[asingh1977]

Beggars cannot be choosers:
Am standing at the Paras Trinity / Hong Kong market light, waiting to take a right turn onto Golf Course Extension. This is a 16 seconds light, and I am position 4 on pole. Am thinking: will I make it. In Delhi I would have, since all sit on 1/2 clutch. Here, GGN. Anything can happen. And so it does.

1. Light changes to green.
2. Cars move forward. [I shift to 1st]
3. Estilo in front of me moves forward. [I move a bit]
4. Stops. [I pull clutch and stop too]
5. Raises posterior inside the car -- I could see the person's body "rise".
6. Pulls out wallet.
7. Lowers window.
8. Opens wallet.
9. Gives money to a beggar.
10. Closes window.

Light changed to red at around 6. I did not even honk [I realized what was going to happen at around 4]. Cause I knew, no point now. I waited, twiddling my thumbs, fiddling with the AC controls, music system. What is another 180s of wait, due to a poor person getting free doles on the road..? Nothing.

The meek shall inherit the earth:
Driving inside DLF Phase 2. [From Neelkant hospital side]. A Wagon R is trailing me, and tailgating [over a minute]. Of course a taxi. The road curves, and is a two-way system, no divider. So it is difficult to overtake, or give someone side. A semi-blind curve comes up with a speed breaker. I could comprehend / anticipate what the Wagon R would try. Overtake me on the speed breaker. Before I reach the breaker, I lowered my window. Why..? I reach the curve, lower gear for the speed breaker and on the opposite side, coming my way is a three wheeled goods carrier -- fast. [Wagon R has aligned his bumper near my right rear bumper for the dangerous overtake, but cannot see the goods carrier -- yet.]

I thought for a second: this Wagon R deserves it, and let him overtake for a head on with the carrier, I am in slow second, will gun my way out. Or pull in deep to my left (there was space) -- and be safe.
But.
I stuck my hand out, and told the Wagon R to "wait". He suddenly saw the carrier, and pulled in left tight. My hand raise action, alerted his numb/dumb senses to reality. He saw his impending doom, after seeing my hand, and slowing down. After that for the next few meters he was a one car distance behind me. I pulled to the side, stopped, and meekly allowed him to overtake. He looked at me in surprise. I could have easily kept going, he would never have caught up. I continued to listen to the wonderful lead break by R.Blackmore [Child in Time]. Life goes on.

[Thad E Ginathom]

... That ranks with pulling out in front of a car when there is no traffic behind it!

Worse, is pulling out in front of a car and driving dead slow.

[Reisender]

Originally Posted by sparky@home

A funny thing happened when I was trying to cross a main road. I had cleared one side and was waiting at the median intersection to cross over. There only one car approaching me. It was quite some distance and I could have easily crossed over, but a sixth sense made me look over and I see that the TSD (triple distilled idiot) is accelerating. I stepped back as I was not intending to commit Suicide. What escapes me is that chap could have let me pass, since there was a traffic block and he stopped after crossing me. So that chap had only two intentions according to me, one he wanted to run me over or else he wanted to be one up and cut off my crossing. Whatever be, he is grade “A”
TSD. God help us, with these kind of idiots rampant on the road.

Some folks have this habit of stop others to do ANYTHING on road, be it riding, driving, crossing, over taking etc. Folks will accelerate or block you just to feel - Yay - I won this this race!

[NPV]

Regular weekday morning commute on the scooter and on the bylanes close to the main roads. There is a taxi in front of me and we reach a fork, I need to go straight, but this taxi is right in the middle of the junction and suddenly slows down almost to a halt. I check if there is a vehicle approaching from the road forking to the left which isn't the case and neither is there any vehicle coming from the road straight ahead. There is a "conditional" no-entry signage (LMV's and HTV's not allowed) which of course I did not expect the cabbie to notice or even bother about!
Now, cars behind me start honking and some even squeeze to my left and then I see that the cabbie is inching forward going into the fork straight ahead (my hunch was right after all) and just after we crossed the junction, I overtook him and when I pass him, I see him looking down at a fruit in his hand that he is eating causing him to slow down like this oblivious to what is happening around him

[sparky@home]

On my return journey from Ooty, had a close call with a stupid Ford Endeavour driver, who almost ran me down. Seeing his approach, I stopped and hoped he would stop or slow down, as he was in the process of overtaking a truck, but he did no such thing. What I see here is a total disregard for safety.

https://youtu.be/GNrAKzz84RM

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by sparky@home

On my return journey from Ooty, had a close call with a stupid Ford Endeavour driver, who almost ran me down. ... ... ...

That looks truly terrifying.

