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Houston Drivers


Errestaurants

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I live this crap everyday. My commute is not too bad and I do drive to many job sites during the day, so I spend some time on the roads around Houston.

Everywhere one goes on the highways there are drivers hauling ass and weaving through traffic.  Not just 5-10 mph over the limit but 15-25 or better.  Just yesterday I was coming back from Katy on I-10 and traffic was moderate.  I doing about 70 and here he comes,  a guy clocking at least 90 and crazily cutting from lane to lane, Joie Chitwood style acrobatics. Nary a traffic cop in sight.  

You hardly ever see one in traffic for traffic's sake.  Many times you do see HPD, HCSO or a precinct constable  in traffic on the freeways and they can be doing 65, get passed by some fool and they do nothing.  Must be more money in hanging out at the U-turn lanes under the overpasses and writing tickets for seatbelt infractions.

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Couple of things.  I think Texas (in general) has a bad combo of drivers driving far too fast as well as drivers driving far too slowly.  When I lived in TN, I often saw the latter but rarely the former.  That could be an issue re: fatalities.

Secondly, I lost my shit almost every day last month when driving downtown (Dallas) for jury duty.  You know.  If folks would stop driving 90 and weaving in and out of traffic, perhaps there wouldn't be so many wrecks causing traffic.

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I always act as if the cross traffic at an intersection does not have a red light when my light does turn green. I wait a second or two and look both ways as I drive through the intersection. I’ve seen too many very late red light runners to act any differently. I think Houston must be the red light running capital of the world.

 

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agree with hate.

 

As far as the freeways, if people could merge properly at highway speeds, as opposed to 40mph; as well as exit at highway speeds and use the offramp as intended for decelleration, that would be just great.  But that's unpossible.

 

We don't even want to start to discuss the idiotic motherfuckers in the left two lanes, lollygagging the fuck around and then wondering why traffic has to weave around them to make progress.  If you're not passing someone, get the fuck over.  It's that gotdam simple.  Again, unpossible.

These are the two biggest factors in fucked up highway traffic.  easily solved... but people would have to get their heads out of their asses.

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Part of Houston's problems are because of it's diversity.  If someone grew up learning to drive by watching their parents, who grew up learning from their parents, it makes a huge difference.  We have so  many drivers here who didn't learn from their parents, or who grew up learning from parents who aren't from here. 

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5 hours ago, Errestaurants said:

We're Number 1!   We're Number 1!  We're Number 1!

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1 hour ago, PRONG HORN said:

Part of Houston's problems are because of it's diversity.  If someone grew up learning to drive by watching their parents, who grew up learning from their parents, it makes a huge difference.  We have so  many drivers here who didn't learn from their parents, or who grew up learning from parents who aren't from here. 

So, if from here and learned by parents is good, and not from here and learned from parents is bad?  I'm confused...but then again, I'm not from here and learned by my parents...

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1 minute ago, Stella Link said:

So, if from here and learned by parents is good, and not from here and learned from parents is bad?  I'm confused...but then again, I'm not from here and learned by my parents...

 

Drivers who learned from parents who learned to drive in the US are good.  Drivers who learned in a different country, or learned from parents from another country are worse.  

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I will say this. If you drive in Houston you have to drive aggressively or else it'll take forever or you'll end up in an accident. The city freeways taught me more about defensive driving than anything else.

Also when driving on a freeway, regardless of what city you're in, spacing is your friend. Kinda hard to get hit or hit someone when you don't have anyone around to do it. 

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290 might be the worst freeway I've ever driven on. People going 15-20 over, weaving in and out of traffic, while there are concrete blockades in place of shoulders because of the expansion was maddening. I haven't driven on it in a while, and I'm glad I don't have to. I swear at least half of the cars doing that were lifted F-250s that had never seen a speck of mud or a driver with a dick longer than 3".

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2 hours ago, George Clooney said:

290 might be the worst freeway I've ever driven on. People going 15-20 over, weaving in and out of traffic, while there are concrete blockades in place of shoulders because of the expansion was maddening. I haven't driven on it in a while, and I'm glad I don't have to. I swear at least half of the cars doing that were lifted F-250s that had never seen a speck of mud or a driver with a dick longer than 3".

That's a lot of dicks to check

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8 hours ago, Patricio Swayze said:

You are making that up and it it seems a touch racist.

Maybe he made it up and maybe he is racist, but I found this stat for the US interesting: The horizontal axis reads caucasian, black, asian, hispanic, average. https://www.statista.com/statistics/200970/percentage-of-americans-without-health-insurance-by-race-ethnicity/

200970-blank-754.png

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290 might be the worst freeway I've ever driven on. People going 15-20 over, weaving in and out of traffic, while there are concrete blockades in place of shoulders because of the expansion was maddening. I haven't driven on it in a while, and I'm glad I don't have to. I swear at least half of the cars doing that were lifted F-250s that had never seen a speck of mud or a driver with a dick longer than 3".

