L.A. Can't Drive » red light

Private School Brat Runs a Red Light to Net 50 Feet

I-95, U-405 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:09:56 +0000

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This kid’s dad might want to think twice about having given his son a Range Rover (license plate 6PIV). This little speeding, tailgating punk just screamed private school brat. He’s a proud 2012 graduating senior, though, which one could gather from the large inscription written in red soap across his rear windshield. From what I saw all along Beverly Glen, he was tailgating the driver in front of him on this single, winding northbound lane and speeding whenever he got a hair’s breadth of room in front of him. The kicker is when he pointlessly and blatantly ran a red light just south of Mulholland by this housing community. It was afternoon rush hour, and his choices were to either slow to a stop before the red light or run it and stop 50 feet later. For some oblivious reason, he chose the latter option. Might I add that this wasn’t a situation of when the light just changed from yellow to red. It was redder than an Asian on his tenth vodka shot. I snapped this photo as the light turned back to green a few seconds later. Way to go genius…hopefully, your dad has enough money to bribe a school that’s way out or your league to accept you in a last ditch effort that you’ll actually learn something before you have to fend for yourself.

It is Not Cool to Mentally Check Out at Intersections

I-95, U-405 — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 05:51:00 +0000

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I honestly have no idea what’s going on through the heads of some drivers in Los Angeles. So many of them seriously tune out at the least opportune times. Case in point, let’s talk about this clueless couple in this Ford Fusion (license plate 6NBL). We were traveling in North Hollywood during rush hour on Magnolia Blvd. going west. When we reached Cahuenga, we were stopped at a green light for bumper-to-bumper traffic ahead of us. Though technically all drivers are supposed to keep the intersection clear until they can safely traverse, almost all of us never do this–myself included. The more conscientious drivers will at least make educated guesses as to whether they have enough time to clear the intersection before the light turns red. But what happens if we actually get stuck in the middle when the lights start changing? Well, again, the more considerate drivers will do their best to clear the path for oncoming cars. Not these idiots. This guy and his passenger felt completely content to sit smack in the middle of the intersection. We even backed up a bit to at least enable them to clear part of the crosswalk if they wanted to. Alas, to no avail. The light turned red for us and green for perpendicular traffic, and these fools continued sitting there like ducks in a barrel. It took cars on Cahuenga to honk at them for them to grow some brain cells and start backing up. We snapped this photo when they stopped, and as you can clearly see, they are still way over the farthest limit line for westbound Magnolia traffic. Seriously, folks, I know we spend so much time in our cars, but we certainly have an obligation to both others and our own safety to make a concerted effort not to mentally check out, particularly in these scenarios.

Classic Unobservant Aggressive Behavior

I-95, U-405 — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 20:06:05 +0000

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In the twelve years I was driving in the New York City metro area, I didn’t get into a single accident. I had a lot of close calls, but the drivers, though aggressive, are much more attentive than the drivers out here. In Los Angeles, we had two rear-enders in the first year we moved back here (as was the case for my wife, since she was born and raised here). This submission demonstrates the clueless aggression that makes for a double cocktail of accident-prone behavior:

“Here’s one to start the holiday weekend for you, and sorry in advance that I do not have any pictures of the driver, but I have attached a diagram of the intersection and lanes in question for reference.

I work in West LA and, as such, am forced every day to endure the traffic around the 405 on Wilshire or Santa Monica. Fortunately, I figured out a shortcut through side streets and a few parking lots that puts me out on Beloit Ave. at the north side of the intersection with Santa Monica Blvd, with the entrance to the 405 South being on the south side of Santa Monica Blvd. as can be seen in the diagram. I was in the lane and direction indicated by the green arrow, and the idiot driver was in the lane and direction indicated by the red arrow. As can be seen, I was to proceed through the intersection into lane 2 since the lane to the west of me was to go through the intersection into lane 1. Anyway, my light turns green so I proceed to go through the intersection. Unfortunately, some moron decided to not stop and make the right hand turn on red without looking into lane 1. This caused the idiot in my case that was behind that guy to SWING AROUND HIM INTO LANE 2 WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING TO SEE IF THERE WAS ONCOMING TRAFFIC. I slammed on my brakes and beeped my horn for a good 5 seconds as she came within inches of t-boning me as I proceeded through the intersection onto the freeway entrance. She then had the audacity to cut me off instead of letting me through first, even though half my car was in front of hers after the incident! I was so furious that I screamed a few obscenities outside my window to her. Throughout the entire ordeal, including after I honked my horn she didn’t even look in my direction! Once we both proceeded to merge onto the freeway I gave her another honk and flipped her off, then went on my way.

