POLL: pick a city where you can find the worst drivers

[SarcasticDwarf]

Phoenix, because I drive here

 

[phantom309]

Kansas City has the most timid drivers in the world. You'll sit on I35 for an hour waiting for a jam to clear and you find out it was caused by a tow truck with its light bar on, parked in a store parking lot 1/4 mile off the highway. If it rains, they panic and refuse to go over 20mph. If there is a police car visible anywhere within 1/2 mile of the road - no matter what it's doing - they panic and refuse to go over 20mph. About 85% of KC drivers on the road at any given time are talking on the phone, feeding/spanking/changing multiple small children in their minivans, eating, or some ugly combination of the three.

For some reason, the rules just don't apply when it snows. Bloated suburbanites will blow past you at 70-80mph in their SUV's, because you see, SUV's have four-wheel-drive and that means they won't slide or anything in the snow, no matter how fast you go.

 

[Dudd]

I'm going with Rochester, NY simply because some moron nearly hit me head on today. Going down your average residential two lane road to grab a DVD, double yellow line no passing zone the whole way. It is 9:30 and relatively dark. Some idiot coming at me decides to pass the guy ahead of him. I'm in plain view only a couple of hundred feet ahead of him. I'm traveling ~40-45, he had to be going 55. It is dark, he doesn't have his lights on!. I do not see him until we are 2 or 3 seconds away from colliding, at which time he feverishly swerves back into his lane, cutting off the driver he initally tried to pass. What kind of ahole decides to pass in a no passing zone with a car in the opposite lane coming towards him while not being able to be seen from moderate distances due to the lack of lights, I honestly do not know.

 

[fronic2]

Tokyo is hair raising, the cabs just don't give a sh*t.

 

[styrafoam]

Vegas is pretty scary.

 

[glugglug]

I've driven through Los Angeles, NYC, large portions of Ohio, Atlanta, Miami, Phoenix, and Washington DC, so I have experience with literally almost half the choices on your list and I can confidently say that Orlando beats them all, no contest. NYC is the only place on the list nearly as nervewracking to drive in IMO, but that is not because the drivers are unskilled its because there is so much going on, roads are frequently closed, and looking around finding a place to park magnifies the effect.

In Orlando I'd estimate I put about 750 "sidewalk miles" a year on my Ford Escort where I'd take it offroads a bit to get around all the idiots blocking the traffic.

BTW I am NOT referrring to the tourists going to Disney, they are much better than the average driver there. Anyways, Disney area would be Kissimmee.

I don't understand why Phoenix is on this list, the driving there is pretty good.... also, while Atlanta drivers may completely ignore speed limits, IMO this is a good thing. I assume this is the main complaint of those who dislike Atlanta drivers?

I would say the majority of the southeastern U.S. has far worse drivers than any city currently on your list, but its less hectic than some of the choices. Ohio drivers are pretty bad, but Miami drivers are worse, and so is the southeast in general. Orlando drivers are much worse.

 

[Mill]

Birmingham, AL for sure!

 

[Schadenfreude]

Originally posted by: heartsurgeon
Istanbul, Turkey has the worst drivers in the world...

totally terrifying driving there

if you've been there, you know what i'm talking about.
if you haven't.....you just don't know what bad driving is.

You haven't felt terror if you haven't driven in Seoul, Korea.

 

[BMdoobieW]

Entire state of Ohio -- because it is funny

 

[amdskip]

Iowa drivers, don't know what a turn signal is.

 

[conjur]

Originally posted by: Metalloid15
The entire state of Ohio gets my vote. But I have sympathy for them. You guys ever seen the crazy 6 way intersections?

I hate all of the left-lane exits (mostly in Cincinnati). Left-lane is for faster-moving traffic, not idiots who think they have to slow down 1/2 mile before the exit.

 

[Bushwicktrini]

Originally posted by: ThePresence
NYC hands down. I commute there for work. You will not belive the things I see.

Agreed!

 

[rudeguy]

Originally posted by: Acanthus
Chicago is the worst drivers i have ever seen. And ive been in all of the lower 48 + ontario + UK

Edit: Voted results because chicago isnt an option

Edit: dont believe me? take a trip on I-90 through chicago, its friggin insane. 75MPH, up to the tollbooth traffic jams, everyones weaving through traffic. They will cut you off when they dont even have room for their vehicle etc... its horrible. But if you learn driving there youre ready for anything... Even 20 crotch rockets passing both sides of your car at 130mph+

thats on a good day when the traffic actually moves....I voted chi-town because of the horrible traffic, and the idiotic drivers

 

[thomsbrain]

out of the cities i've driven in, LA is the worst. the people there drive slower than in the bay area, but they are still incapable of staying in their lane and are rarely paying any attention to what they're doing. hint to everyone in LA: if you hold the steering wheel straight, your car will go straight, thus resulting in you not drifting 3 feet out of your lane all the time.

best i've seen was in my recent trip to scotland. the drivers there, both in the big cities and in the country, have by far the best control and most confidence i've ever seen.

 

[Aves]

ATL

 

[Jarwa]

Boaz, AL.

 

[FatJackSprat]

When you're sitting at a stop light in Pittsburgh and the guy facing you on the other side of the light wants to turn left in front of you as soon as the light turns green he will gun it and cut you off.

I'm sure people do that everywhere, but here they think it's the law or something. They honk at you if you proceed straight without letting them cross over first.

I think DC is confusing and when you mix that many people that are unsure about where to go with that many people that are used to it, the driving can get scary.

 

[Joemonkey]

another vote for Ohio.... Cleveland especially. those intersections are nuts!

 

[Metalloid]

Originally posted by: Joemonkey
another vote for Ohio.... Cleveland especially. those intersections are nuts!

Yeah you can make two different right turns. One is like a 120 degree turn and the other is like a 30 degree turn.

 

[DorkBoy]

You forgot Charlotte, NC

 

I have three picks:

New York City, NY
San Francisco, CA
Los Angeles, CA

That's in order of offence.

 

[imprezawrxwagon]

Moscow. City where one can easily get rear ended while passing in the wrong (opposite direction) lane.

 

[Chaotic42]

Nawlins baby.

 

[N8Magic]

Atlanta has awful traffic, and people are pretty aggressive there.

But hands down, the most ruthless and agressive drivers i've ever seen are in Montreal, PQ. It's the only place i've been where i've seen people drive down the sidewalk 50 feet just so they can turn the corner 5 seconds faster. Not just kind of on the sidewalk, but all 4 wheels on the sidewalk as if it was a bloody turning lane!

 

[brunswickite]

NJ