Common Driving distractions [Archive] - SV650.org

JediGoat

09-01-08, 04:56 PM

the_lone_wolf

09-01-08, 04:58 PM

haha, someone at the BBC has a sense of humour:mrgreen:

Alpinestarhero

09-01-08, 04:59 PM

Damn, looks like I'll have to pull over and make my tea whilst stationary, rather than brewing it and pouring it and drinking it (dont forget the pinkie) while riding along the A406

Matt

$tevo

09-01-08, 05:04 PM

Using a teapot? Crazy - I always use a flask

missyburd

09-01-08, 05:08 PM

Same with "Shaving or applying make up". Must be damn tricky trying to shave your legs in the car...

Biker Biggles

09-01-08, 05:22 PM

I find changing the CD stops me from sleeping properly and drinking tea at the wheel has the same effect.A pillow on top of the tank bag is a good idea.:rolleyes:

metalmonkey

09-01-08, 05:29 PM

The beeb website has an article about the new sentence of causing death by careless driving (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7178120.stm)

In this report, there is a list of 'common distractions' when driving, and they include obvious ones i.e. mobile phones, lighthing a ciggie, changing CD.......and an utterly bizarre one:

Eating at the wheel or using items like teapots

Eh? :shock: :smt104

I have to say.....I've yet to see someone serving tea while driving...but I guess there's a first time for everything!

Jo

The best one I heard was from one of the guy on bike safe, this idiot in a car had rigged up the car so he work on the computer email people whilst driving along...

The bike cop said he even read a few of the idiots emails didn't even notice he was there, before pulling him over.

My worst one when I was on a call on blues/two's with the driver, this car being a new one had an air horn as well:thumleft: Any way this guy was guy was so busy talking on phone and looking at the sat nav he didn't even notice us. Sat Nav's grr, they casue so many problems.

missyburd

09-01-08, 05:31 PM

Sat Nav's grr, they casue so many problems.

Would you say they were more distracting than the traditional map though? I personally prefer maps as long as I have studied it before the journey :)

metalmonkey

09-01-08, 05:46 PM

Would you say they were more distracting than the traditional map though? I personally prefer maps as long as I have studied it before the journey :)

Yes because people are watching them head down rather than looking where they are going. When your driving/riding you should be looking down the road, raised vison, planning on where you going take note of what going on.

By the time you see something in front of you its alreday happened and too late.

JediGoat

09-01-08, 05:57 PM

Yes because people are watching them head down rather than looking where they are going.

Really? Whereas great big road maps come with a handy sucker for you to stick to the windscreen at eye-level ;)

Sorry couldn't resist. :p

metalmonkey

09-01-08, 06:07 PM

Its the same thing, anything that take your attention from road is bad and can be dealt with.

neio79

09-01-08, 06:12 PM

GastonJ

09-01-08, 08:19 PM

The worst one I've seen is:

http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_2284034.html

Set fire to his cab while cooking sausages on his camping stove as he was driving. Wonder if his sausages were burnt. #-o

sinbad

09-01-08, 09:03 PM

the best one for me is pedestrians, so example you are distracted to avoid killing the kid that just ran in front of you and in the process hit an other car, killing the little old lady driving it. a lose lose situation there. So in that case you would be better off hitting the kid as at least you were paying atention when you hit him:rolleyes:

Haven't got a clue how you figured that out. Doesn't make a lick of sense to me :)
How would hitting the kid that steps in front of you make you seem like a more attentive driver than the one that takes evasive action and has an accident with another car?

GastonJ

09-01-08, 09:14 PM

Some are already banned from being done, like mobile phones and televisions. But I agree we should ban pedestrians and advertisements from the streets to make it more complete. That way there'd be less distractions for careless driving.

hovis

09-01-08, 10:12 PM

i somtimes take a cup of tea, and drink it on the way to work.

GastonJ

09-01-08, 10:45 PM

But do you put the camping stove on the passanger seat, boil the water, milk the cow on the back seat and make your tea? If not, then the German lorry driver still has you beat.

Speedy Claire

09-01-08, 11:05 PM

I was once copping a sneaky peak at a workman whilst driving along in a queue of traffic... it was summer, really hot and this guy was super fit, half dressed (apart from the reflective vest) and well worth the ogle. Next thing I felt "bump" and I`d slightly veered whilst ogling and run over the line of traffic cones!! The queue of traffic was held up for 10 mins whilst the workmen had to remove the cones from under my car!!

GastonJ

09-01-08, 11:11 PM

Serious careless driving offence you've comitted there then :idea: but banning workmen from the roads would cause less roadworks as well, and a lot less botched up road surfaces.

Speedy Claire

09-01-08, 11:13 PM

Serious careless driving offence you've comitted there then :idea: but banning workmen from the roads would cause less roadworks as well, and a lot less botched up road surfaces.

Ban workmen!!!! what else would I look at as I`m driving along??? :D ok, ban all workmen with builders bums but not the fit ones

gettin2dizzy

10-01-08, 07:40 AM

Yes because people are watching them head down rather than looking where they are going. When your driving/riding you should be looking down the road, raised vison, planning on where you going take note of what going on.

By the time you see something in front of you its alreday happened and too late.
I say the opposite; they only take a tiny glance to tell you exactly where you're going so you can focus on the roads entirely. I hate having to scrutinise the signs when in an unfamiliar area and it tends to cause erratic driving. In Wales especially it's a godsend as everything is written twice in Welsh and English; too much information when your doing 70mph trying to peer at a sign before a lorry pulls in the way!