Phew, that was long-winded but is SO TYPICAL of drivers in this city. The “me first” mentality goes too far sometimes, and people who make illegal moves like this are the reason there are so many accidents. This past May I had a similar incidient where a guy made a right on red and crossed over two lanes at once, instead of properly turning into the right lane, and side swiped my car as I was going through the intersection. He lied about what happened to his insurance company so I was forced to pay a $500 deductible out of pocket to get my car repaired. All I can hope is that these jackassess get what is coming to them eventually and that they are forced to face the consequences of their shitty driving.”

I used to work for an insurance adjuster and investigated auto accident claims on a daily basis. In the event of any accident, you MUST take photos of where the cars are before pulling over to the side of the road. Yes, you’re supposed to pull over as quickly as possible, but way too many people lie in this town that unless you have witness testimony from a fellow driver or a police officer, then the outcome of your case really depends on how thorough the adjuster is for your company. In the second incident, examining the dents and scrapes on the car would reveal that the driver was turning when he/she hit your car, as a result automatically placing that driver at fault.

As for the first near-accident, that lady probably knew she was in the wrong but was too arrogant to apologize for it. To make matters worse, she probably will continue to drive like in the future. You would think some people would learn from their mistakes when actual accidents occur, but quite the opposite happens. These accident-prone drivers are so delusional about their own driving abilities and sense of justice that they will always claim to be the victims in any scenario.

Crazy Taxi in Santa Clarita

I-95, U-405 — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 07:47:04 +0000

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During our recent days of fog and rain, I can’t explain to you why I’m still so surprised to see so many drivers navigating our streets without their headlights on. Yes, even in daytime fog, if you can’t see past 1,000 feet or so (whatever the code states, I can’t remember it off the top of my head), you need to have your headlights on. Maybe I still have this naive faith in humanity, even knowing full well that the intelligence and self-awareness of the average Angeleno is woefully deficient. I was thinking about this just today driving around the rain when I passed by a cop who also had his wipers going but his headlights off. I mean honestly, how do you expect someone like him to enforce a law he himself either doesn’t follow or is completely ignorant to? It’s beyond pathetic actually…at this point, this scenario is just sad. Anyway, that’s my little rant. Here’s a submission I received a few days ago:

“You remember the video game “Crazy Taxi”?? Well, here he is in real time!! 6:30 am, laying rubber from every red light, getting up to roughly 75 mph (55 mph limit) on Newhall Ranch Rd in Santa Clarita only to get held up at the next light where I managed to grab a shot before he shot off again only to get stuck at the next light and the next one and next and and and…. Fyi, I did manage to get the number and call the cab company, and it was amazing how much his driving changed in roughly 10 seconds. Yellow Cab of Santa Clarita #430.”

Perfect example of how being proactive just made the streets a little bit safer. Mind you, we don’t have to just do this to strangers. We can tell a good friend who may be a tad too reckless for his or her own good to take it easy a little behind the wheel.

Drivers Who Mentally Check Out at Red Lights

I-95, U-405 — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 04:59:11 +0000

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Before I give an update on what’s going on with our favorite little red hydrant up in Santa Clarita, what’s with people zoning out at red lights when they’re the first car at the intersection? Seriously, is it just me, or has there been a serious uptick lately on the number of drivers who completely check out while waiting by the limit line in a through lane or left-turn-only lane. Call me altruistic if you must, but I think that if you’re first at the light especially during rush hour, you have an added obligation to pay extra attention to the light for when it turns green. Nothing infuriates drivers more in the moment than someone who’s too busy daydreaming in a left-turn-only lane to see that the green arrow has come on. After the obligatory leeway before the inevitable honk, what you get is probably 2, 3, maybe even 4 fewer cars able to make a left during that light cycle. Now how much of this added wait actually impacts one’s commute in the long run? Well, I doubt anyone has actually taken the time to do enough trials to come up with some conclusive data. However, what we do know is that such ADD/distracted drivers not only fuel road rage but are also probably inattentive at multiple points in their commute when their vehicles actually are in motion. Anyway, maybe our recent heatwave fried a few more brain cells, not that our drivers could afford it.

Alas, back to the hydrant. As our regular contributor in the area reported: “I missed the parking guy but he did leave his mark here as you can see.” – Jakes Way and Eleanor Circle

Clueless, Apathetic Twit Blows Through Red Light

I-95, U-405 — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 05:24:45 +0000

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I snapped this one today on the way back from work during pre-afternoon rush hour on Beverly Glen. This middle-aged lady in her Lexus RX400h hybrid SUV (license plate 6DRC) blatantly ran through the red light at the intersection of Beverly Glen and Beverly Glen Place. And when I say blatantly, I mean blatantly…the light was a solid red when we were coming around the bend, and she was damn lucky there weren’t any cars coming from the other street right at her. Before we hit Mulholland, I passed her as she sat in a left-turn-only lane that led to a housing development. Guess what I saw? Yup, she was holding her cell phone in her hand and chatting away. First of all, using your cell phone’s speakerphone isn’t the same thing as using a hands-free cell phone device. It seems obvious, I know, but cops have mentioned that they get that “excuse” a lot when they’ve pulled drivers over for cell phone violations. Secondly, this woman clearly lives in the canyon and knows these roads well. As a result, she should have been perfectly aware of the existence of that traffic light at Beverly Glen and Beverly Glen Place. Well, apparently she wasn’t the least bit fazed with blowing through the red light, since she didn’t opt to put down her phone and continue her conversation after parks her vehicle.

Creeping in the OC

I-95, U-405 — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 11:52:43 +0000

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I want to apologize in advance if my posts become a bit erratic the next couple of weeks. I’m in the process of moving, so hopefully I’ll be able to squeeze a post in here and there. Before I talk about this submission, I did want to give a nice shout-out to the wannabe, punk-ass troll blaring his radio at 9:30 at night in Burbank (oh, you’re so hard, mofo). This punk was speeding around a corner approaching a stop sign intersection while I was already walking halfway across the street. When I noticed the car, I started walking faster just when this self-entitled, half-wit starts to flash his high beams at me. Um…crosswalk? Stop sign? Ring a bell, or were you too busy blowing spit bubbles in that class, too? This arrogant fu*k also had the gall to stare at me as I stared incredulously back at him. I’d spell that word out for him if I thought it would do him any good, though he’d probably get lost by the time I get to ‘r’. Anyway, too many egocentric, clueless morons in this town don’t realize that driving isn’t a right protected by our federal or state constitution; it’s a privilege that more often than not should be taken away from punks like this fool who treat driving like a game.

Although blatant disrespect of pedestrians is a serious pet peeve of mine in this town, nonsensical creeping at red lights is another. Here’s a submission I received from a reader in Orange County:

“A while back I submitted a photo of a creeper who took it to another level by waiting in the middle of an intersection in Mid-Wilshire. Well, as this attachment proves, you’ll find creepers even in the coddled land of the 949 who would rather wait for their (long) lights in the way of crossing traffic. This was taken in Lake Forest at the intersection of El Toro and Portola.”

Mind you, this person didn’t come to a stop this far into the intersection, though failing to see a red light until it’s too late doesn’t exactly earn you a gold star, either. Rather, this person actually chose to enter this far into the intersection after coming to a stop along with everyone else and kept going…. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Southern California has some of the slowest red light runners in this country.