Depends on the circumstances. But I do take delight in flashing people who are driving like a maniac and seeing them jam on their brakes when there isn't actually any police officers, van etc hahaa.
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Depends on the circumstances. But I do take delight in flashing people who are driving like a maniac and seeing them jam on their brakes when there isn't actually any police officers, van etc hahaa.
Jeez who cares if it's illegal, some laws are stupid. If flashing people actually gets them to slow down then good job. Isn't that the intention of speed traps? Nooooo they're revenue builders. Sheesh. I wish people would question stupid laws instead of blindly following everything dictated to us by the blue light gang.
Flashing for fixed speed cameras is overkill, though. There are so many.
All this said, I'm usually too preoccupied with driving to think about flashing, but I love it when other drivers do, even though I'm not likely to be speeding (I'm not a lead foot), but I think it's friendly and helpful and a nice aspect of sharing the road and not trying to kill each other with road rage.
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Jude 07/10/2008 | Lilac 16/06/2011
DH will flash for cops, but not to trucks (when we lived in the country they would speed down the little narrow roads and they needed to get caught!!!) or people really speeding or hooning, but to people going just on the speed limit that would get a fine for going a few ks over.
Wow don't hold back on the judgement there! You're entitled to your opinion, but it's a bit rough calling those of us who follow the law blind and unable to think for ourselves.:
Word!:
When laws are stupid then they deserve to be broken. Fixed speed cameras have signs before them and your sat nav should beep for them too so anyone who gets pinged deserves a fine for being stupid and unobservant.
Flashing for hooning....... :think: yes, the idiots driving through school zones at crazy speeds should be slowed down so IMO flashing them to slow them down is great but hooning is subjective. I drive up to the ski fields quite often. I am used to driving in snow and ice. I have driven in more severe winter weather than we usually see in Australia. I get that for other people who have never been to the snow before it can be quite nerve wracking but if you are driving at 20km's in conditions where I am comfortable at 40 or 60 then I will overtake you - there is no need to flash your lights at me. You're driving to the conditions and your experience, I'm driving to the conditions and my experience. Just because you're way out of your your comfort zone does not mean I am driving dangerously if I drive faster than you.
And FFS!! If there are 20 cars piled up behind you it's courteous to pull over. And just because you don't want to overtake a bus crawling up a hill on a clear day with visibility for miles you don't need to get your nickers in a knot if someone else does so in the safe and legal place to do so.
/rant lol.
Nah, I'm talking about p platers in hotted up utes doing 80 plus in 50 zone backstreets where kids play. It's a problem in my area :(
^ yep, they're idiots.
If I could shake up the road rules I would lower the limits in residential streets and make them way higher on highways. Especially the divided ones with 3 or 4 lanes. It's insanity to expect people to do 110 or 100 on those roads.
Just my opinion but I think that the roads would be safer if people kept more of an eye on the road than the speedo in the car. Oh and if roads didnt go from 100 to 70 to 80 to 60 to 100 to 80. Just crazy! If you are constantly looking at your speedo to make sure you arent creeping up the speed limit then you are more likely to have an accident.
Not saying to go full speed like a crazy drver but drive at the speed you are comfortable at and watch the road and if that is 10km over well better 10kms over and watching the road than having your eyes constantly on the speedo and away from the road!
On the flashing for radar traps, yes I do flash if I think its safe to. I love it when others flash me too.
AliBaby I'm a bit confused. It's really not hard to check your speedo and still keep your eyes on the road. Going 10km over the limit could cause more of an accident than checking your speedo.
Regards,
Dianne
Insanity is expecting people to drive 100-110 through the nullabor. Its got the longest stretch of straight road in Australia.
I flashed heaps of people when we drove through last month.
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If you are looking at your speedo then you arent looking at the road.
Again, in this country you can't spend your time looking out for genuine obstacles on the road – you have to keep an eye out for speed signs, cops, and your speedometer.
And dont even get me started on how dangerous fixed cameras are! The amount of eratic driving behavour I have seen around them is scary. They actually cause accidents to happen and are nothing more than revenue raising.
Totally agree. The amount of times I've seen accidents or almost accidents on roads with fixed cameras is nuts.:
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I don't constantly look at my speedo, it's very easy to watch the road and glance at your speedo. If you are going 10km over the limit and come to a hazard and can't stop in time I'd hate to think what could happen.