The most common word on this forum must be 'ban'[-X

the_lone_wolf

10-01-08, 08:28 AM

Serious careless driving offence you've comitted there then :idea: but banning women from the roads would cause less accidents as well, and a lot less botched up car-parking attempts.
corrected for you;)

$tevo

10-01-08, 08:38 AM

Wonderbra adverts - how many people got maimed during that ad campaign? I got a couple of buckled wheels running up kerbs...

Pedro68

10-01-08, 09:13 AM

I hate having to scrutinise the signs when in an unfamiliar area and it tends to cause erratic driving.
With you on this one ... That's what led to my last speeding ticket (about 6 years ago now)

Driving out of Newcastle (or rather TRYING TO) ... Me and my mates were so busy reading overhead gantry signs looking for "A1(M) SOUTH" that we all totally missed the little discs attached to the lamp-posts that said 30.

So I carried on at 47mph, thinking I was still in a 50-zone. Mate says to me, "Hey, watch your speed, there's a copper down the bottom of the hill - speed trap by the looks". I look down at speedo and reply, "It's ok, I'm doing 47" :D

Copper waves at me to pull in ... 3pts + £60 fine :(

Fair play to my 2 mates in the car too ... because we ALL missed the signs they chipped in £20 each towards the fine :)

gettin2dizzy

10-01-08, 09:23 AM

With you on this one ... That's what led to my last speeding ticket (about 6 years ago now)

Driving out of Newcastle (or rather TRYING TO) ... Me and my mates were so busy reading overhead gantry signs looking for "A1(M) SOUTH" that we all totally missed the little discs attached to the lamp-posts that said 30.

So I carried on at 47mph, thinking I was still in a 50-zone. Mate says to me, "Hey, watch your speed, there's a copper down the bottom of the hill - speed trap by the looks". I look down at speedo and reply, "It's ok, I'm doing 47" :D

Copper waves at me to pull in ... 3pts + £60 fine :(

Fair play to my 2 mates in the car too ... because we ALL missed the signs they chipped in £20 each towards the fine :)

Last time I got stopped was for doing a loop around a roundabout without indicating; I was looking for the right turning for the M4 which wasn't there. I was stopped for erratic driving.

Whilst on the mention of missing signs; how much better are the motorway ones overhead! I always miss the ones on the side of the road; the lorries act like big censoring signs. (I'm not grumbling :))

missyburd

10-01-08, 12:48 PM

In Wales especially it's a godsend as everything is written twice in Welsh and English; too much information when your doing 70mph trying to peer at a sign before a lorry pulls in the way!

We found that problem when first driving down to uni, as we always looked at the first bit of writing on the signs which is usually Welsh (unless near the edge) and by the time we'd realised that's not what you want you've driven past it!! :rolleyes: Sort of get used to it though, and now I think my eyes are a little more tuned :)

yorkie_chris

10-01-08, 12:51 PM

God you must read slowly.

I could read 4 chapters of war and peace if someone would hold it up at the side of the road with the speed her mom drives at! :p

missyburd

10-01-08, 12:56 PM

God you must read slowly.

I could read 4 chapters of war and peace if someone would hold it up at the side of the road with the speed her mom drives at! :p

haha very funny. Least it gives me a chance as a passenger to admire the lovely Welsh countryside, I don't mind. And looking at some of the roads in Wales, cautious/slow driving is probably a good thing. Anyway a lot of the time it's due to the high population of tractors trundling about :rolleyes:

ok ok, she drives slow.....

yorkie_chris

10-01-08, 01:02 PM

Quite a few of those, granted, rolling chicanes are good practice :-P

However 55 on the M6 is taking the pi$$!

Bluepete

10-01-08, 01:04 PM

ok ok, she drives slow.....

Is this her? (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/7171154.stm) ;)

yorkie_chris

10-01-08, 01:07 PM

hehehe :D

(I think they could be related)

missyburd

10-01-08, 01:23 PM

hehehe :D

(I think they could be related)

:smt042 They could not!! how rude! And she is not that slow thankyou very much, just an average 40/50 mph that's all :rolleyes:

Tzindo

10-01-08, 04:29 PM

Speed cameras. They distract me - cos I am looking at the speedo to not speed and not the road to not run over granny.

metalmonkey

10-01-08, 04:40 PM

I say the opposite; they only take a tiny glance to tell you exactly where you're going so you can focus on the roads entirely. I hate having to scrutinise the signs when in an unfamiliar area and it tends to cause erratic driving. In Wales especially it's a godsend as everything is written twice in Welsh and English; too much information when your doing 70mph trying to peer at a sign before a lorry pulls in the way!

The most common word on this forum must be 'ban'[-X

Nope in my experince bad, I had one guy nearly crash into my dad's car casue of the sat nav.

Had another guy neraly take me off looking at one, I had another guy nearly crash into cop car, do you know why? Becasue they were following the Sat Nav. I was like Sir why did you just missing hit us, becasue the Sat Nav said to go that way, which also was no entry, being a one way street.

I hate the dam things.

gettin2dizzy

10-01-08, 04:44 PM

Nope in my experince bad, I had one guy nearly crash into my dad's car casue of the sat nav.

Had another guy neraly take me off looking at one, I had another guy nearly crash into cop car, do you know why? Becasue they were following the Sat Nav. I was like Sir why did you just missing hit us, becasue the Sat Nav said to go that way, which also was no entry, being a one way street.

I hate the dam things.
there will always be idiots on the road though; satnav or not. You can't rely on anything entirely.