Right-of-Way Not Affected By the Size of Your Vehicle

[Alma]

@enipla

Well, hmm. I don’t think I stated that ‘I have a lot of confidence in my driving’ exactly. I did say that I have never been in an accident.

Sorry, my comment wasn’t directed at you, which is why I didn’t quote.

My sister is an over-confident driver who always cites that she never been in an accident as proof of her good driving. She scares the living hell out of me. I think we’re both talking about the same thing, not trusting other people to know what they’re doing.

For me, the reason SUVs scare/bother me, even though I get cut off by all kinds of cars and there are all kinds of bad drivers, is that I tend to fear for my life a lot more when SUVs and other large vehicles do it. They’re just a lot bigger than me and in a fight, they’d win.

[astro]

@featherlou

**
It also doesn’t mean that you’re allowed two parking spaces. If you can’t fit your Lincoln Behemoth between the lines, maybe that’s a sign that either your vehicle is too damned big, or you need some work on your parking skills. And another tip - it doesn’t magically give you the right to park in the fire lane, either. And yes, we all understand that you’re “just running in.” Does that sense of entitlement come standard with the Lincoln Behemoth, or is it extra?

Just thought I’d post, cause people don’t seem to know this.

Disclaimer: I understand that really large vehicles like trailer trucks need extra room and stopping distances. These aren’t the vehicles I’m talking about here.

You need to accompany your post with a tuba and a piccolo duet.

[Cat_Whisperer]

@astro

You need to accompany your post with a tuba and a piccolo duet.

I have absolutely no idea what this means.

@alma

For me, the reason SUVs scare/bother me, even though I get cut off by all kinds of cars and there are all kinds of bad drivers, is that I tend to fear for my life a lot more when SUVs and other large vehicles do it. They’re just a lot bigger than me and in a fight, they’d win.

DINGDINGDING! This is exactly what I’m talking about. I am fairly sure that the large vehicle drivers know this (a lot of people cite “feeling safer” as the reason they drive them), and I believe it is affecting their attitudes on the road. Unfortunately, what contributes to their “feeling safer” increases my “feeling endangered.”

[ENugent]

@enipla

For instance — “I can’t get out of my car because your vehicle is to big and takes up too much room in the parking space”. umm. Like I said, I live in an area where SUV’s and trucks out number cars by quite a bit. And as a person that drives an SUV, you would think that I would be more likely to have this problem than someone in a small car. Since I would be likely to be parked next to a large vehicle, and I myself drive a (in some peoples minds) large vehicle. I don’t see it, It just isn’t happening to me.

Perhaps because areas where “everyone” has an SUV are also likely to be areas where space is not at such a premium that parking places are striped at the absolute minimum possible width? In Boston, I frequently have to park so close to the cars on either side of me that I can’t open my (sedan) door even to the first “bump” where it stays open, and then slither out. When I was pregnant, I had to have my husband drop me off before parking so I could get out of the car. When I visit my in-laws in farm country, I can throw their SUV’s door all the way open and not hit the car next to me.

[Voyager]

@ENugent

Perhaps because areas where “everyone” has an SUV are also likely to be areas where space is not at such a premium that parking places are striped at the absolute minimum possible width? In Boston, I frequently have to park so close to the cars on either side of me that I can’t open my (sedan) door even to the first “bump” where it stays open, and then slither out. When I was pregnant, I had to have my husband drop me off before parking so I could get out of the car. When I visit my in-laws in farm country, I can throw their SUV’s door all the way open and not hit the car next to me.

I see the same thing. People in SUVs who feel they need to park real close to the entrance, and so a compact space is just fine.
We’ve got a big truck, bought to haul a horse trailer. When we need to take it to a parking lot, we park it in an empty area, because it is long enough to take up more than one space.
Anyhow, in the Bay Area, the cellphone chatters are a lot more dangerous than the SUVers - and I haven’t noticed that SUVers have a higher percentage of cellphone use than Camry drivers.