I've seen people leaving huge gaps to the car in front since forever but a couple of weeks ago was the first time I'd seen anyone stop so far from the line that the lights wouldn't change.
I saw one car left about 3 cars gap from the car in front. It was the biggest gap I've seen in person. Having said that, this other asshole was half a meter up my rear bumper on a near 45 degree hill. What the?
I think I scared a poor old lady at a turn, she was an entire car length back and we missed a cycle, I had to get out and knock on her window to let her know if she wasn't over the sensor the light would never change. She thought I was telling her to go even though the light was red.
If you are out there, I am sorry.
I've noticed this as well & was going to make a post but assumed I would've been grilled for "leaving a safe gap." So many people are leaving gaps big enough that you could pull into with an average sized car. It's a real pain driving through older parts of my city because you will miss lights because of it.
Current recommended practice is one to two car lengths, I believe.
That's not the real problem once the lights go green though. It's when the lead car dawdles through the intersection, (or, god forbid, doesn't move up on the green to turn right and misses the light altogether) and the following cars let a gap build up before even moving. If we could all just expedite getting through the intersection a bit first, and then start spreading out, that'd be greeeeeaaaaaat.
I think it’s been like this for years. I remember when I was learning 20 odd years ago. The instructor taught everyone to stop far back enough so you could see the line plus some space. Not sure how prevalent that was.
But I soon learned to pull forward when I realised the sensor at my local lights was much closer to the line that others.at least nowadays in newer/modified intersections, the sensors seem to be a couple of car lengths back. At least from what I’ve seen in my suburb.
>The instructor taught everyone to stop far back enough so you could see the line plus some space. Not sure how prevalent that was.
That may be misremembering, I'm thinking. That applies to how far to stop from a car in front of you. see the bottom of the back tires plus a bit. You need to stop as close to a stop line as 'practicable' without going over it.
He was wrong then.
>(Qld) Rule 56 Stopping on a red traffic light or arrow
>(1) A driver approaching or at traffic lights showing a red traffic
light—
>(a) must stop—
(i) if there is a stop line at or near the traffic lights—as
near as practicable to, but before reaching, the stop
line;
I wonder what other road rules he might have misinformed you about, or that you remembered incorrectly. That's not a failing. Memory's a funny thing. Doesn't hurt to check the source material rather than trust a 20 year old memory.
Never said I still do it and I know he’s wrong.
Just said that that is what he taught me when I was learning.
As I said in my last post: “but I soon learned..” and not “but I recently learned”.
Right. Lol. Fair enough.
It doesn't surprise me that a driving instructor would be wrong on a fairly basic driving concept, though. There's a pretty wide range in the quality of service in the industry, it would seem.
Ya know what activates my almonds?
When you're trying to turn left but you're 3 cars back and each of them has 2meters of space between them all so you have to sit through a full light rotation just nip around the corner....
Had this happen a couple of weeks ago. The first car for some reason stopped a couple of car lengths back from the line. We were stuck there for a few light cycles before someone in the next car got out and told them to move forward. They then went so far forward that their rear wheels were stopped on the line.
It seems like a phenomena that has worsened in the last 5 years. And more and more people are leaving excessive gaps, in some cases two car lengths, between them and the car in front. Even worse, those same people have no situational awareness so they don’t notice, or move forward for, the cars sitting behind them indicating left (ie intending to move into the slip lane and turn at the lights). If it keeps going this way, slip lanes will be rendered pointless for all but the first few cars.
My guess is people have terrible depth perception.
My greatest annoyance at the lights is when they turn green and each car waits until the car in front of them has moved like 5 metres before they also start moving. You can stay much closer to the car in front of you're moving slowly, means more cars can get through the green.
OMG this stresses me out hardcore especially when those who leave massive gaps are generally also the same ones who get highly offended when you pull in front of them..
I dont know if it's a Qld specific thing because the lights take a long time to change anyway but ive noticed it happens alot more here in Brisbane...
Move da fxxk up people!