I drive it often as I live out near JV. And your opinion is right. However, it is completed and open inbound from the beltway to 610, and it’s glorious. When I commute downtown early in the morning, it takes me 30 minutes door-to-door (could be less, but I like to cut up studemont to Allen parkway). It is mostly open outbound at the same points, but narrows around pinemont.
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29 minutes ago, Patricio Swayze said:


I drive it often as I live out near JV. And your opinion is right. However, it is completed and open inbound from the beltway to 610, and it’s glorious. When I commute downtown early in the morning, it takes me 30 minutes door-to-door (could be less, but I like to cut up studemont to Allen parkway). It is mostly open outbound at the same points, but narrows around pinemont.

I'm outside the beltway, I cannot figure out why it's taken 5 years for this construction. It feels like they do one side one year, then switch to the other side the next year and then go back to the side they've already done the year after that and so on. At one point they split the highway in two different paths at 290 and the beltway, not sure how I didn't hear about more crashes there.

It's slowly getting better, but I'm sure it's upped the crash rate by a great deal. When you add that to what are already horrible intersections like 59N 610 interchange and that's how you become #1. 

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7 hours ago, PRONG HORN said:

Part of Houston's problems are because of it's diversity.  If someone grew up learning to drive by watching their parents, who grew up learning from their parents, it makes a huge difference.  We have so  many drivers here who didn't learn from their parents, or who grew up learning from parents who aren't from here. 

 I do think there is truth that a good driver makes a better teacher to their kids than a bad driver.   And yes, learning from someone from another country may not be good as they could be used to different laws or etiquette.   But it also doesn’t mean that an American born driver can’t be horrible as well.

As someone that commutes on streets not freeways in Houston, the problem is slow drivers.  On the streets during a commute, it’s impossible to speed.  But you sure as hell can decide to drive 10 under the limit, leading to multiple cars behind you trying to get out of the lane.   

Generally the worst problem is selfishness of drivers.  Let me finish this Instagram post before i notice the light is green.  I couldn’t switch lanes in time to make that turn, so I will full on stop and wait for someone to let me in instead for driving 200 feet to the next street to turn.  

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1 minute ago, Viper said:

I'm outside the beltway, I cannot figure out why it's taken 5 years for this construction. It feels like they do one side one year, then switch to the other side the next year and then go back to the side they've already done the year after that and so on. At one point they split the highway in two different paths at 290 and the beltway, not sure how I didn't hear about more crashes there.

It's slowly getting better, but I'm sure it's upped the crash rate by a great deal. When you add that to what are already horrible intersections like 59N 610 interchange and that's how you become #1. 

I believe that one of the major contractors for the 290 construction went bankrupt during the construcution which led to them rebidding some of it.  Still it’s not easy to rebuild a freeway on top of the old one.

I used to believe that it might be better to shut down major highways for a year when reconstructing them.  Should be a fast rebuild if you don’t worry about always leaving lanes open. Then I saw some of the worst-ever city wide traffic problems after Harvey with the western beltway and a few other roads were closed for a few weeks.   It’s was a bad Houston traffic day times 5. 

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8 hours ago, clapclapclap said:

I picture slorch angrily vigilante tailgating using a tow truck, but with a giant cartoon Yosemite Sam head and mustache, pumping guns up with both arms while driving with his knees, cartoon cussing.

Great image, but not a tailgater. 

 

People do need to GTFO of the way though. It’s a massive disrespect for others. 

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34 minutes ago, Viper said:

I'm outside the beltway, I cannot figure out why it's taken 5 years for this construction. It feels like they do one side one year, then switch to the other side the next year and then go back to the side they've already done the year after that and so on. At one point they split the highway in two different paths at 290 and the beltway, not sure how I didn't hear about more crashes there.

It's slowly getting better, but I'm sure it's upped the crash rate by a great deal. When you add that to what are already horrible intersections like 59N 610 interchange and that's how you become #1. 

I think there’s no place for them to store the barrels. 

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and then there is this.  I avoid I-45 and the Beltway at all costs.  

https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/metal-pole-pierces-womans-windshield-on-i-45-in-spring/285-591241798

591238027_750x422.jpg

591238343_750x422.jpg

SPRING, Texas – A metal pole crashed through a woman’s windshield near I-45 and FM 1960 in Spring.

Fortunately, the woman was not severely injured. She was treated on scene for cuts from flying glass, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies said an 18-wheeler got into an accident and some of the metal poles it was hauling came off.

The driver directly behind the 18-wheeler rolled over a pole. The pole popped one of his tires before it flew into the air and pierced the woman’s windshield on the passenger side.

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One time I almost got in a massive pileup caused by a GRILL that had fallen out of someone's truck bed on I-45. That was a wonderful experience.

