OT Bad driver possible solution

IanC

Well-known Member
I have an idea on how to make people pay attention to their driving. Make all vehicles old school, no power steering, power brakes, manual transmission, no radio (OK maybe AM only). Then they would have to concentrate on DRIVING. Any of you on here that have driven large trucks can testify to watching people pass you and driving with their knees while shaving, putting on makeup, reading the paper etc. When everything was crude you had to pay attention to what was going on.
 
It seems to me more cars are weaving today. And our modern cars drive better than they did years ago. HMMM, I wonder why?
 
Does not matter what they drive there are an always have been bad drivers. People all have a level they can get to as to a skill and driving is in fact a skill and many never learn that skill all that well and it will not help to put them on an older machine or take the tings like power steering out. I have driven so many type and sizes of car truck buses dozers tractor etc. etc. I learned to drive on 2 wheels and have driven twin stick machines and still own 3 twin stick trucks. Only way to get good at driving is education and lot of it before they get the right to drive
 
I would support this idea. LOL I actually do not like to drive my wife's 2013 Impala. It steers too easy. The feed back is not very much. You can easily weave or over steer if your not used to driving it. I like a more "firm" feel to the steering.
 
x2 Ianc, we all see it every day, on their I phone texting, one lady passed me on the street doing about 45mph in a 30 zone eating a pizza (for breakfast) and doing her make up, slammed into the back of a 5 ton box truck stopped at a red light! the poor driver of the box truck got out and saw all this red gore all over the windshield (pizza) and nearly had a heartattack :lol: thought she was dead! we helped her out of the car, she was just black and blue from the seatbelt and the air bag but otherwise ok. I think she learned a valuable lesson about paying attention to her driving that day!
 
If they went back to the 60's style cars with carbs,manual trans and manual chokes it would solve the problem as over half wouldn't be able to get their cars out the driveway(LOL)
 
Stiffer fines and more patrolling. Paying attention is probably the single most important thing when driving. If you're paying attention, speeding comes with a relatively low risk. Though I think it's dangerous, weaving is relatively safe if you're paying attention. Taking away the radio, abs, and traction control would be the most effective way of forcing people to pay attention. Radio often actually demands your attention, while abs and traction control give you WAY too much faith in your car to keep itself on the road.
I have often found myself having too faith in my traction control(stability control). Usually, it's out of curiosity. I'm amazed at what it can do, so I like testing it in a safe place. Problem is you begin to know what it can do, and start trusting it on the road.
 
Can anyone remember when you could tell when the person ahead of you was a farmer? What i was told the vehicle had a tendency to weave as most farmers were not used to power steering or traveling at higher speeds and that as they had a tendency to check out the crops on the way the vehicle would wander in the direction of the most interesting crop.
 
Once again, statistics prove the idea that driver's are worse today is false. Yes we've all seen the things talked about here, but over all things are much better than they have ever been. But because we all drive much more and because there are more people on the road we see more accidents total. And let's not blame the younger folks, their record has improved a lot, unlike us older folks.
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Well, don't stop there Ian ....... let's go back to tires that went flat every couple hundred of miles, gas-guzzling monster engines, no turn signals, engines worn out at 50,000 miles, hand cranks, heaters that didn't heat, no seat belts, and top speeds of 50 miles per hour. That'd be lots of fun and we'd all be safer.
 
The power steering belt on my wife's Geo Tracker broke a couple weeks back and my wife does not care if I put a new one on or not. She says it steers better with out it
 
C'mon John, we all know that's fake news, those scientific research companies just make all that stuff up. Old guys like us with bad eyesight and slow reflexes are waaaaaay better drivers than the young generation, you know that. Why back in the day when we all drove half-tanked every weekend before roadside checks, we never had any problems staying in our lane. We learned to drive with one eye shut, it was real easy ..... and safe too !!!
 
(quoted from post at 10:08:27 02/18/18) I have an idea on how to make people pay attention to their driving. Make all vehicles old school, no power steering, power brakes, manual transmission, no radio (OK maybe AM only). Then they would have to concentrate on DRIVING. Any of you on here that have driven large trucks can testify to watching people pass you and driving with their knees while shaving, putting on makeup, reading the paper etc. When everything was crude you had to pay attention to what was going on.

I have used vehicles as old as 1950 as a daily driver. Learned to drive farm trucks on a 1958 IH. Learned to drive semis with 1960's tractors. I never once in my life ever operated a vehicle in any configuration that required me to concentrate or pay attention. LOL I can operate a tractor with multiple hydraulic levers and 16speed PS without really concentrating. Back in the day I could light a smoke with a match, up or down shift and try to cop a feel from my GF all at the same time.

Wanna keep people in their lanes? Take away their darned cell phones!

Rick
 
Add in those old cars that fell apart or started on fire in an accident and it's no wonder we were safer back then. I like to see the posts on Facebook that talk about how we grew up not wearing helmets, or safety equipment, riding in the bed of trucks etc and we lived. What they don't mention is all the ones who did that and didn't live, which is what led to the safety laws of today.
 
The deaths are dropping because the vehicles absorb more impact. One of the car companies ran ads a while ago with the tag line "and they lived" (Subaru I think). The gist of my argument was that the vehicles are so easy to control now that thinking ahead and paying attention is not required. Nothing on Earth is going to MAKE anybody pay attention. And just because you get away with poor driving does not mean that at some point you will cause an accident and possibly take an innocent with you.
 