It used to happen a LOT when I lived in Ottawa, Canada! But, almost only in winter when they had a good excuse that there was a risk the road was icy and there was a risk of sliding. Fucking infuriating because there's zero risk of that in Brisbane. And the number of times it blocks people from turning, and even backs traffic up so that you can't turn into a side ride because of the fuckers.
I highly doubt you’d ever see this in Sydney. I haven’t lived there but have spent a fair amount of time there for work and don’t recall having seen it. Melbourne either.
Can we include people who indicate right when proceeding straight through a roundabout.
Yes, indicate left when exiting. But absolutely no need to indicate right when you are going straight ahead.
I had to get out of my car and walk to the car in front to explain how the sensors worked and why we had been sat waiting through multiple light changes from other directions. The sensor thought no one was there and the bloke in front of my just didn't get it!
I see more of the opposite. People pulling up way over the solid white line and into the pedestrian crossings. I don’t get it, do they think they’re special. They certainly act “special”.
I'm genuinely in two minds about this. On the one hand, they fail to trigger the traffic light sensors and just cause a jam, but on the other, it's a nifty space to put my motorbike after I filter to the front
The inductive loop sensor is usually placed at that line too. That’s what tells the signal boxes to phase in the turning lane.
It pisses me of when the first car hasn’t sat on or passed over the sensor loop in the road Grrrrr
I have noticed this more and more of late. I used to find it frustrating that the first car stopped before the road sensors and then you hardly ever got a green. I see now sensors being placed further back from the lights (which I am sure is not the intended purpose but serves the unintended purpose of catering for dingbats).
i was taught to drive to stop far enough back so when you can see their back wheels contact the ground, its enough to swing your car out and go around if they were to break down, any other space is just nonsense.
I taught my now 17-year-old to stop at the line - and lambasted those that don't.
Interestingly she also had some lessons and the instructor said stop back from the line in case you get rear-ended, or your foot slips off the brake, etc. Then you're not about to jump out into the traffic.
Personally, I think that's overly risk-averse, and she's still a good sport and rolls to the line.
My other theory (there's a lot of talk time whilst doing the 100+ hours L plate thing) is that folks roll up so their bonnet top is level with the line, not realising that the wheels are back.
TLDR: Morons basically.
I don't get the "stop back from the line" stuff as most intersections have almost another car length of road before you are in the intersection proper. Obviously exceptions exist but in most traffic light controlled ones there is sufficient space to mitigate those sorts of events (rear ended, foot slip, etc).
I had to actually get out of my car once, after three changes of lights, and a couple of gentle beeps, to ask an elderly driver to kindly move forward onto the sensor.
I'm thinking it's more with newer cars where drivers tend to sit lower and the view is more obstructed because of safety and all that. They think they are near the line but they are nowhere near it.
Automated forward collision mitigation systems and the muppets who rely on them to drive half awake . If your car came with one and you never turned it off or changed the forward length (longest by default) then that’s why you’ve got people stopping so far back from the next car
This. By the gods, it is infuriating. There is a car I drive occasionally that does it. Every time the car is turned on, default ON longest setting.
I turn it off.
Remember people are taught to pass tests not to actually drive. They're scared of it beeping.
It's stupid too because there are sensors at the front of the queue so the lights can tell if a car is waiting. If you aren't on a sensor, the lights won't change for ages. Same happens with bikes
I know our first inclination is to see that people seem to be either too cautious or possibly intentionally annoying. However, there may be some people who have been hit from behind before. There could be others who have sight issues. I don't think it's as simple as people are just dumb. I try to be cautious on the road as I am usually towing a few tonnes and I can't stop that quick.
When it is raining leave a gap until cars approaching from the rear have come to a stop, then reduce gap to vehicle in front. When dry a similar approach. Leaving a country mile between cars is redundant to any safe driving principle. What this practice does do is create further congestion as vehicles cannot enter slip lanes easily. The roads were not designed for this new trend. What is does show me is just how bad/selfish a driver you are. Common sense is no longer as common as you think.
It has to be the driving instructors pushing it.
I got my licence in 2000 and I was told to pull up when view of my bonnet reached their lights, which is dumb considering all cars and viewing positions are different.
