thestaggy
Honorary Master
We all know that taxis would crop up at the top of every South Africa drivers ''hate'' list, but I find it pointless to complain anymore as, a) they won't change & b) government/traffic authorities will do nothing to ensure they change their on-the-road behaviour. But one thing that really, REALLY irks me and is becoming very common on our roads, is the incorrect use of indicators.
By definition, an indicator is intended to indicate your intention to turn/change lanes to road users behind you. A warning. BUT, it seems this escapes the vast majority of road users. The amount of times I've just had folks bomb on the brakes in front of me, indicate, and then turn is just ridiculous. Indicating as you turn is pointless as you are doing what you were supposed to warn me about a few hundred meters up the road so I could a) prepare myself to
stop, b) change lanes to continue my progress, or c) backoff in case you have to come to a stand-still before turning.
Or, when you are at a fourway stop and someone hoots at you because you ''jumped the stop street and cut him off''. What the clown failed to do was inidcate. By sitting at a stop street with no indicators on I am going to assume that you are going straight and not attempting to turn across my path and so I'm gonna move off.
What is sorely lacking on our roads is a viable traffic force that actively enforces the rules of our roads. It's no good sitting in a bush with a camera. Drivers get used to that and back off momentarily, clear the camera, and then continue to drive like they are the only vehicle on the road. And for me, the correct use of indicators is a major point as I'm sure many a bumper bashing can be avoided with the correct use of indicators. Let other people on the road know what you are going to do instead of surprising them.
By definition, an indicator is intended to indicate your intention to turn/change lanes to road users behind you. A warning. BUT, it seems this escapes the vast majority of road users. The amount of times I've just had folks bomb on the brakes in front of me, indicate, and then turn is just ridiculous. Indicating as you turn is pointless as you are doing what you were supposed to warn me about a few hundred meters up the road so I could a) prepare myself to
stop, b) change lanes to continue my progress, or c) backoff in case you have to come to a stand-still before turning.
Or, when you are at a fourway stop and someone hoots at you because you ''jumped the stop street and cut him off''. What the clown failed to do was inidcate. By sitting at a stop street with no indicators on I am going to assume that you are going straight and not attempting to turn across my path and so I'm gonna move off.
What is sorely lacking on our roads is a viable traffic force that actively enforces the rules of our roads. It's no good sitting in a bush with a camera. Drivers get used to that and back off momentarily, clear the camera, and then continue to drive like they are the only vehicle on the road. And for me, the correct use of indicators is a major point as I'm sure many a bumper bashing can be avoided with the correct use of indicators. Let other people on the road know what you are going to do instead of surprising them.
