What Are Your Unwritten Rules of Driving Etiquette?
We could all be a little better drivers . Of course, every driver (hopefully) knows the written rules of the road. Rules of the road exist to ensure that you use your turn signal, stop at stop signs, and —at least in some places —keep the left lane intact as a passing lane. What interests me now is all the driving violations that may not stop you, but will definitely make an asshole out of you.
Turn signals, correct entry techniques , a friendly wave of ” thank you for letting me through “: there is a basic human decency that you must respect towards other drivers on the road. Again, everyone will have a good reason to cut and speed someone up from time to time. (Though I should point out that we did the math earlier and found that, practically speaking, speeding won’t actually get you to your destination much faster .) Ultimately, I’m sure that no matter how fast you drive perfect. Everyone who is faster than you is a maniac, and everyone who is slower than you is an idiot. I understand.
What about passenger etiquette in your car? Do you mind when someone puts their feet on the dashboard, or is that a surefire way to disqualify a shotgun? Do passengers need the driver’s permission before eating in the car? Who controls the music?
I ask you, readers of Lifehacker, to express your road rage in the comments: what are the unbreakable (but unwritten) driving rules? Are you the only driver left who knows how parking is supposed to work? What do you need to resort to your horn? (I highly recommend comedian Katrina Davis on the need for a separate car horn to admit her own mistakes.)
You probably haven’t received a driver’s license for a long time; even so, there are many “rules” of the road that weren’t even mentioned in your driving test. After analyzing your responses, I will collect the best unwritten driving rules and publish them in a post next week. Maybe we can find something in common that makes driving a little less sucky for all of us.