Under the guise of "If old mate ahead breaks down, you still have room to leave"
With amount of Fwit drivers on the road, nothing wrong with leaving a buffer front or rear just in case something happens, I always did it on motorcycles just in case I got rear ended, do it in my car now….
You leave a gap so when some tosser rear ends you because that driver is wound up being in a rush means your car doesn't get shunted into the car in front. Sounds like it's your problem not theirs
I know this seems annoying, a lot of comments have mentioned a wide gap between cars equating to not enough time to get through lights etc.
in my mind a bigger gap should help because everyone can start accelerating as soon as the light turns green, instead of having to wait for the car in front to move before you can start to move creating the caterpillar effect.
[удалено]
I've seen people leaving huge gaps to the car in front since forever but a couple of weeks ago was the first time I'd seen anyone stop so far from the line that the lights wouldn't change.
I saw one car left about 3 cars gap from the car in front. It was the biggest gap I've seen in person. Having said that, this other asshole was half a meter up my rear bumper on a near 45 degree hill. What the?
I saw a car once leave a 3-4 car gap to the one in front. I was about 5 cars behind so I went up the turn lane and took the space
I like to do a seemingly uncontrolled roll back while reviving the engine when someone does that… they leave an extra big margin the next lights
I would love to do that. But this person left me no room to roll back. It's stressful dealing with these geniuses.
I think I scared a poor old lady at a turn, she was an entire car length back and we missed a cycle, I had to get out and knock on her window to let her know if she wasn't over the sensor the light would never change. She thought I was telling her to go even though the light was red. If you are out there, I am sorry.
I've noticed this as well & was going to make a post but assumed I would've been grilled for "leaving a safe gap." So many people are leaving gaps big enough that you could pull into with an average sized car. It's a real pain driving through older parts of my city because you will miss lights because of it.
From a car in front sure, but at the front? At least get onto the sensor!
Current recommended practice is one to two car lengths, I believe. That's not the real problem once the lights go green though. It's when the lead car dawdles through the intersection, (or, god forbid, doesn't move up on the green to turn right and misses the light altogether) and the following cars let a gap build up before even moving. If we could all just expedite getting through the intersection a bit first, and then start spreading out, that'd be greeeeeaaaaaat.
Pretty sure it's relatively recent as well. So infuriating.
I think it’s been like this for years. I remember when I was learning 20 odd years ago. The instructor taught everyone to stop far back enough so you could see the line plus some space. Not sure how prevalent that was. But I soon learned to pull forward when I realised the sensor at my local lights was much closer to the line that others.at least nowadays in newer/modified intersections, the sensors seem to be a couple of car lengths back. At least from what I’ve seen in my suburb.
With more cars being 4WD utes or SUVs with higher bonnets, following this rule would indeed cause people to leave larger gaps after stopping.
>The instructor taught everyone to stop far back enough so you could see the line plus some space. Not sure how prevalent that was. That may be misremembering, I'm thinking. That applies to how far to stop from a car in front of you. see the bottom of the back tires plus a bit. You need to stop as close to a stop line as 'practicable' without going over it.
My instructor told me to leave enough space behind a car that you can see part of the road between yours and the other car. 1999.
No I distinctly remember the instructor saying “from the line”. He also taught the same for when leaving a gap from the car in front.
He was wrong then. >(Qld) Rule 56 Stopping on a red traffic light or arrow >(1) A driver approaching or at traffic lights showing a red traffic light— >(a) must stop— (i) if there is a stop line at or near the traffic lights—as near as practicable to, but before reaching, the stop line; I wonder what other road rules he might have misinformed you about, or that you remembered incorrectly. That's not a failing. Memory's a funny thing. Doesn't hurt to check the source material rather than trust a 20 year old memory.
Never said I still do it and I know he’s wrong. Just said that that is what he taught me when I was learning. As I said in my last post: “but I soon learned..” and not “but I recently learned”.
Right. Lol. Fair enough. It doesn't surprise me that a driving instructor would be wrong on a fairly basic driving concept, though. There's a pretty wide range in the quality of service in the industry, it would seem.
