I hope this isn’t going to make me sound like the stereotypical grumpy old man, but it seems to me that people are driving stupider...or maybe they are more oblivious.
Over the past week I have witnessed drivers driving well below the posted speed limit. On three separate occasions on the same day I witnessed drivers going 30 or 35mph in a 55mph zone. It was day time, sunny, and little traffic beyond what was normal. One on of those occasions I saw the vehicle between me and the slowpoke try to pass the slowpoke and as soon as they pulled around and sped up to make the pass, the slowpoke sped up and tried to prevent the pass. He didn’t succeed as the passer had more horsepower and out-accelerated the slowpoke. As soon as the pass was completed the slowpoke was right back down to 35mph. I had to follow another mile before I turned off as the opportunity to pass didn’t present itself.
I have witnessed drivers wandering back and forth across the travel lane, sometimes crossing over into the next lane, or worse, into the oncoming traffic lane.
In the past I would have wondered of the driver was drunk. These days I tend to think the driver is distracted, maybe texting or otherwise using their smart phone, or operating the touchscreen on their dash. On one occasion I saw a vehicle almost miss a curve on an otherwise straight road. Just before the vehicle contacted the Armco the driver realized what was happening and swerved away from the guardrail. I have to think this was due to being distracted by their smartphone because I didn’t see this happen again with that vehicle.
I have seen a number of others come to a stop at a green light, check traffic in cross directions, and then cross the intersection just as the traffic light changes from green to yellow. What the heck is up with that? There’s also the variation, sitting at the traffic light after it has turned green and not moving until the light changes to yellow, or worse, to red. This scenario I have seen far more often than I care to admit, but it is a very common occurrence these days.
I could go on ad nauseum, but I think you get the idea.
So, am I just being a crotchety old curmudgeon, or is anyone else seeing this as well?
