LMAO - I'll bear all that in mind HJ.
Thanks all
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Err, drive on the right! OK, joking aside, firstly, be prepared to yield..give way, to vehicles exiting the highways onto access roads. Also, if you are on the access road, yield to any vehicle coming towards you that intends joining the highway.
Also, people here pass you on either side, that is, if you are driving in the centre lane, don't assume it's safe to pull back over to the right lane...someone could be passing you here too!
Illegal here too, but they do it all of the time.
American drivers are much less patient than UK drivers and are always in a hurry, even at weekends when supposedly relaxing.
Yes, good advice from the other poster...beware on Green lights.
Running Red and Stop signs here is so common, usually by a woman in an suv with seats filled with kids not strapped in and using a cell phone. They never see more than five feet in front of their hood (bonnet) and never use turn signals or mirrors.
If a police patrol pulls you over, keep your hands on the steering wheel and move slowly...they assume you are armed!
Be forewarned that the drivers here are extremely discourteous(something that baffles me for a nation so dependent on the use of an automobile) Tailgating is common, plus these people drive at the same dangerous speed no matter what the weather is like.
It is not unusual to have 500 wrecks on a rainy day in the city where I live. Thats why I pay 400% more on auto insurance than I did in the UK....to pay for their stupidity.
I guarantee, you will be best driver in Florida in March!
Take care and enjoy America...ps, if that cop pulls you over and you can run away, do it...they are so fat that they could never run after you!
Dexter.
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Err, drive on the right! OK, joking aside,
errrmmm not so stupid actually, got fed up recently of encountering brit tourists on the wrong side around towns.
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I guess for a tourist it can be daunting driving here. I found it difficult at first as there seems to be a road sign epidemic in Texas....so much to look at and take in from the wheel. Maybe this is why so many road signs are ignored? The funniest one is at my local Credit Union. There is a small section of road, about 50 feet long with hugh trees at the end of it, obviously going nowhere, but they put a "Dead End" sign up!
The security guy normally parks here, so we are now waiting to see a "Security parking" sign go up.
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Dexter,
ps, if that cop pulls you over and you can run away, do it...they are so fat that they could never run after you!
But wouldn't they perhaps shoot poor old smokie instead of running after him....?.
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Hmmm, good point. Smokie, if you are reading this, either stay put or make sure you can run and hide really quick!
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Message received and understood!
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Thanks all for the words of wisdom, especially dexter. Local rules and regs (and driving custom) is something I hadn't even considered.
I'm going to print this thread to keep with my travel docs...
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I don't know if its the same in Florida as in Texas, but at a cross-roads junction, they can ignore the red stop light if wanting to turn right, and the road is clear. Still makes me nervous when we're back in Tx and my hubby does that.
Im wanting to give the driving thing a go myself in March-ish time as we're going over for a couple of weeks and thinking of driving up to Iowa. I've been driving for almost 15 years and Im still getting a little bit worried about the driving on the right thing. It is the whole junction thing that really gets me - thank god they don't have round-a-bouts!!!!!
Patricia
x
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Also the trafic lights can act differently at quiet times, varies from state to state but....
continuous flashing red seems to mean either;
stop and give way, proceed when clear. or
a 4 X-way stop, go in turn.
continuous flashing amber seems to mean take care and proceed with caution. The locals seem to treat this as get welly in so as to be on the crossing less time, :-( not keen.
and as for roundabouts, they do!!
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Hi PatriciaX,
I'm in Texas and have found this to be the case also. Most drivers here do ignore most traffic signs and signals.
When I first came here, driving on the right was the least of my worries as I was so busy driving on defense all of the time.
There is no such thing as a steady drive to and from anywhere here...all "pedal to the metal" racing to the next snarl up.
Most people I talk to here who drive a truck like mine, have brake jobs at around 15,000 miles. My pads are not even half worn yet, at over 18,000 miles. Next time you are here, just notice at how often these people need to hit the brakes due to driving too close to the vehicle in front of them.
One thing about night driving that you need to be aware of....most traffic lights here are on the other side of a junction...not like in England, where most are right on the line where you need to stop. Be prepared to stop some ways short of that red light!
Take care,
Dex in TX.
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