I'm pretty sure it's a well-established fact that Democrat-run cities/counties have higher crime rates due to more lax police enforcement:
https://www.heritage.org/crime-and-justice/report/the-blue-city-murder-problem
https://mobile.twitter.com/yukatapangolin/status/1582924821759135750
So again, no evidence here that increases in traffic deaths are only occurring in Democratic constituencies.
It's also not a "well-established fact" and the two "sources" you provided don't even come close to estabishing that.
Welcome to living in cities. Lots of people (many of them reckless drivers) + lots of cars = incidents.
There are tons of safe cities in the world for pedestrians, numbers of people alone do not explain this.
Again, this further supports my claim that DC government is failing to address this issue. It can be fixed, they just refuse to do so. Incidents still happen in cities everywhere. Measures can be taken to mitigate them, however.
Wait so is it the dc government or cities that are the problem?
Both can be at fault. Cities all over the country absolutely have incidents between cars and pedestrians simply due to the nature of city driving. DC can also be especially bad because of the government’s ineptitude in addressing the issue. They aren’t mutually exclusive.
Don't assume they are going to stop. Wait to walk until they've come to a complete stop. Otherwise you're gambling with your safety. The rules are different here.
Pretty much this. Sucks, but it’s really the only way to be sure.
In other words - there’s no accountability for reckless driving and residents should just accept this behavior as normal. /s
It's my 2 cents. I was hit by a car here 2 months ago and it broke my ankle. Now I won't be able to walk until January. I can't change the drivers here so this will be my mode of walking going forward
Summary in no particular order:
They're not prosecuting criminals unless somebody gets badly hurt. They're not enforcing traffic laws. When they do enforce them, there's no penalty for not paying the fines. Put two and two together...
Before i moved here i thought that DC residents complaining about drivers was just another example of people thinking that the drivers in their hometown are the worst. Since I moved here i now see that DC drivers are easily the worst in America.
Another prime example of r/fuckcars
These type of post are starting to be made every week now
Sorta like every (or multiple times a) week there’s a death from reckless driving.
Yeah, and they never add anything.
Society breaking down? Come on.
Sometimes I feel like this sub exists entirely separate from the real world.
NY Times features this in their 11/27/2022 article, The Exceptionally American problem of Rising Roadway Deaths, that includes a mention of these bicycling deaths:
Sarah Debbink Langenkamp . . . was, improbably, the third foreign service officer at the State Department to die while walking or biking in the Washington area this year. She was killed in August in suburban Bethesda, Md. Another died in July while biking in Foggy Bottom. The third, a retired foreign service officer working on contract, was walking near the agency’s headquarters in August. That is more foreign service officers killed by vehicles at home than have died overseas this year, noted Dan Langenkamp, Ms. Langenkamp’s husband and a foreign service officer himself.
“It’s infuriating to me as a U.S. diplomat,” he told the rally in her honor, “to be a person that goes around the world bragging about our record, trying to get people to think like us — to know that we are such failures on this issue.”
The article has over 900 comments at the time of this comment.
I drive to work everyday because I don’t have another option. I’m terrified every freaking day. It baffles me to see people blow through reds and just casually pass by on the shoulder on the freeway like WTF! And it’s like everyone is out to get everyone. It’s crazy and stressful and I hate it.
It's because DC has been and will continue to get worse. And it is a direct result of the local government telling the police they are not allowed to enforce traffic violations.
Go back to socal
>Why does it feel like society is breaking down?
hysteria
it’s too easy, just look both ways before crossing the street
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Let's be real. DC was not designed for cars. This is great for the Metro, but this is also America and for some reason we hate public transit so it hasn't expanded enough to supply the pop, meaning more people are forced into cars on roads that are poorly designed for them. Some of the most insane intersections I've ever seen are here in DC. Driving here is an absolute nightmare.
