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The 5 Most Commonly Broken Driving Rules
There are so many distractions today while driving. As the driver we are bombarded with thoughts of our day to come, what’s going on at home, our lists of things-to-do, whether there is enough money in the checking account, and especially getting from point A to point B. The list goes on.
In these reveries we neglect some of the most common driving rules, which result in traffic violations causing serious and/or financial consequences.
How many times have we yelled at another driver, calling out derogatory names such as, “Idiot!”? How many times have we been the idiot?
Ouch… Yep, been there, done that.
In our hectic world, we must be aware of our driving and the other guy who just sped by you giving you the finger for something you didn't even know you were doing.
Let's count down the 5 most commonly broken driving rules that we should work to improve.
5. Not Stopping for a School Bus
Darn it! Caught behind the school bus again. Last time, it seemed there were 30 stops before reaching the destination. Well, maybe not 30, but enough to make a driver antsy and irritable.
Why not just ignore that big red stop sign sticking out of the left side of the bus?
It is amazing that not stopping for a school bus is a common traffic violation. Drivers who breake this rule are idiots for not stopping for a school bus. As drivers, we should not just stop, but stop a considerable distance away, whether following or coming from the opposite direction.
WHY? Because a kid who darts out from in front of that bus to cross the street could be hit and injured, or worse, killed. Passing the bus while kids are getting off is one of the most dangerous traffic violations. We can’t simply ignore the stop sign on the bus when coming from the other direction, either. We may think we can see all the kids getting off the bus, what about the kid who runs to the back of the bus to cross? Blowing by the bus’s stop sign can cause the same repercussions as passing it.
Hitting a kid with your vehicle is not something any of us want on our conscience. There is no place we need to be that is worth a child’s life.
What Could Happen...
4. Crossing the Median
Oh man, almost to Grandma’s house, and the her hand-knitted tablecloth she asked to be returned it sitting on the kitchen table. The highway doesn’t look too crowded with traffic, and none of the cars look like cop cars.
There’s that one area for “Authorized Vehicles Only” or there is that patch of the median that isn’t too rough. All of a sudden, the wheel turns and the car is crossing the median. Grandma would be fit to be tied if her hand-knitted tablecloth weren’t returned.
Oh crap, are those sirens? Yep, an unmarked car just topped the hill. Busted.
Why not cross the median? It isn’t that big a deal. Hmmm… maybe a bit more thought needs to go into this violation.
It is when a car hits you or you hit another car or worse if it is a tracker trailer barreling through and smashes you and any other vehicle near you to smithereens. “Danger, Danger!” Stay the course and promise Grandma you will make a special trip for her table cloth. Bonus points with Grandma because she loves to see you visit.
Better to make it to her house than to risk being hurt or killed or hurting or killing someone else by crossing the median to go back for the tablecloth.
3. Not Using the Turn Signal
We have all been driving along when the person in front of us has put on their brakes or slowed down all of a sudden and turned without using their turn signal. We have to slam on our brakes to avoid rear-ending them. To top it off, if we do ram into the back of the vehicle, we are charged with being at fault. What an idiot… It is so frustrating when such a minor driving rule as using a turn signal is broken.
Other times we are the idiot. We are thinking about something else or singing to our favorite song and there is our turn. We nearly miss it, so we brake hard and swiftly turn to make it. We don’t think about the driver behind us. Bam! Our trunk is crushed in and we have whiplash from the impact.
Neither scenario is good, but both are possible. We need to be considerate drivers and use our turn signals at least 100 feet before turning.
2. Running a Red Light
Distractions are everywhere when we are driving. We are talking on our cell phones, we see a squirrel that is so cute running up a tree, or we wave at a friend who has just passed us from the other direction. Any number of things can take our attention and before we know it, we are in the middle of the intersection and the light is red.
We ram our foot down on the gas, praying we are not hit or seen by a police officer. Our hearts are about to jump out of our chest. Whew, made it, or did we?
Running a red light can cause an awful accident because the drivers coming from the side are not expecting a car to be in their path. They have accelerated to lawfully drive through the intersection with their green light, so much damage can occur. Hopefully, it is minor, but paying attention is the key that could have avoided any problems.
Then there is that heart sinking feeling that is not so harmful when we see the police officer’s lights pulling us over. Now you have a court date and money out of your pocket that could have been spent on something needed or wanted.
