No matter where you live, there will always be drivers on the road who have no business being behind the wheel. These people are a danger to themselves and everyone else. They are careless, reckless, and some of them are even ruthless.
Ohio to Virginia
Almost two years ago I moved from Columbus, Ohio to Hampton, Virginia. I was told before I moved down here that traffic was horrible in this area and drivers were even worse. Seriously, I couldn’t have imagined that being the case considering there was an accident in Columbus every 2 minutes and a 9-mile drive to work would take about 45 minutes to an hour. I thought that it couldn’t get any worse than that. Plus, I was moving from a major metropolitan area to an area that was a quarter of the size of Columbus.
Horrible Drivers
What I’ve learned is that traffic here in Virginia isn’t bad because there are a ton of cars on the road, but rather there are a ton of horrible drivers! The most common issues I run into here are people not using their turn signals, not paying attention when changing lanes, and super slow driving. Of these three issues, my biggest peeve is slow driving. Now, I understand the people that want to avoid getting a ticket and stay a bit under the speed limit but driving 10 MPH under the limit is pretty ridiculous. And if you are on the freeway and someone is driving 45 MPH in the fast lane and they refuse to move over for the driver behind them is just rude.
Don’t Text and Drive
If I had to guess at the reason why drivers are so bad at driving, I would guess it has something to do with either texting or doing something on their phone. Every time I look over at someone who is driving really slow on the freeway, they are always looking down at their phone! How are these people getting away with this? These are the drivers that cause accidents. These are the people that are going to end up killing someone or themselves.
Worst Drivers in America
Last year a study was done by QuoteWizard that analyzed cities in America that had the best and worst drivers. Out of 40 cities reviewed, it’s funny that Columbus, Ohio was fourth on the list, while Virginia Beach ranked number three! So, I went from living in an area of pretty horrible drivers to a city of even more horrible drivers.
Simple Rules to Follow When Driving
Everyone on the road needs to be mindful and respectful of others on the road. It isn’t hard to be a good driver if you follow these simple rules:
- Put your freaking phone down! It should NEVER be in your hand while you’re driving!
- Drive the speed limit. If you are in the fast lane on the freeway, move the fuck over and let the faster vehicles pass you.
- Use your turn signal and look behind you before you change lanes.
- Don’t drive too much over the limit. Now I’m not advocating breaking any laws but keep this in mind. Police use this little rhyme regarding driving the speed limit:
- “Under 9 (MPH) you’re fine, but over 9 (MPH) you’re mine!”
- Green means go!!!
- Think before you pull out in front of me. I might just be going fast enough to knock you into next Tuesday!
- There are families, babies, kids, grandmas all on the road trying to make it home safe, don’t be an asshole and leave your road rage off the road. If you suffer from road rage, you should be committed to a mental institution or prison.
- Short people who can’t see over the steering wheel, have a hard time seeing or hearing or suffer from any disability that could jeopardize other drivers, then you need to get yourself a bus pass or start using Lyft.
- If there is an emergency vehicle with lights and sirens, PULL THE FUCK OVER! There is nothing more annoying than an asshole who doesn’t make way for an emergency vehicle.
- Did I mention, get off your fucking phone?!
Wrapping Up
Many people may not even know that they are horrible drivers. If you are reading this and you don’t follow the rules listed above, you are one of the thousands of horrible drivers on the road. But it isn’t too late to work on becoming a better driver. I understand how hard it is to be an exceptional driver, and I may have been guilty of not following a couple of the rules, but I’m getting better all the time.