(quoted from post at 10:08:27 02/18/18) I have an idea on how to make people pay attention to their driving. Make all vehicles old school, no power steering, power brakes, manual transmission, no radio (OK maybe AM only). Then they would have to concentrate on DRIVING. Any of you on here that have driven large trucks can testify to watching people pass you and driving with their knees while shaving, putting on makeup, reading the paper etc. When everything was crude you had to pay attention to what was going on.

Why stop there? Maybe we should all go back to horses. Then there won't be any traffic accidents.

For a living, I haul corrosive chemicals with a rig grossing around 140,000 lbs. The simple thought of what you suggest is the stuff of nightmares. Such crude vehicles would only hinder safety on the roads.
 
I drove in the day with out all the power things. Still never paid much attention when I had arms around gal setting in middle of seat.
 
I would also like to ask, what do you drive? Are you willing, without any reservation or hesitation, to trade what you currently drive for something circa 1950's, setup the same way as you mention in your original post?
 
You would have to make the car a one seater so there wouldn't be anybody else in the car to yack at. Also there would have to be something in the car to jamb cell phone signals.

I think the only thing that is going to make people responsible for their driving is make them responsible. Make hefty fines for careless accidents plus take their drivers license away for a couple years. People just don't care, they have an accident let the insurance company take care of it. Maybe they should have to re-emburse the insurance companies expenses. That might bring down rates.
 
(quoted from post at 12:10:39 02/18/18)
(quoted from post at 10:08:27 02/18/18) I have an idea on how to make people pay attention to their driving. Make all vehicles old school, no power steering, power brakes, manual transmission, no radio (OK maybe AM only). Then they would have to concentrate on DRIVING. Any of you on here that have driven large trucks can testify to watching people pass you and driving with their knees while shaving, putting on makeup, reading the paper etc. When everything was crude you had to pay attention to what was going on.

Why stop there? Maybe we should all go back to horses. Then there won't be any traffic accidents.

For a living, I haul corrosive chemicals with a rig grossing around 140,000 lbs. The simple thought of what you suggest is the stuff of nightmares. Such crude vehicles would only hinder safety on the roads.

I'm suspecting that in the horse and buggy days there were still a lot of traffic related fatalities from runaway horses. Don't think the statistics exist, though.
 
But I did not say driver Ed I said education as in a real and true drivers class. Drivers Ed was not and never has been a good way to learn to drive. When I say education I mean a lot like what many of us old truck driver had to take and no one should have the right to drive unless they can charge a tire check oil and all other fluids and probably a number of other things
 
(quoted from post at 12:56:37 02/18/18) 140.000 sounds overloaded---even an R permit semi is limited to 120,000 gross?

63,500 kg, which is 139,700 lbs. to be precise. Canadian Super B weights. Tandem tractor unit, tridem lead trailer, tandem pup trailer. Makes my 600 hp Detroit whimper at times.
 
My list is:
1. Manual gearbox to eliminate those too uncoordinated to make it work.
2. Deletion of electric starter in lieu of hand cranking to help reduce those "I'll just hop down to the store for...".
3. Hand pumped fuel pump. If you're going any distance, it better be important. I've done this with a Stanley Steamer and its a real commitment.

I hadn't considered the radio change but endorse it.
 
Be careful what you wish for, Because if you had the power to make people comply to your wishes, why shouldn't we have the power to make you comply to ours?
Keep America free!
 
old, I'm in the process of getting my CDL for bus driver. The district I plan to work won't have any openings until the fall.

Should have already taken the test, but they are in no hurry to let me take the exam. No openings as above until fall.

I am in the process of filling out the application for Hannibal, MO. The CDL test sight is in Hannibal, so that would work well for me.

They told me they just need substitutes now, but once I have my CDL I can drive for different districts.

Yes, I agree that drivers ed isn't enough, but it is a good start. My drivers ed teacher had the kids check the fluids, tire pressures, belts, etc. as if you were trying to get a CDL, which didn't exist in the 70's.

One kid at a time had to check everything, never knew when your turn was coming. DOUG
 
Ya back in the 70s it was a Chauffer license which is what I have had pretty much ever since I started driving on 4 wheels or bigger. I got my first license at the age of 14 and then when I went to get my license for a car I didn't even have to drive a car to get it. I also grand fathered into my class A CDL which I still have. Only thing I cannot drive is school bus and haz-mat
 
No one your handling children that should no how to behave and the other your handling things that do not know how to behave because most are man made and not safe to handle most of the time
 
Crazy Horse...........no need to eliminate turn signals, most of today's drivers either don't know they're there, or don't know how to operate them.
 
(quoted from post at 18:19:07 02/18/18) I would support this idea. LOL I actually do not like to drive my wife's 2013 Impala. It steers too easy. The feed back is not very much. You can easily weave or over steer if your not used to driving it. I like a more "firm" feel to the steering.

I've heard that sort of steering described as "vague". Saw that in a review of my 2000 Expedition, not exactly what you want in a 2 1/2 ton vehicle.
 
What if they just made everybody ride motorcycles everywhere. Can you imagine all the crashes you would pass on a twenty mile trip ?
 
i don't think that would work all most every day i hear of some jerk that got arrested for not having a drivers license and 2 or more dui some of them have been in jail doesn't seem to make difference
 

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