Day two of driving 55

[sylvar]

That crazy driver behind me was really up my tailpipe this morning. I looked back in the rear-view mirror and she made a rude, condescending gesture with the back of her hand, fingers splayed out beneath and sweeping forward a few times, as if I were a cat who needed to be shooed out of her way. I made another gesture, then followed it up with a leftward jerk of my thumb to tell her to go ahead and pass me if she were in a hurry. But she stuck to my bumper like I had a trunk full of neodymium magnets, and as soon as I was boxed in by a passing semi, she sped up to intimidate me. Honestly, I was tempted to use my brakes to get her to back off me, but I realized that my car was much smaller than her school bus. Ahem. I'm glad I got her bus number before she turned onto I-4.

Seriously. I expect a certain amount of aggression from my fellow drivers, but I also expect people to refrain from aggressive, intimidating, and dangerous driving when their vehicle is full of children. And I believe that Hillsborough County Schools expects the same.

Photo: "School Bus Top" by Todd Klassy
 

Comments

[trunkbutt.livejournal.com]

I've always felt a perverse pleasure when ratting out bus drivers who drive agressively. It pisses me off because no one with an assload of kids in their care should be fucking around. Grrrr.

[sylvar.livejournal.com]

AMEN SISTAH

[tealfroglette.livejournal.com]

i am glad you are reporting this driver tailgating and being rude.


Are you on roads with speed limits 'over 55' and they are trying to speed, or are you driving 55 on a highway with a higher limit, and what are the limits?

IS the 55 for fuel economy?

Did you see the jamie and adam mythbuster where they proved that driving over 55 with windows down cost more gas usually than w/ ac? ;)

[sylvar.livejournal.com]

I-75 in my area has a speed limit of 70mph, and many people regularly do 75-80 in the fast lane.

Yes, 55mph is for fuel efficiency.

No, I didn't see Mythbusters, and I would LOVE to use air conditioning, but we need a new compressor. Between parts and labor, that costs $900, and I have other things to throw that money at right now. Getting our cats' teeth cleaned, including sedation and bloodwork, will cost $600 or so. We're expected to go to my cousin's wedding, which will be great but will probably cost $700-800. I would dearly love to replace my old camera for $600-700. Throw in air conditioning and pretty soon it adds up to real money.

[tiger-stripes.livejournal.com]

Me too. I hated school bus drivers as a kid, so that probably helps with my perversity of it :-)

It still scares me that school buses do not have seatbelts.

[knobody.livejournal.com]

i don't know about all new busses, but the bus at sagan's school has three lap belts/seat (color coded so they don't get confused). also, part of the safety in school busses is based on compartmentalization, not restraint. high padded seats keep kids confined to a relatively small volume limiting forward and backward motion during a crash. no, it does nothing for rolls and bumps where children leave the seats, but it's better than the perceived nothing. and with the large size/mass of a school bus, rolls are much less common.

[wyldemusick.livejournal.com]

School bus drivers have been known to be some of the worst psychos on the planet. Regular bus drivrs can be wild too -- I ended up reporting one who was a complete asshole to passengers and had this thing of running his bus right up behind cars in front of him and then leaning on the horn. Scariest bus ride I've ever had, and especially unpleasant as I was nearly blind at the time and he refused to let me know when my stop was coming up (I ended up missing it, having to go around the houses to get home, and wound up missing a scheduled appointment a a result.) Another driver had to be reported for being drunk on the job -- actions and smell were a giveaway there. Yeesh.

Makes me understand why I'm agoraphobic.....

[gardenwaltz.livejournal.com]

i understand your goals, but if the speed limit is 70, i would drive at least 60. around here, the school buses drive 40 on the highway and i'm surprised there have not been accidents with everyone dodging out of their way.

[cbustapeck.livejournal.com]

Be careful!

The only problem (other than the other idiots on the road) with driving in a fuel efficient manner is that you don't feel like you're going anywhere. You've hit that perfect spot just after your car upshifts to the higest gear and it seems as though you aren't moving.

Good luck with that. I'll be interested to see how your numbers end up.

[shlafe.livejournal.com]

I saw a "film" on CNN that some students in Atlanta did. They went the speed limit on the highway in all four lanes, and within five minutes, they had traffic backed up a few miles. It was actually really funny to watch, and they weren't doing anything illegal.

[sylvar.livejournal.com]

Oh, you mean this one?

[shlafe.livejournal.com]

Yup. That's the one. The clip on CNN was only the cars driving, not the commentary or beforehand stuff. Thanks for finding the whole thing.