1. idiots who get into the right hand lane of a dual carriageway when they want to turn right somethime in the next ten miles - good trick on ring roads.
2. the fog lamp brigade, front fogs and sidelights, rear fogs at the first sight of rain, rear fogs in traffic (why?)
3. morons like the Rover 25 driver I met yesterday who pull out to overtake and then SLOW DOWN so that faster traffic has to brake
4. HGVs and caravans who try to overtake another HGV caravan with a speed differential measured in feet per year
5. Caravans in general, especially convoys of them where everyone is too spelfish to leave space for normal traffic to overtake
I feel better now.
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We've been here before!
However, here goes:
Lazy parkers who leave their cars in stupid places (double yellows, blocking loading bays, double parked etc) while they 'just get a newspaper' from a high-street shop. When they re-appear, the half-mile tailback is blocking two sets of traffic lights. Bl**dy morons!
Those who constantly edge forward at red lights. They never *quite* stop.
Similarly, those who always stop 'over the line' at traffic lights, usually by about 3 feet. Why?
Plus all those you mentioned, plus the agressive tailgaters and the pumpin' stereo bass-merchants. Plus......
(eyes bleed...)
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Well abled and childless people parking (usually their BMW's) in either disabled or parent with child parking spaces.
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Supermarkets & local authorities who design parking spaces that won't fit anything wider than a Nissan Micra.
People who think that they should get special treatment because they have a 'Baby on Board' sticker.
Kevin...
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Don't like them. Don't see why I have to park further away because others choose to have kids then take them to the supermarket to piss everyone else off.
Why can't I have a big space because I choose a Land Cruiser and have to buy lots of shopping?
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because there are no pavements, and people insist on parking front first in the spaces so when they reverse out they can't see a thing, least of all a young child.
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Parent & child parking spaces.
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dave, you like them or hate them?
Abuse of them p*sses me off - especially when "child" is a fat 14 yr old!
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The car driver in front in the r.h lane at traffic lights who signals to turn right as soon as the lights change to green.
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OK, I have to contribute mine - the individual who enters from a side road at the last second showing every sign of acute urgency and then totters along at the legal limit less 20 mph.
I have my own list of driver types who do this but I haven't the moral fibre to reveal them!
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And then, thankfully, only taking the main road for half a mile before turning off again - without indicating.
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The drivers who pull out as close to the kerb as possible, as if that makes them less of an obstacle.
People who pull out then give you eye contact that suggests, *How dare you not give way to me*, not that they gave you the choice anyway.
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My biggest pet hates are tailgaters and people in supermarkets who can't aim their trolleys in the right direction and wack your car... happened to me 3 times.
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Unusually had this problem the other way around, when I was wheeling my trolley with a weekly shop briskly down the sloping car park, and a Disco pulled out on me.
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Some more -
People who try to pull out into traffic by slowly getting up to speed while driving along on the inside of the main traffic stream, all without indicating.
People who habitually park right on bus stops. Happens a lot around here.
People who ALWAYS set their car alarm off when getting in the car. PLIP IT FIRST, YOU MORONS.
More later, no doubt....
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Middle lane owners
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Cretins in 4x4's and flat caps in narrow country roads. Woman and 6 kids in a Toyota Landcruiser Amazon who parks 1 foot away from my car in Supermarket car park and kids eject by bouncing their doors off my car. The living dead who stare ahead through the steering wheel and are oblivious to all around them. Twits who always stop at the first pump they come to when next pumps are free. White van men who spill diesel all over the forecourt. Those who take ages to move off when lights turn green leading to following traffic coming through on amber/red. Oh! my pills are wearing off......zzzzzzzzzz
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what about the ones at the pump who have to wait until the pump is free on the side of their filler cap thus blocking the forecourt, when pumps will reach to either side of a car!!!!!!!!! ARGH
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I'll second Guy. The lazy @!#$, usually in very expensive cars, who park in disabled parking bays. I had two sessions, each of about 2 months on crutches; I would sooner clean Tescos car park with my tongue than park in a disabled bay. Why don't they clamp them?
