When I travel by bicycle I am often rather annoyed at cars stopping to let me across. In my country the cars have right of way in this case, but often they stop to let you pass anyway.
Normally, when I see a car coming I adjust my speed to cross after the car and allow the car to safely pass without even having to slow down. Now what often happens is that instead of just driving ahead some driver insist on stopping. Of course, at that point I go ahead and cross after still having to come to a near halt first in order to make sure the driver is actually stopping.
Also, it is not rare that there are cars in the opposite lane that also need to stop in order for me to cross. If they don’t, the already stopped driver just waits while I still can’t cross, but normally they notice the stopped car and follow suit. But in either case the situation is a bit awkward as the stopping driver makes me feel like I am imposing on the other drivers.
If they would just keep driving, the flow of traffic would be much better as neither of us would have to come to a halt. Of course they are just trying to be nice, but it rarely helps.
It makes me nervous when pedestrians wave me through - say, when there’s finally a gap in a busy street but the pedestrian notices that if he crosses, I’ll miss my opportunity and have to wait another couple of minutes. I appreciate the thought behind the gesture, but my mind is ranking things like this:
Pedestrian! Must wait! Do not want to make mush of person who has right of way!
Traffic! Must wait! Do not want to have to make an insurance claim! However, this thought now takes backseat to thought number 1!
The pedestrian has now changed the priority of my thoughts. This upsets the balance in my head brought upon by the rules of the road.
Because SPLAT is a terrible sound, especially when followed by CRUNCH.
I call this the “Don’t honk, I’m running” shuffle.
Seriously though, I think the OP is in need of a change of perspective here. From what you describe, you are a regular witness to acts of actual courtesy. Consistent, well-intentioned, and even dogged courtesy. Such acts are small miracles to behold amongst the wider populace; like a double rainbow or a gleaming hummingbird, sit back and relish the moment.
Don’t do that if you like your hood. People tend to rap the hood of cars that do that. Sometimes with rings with diamonds in them. Others just stand there and yawn.
I may have made eye contact with you, the very special driver that is near and dear to my heart because you aren’t actively trying to run me down, but I have made no such arrangement with the oncoming traffic in the opposite lane. I can only a) hope that the oncoming cars notice the big stopped object by the crosswalk and draw the necessary inference, and b) move my ass so as to jeopardize it for the minimum necessary duration.