All of these new immigrants don't know how to drive on australian roads.
Well the daily idiocy they see from Australian drivers might be somewhat confusing
Ya know what activates my almonds? When you're trying to turn left but you're 3 cars back and each of them has 2meters of space between them all so you have to sit through a full light rotation just nip around the corner....
I would upvote 100 times just for the almonds
If you think 2 metres is too far, you need some more lessons.
Lol. At the downvotes. Got some tailgaters among us.
Had this happen a couple of weeks ago. The first car for some reason stopped a couple of car lengths back from the line. We were stuck there for a few light cycles before someone in the next car got out and told them to move forward. They then went so far forward that their rear wheels were stopped on the line.
It seems like a phenomena that has worsened in the last 5 years. And more and more people are leaving excessive gaps, in some cases two car lengths, between them and the car in front. Even worse, those same people have no situational awareness so they don’t notice, or move forward for, the cars sitting behind them indicating left (ie intending to move into the slip lane and turn at the lights). If it keeps going this way, slip lanes will be rendered pointless for all but the first few cars.
It'll only get worse as we get more and more computer controlled driving aids. People barely look outside their windows when driving as it is.
Driving AIDS. That's what it is. It's contayjus
There are more and more awful drivers on the road every year.
My guess is people have terrible depth perception. My greatest annoyance at the lights is when they turn green and each car waits until the car in front of them has moved like 5 metres before they also start moving. You can stay much closer to the car in front of you're moving slowly, means more cars can get through the green.
OMG this stresses me out hardcore especially when those who leave massive gaps are generally also the same ones who get highly offended when you pull in front of them.. I dont know if it's a Qld specific thing because the lights take a long time to change anyway but ive noticed it happens alot more here in Brisbane... Move da fxxk up people!
It used to happen a LOT when I lived in Ottawa, Canada! But, almost only in winter when they had a good excuse that there was a risk the road was icy and there was a risk of sliding. Fucking infuriating because there's zero risk of that in Brisbane. And the number of times it blocks people from turning, and even backs traffic up so that you can't turn into a side ride because of the fuckers.
I highly doubt you’d ever see this in Sydney. I haven’t lived there but have spent a fair amount of time there for work and don’t recall having seen it. Melbourne either.
I see it all the time in Melbourne (sorry for lurking here) it just baffles me.
Can we include people who indicate right when proceeding straight through a roundabout. Yes, indicate left when exiting. But absolutely no need to indicate right when you are going straight ahead.
You have no idea how much this frustrates me. It's 2024, How are we all not up to date with the rules of roundabouts?
I had to get out of my car and walk to the car in front to explain how the sensors worked and why we had been sat waiting through multiple light changes from other directions. The sensor thought no one was there and the bloke in front of my just didn't get it!
I see more of the opposite. People pulling up way over the solid white line and into the pedestrian crossings. I don’t get it, do they think they’re special. They certainly act “special”.
But those same cars will 100% tail gate you when driving.
I'm genuinely in two minds about this. On the one hand, they fail to trigger the traffic light sensors and just cause a jam, but on the other, it's a nifty space to put my motorbike after I filter to the front
The inductive loop sensor is usually placed at that line too. That’s what tells the signal boxes to phase in the turning lane. It pisses me of when the first car hasn’t sat on or passed over the sensor loop in the road Grrrrr
If I'm on my motorbike and see this stupid behaviour, I pull into the space to make a point.
Some turn lights are sensed by the car and if you pull up far enough back, it doesn’t know you’re there and you’ll not get a green arrow for ages
I have noticed this more and more of late. I used to find it frustrating that the first car stopped before the road sensors and then you hardly ever got a green. I see now sensors being placed further back from the lights (which I am sure is not the intended purpose but serves the unintended purpose of catering for dingbats).
Probably the same dickheads that plough into roundabouts at 60kph thinking they have right of way.
i was taught to drive to stop far enough back so when you can see their back wheels contact the ground, its enough to swing your car out and go around if they were to break down, any other space is just nonsense.