It also appears (although it could be drawing a wrong conclusion from a tiny clip) that the traffic density on the road would have allowed this idiot to overtake quite safely just a few seconds before or after. Such people are just oblivious to the presence or absence of risk.

[sparky@home]

There was hardly any traffic, infact at the moment of this incident, there was only 3 of us, Viz, the Ford Endy the Truck and self. That chap had no reason to try that stunt other than his Ego.

[TorqueyTechie]

Originally Posted by sparky@home

On my return journey from Ooty, had a close call with a stupid Ford Endeavour driver, who almost ran me down.

Very stupid of the driver to try overtaking on a curve but we find these idiots almost all the time don't we. They do not even think about how they are making others life risky by their acts.

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by NPV

I see him looking down at a fruit in his hand that he is eating causing him to slow down like this oblivious to what is happening around him

Fruit and nut in a cab

Originally Posted by sparky@home

Seeing his approach, I stopped and hoped he would stop or slow down, as he was in the process of overtaking a truck, but he did no such thing. What I see here is a total disregard for safety.

Completely insensitive driving. Many bigger vehicles are driven in this bullying style, where they force oncoming smaller vehicles to stop or go off the road.

A couple of years ago, an oncoming state transport bus did not slow down and kept coming wider into my lane on a 2 lane curve in the Tamhini ghat road. I had no option but to stop completely and get off the road in my low GC Jazz. The bus then slowed a little, but we could just hear and feel a jarring scrape while the bus passed us. The bus driver did not bother stopping. I was fearing that the entire right side would have been scraped. Luckily, it was only the ORVM that was dented to bits. I had half a mind to take a u turn and chase that bus driver. However, considering I was with family I took the other option and went my way.

Big ego indeed. Till they meet a bigger ego and vehicle than theirs. In which case it turns out like the end scene of Jurassic World
And then we see smashed cars in the news.

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by NPV

I overtook him and when I pass him, I see him looking down at a fruit in his hand that he is eating causing him to slow down like this oblivious to what is happening around him

Oh this is nothing. Y'day while returning home when the signal turned green the car in front of me was doing 20 speeds in the fast lane. I flashed to move fast, nothing happens, I honk still nothing happens. I was forced to overtake from left and the scene I saw left me flummoxed. There was a couple in the car and the female species was feeding the male species (with food of course) and he was struggling to eat from the feeding spoon. When I passed them I wanted to give an earful but the lady gave me a sheepish smile. There was absolutely no point in telling her what she was doing to the traffic behind.

When I reached home and told my wife of the episode (hoping she would give me a spoonful to eat), all I got was an earful reminding me of my age and my son.

[vidyanand]

Two from today:
ORR, A cruiser rider happily takes out his phone from his left front jeans pocket, continues glancing it while I overtake him from left (he was on right lane). I watch him on my RVMs.
I was amused and shocked both when he left his other hand as well to do some thing on his phone. Bike was still well balanced without any sign of wobble and he was happily riding on. I then moved on, did not have the visibility left to monitor him. Wondering how he would have controlled if I hit the brakes

BETL, Considerable new Innova, owner driven, going bang on middle of the lanes on the line. Not even moving side after seeing me on his ORVM. Not even going faster that I better be left behind in my humble i20. Eventually, put my hands to horns until he moved. But as I overtook, his spirits came back to speed up. Well he could not overtake other cabs with his driving on middle style and was left far behind.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Oh this is nothing. Y'day while returning home when the signal turned green the car in front of me was doing 20 speeds in the fast lane. ...

I would rather have people go too slow than too fast, but still, good driving requires not obstructing others.

Was told by a British driving instructor that some people think it is good to go so slow that nothing can go wrong. No: they get failed for failing to make suffucient progress. Same with Give Way signs (haha... imagine such a thing in India!) one is not supposed to stop at them unless there is something to give way to.

[TorqueyTechie]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

I would rather have people go too slow than too fast, but still, good driving requires not obstructing others.

Was told by a British driving instructor that some people think it is good to go so slow that nothing can go wrong. No: they get failed for failing to make suffucient progress. Same with Give Way signs (haha... imagine such a thing in India!) one is not supposed to stop at them unless there is something to give way to.

Actually yield sign was present in Bangalore in the late 90's and early 2000's. I had seen them when going around town along with my dad. Dont recollect all the places but one I can recollect and probably still present is near Windsor Manor bridge going towards Kumara krupa road.

[asingh1977]

A picture speaks a 1000 words. [Yellow article was coming the wrong way] This happened after a light change.

It was extremely difficult to reverse and take a slight left.

[arun_josie]

A two-wheeler overtaking from the left and almost getting squeezed between the wall and a car. I wonder why they want to take such risks. . Even when he overtook me from left, it was very close.

Watch from 0:13

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWCZ...ature=youtu.be