Soldato
I see the Satnav is trying to direct you to a place with real sausage rolls.
Thoughts and prayers for the rest of the journey
Thoughts and prayers for the rest of the journey
Driving to London, am i unnecessarily anxious ?
- Thread starter moon man
- Start date
Soldato
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Made it but iit was worse than I thought, had some red light but no sign of where to stop , traffic behind doing the horn thing , then I maybe briefly hit a bus lane but it's like I had no choice, yep will be train next time now I've dropped her stuff off.
I will maybe try and get a Google street map shot of the weird red light at some point,
I will maybe try and get a Google street map shot of the weird red light at some point,
Commissario
It’s just driving. Anyone who drives should be able to follow road signs and directions. If not, you shouldn’t be on the road.
Soldato
I'm a Londoner and so am used to london roads and traffic but I get that it can be daunting to those that live more rurally, there is so much signage and variation to traffic rules that with the constant pressure of traffic you can spiral down and be overwhelmed.
But if you did it once then you can do it again, probably better and you can learn resilience from overcoming something that was actually quite tough.
But if you did it once then you can do it again, probably better and you can learn resilience from overcoming something that was actually quite tough.
Yeah this is my normal congestion,.local hunt seems to train at my commute time
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Associate
- Joined
- 19 May 2010
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- 1,348
There’s a difference between driving to the level you can pass your test, and then driving in rush hour London. I learnt to drive in north Scotland where the nearest motorway was 200 miles away and there were a grand total of ten roundabouts in the local area. Passing test there immediately qualifies me for driving everywhere else in the country in all conditions - it’s completely normal to lack the confidence to do so until you’ve done it.
Soldato
Or imagine in Northern Ireland, we learn to drive at a maximum of 45mph and for the following year post passing. Our R (Restricted) plates aren't valid in the ROI or the rest of the UK. That must be pretty scary to be suddenly allowed to drive close to double the speed restriction on bigger and more congested roads.
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Commissario
I passed my test in a quiet Essex town and had very little driving experience. I didn't own a car. I got a job living in west London based out of an office in Battersea. I got a lift in on the first day and was given the keys to my company car, had to drive home that evening and back in the next day.
It's just something you do.
Soldato
- Joined
- 16 Aug 2009
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No its normal to feel anxious about something you're not familiar with especially as london has a certain uh, reputation for terrible driving. Unless I know exactly where I'm going and theres a good parking spot at the end I usually just take the train and tube/taxi its less hassle.
Yeah , leaving the car in my daughter's driveway until Friday it's only a few mins to station and 12 mins to London bridge
Caporegime
- Joined
- 30 Jul 2013
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- 29,416
Please do.
Can't say I've ever seen a red traffic light that didn't have a line of where to stop, unless it was temporary.
Soldato
I wouldn't like to drive there (or any city) either. I learned to drive in the lakes, now drive in rural scotland. It's easy as there is one lane, and the only junctions are one road meeting another. There is also nobody to honk you or hit you.
In cities you get these mad things with multiple stages of traffic lights, different lanes going at different times, and everyone is in such a hurry.
Worst part is that Edinburgh council road markings are nearly always rubbed off so you just have to guess.
In cities you get these mad things with multiple stages of traffic lights, different lanes going at different times, and everyone is in such a hurry.
Worst part is that Edinburgh council road markings are nearly always rubbed off so you just have to guess.
I ended up on the wrong side of the road at a junction last time I drove in London as all the instructions were on the road (covered by other vehicles) and the layout was confusing when encountering it for the first time.
Luckily the lights had just changed, so people saw the mess I'd made. The other drivers weren't dicks about it though, and all was fine in the end.
Luckily the lights had just changed, so people saw the mess I'd made. The other drivers weren't dicks about it though, and all was fine in the end.
Man of Honour
Just reading this thread reminded me that back in the late 90s after I passed my test I used to drive around London all the time. I had to drive through London about 6 months ago - holy **** it's a nightmare now! Way more congested than it used to be, I thought the congestion charge was supposed to help?!
As for South Norwood, that's very much a suburban area of London. I used to live near Crystal Palace, it's not really anything like Central London. You'll be fine, just beware there's a lot of 20mph roads now on roads that should be 30s. If you get confused by directions, just go with the flow, find a junction and turn around, people can be quite erratic with their driving in London, easier to just take the mistake on the chin, unless you're a vet London driver in which case you force you way through
As for South Norwood, that's very much a suburban area of London. I used to live near Crystal Palace, it's not really anything like Central London. You'll be fine, just beware there's a lot of 20mph roads now on roads that should be 30s. If you get confused by directions, just go with the flow, find a junction and turn around, people can be quite erratic with their driving in London, easier to just take the mistake on the chin, unless you're a vet London driver in which case you force you way through
Man of Honour
I've seen plenty where there used to be a stop line and if you look really closely you can still see the ghost of it but for all intents and purposes it's now non existent.