OT: Distracted driver rant

[AngryScientist]

i've said it a bunch before, but when i ride a bike and have a unique vantage point to see into people's cars, it's really frightening what people do whole driving a vehicle.

[cmbicycles]

Originally Posted by verticaldoug

Let me guess, the tow operator has the car in his impound lot charging you $X per day and will only take cash to get it out. You have to pay him a second time if you want the car out of the lot because he has hook it up and tow it again?

Do I win a prize?

Glad to see the the business model hasn't changed in 30 years.

Almost right, I am going to have aaa come pick up the car, not paying him twice.

[Avincent52]

Sorry about the car and glad that your wife is okay.
I had my BMW wagon totaled a few years ago.
It was a 3 series, but a quite rare, low mileage, last-year-of-production 5-speed wagon which commands a premium in the used market.
They came in with a variety of "comps" that were for 3 series sedans in NJ which are much much more common.
I countered with my own list of wagons, compiled nationwide. Most were priced higher than their offer but had higher mileage or were a year or two older.
I presented the list along with a "counter" figure that was several thousand more than their offer. I expected we might meet in the middle, but they accepted the offer.

You can probably do the same thing by presenting receipts for the parts and/or the work that was done. They've got some wiggle room for that in their estimates.

One thing to remember, this from an insurance adjuster I met on a BMW forum.
The adjusters just have a job to do. They're not trying to screw you.
Be friendly and nice to them, and they'll be more inclined to spend a little more time on your case.
And then give them the evidence that will allow them to justify paying out a higher claim.

[Plum Hill]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

i've said it a bunch before, but when i ride a bike and have a unique vantage point to see into people's cars, it's really frightening what people do whole driving a vehicle.

I worked on a highway lighting/traffic signal crew some years back.
Amazing what people do when they're supposedly driving.

A lot of the problem is lack of law enforcement. Drive the speed limit and you get run over. Kill someone with a motor vehicle and you walk free.
Saturday I sat in a parking lot next to a four way stop. Three corners were blind. The only cars that came to a complete stop were the ones that encountered another car on an opposing street.
We're a nation of entitled crappy drivers.

[JAllen]

I'm glad no one was hurt.

I'm also glad that authorities, the auto industry, and tech companies are taking these matters seriously and doing something about it... Oh wait... They're not.

[BlueFly]

Originally Posted by JAllen

I'm also glad that authorities, the auto industry, and tech companies are taking these matters seriously and doing something about it... Oh wait... They're not.

.....
http://www.theatlantic.com/technolog...e-race/417672/

[kevinvc]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

i've said it a bunch before, but when i ride a bike and have a unique vantage point to see into people's cars, it's really frightening what people do whole driving a vehicle.

The worst I've ever seen was several years ago. A woman was literally changing the diaper of a baby who was on the passenger seat with no car seat.

That topped the woman eating a bowl of cereal balanced on the top of the steering wheel and the multiple people reading books or newspapers held on the steering wheel.

Texting is too common to even bother mentioning anymore.

[JAllen]

Originally Posted by kevinvc

The worst I've ever seen was several years ago. A woman was literally changing the diaper of a baby who was on the passenger seat with no car seat.

That topped the woman eating a bowl of cereal balanced on the top of the steering wheel and the multiple people reading books or newspapers held on the steering wheel.

Texting is too common to even bother mentioning anymore.

Or watching a movie on their cell phone. That amount of stupid should be illegal.

[donevwil]

Originally Posted by kevinvc

The worst I've ever seen was several years ago. A woman was literally changing the diaper of a baby who was on the passenger seat with no car seat.

That topped the woman eating a bowl of cereal balanced on the top of the steering wheel and the multiple people reading books or newspapers held on the steering wheel.

Texting is too common to even bother mentioning anymore.

Last year on my (bike) commute home I roll up to a stop light, slow lane to my left and turn lane to my right. The dude on my right is stopped, texting away all while having a green light. To my left is a city cop and he's looking right at the texter then proceeds to look up at me and shrugs his shoulders. Our light turns green and we proceed forward, texter still stopped with a green light.

That seemed unbelievable to me then, now it's the status quo. Sometimes I think it's hopeless and will only get worse before it gets better.

[Louis]

Originally Posted by Plum Hill

A lot of the problem is lack of law enforcement

I agree. It's probably not the fault of individual LEO's, just that it isn't an institutional priority. A few cyclists here or there get killed, meh, no big deal.

[soulspinner]

Originally Posted by Plum Hill

I worked on a highway lighting/traffic signal crew some years back.
Amazing what people do when they're supposedly driving.

A lot of the problem is lack of law enforcement. Drive the speed limit and you get run over. Kill someone with a motor vehicle and you walk free.
Saturday I sat in a parking lot next to a four way stop. Three corners were blind. The only cars that came to a complete stop were the ones that encountered another car on an opposing street.
We're a nation of entitled crappy drivers.

perfectly stated....

[unterhausen]

Originally Posted by Plum Hill

The only cars that came to a complete stop were the ones that encountered another car on an opposing street.
We're a nation of entitled crappy drivers.

there are some places where the driving culture is to actually stop for stop signs. Those people drive me nuts. Joking aside, we have a cyclist-hating cop around here that has a hard on for cyclists that run stop signs. It's ridiculous, because no driver ever stops for stop signs. For example, I've seen him slow roll a stop sign. My favorite was when I was riding my bike down one of the roads near the cop shop, and one of the cops was in the process of running a stop sign at speed when he saw me. He slid into the road with all 4 locked. I wasn't that close, so I thought it was pretty funny. I'm sure he was embarrassed. However, it could have been fatal if the circumstances had been different.

I never understood why police don't stop people that are driving erratically due to cell phone use. I would be tempted to give them a field sobriety test.

Back when they actually taught drivers ed here in schools, the kids were assigned to count how many people properly observed a stop sign. So my daughter sat in a lawn chair for a couple of hours and counted. Out of 30 cars, the only two people that actually stopped behind the stop sign were my wife and me. Some people ran the stop sign but had to stop for cross traffic, but that was a minority.