Yep, You Guessed it: The Number One Most Commonly Broken Driving Rule Is Speeding
Late for work, late for school, anxious to get home, or more inattention. Speeding is the number one broken traffic violation. There are over 100,000 speeding tickets issued each day in the U.S. The average cost for a speeding ticket is $150.
We live in a busy, hectic world. Speeding is the norm. It is can be costly and dangerous. If we are speeding, we may place ourselves in a situation where we have no time to react before causing an accident.
Paying Attention and Using Common Sense
Most of us are guilty of one or all of these commonly broken driving rules. None of us want to receive a ticket or be in an accident. Maybe we can get away with these traffic violations, but we have to weigh the cost.
Following the rules of the road, paying attention to what we are doing and using our common sense can help us avoid a lot of damage and can save us a lot of money. We don’t want to be “the idiot” on the road.
© 2012 Susan Holland
Related
Comments
- Author
Thanks, epbooks! There are too many violent people on the road. I avoid erratic drivers, too. Better to slow down and let them get far ahead of me. Don't get me started on those who text and drive. Oh my!!!
Thanks so much for dropping by! :-)
Great hub. Here, one uses turn signals. It drives me crazy, but I usually don't have road rage. That's one ot the times I can keep my temper in check. Too many people get violent on the road.
I usually try to keep my distance from those driving erratically.
Now-a-days, with texting being on the road is even more dangerous!
Thank you for sharing this hub. Well-written and so true! Voted up.
- Author
AAHH! Road Rage!! That is so scary! Everyone needs to read my hub about L-Theanine. They need to take a capsule before getting out on the freeway. LOL
I hope you have had a super weekend, too. Happy St. Patrick's Day!! :-)
S Holland10
I didn't even mention the road rage either.
Thanks and have a super weekend
- Author
Wow, IB! There are a lot more broken rules in LA. I am sure these are on a very low priority to law enforcement. I am glad you have written hubs to inform people. Thanks for your informative comment. Be careful out there!!
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
sholland
Sorry, I didn't check the comments before I wrote this last one. It was six months ago, and I found your hub again, oops.
I would say that driving violations are not the most common driving violations, just the ones that were given citations.
The problem with Southern California is well over ten million people just in Los Angeles county and another five million in the nearby counties and a large percentage of them drive.
The California Highway patrol can't reel in the violators, so they are not cited. Many of the freeways have four to six lanes in each direction plus a carpool lane.
Reckless driving is worse than just simple speeding. Mostly everyone speeds, a the average highway speed can by ten or fifteen miles over the limit.
With all of the lanes and the trucks, some drivers like to play checkers on the lanes trying to get a few feet ahead of their current lane.
Another is the tailgating, I am talking less than a car length at freeway speeds. The bigger SUVs and pickup trucks try to push the traffic in front of them. Even if there are a dozen vehicles with closed ranks in front of the vehicle that they are trying to move along.
Exiting and transitioning from freeway to freeway,or to an exit involves the people that will try to get to the head of the line, jamming themselves in a line of exiting vehicles.
The point that I am making is that the citation data is only a sliver of the real number and driving violations. But the ones that I have mentioned are not are not cited because of the vehicle density and the limited highway patrol presence.
I have written several hub on this.
I only wanted to give you a perspective of the difference that California driving presents because of the huge density of drivers and vehicles shoehorned into a small geographic area. That is specifically Southern California, as the state itself is quite large.
Thanks
Running or rolling through STOP signs are as common as running Red Lights.
- Author
Yes, you have told me that. :-) When I wrote this, these were the worst according to a nationwide study through the DMV. I guess they are based on an average. I have driven in large cities (Dallas, Boston, and NYC), and you are correct - these are minor compared to what goes on in the heavily populated city traffic.
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
These wouldn't be on the top five if you lived in California.
- Author
Hi Epi!! I hope you had a good evening. I know exactly what you mean about people and their cell phones. It just takes a second of distraction to cause you to have a terrible accident.
I hope Spring comes to you soon. We are having some crazy weather across the nation.
I am so glad you dropped by! :-)
Wow my sensational Susan it's so wonderful to connect with you tonight and I sincerely love the wide variety and eclectic nature of your hub subjects. A very interesting hub presentation here as I always say when you are driving - everything could change in a blink of an eye if you're not careful but my biggest pet peeve and a timely one at that is people talking on their cellphones or text-messaging - yikes - get me off the road and away from them - lol.
