I can't believe what just happened, my mini rant for today....

[madmom]

was just on my way home from running errands and was crossing a MAIN intersection when a semi turned left in front of me, I was going straight, had to hit the brakes,driver was distracted cuz he was talking on phone. BUT the kicker was he did this right in front of a cop who didn't see it because....he was talking on the fucking phone! What the hell is going on here, this could have been tragic if I wasn't watching the truck as close as I was.

[skooooo]

1. Sorry, what'd you say?

I was on the phone!

[bdamomma]

2. they need to ban cell phone use in cars while driving.

[MorningGlow]

12. It's against the law here in NYS

Doesn't do a damned bit of good. Just as many people yak on their phone while driving (and looking at CD labels and putting on makeup and drinking coffee and shaving and studying maps/directions) as before the law went into effect.

And I've seen state troopers on the phone while driving quite a few times!

[stillcool]

15. look how long it took them...

to ticket people for seat belts..or even drunk driving (aside from George Bush) I am still flabbergasted about that one.

[MercutioATC]

23. Some people can multitask just fine.

Why should I be punished if some morons can't walk and chew gum at the same time?

[Lasher]

3. You should have called the number on the back of the truck to report him.

I'm sure you had your cell phone in your car.

:hide:

[Raejeanowl]

7. And Then Called The Police

To report the police squad car number.

[madmom]

31. I did, but it was in my pocket, turned off .. : P

[Warpy]

4. The last time a commercial driver in front of me was

on the phone and swerving all over the place, I yelled "SHUT THE FUCK UP AND DRIVE!" I forgot my window was wide open.

He heard me. I am delighted to say he pulled into the next driveway instead of pulling a gun on me.

[shanti]

5. lucky you

i had that happen to me over 30 years ago (a car, not a semi), but i wasn't so lucky. couldn't stop in time - forehead met windshield. this was before mandatory seatbelt laws and airbags.

did your airbag/seatbelt kick in?

[LisaM]

8. And you didn't wear a seatbelt anyway?

I wore seatbelts before they were mandatory. I remember "my" seat in the car, and how, when I was a kid, I had to pull the belt almost all the way up.

[Rosemary2205]

33. not all cars had seatbelts back then.

[shanti]

35. no

unfortunately i was barely 18 and not particularly safety conscious. you better believe i used them afterwards tho!

[Xithras]

6. You know what is REALLY stupid?

Here in California we have a new "No Cellphones While Driving" law that comes into force on July 1.

Truck drivers are exempted until 2011.

[ReadTomPaine]

10. Is that statewide?

I hadn't heard about it..

[Xithras]

21. Yes it is. How have you NOT heard? It's been all over radio and TV.

http://www.dmv.ca.gov/cellularphonelaws/index.htm

Drivers under 18 are prohibited from using any phone while operating a moving vehicle, without exception. Drivers over 18 can use phones with a handsfree device. Commercial drivers have a push-to-talk exception, but in practice they won't be ticketed at all (there is no way for an officer to determine HOW the commercial driver dialed the phone).

July 1, with no grace period. $20 for the first ticket, and $50 for every ticket afterward. Most police departments have already said that they plant to enforce it heavily, at least at first.

[ReadTomPaine]

34. I actually thought the hands-free only law was already in effect..

and that what you were describing was a total ban on in vehicle cell-phone usage. I think many cities already have similar hands-free ordinances to the upcoming statewide law - this makes it more consistent.

Thanks for the link and clarification...

[RebelOne]

9. One time when I was driving on the freeway,

a truck was coming up the entrance ramp just as I was nearing it. I assumed he would slow down when he saw me, but he just kept on coming and missed hitting me by just a few inches. I called the company whose name was on the truck and he was reprimanded.

[MorningGlow]

13. I did the same thing several years ago

I NEVER call a phone number on a car or truck to complain, but I did this time. I was driving to work one morning (with my infant in the car, thanks much), out in the boonies but on a main route that goes through several towns. This GIANT dump truck came barreling up behind me at about 80-85 MPH and tailgated me for miles. I was doing 65, and it looked like it was going to run me over any minute. I felt like I was in the movie Duel or something. The guy passed me and yet I ended up right behind him at a stoplight in the main intersection of the next town. Took the opportunity to memorize the phone number on the back of the truck, and I called as soon as I got to work. I talked to the owner of the construction company and although I didn't get the number of the truck, he knew exactly who was driving judging by my story, and he said he'd take care of it. But if he wasn't surprised, why did he let the guy keep driving? I hope this dude finally hit his third strike with my complaint.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

17. I did something the opposite way

A trucker was driving in a safe and proper manner down a mountain, moving over so cars could pass, not driving too fast, etc. and I took the time to call the company to tell them how courteous he was. Found out later from a trucking friend that calls like mine can result in money or other rewards for the drivers. I know the company was glad to hear from me, even though they were a bit surprised that someone called who wasn't complaining.

