Why I hate bad drivers

I'm an opinionated little (well, relatively...) so-and-so, as you have probably gathered by now; those of you who know me personally know that, coupled with my easy-going personality it helps endear me to all and sundry. And ha-ha to you too!

I have grown up loving mechanised transport, from my early bicycle days to motorbikes and motorcars, and I have done many foolish things whilst in control - at least nominally - of all of them. The tumbles off bicycles and motorbikes, the broken legs/teeth, the grazed legs/arms,  they are all testaments to a misspent youth doing silly things, often for silly reasons. But, in fairness, they happened a long time ago and were part of growing up and learning. And learn I did, and did so well, so that after more than half a million miles driving around in various motorcars/motorcycles/bicycles I am a mature, considerate and extremely safe driver/rider - this is an opinion voiced by many others, incidentally, and is not mine alone!

Not so everyone on the road, though. Just observing fellow road users over a short period will fill us with horror, as people's driving behaviour seems more like an expression of their character and individuality rather than of someone operating as part of a complex transport system. But that is exactly what individual drivers are: cogs in a complex system not formally connected and, until that is fully understood, the system will have constant problems, i.e. accidents.

In one of my previous posts I spoke about selfishness, which is something that has absolutely no place when one is on the road and in charge of a motor vehicle. Selfish driving is rude, wasteful and, above all, dangerous; it includes the arrogant presumption of superiority (and, therefore, priority) over other road users based on some perception known only to the person responsible. These people are major idiots, make no mistake, doing seriously stupid things. Some are just annoying, such as the idiot parking in the middle of four spaces at a shopping centre car park so that no lesser mortal can park next to their sacred chariot. Some are just inconsiderate, not taking the needs of the rest of the world into account, so they park carelessly and leave empty spaces that, if taken up, would allow maybe another vehicle to find a parking spot - this usually (but not exclusively) happens where parking space is scarce, thus depriving other motorists who are part of this complex system. Others can be deadly to themselves and others, speeding wildly through built up areas, overtaking on blind corners and driving way over their capabilities because they see themselves either as racing drivers or some form of road warrior.

Some of the selfish people have arrived there because they are particularly well off, drive an exceptional and expensive motorcar and want everyone to know that they are, therefore, special in some way. They are usually, however, not particularly special drivers and often come unstuck when they try too hard, as exceptional motorcars can take skill to drive quickly. Unfortunately in the present, illogical financial climate more and more money is being spent on road cars that are racing vehicles dressed up for the road; some can even be seen parked on London streets and pottering around town, something they are singularly unsuited for. They are badges of wealth and privilege, designed to near Formula 1 standards but whose drivers need no qualifications other than money to drive them.


But selfish drivers are not all insanely wealthy, driving Lamborghinis and McLarens. Often they're driving a souped-up Ford of some description - a Fiesta? - or something equally mundane, but rapid, noisy and VERY boy (very few girls are as foolish) racer. Oh how they misbehave on urban and suburban roads, brutally speeding in crowded streets making aggressive noises and threatening other road users and pedestrians alike with their antisocial behaviour and their pimply sneering faces. And, you know, an out of control cheap car is just as dangerous - if not more - than an out of control expensive car, and just as deadly.

Motor vehicles have given us as individuals amazing freedom and terrific pleasure over the last one hundred and a bit years, with the ability to move about flexibly and travel cheaply and easily, yet all this is threatened by bad drivers and their (mis)behaviour. Somehow we consider driving to be a sort of birthright and a licence deserved irrespective of the abilities and skills of the individual, to the point where some people who cannot pass the test on merit will cheat to acquire a licence. I wonder how they would feel if they were travelling on an aeroplane that was coming in to land, only for the pilot to announce: 'As I was only able to get my pilot's licence by deceit and cannot necessarily do everything properly we may not be able to land safely...' And before you complain that it is a completely different matter think about it - all that's really different is the scale.

Driving is not a birthright and people who cannot drive properly should not drive at all.