Less so with parent and toddler bays, but if you've ever tried struggling across a car park with a hyperactive screaming toddler and a demented overloaded trolley, you would appreciate that they're a necessity.
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(1) Right turners at traffic lights who don't move off the line on green, waiting for oncoming traffic to clear.
If they get into the middle of the junction, TWO MORE OF US WOULD GET THROUGH BEFORE THE LIGHTS TURN RED.
(2) Cyclists carrying large chips on their shoulders.
(3) John Prescott & all those who follow in his footsteps.
(4) Environmentalists.
(5) Experts & advisors.
(6) Lawyers & estate agents.
(7) My neighbour's cat.
(8) Senior police officers.
(9) Prawns & Marmite.
Gotta go, someone's hammering on my door...............
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(9) Prawns & Marmite, wot together!
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It goes, of course, without saying that all of our contributors are themselves above reproach in every respect in all of the above regards, and are in every way the epitome of impeccability on and off the road. Their humility in assuring that all roadusers, pedestrians, humans and animals who encounter them in the daily round find the interaction a pleasant experience should be a lesson to us all.
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I nearly said that my pet hate is people with pet hates, knowing that I'm fallible like everybody else. However, my pet hate is anybody who does things, knowingly or otherwise, that are dangerous. 'Amber gamblers' come top of that list, followed by tailgaters and people who like to change lanes on motorways quickly but haven't come to grips with their indicator switch.
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THis is not really a pet hate but a source of wonderment at the perennial idiocy that so frequently turns normal people into basket cases when they own a car.
The phenomenon is this. Take a 3 door Honda Civic, or a Mits Lancer 2 door GSR, but Civic preferred. Install back lit dials, black out all windows and fit an exhaust outlet the diameter of a drainpipe, along with very loud silencer (if that's not an oxymoron). Well the "moron" bit holds good, but I digress. Install a sound system so huge that the rear seats have to be removed. THis costs as much as if not more than the car.
Disco-type Strobe rear and head lights can be added as extras.
Then, lower the car to such an extent that the front number plate has to be removed, otherwise it will drag over bumps (I really kid you not). The car is literally about 4 cm off the road. Drive this thing as fast and as noisily as possible, preferably between the hours of 1 ann 3 a.m.. The really ridiculous part is that these things belt down the straights overtaking everything at twice the speed limit, then have to inch their way at less than walking pace over speedhumps (thus holding up all the recent 'overtakees' behind), which has to be done crab-wise, because the car would get stuck on the top if it was straight on) to avoid scraping anything.
It need not be said that the regulation attire to pilot one of these things includes
a rear-facing baseball cap and an IQ straining to reach 32.
Is it only here or do other places have the same farcical breed?
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Growler, either we're exporting them to you, or vice versa!
However, you forgot the following.
Fit ultra ultra low-profile tyres on shiny alloys, which will not enable you to turn more than 9 degrees off course without thumping against the inside of the wheel well. Great fun!
A neon underlight is also a must - makes that spooky purple glow on the road...
remove all the badges, in the belief that folk behind won't realise you are driving a tarted-up 1.3L, as opposed to a 2 litre beast.
replace the standard fittings with a neoprene-covered 8 inch steering wheel, with matching gearshifter! This makes steering even more fun (see alloy wheel post, above).
and don't forget the tasteful replacement pedals!
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Not just in the Philipines Growler round this part its Astras and
Corsas instead of Civics and Lancers.
Keep smiling
Phil.I
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I'll third Guy and agree whole-heartedly with you about the disabled bays. But Parent and Child spaces annoy me. Why I am unable to park in the convenient spaces close to the door because someone else makes the choice - CHOICE is the key here - to have children. By all means provide wider spaces but not ALL the convenient ones.
My real pet hate though is people who are too lazy to park in a proper space at Tesco, yet don't have the bottle to risk an argument by parking in a disabled or parent space. So they dump their vehicle right by the door (double yellows) or in the pick-up and drop-off bay causing traffic chaos and greatly increasing the risk of an accident.