[TorchTheWitch]

28. I do stuff like that too

Although I've not had an occasion to do so where a driver is concerned recently I had the good fortune to get a customer service rep at a company where you can order contact lenses online or by mail. I had felt like an idiot not knowing how to find the info they needed about my prescription and had a bunch of various other stupid questions, but the young lady who helped me on the phone was very knowledgeable, patient and had a very sunny personality... I almost hated to conclude the call. I called the company back to praise her, and they promised to let her know and come up with some kind of reward for her. I never expected to hear anything after that, but about an hour later her manager called back just to let me know that they had told her about my call and they decided as a reward they were going to buy her a fancy lunch at a nice restaurant in their town for her and a guest of her choice and give her an extra hour off to enjoy it.

[cyberswede]

11. Good thing YOU weren't on the phone! :)

[madmom]

25. I never use the phone while driving, let my passenger do it, or pull over and

either answer or call back.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

14. At least you were in a vehicle

I've nearly been killed several times while legally using crosswalks in the small town where I work. Inevitably it is some stupid big pickup truck whose driver isn't paying attention. Once the guy was stopped at a 4-way stop sign and turned left right and right at me! I had to run so fast I fell down to get out of his way. And he stared at me like he didn't even see me--wasn't on a phone or anything. He was an old man, and I wondered if perhaps he was senile. He roared down the street before I could read his license plate, or I would have reported him.

[CTyankee]

18. as an older person, I have noticed that I don't focus as well while driving.

I really work on concentrating closely. This never used to happen It scares me. The time does come when you are just too old to drive, IMO. And I don't consider that to be age discrimination.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

19. I don't think it is age discrimination, either

It has to do with your physical condition. Mom stopped driving when she was around 84, but her mother stopped when she was 44--because of physical problems she recognized as making her a danger to others if she was behind the wheel.

[CTyankee]

20. My mother was in her 80s when she stopped driving. She had the classic accident of older people:

she said her car gear "slipped" from Drive to Reverse in the supermarket parking lot and ended up smashing into a tree, injuring her sister. She felt so bad about her sister (only minor injury) that she gave up driving for good. Luckily, my brother lived withher and could drive for her.

I am only 68 but I can see the handwriting on the wall. In the meantime, I am being super vigilant and careful...

[lildreamer316]

36. I've already informed husband and family

that when I hit 65 we are to sit down and have a conference (after a visit to an eye doctor) about my driving. I absolutely LOVE to drive, and I know I will hate having to give that up, but if I am a danger to others then there is no question.
So I've decided that my goal is to be well off enough to be able to afford a driver; LOL. I wanna be able to go when I damn well want to go, and not inconvenience family and friends.

[Fumesucker]

16. People have always driven like this

I've been riding motorcycles for forty years now, getting run off the road by car drivers is boringly familiar.

It may have gotten worse in the last ten years or so although I couldn't swear to it since I'm so used to dodging car drivers that I really don't think about it much.

Just pretend you are totally invisible and drive in such a manner that if you were indeed invisible you wouldn't get hit anyway.

[madmom]

27. My SO used to ride, had a bad wreck in '84 messed up his leg pretty bad, he

said even if he could he would not ride these days because there are just to many people on the road and to many of them are "dick-headed" when it comes to driving.

[Fumesucker]

29. People will pull out in front of semis and concrete trucks..

The great majority of "accidents" are not accidental.. They are the result of inattention, distraction, rudeness or just plain stupidity.

Learning to drive is easy, learning what I call "traffic sense" is much harder and takes a lot longer.

Essentially you have to drive defensively for all the other idiots out on the road and be able to predict when they are likely to do something really stupid so that you can not be in the same spot as they are when they do that stupid thing.

[bean fidhleir]

22. Then there was the experienced cyclist, a man in his healthy 70s, hit and killed

by a 19yo who was downloading ringtones. She was so wrapped up in her damned ringtone download that she hit the man with the driver's side of her car. She was totally off the pavement and didn't even realize it.

She had little remorse, viewing it as "just an accident that could have happened to anybody".

[Fumesucker]

26. Stephen King was mowed down by

A guy messing with his dogs in the back seat.

[seabeyond]

24. what did you say, i was talking on the phone. teasing. friday afternoon/evening

people are so distrated i dont even go out if i dont have to. i swear that is the worst time driving.

i dont talk on the phone hardly ever and so rare on a cell phone. and yes, a lot of people have a phone at their ear. mild irritant. yours could have been way more than mild. glad you werent talking on the phone

[Captain Angry]

30. I haven't seen a police officer NOT on the phone in two years.

I started looking closely at every police car that drives by me, and every single one, the driver is on a cellphone. It's just weird. I don't know what's so important that people need to be on cellphones in the car in the first place, but the police? They have more radio equipment than they know what to do with, but they're on the cellphone.

Maybe I'm just not cool, and have nothing cool to talk about every second of the day. :-)



Glad you're ok. That's scary.

[a kennedy]

32. I know, that's why I just took a defensive driving class to update

my skills on driving today, plus I get 10% off my insurance!! :thumbsup: