You Know What Really Grinds My Gears? Now with 3x more gears...

[GGG]

Originally Posted by fotze2

I still get excited going Memorial East to Deerfoot north turnoff. The late stragglers who try to scoobie in last minute to head onto Deerfoot.

I will scan my left for someone who is about to do that last minute lane change, so I will leave a big optical gap that is just perfect but I get my speed up just to match them.

No, you aren't getting ahead of me at the last minute......and guess what, when you decide that getting ahead of me won't work and try to slip in behind me. Nope. Oh no, I will not let you get in behind me either. I know what you are doing and I will slow down for that too. Exactly side by side while I look you in the eyes. Now you have to go straight until Blackfoot and lose your mind. It is bliss.

You are actively making the road more dangerous. Other people’s bad driving doesn’t excuse your dangerous driving.

[TorqueDog]

^It seldom surprises me anymore when people gloat about how they piss off the 'line cutters' while failing to recognize they're exposing their own bad driving habits. If a gap is there and can be safely entered, then you're just f-cking up traffic with your bullsh-t. Stop it.

Originally Posted by fotze2

Apple watches (and their ilk). Noticed people with them have no problem just halting the conversation for awkward lengths of time to read whatever message has come up on the watch, Way more than people do with phones it seems. Now I have to stand there and observe them while awkwardly breaking the silence knowing they are not listening to me and it usually just ends the conversation there and I just walk away. Seems to be older people who do it more.

The weird thing is that people think it's less intrusive or less rude because it's a glance at their watch.

Constantly glancing at your watch when someone is talking to you is pretty much what the height of rudeness in a conversation was before mobile phones came along.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

One thing I wondered was how often it makes more sense to spend $30K on a vehicle, or Uber every day.

Assuming $60 a day round trip, that's 500 days. 50 weeks a year, 5 days a week mean that's around 2 years worth of Uber. Potentially more on just commuting if you're hybrid and not in office 5 days a week. Double that to almost 4 years of commutes on a $60K vehicle.

That's without factoring in earning interest on the $30K, Uber One, fuel, insurance, repairs, parking and other operating costs once you have a vehicle. It depends many other factors like if you have many other non commuting trips though.

Lots of people seem to hate vehicle ownership/driving which is why I wonder. I don't think they realize that they might fit in a situation where it's $10-15K a year on Uber vs $15K+ a year on average for vehicle ownership (ICE, Hybrid or EV).

It's an efficiency/flexibility trade off. Flexibility is obviously a deal breaker for many.

I think as a consideration for a second or third vehicle this could make sense. Uber is still more expensive per km though for anyone driving in the 10k per year or higher range. Cars range from .30 - .70 cents a km. A cab in Calgary is $1.91/km

[puckedoff]

This back alley is a particular gear grinder for me since they opened a Tim Hortons on this street because (1) I hate tim hortons; (2) people will park in this back alley to run in and grab a coffee; and (3) Doordash/Skip drivers will park in this back alley to wait for deliveries.
.

People who are using door dash to get Tim Hortons.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by GGG

I think as a consideration for a second or third vehicle this could make sense. Uber is still more expensive per km though for anyone driving in the 10k per year or higher range. Cars range from .30 - .70 cents a km. A cab in Calgary is $1.91/km

Yeah. For a first vehicle the odd longer trip somewhere really messes up the economics (eg I visit my grandmother in Strathmore, go see the Okotoks Dawgs once in awhile, hike in Kananskis). Regularly renting a car for those would be a hassle.

But I work from home 100%, so once my kids are gone I can absolutely see going down to one vehicle for my wife and I and just relying on Uber when we're going two different places.

I'm actually hoping self-driving will be rolled out by then, to reduce waits and increase safety. I took a Waymo in San Francisco and it was really neat. It was also a safer driver than any of the Uber drivers on the same trip.

[Wormius]

Car sharing would potentially be cheaper. Would be nice if we got one like Enterprise has set up in Toronto. The only bad thing about them is you have to return the car to specific areas.

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by ggg

you are actively making the road more dangerous. Other people’s bad driving doesn’t excuse your dangerous driving.

dgaf

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

^It seldom surprises me anymore when people gloat about how they piss off the 'line cutters' while failing to recognize they're exposing their own bad driving habits. If a gap is there and can be safely entered, then you're just f-cking up traffic with your bullsh-t. Stop it.

The weird thing is that people think it's less intrusive or less rude because it's a glance at their watch.

Constantly glancing at your watch when someone is talking to you is pretty much what the height of rudeness in a conversation was before mobile phones came along.

I glance all day, but its much longer than a glance.

[butterfly]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

One thing I wondered was how often it makes more sense to spend $30K on a vehicle, or Uber every day.

Assuming $60 a day round trip, that's 500 days. 50 weeks a year, 5 days a week mean that's around 2 years worth of Uber. Potentially more on just commuting if you're hybrid and not in office 5 days a week. Double that to almost 4 years of commutes on a $60K vehicle.

That's without factoring in earning interest on the $30K, Uber One, fuel, insurance, repairs, parking and other operating costs once you have a vehicle. It depends many other factors like if you have many other non commuting trips though.

Lots of people seem to hate vehicle ownership/driving which is why I wonder. I don't think they realize that they might fit in a situation where it's $10-15K a year on Uber vs $15K+ a year on average for vehicle ownership (ICE, Hybrid or EV).

It's an efficiency/flexibility trade off. Flexibility is obviously a deal breaker for many.

Yeah, if you own one you are incentivized to use it all the time to minimize the cost per mile. As the price of the car decreases, more of the share of expense is operating cost though. If someone just gave you an old car that would work for 2 years, you could still run the analysis.

After COVID, rental cars were booked out all the time on short notice, so I started using Lyft/Uber to go everywhere when traveling. At first I was scared of how expensive it might be, but I think for the most part, it is cheaper and more convenient than a rental car.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

^It seldom surprises me anymore when people gloat about how they piss off the 'line cutters' while failing to recognize they're exposing their own bad driving habits. If a gap is there and can be safely entered, then you're just f-cking up traffic with your bullsh-t. Stop it.

The weird thing is that people think it's less intrusive or less rude because it's a glance at their watch.

Constantly glancing at your watch when someone is talking to you is pretty much what the height of rudeness in a conversation was before mobile phones came along.

I mean, I don't go as far as to bait them, but I wouldn't make it easy and I'd definitely make sure be like "Bro WTF" if I do let them in. IIRC, that's a solid white line there. I think I remember seeing a cop there with like 4-5 vehicles once issuing tickets for crossing that solid white. I totally agree about not being someone to adding more bull#### to drives though.

Getting upset and road raging is just dumb. Why get upset and associate something as intentional that can easily be explained away as incompetence?


The watch thing is really weird. I agree.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by butterfly

Yeah, if you own one you are incentivized to use it all the time to minimize the cost per mile. As the price of the car decreases, more of the share of expense is operating cost though. If someone just gave you an old car that would work for 2 years, you could still run the analysis.

After COVID, rental cars were booked out all the time on short notice, so I started using Lyft/Uber to go everywhere when traveling. At first I was scared of how expensive it might be, but I think for the most part, it is cheaper and more convenient than a rental car.

It's been very difficult to get a rental car around here lately/this summer - many people have long term ones replacing hail damaged vehicles.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by fotze2

dgaf

And that makes you a ####ty driver.

You actively slow down traffic trying to play road police. Next your going to tell us you police the left lane. You aren’t stopping anyone from being dick you are just slowing the rest of us down and increasing collision risk.

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by DoubleF

I mean, I don't go as far as to bait them, but I wouldn't make it easy and I'd definitely make sure be like "Bro WTF" if I do let them in. IIRC, that's a solid white line there. I think I remember seeing a cop there with like 4-5 vehicles once issuing tickets for crossing that solid white. I totally agree about not being someone to adding more bull#### to drives though.

Getting upset and road raging is just dumb. Why get upset and associate something as intentional that can easily be explained away as incompetence?


The watch thing is really weird. I agree.

The example of where exactly their in-traffic f-ckery is taking place isn't clear, and I've seen loads of people do it while the line is still dashed. [shrug] I do laugh when the cop is waiting up there and tickets all the people crossing the solid white though.

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by GGG

And that makes you a ####ty driver.

You actively slow down traffic trying to play road police. Next your going to tell us you police the left lane. You aren’t stopping anyone from being dick you are just slowing the rest of us down and increasing collision risk.

Oh no. Everyone is crawling at that point anyway. People may be forced to go from 7 to 4 KPH, the carnage. Is it a ahole move by me, hell yeah, dangerous? Negligibly moreso.

You mean my dreams of being crowned Calgary's most diligent driver are gone, that's what I care about most.

I police the left lane police. I will get in front of the guy going 105 in the left lane and slow down to 101. How do you like them apples.

[butterfly]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

It's been very difficult to get a rental car around here lately/this summer - many people have long term ones replacing hail damaged vehicles.

Oh, I didn't think about that. Hail damage is nothing new though. I think the rental car companies sold a bunch of their inventory to maintain cash flow when nobody was using them and then didn't replenish all of them when the demand came back. Just guessing.

[GGG]

Originally Posted by fotze2

Oh no. Everyone is crawling at that point anyway. People may be forced to go from 7 to 4 KPH, the carnage. Is it a ahole move by me, hell yeah, dangerous? Negligibly moreso.

You mean my dreams of being crowned Calgary's most diligent driver are gone, that's what I care about most.

I police the left lane police. I will get in front of the guy going 105 in the left lane and slow down to 101. How do you like them apples.

Now you are a liar and a ####ty driver.

Drive with purpose, be predictable, do what’s best for the herd.

[fotze2]

Originally Posted by GGG

Now you are a liar and a ####ty driver.

Drive with purpose, be predictable, do what’s best for the herd.

What did I lie about now?

Go easy spazzo.

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

The example of where exactly their in-traffic f-ckery is taking place isn't clear, and I've seen loads of people do it while the line is still dashed. [shrug] I do laugh when the cop is waiting up there and tickets all the people crossing the solid white though.

Yeah, adding fuel to a potential road rage situation is just dumb. There's a saying in Cantonese that's translated to something like, "That's grabbing #### and smearing it on your body."

If someone pisses me off, I'd never instigate. Why get involved with an idiot who will attempt to bring me down to their level and beat me with experience? I might however, drive relatively normal and act aloof in a manner that just so happens to be in their way while still following the flow of traffic.

Like immediately signaling to let a tailgater pass, but slowing down to go behind a vehicle doing so vs speeding up over speed limit to do so...

Originally Posted by butterfly

Oh, I didn't think about that. Hail damage is nothing new though. I think the rental car companies sold a bunch of their inventory to maintain cash flow when nobody was using them and then didn't replenish all of them when the demand came back. Just guessing.

I think you're on the right track though. The savings you'd get are more than if you had to pay a potential 1.5x or 2.5x rental premium. Even if people are scrambling for rentals from rental cars right now, there's still private such as Turo. IIRC those aren't covered by insurance, so even with a serious premium for a short term rental, your long term savings should still far exceed the extra you're paying.

[Wormius]

I think you’re missing the scenario where by blocking somebody from merging, you’re forcing them to slow to a crawl and take more time to find an opening, now causing their lane to come to a crawl, and then you have people getting antsy and wanting to go from this 4kph pace to the next lane over that is still doing 100kph.

And this is in essence everything that sucks about the Deerfoot exit onto Glenmore; these vigilante “they should have changed lanes back at Peigan” dickfaces that police the right lane.

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by fotze2

Oh no. Everyone is crawling at that point anyway. People may be forced to go from 7 to 4 KPH, the carnage. Is it a ahole move by me, hell yeah, dangerous? Negligibly moreso.

Wormius nailed it; you're making things worse for everybody, and for what? Punking some asshat in traffic that you've probably never met and will probably never meet again? What a win.

This is what gets me about the "WhY aRe YoU iN sUcH A rUsH, yOuR tImE iSn'T wOrTh MoRe ThAn EvErYoNe ElSeS" types on Reddit who are indignantly proud of their left-lane hoggery. By being an obstacle in traffic, you're not just inconveniencing the person stuck behind you, but eeeeeeeeeverybody around you.