Well, the idiot driver of the day yesterday would be a young woman in a black Toyota Matrix coming southbound on Highway 25 shortly after seven o'clock in the morning.
No, I was not just coming home - I was heading to the airport.
I had plenty of room to make the right turn off my sideroad onto the highway in front of this woman, but she decided she just had to pass me.
To do so she crossed a double solid yellow line - not that technically there's anything wrong with that, because contrary to popular belief, there's no law against that. In fact, there's no mention of yellow lane-marking lines anywhere in Ontario's Highway Traffic Act.
But there is a law against passing on a corner (it is also dangerous and stupid). She couldn't see what was coming towards her in the two northbound lanes at that point - the extra lane is to allow the gravel trucks to crawl up the Niagara Escarpment hill.
Right - head-on into a gravel truck. That sounds like a smart move.
She put herself and others at risk - for what? To get into a crocodile line of cars just one measly car ahead of where she had been? Because of the traffic there was nowhere she could go.
Wow.
Her net gain was actually a net loss, because later down the road where the southbound highway becomes two lanes she wasn't smart enough (or polite enough) to move into the right lane (admittedly, that's the Jim-only lane, but I'm always happy to share) so I re-passed her.
Why do people drive like this? I've been observing this sort of behaviour for - well, decades now, and I still just don't get it.
If any of you know a young woman who lives somewhere north of Milton - Acton perhaps, or maybe Rockwood - who owns a black Toyota Matrix and perhaps has a reputation for being an aggressive driver, might you ask her, then get back to me?
Thank you!
Blog posted here.
Jim, I know the situation well, but mostly from the other perspective. I'm sure you're an experienced enough driver that this is probably not what happened in your case. Anyway, I'm driving along the main highway, at, or a reasonable margin over the speed limit, and somebody pulls out from a sideroad ahead of me, usually without stopping, underestimating my speed (or maybe just ignoring me). Unless I reduce my speed, I will rear-end them or have to pass them. Often, if I'm annoyed enough and it's unsafe to pass, I'll come up close behind then before braking, rather than just lifting as soon as I see them turn, just to show them they made a mistake, because otherwise these people will never learn. Sadly, most of these people never look in their mirrors, or look before pulling out onto a highway.
Posted by: John B | July 07, 2010 at 04:03 PM
I'm glad you mentioned the double yellow, I had been told there was no law regarding passing over one but was uncertain. Do you know if this is also true in other provinces (or states)? I'm currently vacationing in the maritimes, which prompts my question.
Regardless of the law, at least the people who paint the lines and set the speed limits out here seem to have a bit more sense than their counterparts in Ontario.
Posted by: David | July 08, 2010 at 01:01 PM
Jim, great story to share with the countless idiot drivers out there. As for the crossing the double solid line - do you know if it is illegal in Quebec? When I was there I heard many stories about people either getting fined or failing their driving exam when crossing the double solid line.
Posted by: Mingo Jones | July 08, 2010 at 02:16 PM
Hmmm. Hang on there. If, as you say, you had plenty of room to pull out in front of her, why did she have the opportunity to pass you, rightly or wrongly? If she passed you, she would have had to apply the brakes to let you in which is just not cool to force someone to do. Agreeably, unsafe passing is a bad thing. Also, pulling out in front of someone causing them to brake on the highway is also a bad thing, both of which need to be avoided.
My mantra is 'it won't kill you to wait 5 seconds' and pull out behind the car you can see coming, not in front. Just sayin'.
Posted by: Kent Harrison | July 13, 2010 at 05:27 PM
It may not be illegal to cross a double yellow line (or a combined broken and solid line), but the whole point of the solid line is that it's there to indicate that passing is unsafe in that location (crest of a hill, curve, etc.):
http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/dandv/driver/handbook/section3.4.0.shtml
Posted by: Larry | July 18, 2010 at 11:26 PM
Hi Kent:
On this highway, you grab your opportunities where you find them. I was easily up to the speed limit (OK, maybe even a shade over...) before she caught up to me, so she had no need to brake. Except of course she was going WELL over the speed limit, and passed me just for the hell of it - on a blind corner!
Posted by: Jim Kenzie | July 19, 2010 at 09:39 PM
Hi Larry:
W/R/T yellow lines: True, the yellow lines are SUPPOSED to indicate where it is or is not safe to pass. My point was that it is not technically illegal to cross a solid yellow. And I have seen many cases where the line painters were both too conservative and WAY too liberal in their interpretation of what 'safe' is.
Posted by: Jim Kenzie | July 19, 2010 at 09:54 PM