Regards,
Dianne
Dianne I would be able to stop in time because I am looking at the cars 3 ahead and seeing what they are doing, looking for brake lights there and what is going on up ahead and change my driving speed to suit. I am not sayng speed all the time and go crazy. A few kms over or under what ever suits the conditions. Gettng pulled over and a ticket for drivers doing a few over is crazy when it is the hoons that need to be the ones getting fined.
Yeah but 10km's over is more than a few k's.
Regards,
Dianne
if an oncoming car looks like its speeding then yes i flash them even if there is no radar ;)
I will change my orginal post if the 10km statement bothers you. I was referring to on highways not your suburban streets. I would never drive 10km over the limit on a suburban street or around high traffic build up. Actually most of the time in Sydney the traffic is that bad that it is impossible to even drive AT the speed limit! :wall:
But 10km on a highway is nothing so as I have said earlier, if driving a few or 10km above or under the speed limit is what is comfortable for you and the conditions on the road, then i dont see what is wrong. The flow of traffic is important though.
I can guarentee that there are numerous roadways where 100% of drivers are traveling above the speed limit. Everyone has driven on a road like this. Does this mean that everyone driving on this road is some kind of a thrill-seeking speed demon? No it just means that the speed limit hasn't been set incorrectly. On a road with a correctly set speed limit, these same drivers would be traveling at or even slightly under the posted limit.
Having radar traps on roads like this also does nothing to improve driver safetyand is more likely to cause accidents due to traffic disruption, uneven traffic flow, and distraction.
This is a good read taken from the National Motorist Association explaining what I mean. Do Speed Limits Matter?
Interesting article.
I love the autobahns and love seeing performance cars actually being able to perform on the road. I also love the way that everyone actually sticks to the rules.
The problem is that too many Australian drivers have a hard time with them. There seem to be a lot of drivers in Australia who think that it's ok to stay in the right lane if you are doing the speed limit. If they can follow the speed limit so rigidly why is it so hard to follow the keep left unless overtaking rule just as rigidly? And if you need to exit to the right that's doesn't mean it's ok to drive in the right lane for miles before your exit. If simple lane changes confound you then maybe you need to consider avoiding highway driving.:
Despite the cultural and language differences, there is a common understanding of a few basic rules: pass on the left, yield the left lane to faster traffic, and pay attention to your driving. It really works well.
I think the road safety campaigns' focus on speeds is actually kind of misleading in that so many people think about speed when they drive instead of driving to the conditions. I suspect that it's the same people who drive in the right lane bang on the speed limit that also drive bang on the speed limit in driving rain with limited visibility when they really should be slowing down a little.
Completely agree. It is all about keeping the traffic flowing steadily and driving to the conditions around you. So many people driving on Australian roads dont get that.:
I'd go so far as to say if there is that much traffic, even on the open highway, a few kms over the speed limit can be pretty dangerous.:
I agree too. I also see a problem with L platers and them having to do 80kms an hour. When I was learning to drive I remember my instructor telling me how dangerous he thought it was. I don't know what the answer is to help this, everyone needs to learn sometime, I know my first time I was a bit on edge but I also did not attempt it till I was a lot more confident. I have seen so many near accidents because of people changing lanes, getting up the arse of a L plater and then trying to squeeze into gaps that they can't really fit into. Sorry a bit off topic.
Sorry, this is refering to freeways
Yet countries with much higher speed limits and greater population density than ours have lower fatality rates.:
And yes, the 80km thing is crazy. Not just on freeways (because at least with 3 lanes they have the option of the far left which is where people who drive under the limit slow should be) but on country highways too. One L plater or P plater can cause a back-up of traffic for miles which in turn makes people attempt stupid overtaking maneuvers.
Perhaps other countries have better driving education?:
They do. Obviously it would be a better use of resources to spend our money on driver training not anti-speed campaigns that exist to justify revenue raising via speed cameras.
Yeah, I agree there too, I actually live in an area that to get out of you either go the freeway, a windy road, or a long road that always has huge accidents, normally involving trucks. All of these roads are 90-110km roads and yep people do get really frustrated by L platers.:
And caravans.:
I don't flash, but for a different reason. My BIL pointed out recently that you don't know who you're flashing, and could be helping someone who's wanted by police, or who's high or drunk get away. Based on that theory I never flash.
I don't personally, unless it's for a hazard on a country road. Generally I figure if you're silly enough to speed, you deserve to cop the fine - even if it is only 5-10km over.
You know what bugs me the most about l-platers, p-platers, caravans and trucks? Its the other people reactions to them. It scares me when someone drives at or above the speed limit and overtakes at last minute. But also when they overtake just because they see one of these on the road.
