Bad habits die hard: What really gripes you about other drivers?Back

We all know what we think constitutes bad driving, but what are the niggling habits you see on the road that really get your back up?

It’s a rare driver who can go on any significant journey without being annoyed by other motorists. Whether it’s their actual driving style, which may include undertaking and tailgating, or what they get up to behind the wheel, be it eating a sandwich in the fast lane or talking on the phone while navigating a winding country road, we all have stories of annoying driving and drivers.

So what are my pet peeves when it comes to driving etiquette?

• Undertaking: You’ve left a safe amount of distance between yourself and the car in front, but you know from that the person accelerating in the inside lane sees that chunk of road as an opportunity to get further down the road.

• Rubber neckers: You sit in a queue of slow moving traffic for an eternity only to find its because people on your side of the road are slowing down to gawp at an accident on the other side.

• Early indicators: You’re on the motorway and someone in front of you indicates that they would like to move out into your lane. Seems reasonable enough you might say, except for the fact that there is no space for them to move into and you’re now uncertain about their intentions.

• Tailgating: These drivers love nothing more than sitting of your rear bumper and attempting to bully you out of the way. Do you let them have the satisfaction of succeeding?

• Petrol station shoppers: Proving that you don’t even need to move to be an annoying driver, there is a certain breed of shopper who will fill up and then do what seems like their weekly shop in the garage, all the while leaving their car to block the petrol pump.

Although it seems that only other drivers can incur my wrath, when we talked about this in the office it seems that passengers are also a source of annoyance. We have all experienced back seat driving from time-to-time, but it’s not only passengers sharing their driving tips that causes irritation.

On long journeys passengers can annoy people in any number of ways it seems, from the way they eat an apple to ‘shadow driving’ – pressing down on non-existent pedals in the passenger’s foot well.

If an Englishman’s home is his castle, then his car is definitely his trusty steed. I think that the pride and close personal association we have with our cars and the way we drive means that anyone that doesn’t subscribe to similar motoring views is considered an irritation.

What do you think? Tell us your motoring peeves in the comments.

Posted by Leana Kell on 27/06/2011