My youngest is in LA and called to tell me he was in the bike lane on his way to the store today prior to going to an Oscars gathering with friends and as he put it, "This freaking Prius passes me on the right hand side!" "Where were you riding? On the road in traffic?!" "No, in the bike lane!" This Prius was driving like, you know, the way drivers in Massachusetts travel in the break down lane! And it did not turn in somewhere - it just kept going!" (My humble apology to PriusChatters in Massachusetts - the youngest spent a lot of summers in MA and noted how some drivers use the breakdown lane to get to where they are going a wee bit quicker. No Prii were involved on those trips.)
We have some really dumb drivers in Ca. Unfortunately, they don't get caught every time. Last Thursday, a fellow from my neighborhood was struck and killed while riding his recumbent bike on a fourlane country road. It has a marked area for bikes. The driver continued for about a mile and a half, then returned to the scene. He was charged with felony hit-and-run. He's twenty years old; the cyclist was 78. One life over, one ruined, probably by careless or distracted driving. CHP said no alcohol was involved, but didn't say whether cell phone, texting, etc were. The cyclist was a fixture around here, with a bright yellow bike and jacket, and a pink flag flying about six feet off the ground on the back of his bike. Hard to miss if you are watching where you are going.
Oh how sad... distracted drivers are everywhere here - had a few almost rear-end me and a few weaving back and forth across the lines... in NYS actually got the license plate number of one driver to our SRO as it was a kid at my former school - hope the SRO talked some fear into that kid before something awful happens ....
No Prius in my stories. A teen bimbo in a black Escalade BROD (battering ram of death) coming up behind me (on a bicycle) last year was unable to stay on the road, frightening me into bailing off the shoulder. As she rolled by, her attention was focused on something near the bottom of her steering wheel. I can only guess that she was avoiding a texting-while-driving citation by keeping her wireless device below outside view. A while back, the first person in this state charged for vehicular homicide while texting was a high school student who nailed a bicyclist that turned out to be a teacher from his own school.
Jeopardy: A Massachusetts license plate. Q What is the reason they did that crazy maneuver? No need to apologize.
I'm constantly amazed by the drivers I see who are obviously reading or texting, with there eyes down, glancing up now and then to check traffic. And then we have the ones who just don't understand that in Ca. our law says if you are holding a phone while conversing, you are in violation of the law. It doesn't matter where you are holding it, whether in front of your mouth, up to your ear, etc. Every once in a while, police go on a campaign and concentrate on these violations. It gets publicized, and maybe for a short time people think about it. But then it's back to the old habits. For one thing, the fine is ridiculously low.
Awful! A former teacher of mine (drives a Prius!) had a post on her FB page after she retired, dedicated to the students who texted in her class. "Dear Student: While you think I am just up here blindly teaching, I actually tell you are texting and ignoring me. Put your phone away. Now. "Seriously, who looks at their crotch and smiles?!" Enough said.
Yeah, my son was **** lucky that he just got passed by in the bike lane, not sprayed if the driver decided to wash his/her windshield at that moment... Jonny Zero, you called it right out - stealth mode, easy to fuel and it sprays at folks... add Prii to the assault weapon ban list!
That is strange to be honest. I just bought a Prius and have realised over time that a car says a lot about the driver. And without sounding biased, I have noticed that people in electric, hybrid, and Smart cars tend to be a bit more curteous. There are always exceptions I guess, and plus L.A. is a cesspool of insane drivers. I barely survived the drive through a place called Downy (near L.A.) when I was in SoCal over this past summer! haha.
On some roads in MA, it is actually perfectly legal to do that during rush hour. This blog shows a picture of one of the signs: The Other Side of the Hill: Idiots in the Breakdown Lane
No! Please don't mention the Prius to Joe. He'll want to limit the size of the gas tank to regulate reckless drivers.
Downy? It's a retirement community, that should have been a easy drive! Unless it was the end of the month and the Social Security checks come in and he oldsters go on a Geritol binge. Makes 'em drive like they were 16 again.....
I was taking a detour from some road construction. I don't know if it was actually Downy, but my GPS showed Downy as the closest place. I'm a New Yorker, I was confused as it was. Took me over half hour to just get out of L.A. some of the strangest driving I've ever experienced. Frightening drivers in L.A., and SO MANY LANES.