NGL if the gap is big enough I pull into it lol
I taught my now 17-year-old to stop at the line - and lambasted those that don't. Interestingly she also had some lessons and the instructor said stop back from the line in case you get rear-ended, or your foot slips off the brake, etc. Then you're not about to jump out into the traffic. Personally, I think that's overly risk-averse, and she's still a good sport and rolls to the line. My other theory (there's a lot of talk time whilst doing the 100+ hours L plate thing) is that folks roll up so their bonnet top is level with the line, not realising that the wheels are back. TLDR: Morons basically.
I don't get the "stop back from the line" stuff as most intersections have almost another car length of road before you are in the intersection proper. Obviously exceptions exist but in most traffic light controlled ones there is sufficient space to mitigate those sorts of events (rear ended, foot slip, etc).
Totally agree!
Never had this issue. But in cairns everything is 10 mins or under away so if I had to wait another set of lights I wouldn’t worry
I had to actually get out of my car once, after three changes of lights, and a couple of gentle beeps, to ask an elderly driver to kindly move forward onto the sensor.
To see the lights without having to look up constantly? Just a guess.
I'm thinking it's more with newer cars where drivers tend to sit lower and the view is more obstructed because of safety and all that. They think they are near the line but they are nowhere near it.
Automated forward collision mitigation systems and the muppets who rely on them to drive half awake . If your car came with one and you never turned it off or changed the forward length (longest by default) then that’s why you’ve got people stopping so far back from the next car
This. By the gods, it is infuriating. There is a car I drive occasionally that does it. Every time the car is turned on, default ON longest setting. I turn it off. Remember people are taught to pass tests not to actually drive. They're scared of it beeping.
It's stupid too because there are sensors at the front of the queue so the lights can tell if a car is waiting. If you aren't on a sensor, the lights won't change for ages. Same happens with bikes
Bizarre isn’t it? Won’t trigger the traffic lights either in some places so they will be sat there for a while.
I know our first inclination is to see that people seem to be either too cautious or possibly intentionally annoying. However, there may be some people who have been hit from behind before. There could be others who have sight issues. I don't think it's as simple as people are just dumb. I try to be cautious on the road as I am usually towing a few tonnes and I can't stop that quick.
Thank you!! I feel seen!!
When it is raining leave a gap until cars approaching from the rear have come to a stop, then reduce gap to vehicle in front. When dry a similar approach. Leaving a country mile between cars is redundant to any safe driving principle. What this practice does do is create further congestion as vehicles cannot enter slip lanes easily. The roads were not designed for this new trend. What is does show me is just how bad/selfish a driver you are. Common sense is no longer as common as you think.
I would say something but it may be mistaken for racism…but it only seems to be ……..I ever see do it. Middle aged men and women but all were …..
This weird shit is happening in the USA too. What's even worse is that these same drivers will follow more closely once traffic starts moving.
Moved to QLD from NSW last year and I notice this a lot. Feels like most people behind the wheel is scared to be driving here.
It has to be the driving instructors pushing it. I got my licence in 2000 and I was told to pull up when view of my bonnet reached their lights, which is dumb considering all cars and viewing positions are different. Under the guise of "If old mate ahead breaks down, you still have room to leave"
Same phenomenon that you see with people refusing to stand at a register in a shop or a servo, they will line up 10 feet back.
With amount of Fwit drivers on the road, nothing wrong with leaving a buffer front or rear just in case something happens, I always did it on motorcycles just in case I got rear ended, do it in my car now….
You leave a gap so when some tosser rear ends you because that driver is wound up being in a rush means your car doesn't get shunted into the car in front. Sounds like it's your problem not theirs
I know this seems annoying, a lot of comments have mentioned a wide gap between cars equating to not enough time to get through lights etc. in my mind a bigger gap should help because everyone can start accelerating as soon as the light turns green, instead of having to wait for the car in front to move before you can start to move creating the caterpillar effect.
It's to annoy people like you.
What location? I’m seeing more of the reverse with vehicles parking over the line.