Angry Drivers

[vertical_doug]

I don't think I have changed my riding habits, but in the last month, it seems every ride has an encounter with an angry driver. They either lay on the horn, or roll the window to scream. My usual roads in Westchester, Fairfield counties were usually more peaceful than this. There are quite a few members on the forum who ride the same areas. Anyone else notice an increase in driver irritability?

[AngryScientist]

here in north jersey, i'm seeing the same. i think the days are getting shorter, the holidays are looming, and people are stressed out. these are the people who are too busy to realize that 18 seconds of inconvenience for them can be the difference between someones health and wellbeing on the road. i think most of them are decent people who are just wrapped too tight in their isolation bubble of "needed it yesterday" mentality.

[quickag]

Obama did it.

Sometime this month an editorial in the paper here in Augusta called us 'two-wheeled terrorists.' It probably has to get worse before it gets better.

[Tom]

Ah, ha ha ha. I was going to post up a ride report about a fun trip up to Lake Desolation and back that featured a nice corpulent man calling me an asshole for waiting out a red light and then proceeding straight as soon as it turned green so he had to pause a few seconds before turning left. Unfortunately I was obliged to hurt my shoulder again raising it from the bars to give him the finger, not just a simple drive by in passing finger but a nice direct finger rotating my arm up and backwards which jammed up the nerve again, but it was worth it. I mean, it's not my fault the guy's probably 65% body fat and bummed out. "Put down the fork, sir, and step away from the buffet."

[Gummee]

I haven't had nearly the encounters with rude people I had been. Dunno why, but most of my rides are pretty uneventful.

Thank doG 'cause the people passing me over hills and into blind corners makes me cringe. One of these days, someone's gonna be on the other side of the road when someone's passing in an inappropriate spot and guess who (:wave) is going to pay the price.

M

[Nightfend]

Not so much angry drivers...but the zombies reading their iphones while attempting to drive scare the crap out of me.

[Jawn P]

Defcon 1 of driver sass here in Ohio. I released my inner Susie Greene on a dude yesterday Susie's Greatest Hits - YouTube

[Bkat]

Not sure if it's the season, the economy, or what, but there does seem to be an uptick in nasty on the roads. A short while ago, I had one guy with a serious case of road rage trying to run me off the road, culminating with him turning his car perpendicular to block traffic and hopping out, telling me was going to kick my you know what. (It started when I stopped at a stop sign in front of him.) I told him I'd make it simple and call a cop, which I did. He took off quickly at that point and when a cop finally did come, he told me cyclists are the ones who instigate problems. (I even had two local housewives who were out walking as witnesses to back me, but that didn't matter.) The cop also told me that if I really had wanted to avoid trouble, I would have just "jumped the curb" and ridden away off-road! (On Vittoria Pavés?) I guess we're on our own out there, which begets the question, how does everyone here handle angry drivers? Ignore 'em? Yell at 'em? Bear spray 'em?

[mgdanna]

I live at 97th and Broadway in Manhattan; they're all angry drivers around here.

[lukasz]

No problems here thus far, but in the depths of winter as our numbers on the roads dwindle I think drivers get a bit stupid. Past winters have made seen me use a marine rescue strobe and a handlebar cam. I always seem to lose them as things thaw (ha-ha).

[j44ke]

I suspect there is some post hurricane stress fatigue syndrome going on in the region. Plus here comes everyone's favorite time of year - the holidays! When no one seems to be happy and everyone is stressed. Nothing like a Christmas list from the kids to remind you how behind you are. And then you go visit the in-laws and the brother-in-law with the brand new BMW and wife who still likes sex. A lot. Everyone ends up wearing an invisible hair-shirt that is just a bit too tight around the neck. Scratch they can't itch. Then they see a cyclist having it easy, outside "playing" when everyone else is working.....

Just keep your head on a swivel. Good time of year to be paranoid. And safe.

I get out of town as much as possible.

[jitahs]

Saw this thread, was careful to not post platitudes such as, "Lately we've seen a serious improvement in drivers' attitude due to a marked improvement in bike infra" lest it bite me in the ass, though it's true.

Alas, happened anyway. One can not factor in the redneck with Mossad tactical driving training.

[gggross]

No issues in the frozen tundra area. People are generally good to cyclists. The size I
Of the community probably has something to do with it too.

Had a lot of issues in Indy when I lived there.

[zetroc]

Saw this thread, was careful to not post platitudes such as, "Lately we've seen a serious improvement in drivers' attitude due to a marked improvement in bike infra" lest it bite me in the ass, though it's true.

Alas, happened anyway. One can not factor in the redneck with Mossad tactical driving training.

I haven't had a drink thrown at me or been told to get on the sidewalk in a while. Easily 6 months. Jinxed now, though.

[jitahs]

I haven't had a drink thrown at me .

Where did this happen?

[EricKeller]

I haven't had a drink thrown at me or been told to get on the sidewalk in a while. Easily 6 months. Jinxed now, though.

quietly hostile has been the rule for me too. It seems to go through cycles. Summer of 2011 saw one week with three memorable run-ins with vocal drivers. Nothing I recall since then. Lots of people driving like crap and endangering my safety, that seems to be a constant though.

[zetroc]

Where did this happen?

Alameda. Encinal Ave of all places - quiet most of the time.

Still never happened to me in the city.

[jitahs]

Alameda. Encinal Ave of all places - quiet most of the time.

Still never happened to me in the city.

Me neither. Mine was South Shore. It's a menacing kind of quiet over there.

[Bobonli]

I suspect there is some post hurricane stress fatigue syndrome going on in the region.

Yup. Had two encounters on Saturday. Both involving luxury car drivers in a rush on roads where passage was limited due to fallen trees on the side of the road. For the first guy, laying on the horn wasn't enough; he had to lower the window and curse at us. The second person couldn't wait his turn to get past a tree trimming crew and instead came at our group the wrong way in our lane. Both encounters were on "quiet" roads in Nassau County. I can't help but think its related to overall frustration with the roads and we cyclists are just another obstruction they have to contend with.

[962]

I haven't had a drink thrown at me or been told to get on the sidewalk in a while. Easily 6 months. Jinxed now, though.

Water bottle thrown at me on the way to Santa Cruz a few years ago. Another time, this year, some hick 10-year-olds in Boulder Creek tried to "step to" from the shoulder as a prank but I was too busy eating a bagel and half bonking to do more than stare at them curiously as I rode by.

On a serious note though, out in our usual slice of cycling paradise, a truck hit someone with his mirror going down 84 from Skyline Blvd to Woodside, down here on Sunday...