Ok, now that I got your attention with the title, I have a question about it. So whenever I drive (I’m an American to), I usually never go above the speed limit, when I drive in either lane lots of times people are honking at me presumably because I’m going too slow apparently. I see all these other drivers zoom down the roads like lightning. Why would they get mad at me for wanting to drive a safe speed?
10 comments
They are mostly entitled assholes that think their life and priorities are more important than anyone elses.
Bad driver education and a sense of entitlement. Covid has made road rage much worse.
*Peels out of parking lot and plows into telephone pole*
I’ve traveled all around the world and, if anything, American drivers are much less reckless than in other countries. (Rude is a completely different story.)
You should drive as fast as you feel comfortable while staying with the flow of traffic. If you’re routinely slower than the people around you, make sure to stay in the right lane… If you stick to the right, you’re not going to get regular complaints from anyone.
American drivers are very bad but the universal truth is that all drivers are bad and many are worse than Americans.
Depends on where you live. Here not so much because we don’t have much traffic when I get the rare ahole that beeps or yells me I just smile and wave and go about my day.
Did you put on your park anywhere lights? It’s the little red button that looks like a triangle on your center console of most cars, it also allows the driver to go any speed they want, most motorist honking are probably trying to alert you to put your lights on.
If you’re driving at or below the speed limit, you’re likely driving slower than the flow of traffic. The speed limits in the US are somewhat arbitrary (a highway can change from 55 to 65 with no change in road conditions) and the roads are designed for faster speeds than the signs indicate (multiple wide lanes, very soft turns, etc.). Part of this is a design failure by transportation engineers, part of it is the Byzantine patchwork of state, federal and local authorities involved, and the history of speed limits (a universal 55 MPH was introduced for fuel efficiency reasons during the 70s oil embargo, not for safety reasons).
Whether right or wrong, the consequence of all this is that speeding 5-15 mi above the limit is the cultural norm. Going 55 on a highway where everyone else is going 65 may seem like the righteous/safe thing to do, but it’s actually dangerous to be driving at a speed slower than the flow of traffic. The left lane is reserved for passing to accommodate faster and the right lane is reserved for slower drivers, so staying in the left lane if someone faster is approaching is unsafe in my view.
As I see it, the left lane is reserved for whoever is most willing to risk a speeding ticket. If someone wants to go 90 mph, I’ll move to the right and allow them to pass. They’re probably going to get a well deserved ticket eventually, but it’s not my duty to enforce traffic laws with a private vehicle traveling at highway speeds. Staying in the left lane means that they’ll probably end up weaving into slower traffic which is more dangerous for all parties on the road, including yourself.
If you’re driving slowly in the left lane you deserve to be honked at. Not only is that illegal (impeding the flow of traffic), it’s just asshole behavior. In general I would advise just staying in the right most lane if you prefer to drive slowly and you shouldn’t have any problems.
You are an American complaining about Americans. What is your comparison?
So unless you are in the right most lane generally you should follow the flow of traffic for both safety and etiquette reasons. That said if you’re in the right lane and doing the speed limit or following the flow of traffic in another lane you are good and the other person is the asshole.