I'm impressed by the amount of people I see drive over the pylons to get into the managed lanes on I-10 when they see traffic starting to back up but they didn't want to pay the toll.

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49 minutes ago, Hate said:

and then there is this.  I avoid I-45 and the Beltway at all costs.  

https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/metal-pole-pierces-womans-windshield-on-i-45-in-spring/285-591241798

591238027_750x422.jpg

591238343_750x422.jpg

SPRING, Texas – A metal pole crashed through a woman’s windshield near I-45 and FM 1960 in Spring.

Fortunately, the woman was not severely injured. She was treated on scene for cuts from flying glass, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies said an 18-wheeler got into an accident and some of the metal poles it was hauling came off.

The driver directly behind the 18-wheeler rolled over a pole. The pole popped one of his tires before it flew into the air and pierced the woman’s windshield on the passenger side.

This was an awesome scene in Final Destination 2

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2 minutes ago, Viper said:

This was an awesome scene in Final Destination 2

My dad stopped after an accident in Houston when someone slammed into the back of an 18 wheeler. The person was decapitated so he just went back to his car and went on to work. I would think it would be pretty traumatic to see a head separated from the body but he was a doctor in the Navy during Vietnam so he has probably seen it all.  Another time when he was doing his residency he thought someone had placed a wood splint on a patient: In reality, the guy had run into a fence and a fence post went through the guy from the groin into his back.

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35 minutes ago, BrickHorn said:

^^^^This.  The highways in Houston are littered with shit.  Every time I drive there, I have to swerve to avoid running over obstacles like mattresses, pallets, and bags of garbage.

I remember being on a highway in downtown, 45 I think and a small 2x4 just came flying right to my windshield from out of no where. You can see the number it did on my windshield below

lNvhV09KulS6mnYOciCi88bmP1A4PtThQcHd7kF4X4-oCGjYCzsvUJUnVtQhpo-rApHeJFjebkXVtUXGTJ9m0F3flnGdTjA_05gS0s5ONykFVd31L6xphXt62dC-4DCy2DklwoAQwaVZPSDx4Uq41OLgj0UfZp44h8wT9Qif6ye0ypAPALbuwsOKTq2HjeMLJ6z5A1_ZGTullOgXhs_Hm2mfVV8SeCefb83IcSNuAZTXeb1ZHavv0rNLw7DPWdPxjMwlPlw6z8I22WmS5X4PMXQiqMJ_apG9QGDMUwiCat8BWpDEqDftxw4yUTuAvR4xsecjMwuOti94FKV4ZTR6D9Xa_38lHfDyQtKJZsmGkcy9ypBf8S2LAhYP4Cq7Q-Fpu5r6uQZepNBvl3Q3E5vKDVq6JX0D_SLY4jO5NaqUGvwEYDOPfmDbHkMFPg7fYdB3Aeun2UUgqAY7yAVKzCGI-0c2dK-L1QqK97L4S2R2sHowvUk_nexhTc-7n7o-QEERIPWaNYlm05FT-_83PVVBCXbPOdwHsjTTznhYbYXUA6hPr8wiR3Xp_1vP4Jpt4zWNQWG24F7Tv2kG6PojXbfg0Xkyc3bFcKOCzlXbQjOXrQAhPOycYSjhW6DieAikzhOc=w555-h739-no

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Changing the subject for a second, Cedar Park to Houston (Meyerland or possibly Memorial depending if I see family), would you choose 290 or 71 on a Sunday? I use to always go 71 back in the day but now traffic seems to always be a pain in the ass in Bastrop.

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Native Houstonian here. I went back for a couple of years and I’ve also driven all over the country. Houston is fine, just a lot of people driving long distances daily to skew the numbers.
West Austin is the absolute worst area I’ve encountered. Entitled rich fucks giving no fucks, Prius drivers and olds are a bad mix. Texting while driving, speeding, driving 40 in a 55 passing at 100mph in the median, coming to a complete stop on 620 to turn right. I’ve been in 3 wrecks in 5 years and none were my fault. I was rear ended once by a BMW bro who was texting when he plowed into me while I was sitting at a red light, about 40 yards from another accident that was still being cleaned up.

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3 hours ago, Viper said:

I'm outside the beltway, I cannot figure out why it's taken 5 years for this construction. It feels like they do one side one year, then switch to the other side the next year and then go back to the side they've already done the year after that and so on. At one point they split the highway in two different paths at 290 and the beltway, not sure how I didn't hear about more crashes there.

It's slowly getting better, but I'm sure it's upped the crash rate by a great deal. When you add that to what are already horrible intersections like 59N 610 interchange and that's how you become #1. 

Grupo Tredeco out of Old Mexico done went bankrupt during the construction and got canned.  Williams Brothers to the rescue.

 

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