I recently swapped my big car (commodore) for a littler car (corolla). I swapped DH because he only drivs to work, whereas Im out an about. The small car is better on fuel, which saves us money, and whilst the big car is only taking dh to work, its also getting some work done on it before sprouts arrival.
Anyhow, I cannot believe the difference in treatment I get on the road. I have noticed that more and more people overtake me, ragardless of my speed (and yup I've experimented with it this) just because I am a small car. Actually my whole driving experience has cahnged since changing cars.
And I have to say it was the same when I was on my green P plates. Quite often I would be overtaken by cars because of my plates, not because of the speed I was doing. (Take plates off and rive the same way, and drivers treat you differently)
Mmm, I have seen some absolutely ludicrous behaviour while escort driving heavy machinery on country roads - ok, we know we're slow. We've generally got 3 or even 4 tractors towing farming equipment in a convoy with an escort as we move from one section of the farm to another. It's a given when you drive through farming areas that you will come across these.
This does not mean that when the escort blocks you from overtaking on the outside because the entire convoy is about to turn off to the left (large pieces of machinery being towed need space to turn) that it's a good idea to go screaming up the inside on the gravel strip! A few minutes patience and we'd be out of your way entirely anyway...
Yes, i do and always have. I am thankful when people do it to me not because im a speed happy lunatic driver but because im not perfict all the time, also have gone to court for flashing and got away with it because it says in the L driver manual, if there is a hazard or someone is driving in an irratic fashion that you should flash your lights and pull over to the right to get out of the way:lol: However i understand some peoples reasoning for not doing it, i enjoy it and will do it forever!
Aagh!! Who bought up caravans? They are my pet peeve on the road :wall:
Why don't they have to get a license to tow? They could be taught simple etiquette and things that should be common sense. Like, if there is a line of cars behind you that goes to the horizon pull over and let them by and if you have held up traffic during a twisty part of the road don't mash your foot to the floor when you reach an area that is safe for overtaking, maintain your speed and let other people overtake you. And if you need your son to get your caravan out of your garden onto the street for your once a year caravan trip maybe you aren't competent enough to drive it on the highway and you should buy a tent instead.
I notice other drivers treat me differently depending on which car I'm in too.
This.:
I can't remember where, but recently in the USA somewhere they cut down on issuing speeding fines by 90% and are, instead, working on ways to improve traffic conditions and traffic flow. Doesn't that sound nice?
If I hadn't just hosted a third birthday party I'd look up the details for you.
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Jude 07/10/2008 | Lilac 16/06/2011
I think this can be said for any driver out there. I hate it when someone does 80-90km in a 100km zone then when it is 80 zone and there is a chance of overtaking they can all of a suddan do well over 100k's.:wall::
Oh, yes noticed it here when I go from the Commodore to the Swift. I actually now decide to sit behind the idiot doing 80kph, rather than overtake, as the road rage that happens is just plain scary if I am driving the Swift, totally different if I am in the Commodore. Pretty bad that just because of what I am driving, that I am not "allowed" to drive at the speed limit even though it is safe to do so.:
Speed limits do need an overhaul, not just on the highways, but also on the country lanes. The road we are on is 100kph. It is one lane, so if someone comes in the other direction you have to pull half off the road. There are cows, tractors, kids (as the houses were built right on the road) etc, but drivers believe that just because it is signed at 100kph, that they must drive at 100kph, or even more scary 120kph. The speed should be no more than 80kph and less for the massive milk tankers.
No but dh likes to flash if he sees someone speeding to scare them into thinking there is a police car ahead :)
My hubby is too! We have the two-way in the car and listening to all the terms used for coppers and cameras is quite amusing. I've heard them be called 'candy cars' 'plain wrappers' :lol: funny as.:
As for the original question, no I don't flash my lights. I will use the two-way to warn the truckies of animals on the road or an accident, but that's it.
^ Hehehe, my parents call them 'candy cars' as well :) She will often buzz my phone while DH is driving when we're going long-distance trips together, to let us know they've passed one so we will too :) I remember screaming down the phone at her one day, the reception was terrible and she kept saying 'candy car' but I had nooooo idea what she was on about because of the crackly line, I'm like 'JUST SAY POLICE CAR, YOU GIT!' lol :)
There are a few we hear alot from the truckies on the Hume
'The barbie is hot' -> the weigh bridge is open
'You can't park there' -> to someome driving really slow . this one makes me giggle
'flash for cash' -> speed camera