| Re: Speed cameras and road safety keep drivers within 30mph speedlimit. |
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Group: uk.transport · Group Profile
Author: MortimerMortimer Date: Jul 26, 2008 06:25
> Abo gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:
>
>>> My insurance record shows that I'm doing very well, thank you.
>
>> My mother-in-law's insurance record shows likewise. What it doesn't
>> reveal is the fact that she daren't drive anywhere she knows really
>> *really* well and can't anywhere other than a standard parking bay
>> (parallel parking is definately not on the cards). But she's never had a
>> crash or points so the insurance companies think she's great.
>
> I used to work with somebody who deliberately made her commute route
> three times further than it needed to be, solely in order to avoid
> roundabouts or turning right. Because she "couldn't". When the office
> moved - from Hatfield to WGC, not very far at all - she actually resigned
> in a flood of tears because there wasn't a route she "could" drive.
>
> She'd never had a collision, either.
That's a very sad story. I hope I never get to the stage where I lack
confidence even to attempt certain manoeuvres, and let it govern what route
I take.
I do have preferences for some manoeuvres, but I won't totally rule out the
alternative:
- I prefer to turn round by reversing into a gateway or side road rather
than by doing a three-point turn - mainly because it's quicker and doesn't
block the opposite side of the road
- I prefer to drive forward into a parking space and reverse out into the
large space between the spaces (I know there's a Little-Endian/Big-Endian
split on this one!) - because:
a) I have a better view out of the front of the car to judge my
side-to-side positioning and the point when I need to stop to avoid hitting
what's in front, than I do out of the rear and side windows
b) I'm driving the car in the more usual mode (forwards, front-wheel
steering) for the manoeuvre where positioning is critical
c) the steering wheels are at the front in the direction that I'm going
in, so any small correction to lateral position only requires a small
movement of the steering wheel; when reversing in, you need to gauge your
lateral position accurately right from the outset because any error requires
you to swing the front end of the car (which is at the back in the direction
you are travelling) through a large angle to steer the rear end of the car
(which is at the front)
d) reversing into a parking space usually takes longer than driving in,
and I'm usually in more of a hurry to get somewhere when I arrive than I am
when I leave
- I find it much easier to parallel-park on the right-hand side of the road
because I can see the kerb and therefore judge better how close I can safely
get to it.
Until I got used to it, I always used to dread having to reverse into my
girlfriend's drive (which is necessary because reversing out into the road
would be dangerous) especially if I was a bit tired after along journey,
because the gap in the hedge is narrow and once you get past a certain point
you cannot see it at night because the reversing lights have gone past it; I
need to avoid her car; there's a low kerb between the drive and the lawn
which is invisible even if I move both my door mirrors fully downwards,
again it's unlit by the reversing lights at night. Strangely the lack of
visibility of the hedge and kerb doesn't seem to be a problem going forwards
as I did the first time!
But it's amazing what a bit of practice and a lot of scorn from SWMBO [1]
does for your ablility!
[1] A dogmatic statement "it *is* easier to reverse than to go forwards"
(not "I personally find it easier but you might be different to me". Mind
you, she was reversing tractors and trailers or cars and horseboxes
off-road, using only her door mirrors and not looking over her shoulder
through the rear window, before she even started having car driving lessons,
so she's had a lot of practice ;-)
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