It's the same outside my daughter's school. They even park on the white zigzags of the pedestrian crossing. Police have been out and fined the drivers numerous times yet they still persist. IMO fining school run parkers doesn't work. Another way is needed, one that inconveniences them massively, for instance seize and impound the car for a week, no excuses or sob stories. Lifted and gone with a massive release fee after 7 days.
Your bad driving encounters
- Thread starter Stu999
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It's the same outside my daughter's school. They even park on the white zigzags of the pedestrian crossing. Police have been out and fined the drivers numerous times yet they still persist. IMO fining school run parkers doesn't work. Another way is needed, one that inconveniences them massively, for instance seize and impound the car for a week, no excuses or sob stories. Lifted and gone with a massive release fee after 7 days.
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My parents used to live near a school and the number of times the school runners would park in front of their drive then show no remorse or willingness to move was insane. They also had an unofficial one way system setup so they could park all along the road blocking one side of the traffic, i'd always end up forgetting when I visited, driving the wrong way and get some serious abuse 
We live one street over from the local school, which since they double yellowed the road all outside the school is now obviously the main parking for everyone. I've had some fun with people blocking me in/out of the drive and trying to ignore me.My parents used to live near a school and the number of times the school runners would park in front of their drive then show no remorse or willingness to move was insane. They also had an unofficial one way system setup so they could park all along the road blocking one side of the traffic, i'd always end up forgetting when I visited, driving the wrong way and get some serious abuse
hard coat antireflective coating helps a lot I have hi-vision - glasses can also take a lot of knocks without scratching.
got some yellow overglasses too, which have not really got around to trying out
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nearly bike under the bus this morning - old fashioned double decker - in subsequent discussion he said he flashed me as he pulled out 100m ahead half way to cross main road I was on,
but can't see those headlights from the side - trusted he had seen me as it was too late to brake effectively on wet road.
not sure what position you adopt to minimise injury if hitting side of a bus
Soldato
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I'd be tempted to start clamping
. I've also noticed there's some drivers keen to pull into a small gap, then go at half the limit
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Then they act like you are the one in the wrong when it results in you getting close behind them... I don't mind so much if people are a bit cheeky pulling out if they at least get going.
Had this just the other day, someone pulled out on to a 40 mph road way too close to me and did 20 mph. Nothing behind me.
It was either slam on the anchors, or overtake. Fortunately it was clear and I passed them. Why they couldn't just wait another 10s.
Soldato
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i have the same problem.... some of it i have to suck it up, we dont have a dropped curb on one of our spaces so people can park in front of our house if they want.......... but the amount of vehicles which park right on the junctions on our estate is beyond a joke, and traffic wardens never come down.
not just cars either but building lorries (like large flat bed vans) and large transit vans which its just impossible to see around, so you have to edge out slowly, hope for the best - and get stink eye if someone is coming the other way (if they had any ounce of sense they would see that i was in an impossible situation and be aware).
am almost tempted to put snotty letters on those vehicles - but we have had some vandalism on cars and houses over the years and i dont really want to make a target for myself.
I know there are some people who genuinely have a bad situation when it comes to parking but personally I'd be all for a ban on pavement parking and even significant restrictions on parking on major through roads.
Several roads I do a lot are a nightmare for both pedestrians and traffic due to people parking half on the pavement outside their houses, impacting visibility around a bend as well and in at least one of those cases I know from someone who lives there every single house has their own garage and parking spot at the bottom of their garden, generally unused, as well as an allocated parking spot in a private car-park nearby - with many of the residents renting out their car-park spot instead of using it themselves. The funny thing is whenever there are roadworks which prevent them using the road for parking the residents kick off on social media about the roadworks inflicting on them the exact same issues they are happy inflicting on everyone else...
Soldato
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I do wear glasses all the time. My shortsightedness is bad.
Soldato
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Probably the only thing that will change these parents’ ignorant and lazy attitudes towards parking/stopping in dangerous places- is for a child to be killed or seriously injured due to a parent’s bad driving and parking.
Or have a no stopping zone like they have around airports. Those who live opposite the school are exempt. Plus delivery vehicles and emergency vehicles
ZigZags are a no stopping zone essentially and they just ignore those so a Clearway would do nothing. Given the attitudes of the people that do it (the school has had staff out telling them to stop doing it and still been ignored) I believe my suggestion is the only thing that would work.
Why do people fail at roundabouts so often... It's either those who have a clear path to join and use it, but choose to brake and hesitate causing a domino effect, or those who are waiting to join it as you go round and decide that joining just before you reach them is the way to do it 
I find roundabouts the easiest things ever to use and it's like walking, 2nd nature so it's confusing when people so often just can't suss them.Our roads revolve around roundabouts so you'd think that anyone with a license would or should find them equally 2nd nature.