We really need to start a new unarmed traffic police group under the dot and divert police funding to that since the police are to busy throwing a quiet quitting tantrum in response to protests telling them to do their job without killing people. Ideally we should fine based on value of the car (since income is to hard to administer) so the rich asshole in the brand new leased Beamer who blows by the stop light because they used to be able to afford the ticket feels more pain the the person in the 15 year old civic who’s just trying to get by and was too distracted
You are what is wrong with dc. It shouldn’t matter what you drive - a fine is a fine/ and you should learn how to freaking drive. So the BMW driver can’t also be distracted like the 15 year old civic driver? Come the fuck on.
Also your views on policing are why DC leads the nation in armed car robberies - and is quite frankly a cesspool of crime. Please go back to drinking your vegan shake - yelling at people for gas powered lawn equipment and driving a Prius. Bye Felicia
There are so many layers of cluelessness in your comment it's hard to know where to begin.
I know this isn't really the response a lot of people here might like, or agree with, but I think it's phones.
I drive into and out of DC often, and also walk in DC often, and so much of what I see of reckless behavior is from people being idiots on their phones. Jaywalking with airpods in, walking straight into traffic, or riding a scooter into an intersection while scrolling a phone. On the car side, I've seen a guy with a phone attached to the windshield scrolling social media in the 3rd street tunnel, and seen more than a few people run or almost run red lights because they're looking at their phone in their lap. I'm of an age where I grew up without a phone, so I have no problem staying focused, but more and more drivers are hitting the road having spent their entire lives phone-addicted.
I don’t disagree but I think phones are only a component of the problem - ie a specific behavior in which traffic violence manifests.
Maybe so, but I think a major problem with the discourse here is that people conflate structural issues with behavioral issues when it comes to traffic violence. It's much more emotionally satisfying and righteous to say "I am a pedestrian, and drivers out here are literally trying to kill us," when the extraordinary, overwhelming majority of people driving are just like the rest of us and just want to get where they need to go.
Poorly designed, congested, and confusing roads are a structural issue, as are routing bike lanes onto spaces shared by cars in faster-moving corridors. That shouldn't happen. At the same time, cars with thousands of dollars of tickets should be towed and impounded, and prosecution of distracted and aggressive driving should increase a hundredfold. There's not a silver bullet to the situation.
Another problem not talked about enough is that Maryland and Virginia drivers know they can do whatever they want while driving in DC and won't be accountable since DC can't touch them.
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Yes post COVID I have seen people being impatient on roads, more honking etc.
IIRC there was an article on people becoming worse drivers during COVID because we drove less.
There is also the factor of traffic disappearing during Covid and I think having to face traffic again now enrages some people.
Also a bad mix of highly entitled people who think they are the main character, people who think that being an asshole is an identity, people who think the rest of traffic are just NPC's in a racing game and not kids and people in cars, and people on their phones.
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I was wondering, are there any statistics from accidents, injuries etc. that can support this phenomenon? I don't understand why the city government isn't doing more.
Last year I was walking my dog and was crossing the four way stop at M St and 5th St NW.
A truck with MD plates stopped and we started crossing. As I approached the truck decided that I did not have right of way and almost ran over my dog.
It was so egregious the man behind him pulled up and rolled down his window to tell me how fucked up that was.
People are just self absorbed plus know basically nothing will happen to them in DC so it’s a free for all out there.
Nothing freaked me out more than crossing any street alongside NY Ave. Drivers making a left will focus solely on oncoming traffic and will try to gun it to make it across a left turn yield intersection without looking for pedestrians before committing.
It got so bad that if I saw a car trying to make a left, I’d just wait until they made it.
For those driving, drive with your eyes, your hands will follow. Another way of saying always look before you turn. Something a race car instructor told me years ago and heavily emphasized, applies for on the street as well.
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I don’t take any risks when it comes to crossing the street at four way intersections. If a car is approaching a stop sign I wave at the driver and don’t walk until they’ve acknowledged me.
As both a frequent driver and walker in DC these situations aren’t always the driver’s fault. There are stop signs/lights after every single block and a lot of times in the residential areas (like cap hill) stop signs can be hidden behind parked cars/other objects. That’s why I always have google maps running in my car when driving through DC so I know where signs/lights are… regardless if I already know the directions.
MPD no chase policy means anyone with an out of state license and registration can do whatever they want.