I am sending warm wishes to you and your family from the three of us , Colin, Tiffy and Gabriel (my two cats) and I am off to work now at lake erie time ontario canada 9:30pm Still very much like winter here - spring is a little off yet , probably in April sometime if we're lucky
Susan,
I always appreciate the organization and comprehensiveness you put into your pieces. This was a great eye opener...my worst experience ever was being a nurse in Philadelphia for a year...on the roads a lot and oh my, the road rage, the discourteous behavior and the madcap pace that everyone feels they need to keep for everything is mind boggling... I am glad now to have a job where I can pace my travel, allowing plenty of time and just be peaceful. That is more important in the grand scheme.
This was a great awareness raiser. Voted UP and UABI. Hugs, Maria
- Author
Hey Kelly! I am the same. I have never gotten a ticket, but I am guilty of speeding... Not mad, crazy speeding, but the 5-10 miles over the speed limit. So, where were you parking?? :-)
Thanks for dropping by!! :-)
I try not to get tickets so I pretty much follow the rules. Oh and it's working for me because I have never had a ticket - except a parking one:) lol That doesn't count!
- Author
Hi Scott! I think most of us are guilty of breaking these rules. Being aware is the key to helping us try to be better drivers. That speeding rule is the tough one. :-)
Thanks for dropping by, the votes, and the shares! :-)
I confess I'm guilty of 3,2 and definitely1. I've came close to 5 on a couple of occasions pulling out of a parking lot or driveway near the kids bus stop but I have never even came near crossing over a median.... yet. Voted up, interesting useful and shared.
- Author
Nikashi, wow, thanks for the tip on Europe and Asia. When I went to London a few years ago, I learned that the pedestrians did not have the right of way as they do in the states. I found that odd. Now, take into consideration I was only there for 8 days and did not drive. It was more of a warning from the tour guide. I do not know if that is a factual rule or not.
Again, I appreciate your "rant" because you taught me something about other parts of the world. Thank you! :-)
Thanks for dropping by!
Great Hub with a nice collection of broken laws that are a daily occurrence. I tend to speed 15 or so miles per hour over the limit. It drives my nuts when drivers don't use turn signals. But the number one broken law that I see daily is not yielding to pedestrians on zebra crossings, which basically means stop for pedestrians always. Drivers get pissed off that someone is crossing. Zebra crossing is universal law, all of Europe and Asia know what it means. USA drivers have no clue even when the sign is almost the size of a billboard, " Yield to Pedestrians" Sorry about the rant, great Hub.
- Author
FSlovenec, I am guilty too. Wow, I would definitely be more aware of the speed limit if I had to spend time in jail. I do not travel much, but my husband does. It is so different everywhere, even here in the states. It seems each state or even each city has its main problems.
Thanks fro dropping by! :-)
- Author
Hi IB, these are the the most commonly broken rules across the nation. I am sure there are worse driving violations in city traffic. Must be hard to schedule your time. So frustrating.
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
- Author
Thanks for dropping by and sharing! :-)
Nicely done! Speeding. I was in Ecuador a few weeks ago and found that for speeding on the highway the fine is 2 or 3 days in jail. People do not speed. In the city of Guayaquil they drive crazy and violate all or most of your other commonly Broken Driving Rules.
Thanks ..I am guilty on many counts.
sholland
These aren't the worst driving violations if you live in Southern California.
For example, on some freeways there are six or more lanes going in the same direction, and some drivers spend more time lane switching than moving forward. Then there is tailgating at speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour. These are just a few.
A nice reminder... of some rules we must follow...
thank you :)
- Author
Oh my, Sue, that was too close for comfort. I am so glad you were there to pull her back. Some people have no consideration when they are behind the wheel.
Thanks for dropping by and voting! :-)
Hi Sholland,
I don't drive. I see drivers speed by streetcars all the time, when there doors are open and passengers are exiting.
I was with my Mom when someone ran a red light at a cross walk. My mother was just starting to cross when I grabbed her as I noticed the speeding car approaching .
Voted up and awesome
Take care :)
- Author
SlackerMom, I am afraid each time one of my kids leaves the house too. It is so hard to let go when they start driving. And I am the same way - if I catch them texting and driving, they are in big trouble.
Thanks for dropping by and voting! :-)
- Author
Hi Kathleen! Yep, everyone is faithful with their turn signals at the light or the turn lane. Stomping on the brake to go to the shopping center, or whatever, is what gets me.
I bet the statistic about red light runners is true. I am very cautious before I go on green because I have seen accidents for running a red light.