I find roundabouts the easiest things ever to use and it's like walking, 2nd nature so it's confusing when people so often just can't suss them.Our roads revolve around roundabouts so you'd think that anyone with a license would or should find them equally 2nd nature.
I'd say some hesitancy is the automatic gearbox where they are not sure of the power they will have if they do slot in.
NSL roundabouts where people (straight on) try to push in, under braking, on the left lane at the last seconds, to keep the line, are worse,
usually find reducing safety margin with the car in front is often the lesser risk, to prevent that.
NSL roundabouts where people (straight on) try to push in, under braking, on the left lane at the last seconds, to keep the line, are worse,
usually find reducing safety margin with the car in front is often the lesser risk, to prevent that.
Soldato
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dont get me wrong i am not (totally) inept but i must admit there are some roundabout i truly despise.Why do people fail at roundabouts so often... It's either those who have a clear path to join and use it, but choose to brake and hesitate causing a domino effect, or those who are waiting to join it as you go round and decide that joining just before you reach them is the way to do it
I find roundabouts the easiest things ever to use and it's like walking, 2nd nature so it's confusing when people so often just can't suss them.Our roads revolve around roundabouts so you'd think that anyone with a license would or should find them equally 2nd nature.
usually the ones with 4 or more exits, with multiple lanes in, but often the white markings have worn on. I admit i have sometimes found myself in the wrong lane, and at that point i signal and hope other drivers are curtious and let me in.
most are..... but sometimes you do get (imo wazzoks) drivers who go out of their way to close the door on you for "reasons" and deliberately do not let you in.
again to be clear, i totally am not excusing those in the left lane going right round a roundabout, or those cutting down the right hand lane and then cutting in to take the 1st exit..... but on some roundabouts i do think a little bit of courtesy and understanding is needed for those whose lane management may not be perfect.
not exactly the same but sort of related, its like drivers who drive really slowly (which is their right to do) but then deliberately accelerate when you go to (safely) overtake just to stop you getting past...... i dont get the logic myself.
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That NSL/70mph -> roundabout/60mph on A47 where people last minute cut left and would take your safety margin
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If badly parked commercial vehicles are causing a safety issue then have a word with your local plod.
Yeah there will always be the exceptions I suppose. Also yeah people do seem to be in the wrong gear often too relying too much on the auto gearbox or whatever. Be interesting to see how the uptake of EVs changes all this as even the small EVs have plenty of poke from standstill to join a slot in a pinch. I suspect hesitation will still be a thing purely because of the driving standards out on the road though. Only a select few who care about driving actively critique their own driving, the rest of the population just want to go from A to B and don't care if they muffed up a lane change or roundabout or whatever else etc.
I think years of driving in and out of London has conditioned my brain into jungle mode when in those sorts of junctions
Shouldn't be a problem with any modern automatic - even CVT once you get used to it shouldn't be causing problems like that.
Why do people fail at roundabouts so often... It's either those who have a clear path to join and use it, but choose to brake and hesitate causing a domino effect, or those who are waiting to join it as you go round and decide that joining just before you reach them is the way to do it
I find roundabouts the easiest things ever to use and it's like walking, 2nd nature so it's confusing when people so often just can't suss them.Our roads revolve around roundabouts so you'd think that anyone with a license would or should find them equally 2nd nature.
I have to say personally I really struggle with roundabouts if they are both new to me and not just a simple 1-2 lane, 4 conventional laid out exits affair and what doesn't help is increasingly new layouts are poorly implemented and/or poorly signed or markings, etc. have degraded with time. The way I process something like that I need to be able to work backwards from my exit to where I am as I approach and if I don't have the information clearly I really struggle even after 22 years of driving.
Though I don't normally join on people - it makes life easier for everyone if they have reasonable, not too much or too little, time and space to work in.
Couple of roundabouts I do quite a bit:
Hate this sequence - even somewhat knowing the area I find it confusing and you can't really separate it into 2 or 3 different sections:
This one actually makes a lot of sense after the first time you do it - but I defy anyone to approach it for the first time without knowing the layout and not go WTF!?!?!
This one actually makes a lot of sense after the first time you do it - but I defy anyone to approach it for the first time without knowing the layout and not go WTF!?!?!
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The other thing about orundabouts is when people do miss their exit or are about to miss it and they are in the wrong lane, you'd think logic would dictate that they simply go around the roundabout and get in lane early to exit safely but nope, too many just smash the steering left and cut you up to take the exit they were about to miss!