I got hit in a crosswalk this summer! It completely changed my view of the city. Never been so uneasy as I am here as a pedestrian.
Agreed, the drivers around here do seem to be more unhinged than usual. Having just returned from a holiday road trip, I can confirm that Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York drivers are equally crazy, if not more. But I still think that Maryland drivers take the cake.
My 17 year old got hit by someone doing 40 in a residential neighborhood a month ago. He's fine but damn he was just trying to cross the street to catch the bus.
He is alive and is done with surgeries. No brain damage just needs tone of OT and PT now. Was touch and go in the ICU for 5 days though.
He's very lucky, and so are you. I hope it keeps the bastard up at night. If that happened to my son it might just be a homocide, as well.
The drivers here in DC really don’t care about pedestrians. I always am just glad I made it to the sidewalk. Im tired of…
I moved from a traffic heavy area where driving sucks, but i personally think it’s worse here because it seems as if drivers are just aggressive and have literally no clue pedestrians have the right of way (and even when they dont, the cars need to stop). There’s just not enough safe drivers out here and good practices in DC.
Because society isn't actually real, it's just a figment of our collective imagination.
Ban cars
Unhinged comment.
Username checks out
The US would collapse overnight. Btw, I’m loving the username haha
I was waiting for this ableist comment
False and nice virtue signaling
This may not apply to OP if I misunderstood but I will say as a driver, pedestrians should not keep walking (or playing crosswalk chicken, in OPs case?) simply because they have right of way and want to force the car into the correct behavior. The number of times I approach crosswalks, and pedestrians walk through without looking both ways simply because they expect right of way to be honored is crazy. Even people pushing strollers for god’s sake. It isn’t going to matter to your family that you were in the right, it’s only going to matter that you’re dead because some driver was on their phone (which most, terrifyingly, are).
I also am always seeing people walk/run into crosswalks without stopping, having given zero indication they intended to cross. Some of those people are going to be hit someday. Pedestrians have right of way (assuming there isn’t a light system there) but it doesn’t negate your responsibility to be situationally aware. Don’t expect cars to do the right thing, and be prepared to the more responsible person. Hate to see people get hurt out there.
I’m situationally aware when I cross, and I have had cars accelerate through the cross walk at unreasonable speeds when they see me. Yes, some people are oblivious or bold, but don’t make this the pedestrians’ fault. This is an issue with aggressive, entitled and dangerous drivers. Most people I see are careful when they cross, and I walk this city everyday.
Reading comprehension
I feel like I’m going to be hit in situations like this frequently, but if you’re going straight across a crosswalk & the driver is turning right on red, good luck! Nobody looks in those cases. Every time that is the situation, I almost get hit.
That is terrible! You must have been terrified. There needs to be a comprehensive, universal "share the road" television ad campaign that outlines the rules of the road for motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists that runs ads just as frequently as those annoying political campaign ads.
Drivers zone out, are constantly rushing, and bypass stop signs, pedestrians are distracted by their phones and zone out at walk signs and then start crossing when they feel like it but not necessarily when it is safe or their turn to do so, and cyclists rarely use hand signals and/or consider that they hold up traffic pedaling in the middle of the road ( like their legs can compete with the horse power of an engine)??? If you are new to driving or don't know where you are going you are teased or harrassed by more experienced drivers. It is a complete mess.
It seems to boil down to people being selfish and always in a rush in a "no waiting" culture. People have become completely intolerant and inconsiderate of others. They have a possessive, selfish, "me first and always" mentality on the road, and they do not want to communicate and abuse those who do. For instance when one puts a signal on that is now a cue for the drivers behind to speed up instead of yielding and accommodating the request. Modern religion and community obligation is ineffective so there is no morale compass to appeal to the consciousness of people anymore. People do whatever they please and what feels good to them without any regard for how it affects others because that would be inconvenient and interfere with their own desires.
Really seems like COVID caused a lot of people to subconsciously shift more towards "Everything is fucked I might as well get mine." Made even worse by insane partisan politics that have somehow turned "be considerate of human beings" into a liberal POV that maga conservatives violently oppose.
