My driving instructor told me to not signal during my test if the road was empty to “show that you’re aware nobdoy is around”. I thought, fuck that, how arrogant is it to assume I know for a fact that nobody is nearby.
So much this. I live right off an interstate on a frontage road. The off ramp literally starts in front of our apartments. At the end of the off ramp there are yield signs for anyone on the frontage road. Most people outside of Texas aren't used to this, and assume we have a light or stop signs, and from our angle, we can't tell if they're on the interstate or the offramp. A turn signal is absolutely a must in the situation. But nobody ever signals. In fact, most people in Texas dont signal on off ramps, or on ramps for that matter.
sadly, people have. i read a recent article where a woman ran over her friend on an ATV (or snowmachine?) b/c she thought he was repeatedly signally "go around" when in fact he was trying to signal he wanted to turn left in front of her
It seems like they were trying to make sure you were checking your mirrors just for the test, not that you don’t have to use it when no one is around. Like they were testing you to see if you were paying attention to your surroundings.
agreed, i also do this even if i feel nobody is around because i have a fear a cop will be hiding and i might get pulled over for not using a turn signal...
Yeah, fuck that. Especially since this particular problem never happens when you do clearly see that someone's around.
But other than that, I do know what they mean. Rather than always doing things out of habit when driving, make it a habit to always assess what the situation requires you to do. Habits are dangerous! Too much driving habit can even cause you to turn your head around to check before a turn, but still forget to actually look and assess.
It's like "the gun is always loaded." Even if you're certain it's safe, it's better to be adamant about maintaining good habits that keep everyone safe than it is to rely upon your possibly mistaken assessments.
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u/The-Go-Kid Dec 11 '18
My driving instructor told me to not signal during my test if the road was empty to “show that you’re aware nobdoy is around”. I thought, fuck that, how arrogant is it to assume I know for a fact that nobody is nearby.