Have driving standards deteriorated during lockdown ?

Norman_Castle

peter12345678910 said:

I drive every day being a key worker. And my driving has  worsened being so few cars ....just being more carefree and easy going....but not driving faster, but other cars are driving faster. Perhaps cops will be more hesitant to stop other drivers is a notion why.

But the air is better to breathe and being less cars lowers the probability of accidents.

I've spent most of today decorating next to a large bay window overlooking a busy road. Two police motorcyclists have been passing in both directions throughout the day. I saw them stop one car and based on them pointing back down the road I'd suspect it was to advise them about their questionable driving. I've also seen more traffic cars with blue lights over recent weeks.

When out driving there are a few, its a sunny Sunday, bank holiday, Christmas muppets around who've added lockdown to their excuses to drive like over exited children.

DD265

I've not really noticed it, but then I've not done that much driving.

What I have noticed is a lot more people parking on double yellows, right up to the junction at a busy cross roads with a zebra crossing - and some of them even on the zebra crossing. There's a chippy on the corner and I'm not sure if these people are collecting or picking up to deliver, but they're having to walk back on themselves to social distance queue so they may as well just park further back.

Supersonos

Ganga said:

Mercdriver said:

MinuteNoodles said:

Driving is a perishable skill, you don't use it it degrades.

Driving, no, concentration and consideration, yes.

some younger people never ever get to an acceptable standard although can pass their driving test!

The fact they pass their driving test means they do get to an acceptable standard.

Takmon

Ganga said:

Takmon said:

Ganga said:

We live in town and have or used to have dedicated bus only links in the villages ,these were opened up to the public as people complained they had to drive for an extra couple of minutes to circumvent these restrictions ,we have a one near us and the last couple of weeks someone has been driving through the narrow section of road at great speed, i have not seen them but have heard the car and it sounds like it is doing about 60 mph ,it is a 30 mph limit and the road is narrowed so pedestrians can cross safely, it is also restricted to one direction having priority, absolute madness by the driver but as has been said there appears to be little or no police vehicles/speed traps on the roads now.

Someone claiming to accurately judge a cars speed by observing it is flaky at best but saying you know a car is doing 60 just from the sound of it is bordering on the ridiculous!. 
I remember one of your kind when i was younger and had a loud exhaust on my car when i was driving through a town at below the 30 mph speed limit and this man was frantically waving his arms at me to slow down simply due to the noise of my car he must have thought i was going fast. 

Yes you are probably right ,i have only been driving for just over 50 years so what would i know , of course the guy could have been waving at you for making far too much noise but why would you care.

That makes no sense; how would the fact that you have been driving for 50 years mean that you are able to tell the speed a car is doing just by hearing it?. The sound a car makes from the inside at a certain speed is different to what it sounds like from the outside and different cars will make different sounds. 
An experienced driver like yourself should know that people do different waves when they mean different things and it's quite clear when someone is waving to mean "slow down".  

fuzzypanda35

I was taking a walk a few weeks back and saw someone just sail through a red light. Quite a busy road usually and there was nothing around but it made me think whether they'd have taken that risk in a normal situation, I'd suspect probably not.
Plenty of stories in the Midlands of cars hitting 120mph+ on the M6 toll as well.