Thanks for dropping by!
- Author
Hey Tammy, I hate it when someone is tailgating, too. I hold onto the door or, if there is one, the "oh sh!#" bar when I am riding with a couple of family members who are habitual tailgaters. LOL
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
Interesting hub . I see at least one of these every time I drive especially speeding but I think I am equally frustrating to other drivers because I the one you always have to pass because I drive like I've got a year to move a mile. I have two teenagers who drive now and I am always so nervous when they're out driving alone because of the way I see other teens drive.
In addition to the violations you mentioned, I am terrified at the thought of texting while driving. That is my top driving no-no for my kids, if I find out they talk or text while driving...BIG TROUBLE..
Awesome hub-Thumbs up
What amazes me is how faithfully drivers will put on their turn signal when waiting in a turn only lane for the green arrow to come on. It is one of the only places you'll see drivers signalling - when it is useless!
Someone wrote recently that if we could get the drivers off the road who run red lights, traffic accidents could be reduced by 50 percent. It is just about the most dangerous thing you can do on the road.
Great information!
These things are so true! I really, really don't understand why a person won't use a turn signal. It benefits the driver more than it does other people. Why risk being rear ended? I don't like tailgaiters either. Great hub!
- Author
ALocsin, it seems many of our highways and freeways are like that. It may be safer to go with the flow when slowing down might cause more problems.
Thanks for dropping by and the votes! :-)
I'm afraid I'm guilty of speeding -- here in Southern California, if you drive less than 10 miles over the speed limit, it's considered driving too slow. Voting this Up and Interesting.
- Author
Thanks, Carol. I think I just skimmed the top of traffic violations, though. I am amazed there aren't more tickets too.
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
I think you pretty well covered all the mistakes we drivers make. It is amazing that more tickets are not given. Sometimes I feel people get away with murder. Thanks for bringing to light this ever continuing problem.
- Author
Thomas, was that your car in the median? Well, if you follow the rules on stopping for the school bus and for the red light, I guess I won't report you. You need to work on it, though.
Your question about "idiot"... That was the nicest term I could remember hearing my husband say when he gets upset with other drivers. HP's would make me take the hub down if I used the other, more commonly used words. ;-)
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
Susan,
So you mean "idiot" isn't a car term for, "Go ahead and have a nice day?" Well you got me on a few of these...to whit...I drift over the medium, occasionally speed, and use the turn indicators as an afterthought once I'm where I want to be. I do always stop for school buses and never run red lights though...I have my limits!
Thanks,
Thomas
- Author
PenLady, it does seem we have to be more defensive when we drive now. Breaking the rules can cause people to have road rage, which in turn can create worse problems.
If everyone could just follow the rules and be considerate, the roads would be a much safer place.
Thanks for dropping by and the votes! :-)
I'm glad you did this hub. Bad driving is a major issue that's causing too many people to lose their lives.
I used to like driving, but because people have become so rude over the years to the point of physically harming one another, I don't enjoy it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm appreciative for having a driver's license, but the people you must share the road with is no joy these days. And it's all because they break the rules you listed in this hub.
Excellent job, sholland10. Voted up and interesting.
- Author
Hi Bill! I know what you mean about having seen just about everything. Then, when I think I have seen it all, someone comes along and surprises me. I also believe drivers are worse today because there are more people driving. We have to be defensive drivers now.
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
- Author
Alecia, I agree. These are just rules of common courtesy. As I grow older, I see how important it is to stick to these rules. Not using a turn signal is a big one... I know what you mean about the driver behind you thinking, "What the...?" when you have to slam on your breaks for the person who didn't use a turn signal.
Thanks for dropping by!! :-)
- Author
Hey Susan! Maybe it is an US thing. Preventative measures are being taken, though, by putting up barriers in the medians. Where I live, it is not uncommon to see someone make a U-turn in the middle of the highway.
I have been guilty of almost all of these...
Thanks for dropping by! :-)
The older I get the more infractions I see...drivers are far worse today....the median one surprised me. Good job Susan!
Driving is easy if everyone does their part but unfortunately that doesn't happen to much anymore. #3 has to be the most irritating for me and that's especially when someone else is behind me wondering why I stopped. Signaling is common courtesy just like speaking to someone when you come into a building- people need to know you are there. Good job!
I'm surprised to see crossing the median at number 4, only because I don't see this happen very much. I've been guilty of speeding and running red lights. Interesting hub.
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