Was it a Tesla?? I bet it was some douche in a Tesla
Do we really need this exact same thread multiple times a week?
It all starts with how people are raised as kids, the values that are taught/enforced growing up, and how people are taught to respect rules/authority. These people probably didn't have any of this.
There are three solutions that would cut DC vehicle issues by about 90%.
Unfortunately roads in DC aren’t safe until cars are blocked and the road is closed. The drivers here have a serious issue and I believe the only solution is to stop them from entering certain areas with a vehicle.
Because society IS breaking down, OP.
Yeah, you can feel it. People hate each other.
I agree. I’m really trying to get away from the beltway. Lots of bad elements here.
because dc is near maryland and maryland drivers are the worst.
virginia drivers suck too. so do most dc drivers.
There’s at least one survey that indicates that Maryland drivers are much worse 😂 https://www.washingtonian.com/2022/09/16/confirmed-maryland-drivers-are-worse-than-virginia-drivers/
After years of living here, here is my understanding of drivers.
MD - be as defensive as possible. Don’t care if you are right, defense is self preservation. If you see an MD tag, stay at least 10ft away.
VA - be as assertive as possible. I have no clue what they are doing. So, take charge and lead them. For the most part they appreciate the direction.
DC - we cool, except when you are not and you are just an asshole then.
i somewhat agree, but maryland definitely is not defensive, they just don't pay attention at all and do whatever pops into their heads without any situational awareness
that goes back to their point....drive defensively in MD.
that's not how i took their meaning - it looks to me like they're saying MD drivers drive defensively.
also, it appears as though we've got a lot of shitty maryland/virginia/dc drivers who didnt like my comments
DC is breaking down. Maybe other places are too, but I live in DC. It feels so unstable and hostile. I have lived in 15 cities in 8 countries and never felt like I do in DC. It’s unsafe in every way.
Lol
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I’m laughing
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You’re probably on your phone too much getting brain worms from all the bad news you read and then blaming that on social degeneration. Or are you old enough to be getting that from cable or local news oh Experienced One?
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And you get to pay ridiculous rents for the privilege of feeling that way! 😊
Because it is.
If you don’t have a dashcam, now is the time to get one. Best decision we ever made because of how people drive in the DMV.
I've been thinking about a dashcam for a while but am deterred by the fact that traditionally any visible device left in your car is an invitation to a smashed window. Is that not the case with dashcams?
Ours is attached by a magnet and you take it down when parked. Haven’t had an issue yet for break ins, but it has helped with insurance cases.
I got one have found it difficult to respect other people at large. I think it is because at least 50% of them are self interested GOP a holes that can’t seem to respect other people. Queer people, black people, poor people, immigrants, women. I thought were we all on the same page about the future and where we wanted to head and those not on that page where just not informed yet about these different groups humanity. But then these last few years have shown me that even with the knowledge of other people’s humanity, 50% of this country refuses to accept and validate our existence. I have lost respect for other people at large because even the 50% that are awake won’t necessarily go to bat for others. Like for example, Roe v Wade being over turned somehow got more women engaged and voting but Jesus, how were they not engaged before? Does something really have to effect them to see why empathy matters? Can’t people empathize with others even if the thing effecting the other person isn’t effecting themselves? The system is definitely broken
I've heard this sentiment a lot, and it is part of the problem. Both sides are the problem. We all need to respect each other, otherwise we are heading toward something very bad.
Society has been breaking down for the last six years.
K XNoC i
Bc society is breaking down. People feel threatened by the existence of others different from them and choose to be violent about it.
idkman_93 t1_ixy5njl wrote
I grew up in a car-dependent SoCal suburb, but after moving to DC years ago I have been completely r/fuckcars -pilled.
I’ve almost gotten hit so many times as both a driver and a pedestrian. When I drive on the freeway, I have no clue what people are trying to do, or why.
Growing up in SoCal, you had your assholes, but it always seemed like 90 percent of people were just trying to get where they needed to go as safely as possible. In the DMV, it feels like people are ACTIVELY trying to do something you’ve never seen before on the road. People run reds on purpose, drive on the shoulder, etc. I’m in awe.