It's such a simple, concept, really. You go on green, slow down on yellow and stop on red. But the folks here just can't seem to get that.
I'm sure most of you have heard the horror stories about driving in Miami--it's all true. We suck. We're nasty and aggressive and have no idea what the hell we're doing. Basically, there are two types of drivers out here. One is the ones for whom traffic is always going too slow, who speed whether they are in a hurry or not, and honk the second the light turns green because no one is moving yet. The other is the ones who have their heads up their asses, always on the cell phone, weaving around, all at a perpetual 25mph. There's no in-between down here... and what joins these two groups is a common rude attitude and the inability to comprehend basic driving rules. Yes, it's that bad.
The situation with the lights is the one that gets me. There you are, stopped at a red, waiting for it to turn green so you can continue on your merry way. From the opposite direction, there are cars waiting to turn left. So what happens when the light turns yellow? Cars crossing the intersection just keep going, (in Miami, yellow means "hurry up") and after they pass, the cars waiting to turn left do so. But it's not one car crossing who takes the yellow. It's always at least four, including two to three who take the red. As for the cars turning left, the one in the middle of the intersection has no choice but to turn, but apparently, so do three more cars, all taking the red. I mean, most times, the third and fourth cars are behind the line, but they go anyway. And meanwhile, there you are, your light green for 30 seconds already, and no one's moved an inch. And just as you approach the intersection, there goes yellow again.....
It's a never-ending cycle. Both sides of traffic are to blame. But the lessons here is that in Miami, red is apparently an option. You have cars who have plenty of time to stop before the red but refuse to do so. You have cars waiting to turn left who are still behind the line but go anyway, after the light's changed. And I am so pissed at how this is routine down here, how people have no regard for anything. It's to the point that I refuse to drive as often as I can, because if I do, I think I will kill someone...
People, it's not astrophysics. You go on green, slow down on yellow and stop on red. Sounds simple enough, right? Apparently not.
