Ever since I moved back to Montreal I’ve noticed that drivers here have become pretty lax about red lights.
I mean, the drivers here were always taught that yellow means STEP ON IT… but it was rare when I was a new driver (in the '90s) for people to burn reds.
Now, it’s a daily occurrence, and everyone on the road knows to count to 3 (or more) for those folks who are just going to go through no matter what.
But now we have a new plague on our streets, as I have learned much to my dismay.
Not once, but TWICE in this past week I have been rear-ended while I was stopped at a red light.
The first time I was in my car and it was a young driver, new to the city, who was probably too damn tired to have been driving at the mega-early hour of 8 a.m.
The second time was last night on my motorcycle, when a fucking asshole smashed into my rear tire. And yes, that is what I bellowed at the fucking asshole as I stepped off my bike.
Fortunately, in neither case was my vehicle damaged. I thought my bike was smashed last night because of all the plastic bits I was picking up off the road, but it turned out to be plastic from that fucking asshole’s car.
My neck and back are a touch sore today, but I was checked out by a doctor last night (Thanks MrsB!) and I’m a-ok.
The only silver lining here is the looks of sheer horror I have seen this week.
Forget scary movies. You want to see people go white as a ghost? Find a driver who was just motoring along, thinking all is right with the world, only for them to hit someone – and walk up to their door as an innocent victim ready to inflict vengeance upon those who are as guilty as they are stupid.
I had someone stop just short of my bumper the other day because I had the temerity to stop at a yellow light, and he honked at me. The car in front of me had gone through on yellow, and the light turned red just as I stopped. There was no way I would have made it, and certainly no way the honker behind me would have made it. He pulled out and roared past me as soon as the light turned green. He’ll be getting into an accident pretty soon. I am not a terribly aggressive driver, but I am not a timid driver; I do obey the rules of the road, however, because I am the shmo who gets stopped for the thing everyone else gets away with.
People around here run red lights like it’s a job opportunity. I count three before proceeding on a green anymore, and I’ve saved my butt a few times by doing so. There were two times so far this year when I was actually partway into the intersection on green, and someone came whizzing through. It’s a good thing my brakes are solid, and that both times no one was behind me. I just wish there had been a cop around.
You know, the really dangerous road users are the bicyclists, who completely ignore lights and pedestrians crossing. Most especially, it seems, Deliveroo riders.
I visited Montreal once in the late 80’s and my host was quite vocal about how the law vis-à-vis yellow lights was different there from here in the states, that you could get a ticket if you failed to make it *out of *the intersection when the light turned red. Here the law is (if I’m not mistaken) that you are ok as long as you make it *into *the intersection before the light turns red.
Has that traffic law changed in Montreal? Or are the police just very lax about enforcement?
A fairly significant portion of drivers are simply morons.
This week I’ve seen:
someone stopped in the left-turn lane decide he waited long enough and run the red light, halfway though the light.
someone waiting to turn right suddenly lurch forward, veer right, and drive into the sidewalk, ending up with one wheel actually up on the sidewalk before she righted the car. Her right turn, by the way, wasn’t for another 300 feet.
The only time I rear ended someone was in a semi-similar situation. It was drizzling out so the roads were slick. The light was green as I was approaching, but turned yellow. It was one of those ‘if he goes…I’ll go’ things. Well, he went, so I stepped on the gas to follow the right behind the guy in front of me. Then he changed his mind and I couldn’t stop and skidded right into him.
I called the police, who showed up within minutes (a squad must have been near). Explained what happened, got a ticket for something or another and went on my way. The only thing that bothered me was why he stopped so far into the intersection. Years later, it dawned on me that with how quickly the cop showed up after I called, he was probably right there and that’s probably why the guy in front of me went from going through a yellow light to standing on the brake pedal, he saw the cop. FTR, I’m not saying I wasn’t wrong or that it wasn’t my fault. Just that I realized why he changed his mind.
Were mobile phones involved? One thing I’ve noticed in recent years is that motorists can be at their most erratic when at a crawl. When they are driving at full speed they probably won’t try to text and drive. But if they are (for example) crawling in a line of slow moving traffic they may think they can text safely. And while doing so slowly veer off into trouble.
I sometimes wonder if you aren’t some sort of subtle parody. You can always be relied upon to supply the “crusty, grumpy, idiotic old man” point of view on any subject. I imagine you looking like this. Do you wander about in a bowler hat getting angry and waving your cane at daisies in lawns, grocer’s apostrophes and unruly youth in loud clothing?
If it helps, I did see some justice in this very situation a few weeks ago. I was the third vehicle in line in a left turn lane with a red arrow. The guy in the first car didn’t want to wait for the red arrow to turn green so he ran the light, in front of oncoming traffic. Too bad the second car was a police SUV. It was sweet. I was at the front of the line when the light turned green about 20 seconds later.
You really want to do this? You really want me to wipe the floor with you on the “cyclists are the really dangerous road users [in the context of cars]” thing? Seriously? Do you actually think critically before you blurt out your peabrained dribble?
Here’s a clue; start with some statistics. Look up injuries and death caused by cars, then by bikes. When you’ve done that, if you haven’t satisfied yourself that you are in fact as dumb as rocks to try to argue this point, come back and try to do so. But maybe make a serious attempt to engage whatever rational, factual parts of your brain you may have before doing so. Just a suggestion.
Perhaps you missed the ‘around here’ part of my comment? The overall statistics are, of course, quite clear, but around here I have personally witnessed many more incidents involving cyclists ignoring traffic lights than cars.
Yellow here means “step on it so you can be one of the five cars that goes through after the light turns red.”
Unlike Helena330, I have yet to enjoy the satisfaction of seeing one of these assholes nailed for it. I have seen cops witness and ignore it, though, which is nice too.
I sometimes push the yellow, but not when there is a car in the middle of the intersection or just ahead of me. I’m not so worried about hitting them if they stop as I am of getting stuck in the intersection behind someone.
It was sweet. I was at the front of the line when the light turned green about 20 seconds later..jpg){kind=link}