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I've become more disabled space militant recently as it is just so thoughtless parking in one without the blue badge.
On Saturday, at my local retail park I was going into a shop when a G reg Nova pulled up, into the blue badge space. As its spotty oik of a driver got out I asked if he was going to display his badge entitling him to park there. He answered that he didn't have one, would I like to buy one for him ? I said no, I just want you to have one if you're going to park there. He just wealked straight past me without answering & into shop, staff of shop standing near door who must have witnessed or heard our exchange did nothing.
The other week I visited local B&Q one evening, 70% of disabled spaces occupied, mostly by non badge holders. I mentioned to the door greeter type employee that there must be a lot of wheelchair users in tonight given the fact that the disabled spaces were so full, he just said that they haven't got enough staff to police the use of the spaces, even thought there is a sign up to say that they're regularly checked for people transgressing.
I think that the make, model & registration of cars in the spaces without badges should be read out over the tannoy and if possible an extra 20% added to their shoppping bill.
As for child & parent, wider spaces yes, why they have to be so near the door (which is where most of the traffic is) I don't know.
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All right then why do several of you object to the preferential spaces being near to the doors. OK so the traffic is higher here but presumably these people would still have to traverse this high traffic zone to get to the doors, or am I missing something?
Disabled spaces I am sure no one disagrees with, but why also object to the parent with small child spaces? Come on then I challenge you to name a better category of patron for close parking after the disabled? Or are some of you about to become MY pet hate of those who object to anyone having advantage when it isn't them, fighting talk I know, but that selfish attitude makes me cross!
Consider the way some idiots drive in car parks, you've heard them if not actually seen them, but the induction noise from the fully open throttle tends to be a giveaway. It strikes me that the less the kids are exposed to idiots such as these the better, or those wandering around looking for a space oblivious to all else. Maybe the antis are those without kids.
So my nomination for pet hates is people who drive in car parks forgetting that when they are out of the car they too become a pedestrian.
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The Parent & Child spaces are also often closest to the store because of the need to use the non-standard trolleys that don't stack up neatly/conveniently in the trolley bays. As a badge-carrying user of these spaces, I'm not so worried about the proximity to the store, but the ability to open the car door without fear of bashing the next car, and to get the child into it's seat without breaking my back is much appreciated. If there's a suitable trolley nearby then the trek to the door wouldn't be such a safety issue.
Incidentally, when you can't get a designated space, children who are young enough to qualify for a parking badge for their parents, should also have the child locks on the car doors so the parent can let them out (hopefully) with some respect for the car in the next bay.
An associated pet hate...why do family groups go to the supermarket? If two adults are free to go round the supermarket with all the kids in tow, why doesn't one of the adults stay at home and look after them while the other does the shopping in peace?
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Ian you seems to have a suspiciously comprehensive knowledge of the lowered mobile disco phenomenon! I've been outside and you're right. The purple glow is really somehting.
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If only the would set out spaces that people with kids AREN'T allowed to park in...
I don't care where they park as long as it isn't next to me. I'm sick of kids using the side of my car as their door stop. Nine times out of ten the parent is so oblivious or unable to control what their kids are doing it goes either un-noticed or un-acted upon, and so the kid recieves no punishment and/or learns nothing. It is probably better that they park next to the door since they have less chance of walking near to my car, and less chance of losing control of the trolley as they walk past.
People have written about all the 'rude-boys' - ok they may race around the car park which I disagree with, but its usually them who take the greatest care not to scratch or dink they're shiny new technicolour paint jobs.
Rant over!
Mark.
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I must admit to losing control of a trolley a couple of weeks ago, something blew out in the high wind and I let go of the trolley to chase it, at which point the trolley took off and sailed across the access road and capsised against the kerb.
Fortunately nothing was coming and it hit a kerb rather than a parked car.
Moral: hold onto your trolley come what may.
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People who ignore box junction markings and gridlock half London.
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Yes. Why, do you like it ??
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