Driving tips from a local!

Submitted by SlytherinTargaryen t3_xzlg2c in vermont

Wanted to take a minute and explain a few things to visitors that I thought might help. How we drive, and why we drive the way we do.

-Driving aggressively. As a general rule, we don’t do that here. Vermonters don’t have a competing mindset when it comes to driving, so we’re not out to cut you off at a merge or anything. It’s dangerous to drive like that in a state that’s usually pretty mellow on the roads, because while you might have that competitive/aggressive mindset, we don’t, so we’re not prepared or on guard for someone who is. You’re just going to smash into us or rear-end if we have to brake for a deer or something and you’ve been tailgating. Vermont is a beautiful place to drive in. Slow down and enjoy the view! Isn’t that why you came?

-Speeding on the highway. We get it. Plenty of space to open ‘er up, especially if you come from a city. We find it annoying, but you know who LOVES it? Our traffic cops. You guys fill quotas. Skiing, maple syrup and speed traps fuel this economy. Our cops aren’t afraid to toss out a few points on your license either, if you were really trying to hit warp speed.

-IMPORTANT: This one might sound odd, but if you hear a siren while driving, you’re going to see people pulling off to the side of the road and waiting for a few seconds. Please do this as well. Someone has an emergency and we want help to get to them as quickly as possible. And, this may be confusing, but you‘re going to see this on BOTH SIDES OF THE ROAD. Two lanes of clear space is better than one for a wide, speeding vehicle like a fire truck or an ambulance. It’s only for a few moments until the vehicle passes and then traffic will go back to normal. It‘s more than just etiquette here. If for some reason, god forbid, you or someone you love gets hurt while visiting, you can find some comfort in knowing that all that traffic between you and that en route ambulance is going to clear so it can get right to you. We ask that you help us do the same for others who need it.

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[deleted] t1_irmq76u wrote

Ok yokel. If I wanted to drive properly I’d just turn on autopilot in my Tesla.

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pro_conser333 t1_irmt2a5 wrote

I have a few driving tips for those that live here. It may not be because you are aggressive driving but I am cut off several times per day. Learn how to use a rotary and a four way stop sign. Please do 40 MPH in the 40, not 30 and then speed up to 40 in the 25 MPH. Lastly, green means go and red means stop. It’s crazy that your foot can’t find the gas at a green light but can floor it on red and almost cause some serious accidents.

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FixatedOnYourBeauty t1_irmt5ia wrote

We were visiting the mad river area a couple of weeks ago for the first time and found the scenery so tear inducing beautiful the found ourselves driving at or below the speed limit, because we wanted to make it last. We did this if there was nobody behind us. We watched behind us and if there was an obvious work truck etc, we'd simply watch for the next "pull off" (don't know if that's the correct term) and allow them to pass. We 'd do the same for locals who were 3 or less car lengths behind us. Also we tried to watch to see if we were the cause of locals stacking up behind us, it's easy to get outta the way with all the pull offs. Of course, we were there about a week before the leaf transition so there wasn't a ton of traffic. Follow the golden rule and treat other drivers how you would want to be treated is the best rule of the road.

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Libriomancer t1_irmt5tt wrote

So… like everywhere else?

Vermonters don’t drive aggressively, except when they do which is quite frequently by the amount of times when I’ve been cutoff by a fellow green plate or when I’ve had one ride my ass despite going the speed limit in an area known for wildlife crossing.

Highway speeding, I’ll set my cruise control at about 70 and still get consistently passed by fellow Vermonters.

Pulling over for sirens is a universal thing. I’ve driven in the middle of a city and had to pull over with no space to let emergency vehicles by.

I understand the sentiment considering I’ve even recently replied to a post about peepers jumping in the road for pictures but all the things you’ve mentioned here… I’ve seen that usually Vermonters are just as bad with and I’ve lived here my whole life.

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zombienutz1 t1_irmtzjb wrote

No one from out of state is going to read your post and take your advice. Should out of staters drive less aggressively? Probably. Should Vermonters drive more aggressively? Definitely. Personally, as a 5th generation VTer, I like driving around and messing with the more aggressive folks. Just play their game by cutting them off, boxing them in, and drive the speed limit in front of them.

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tgeekb t1_irmvpgc wrote

Can we please stop the preaching and these ridiculous posts? Do you really think you’re better than or different than the rest of the country? Maybe you should get out more.

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VioletMcBitchin t1_irmw85u wrote

Where do you live? Vermont drivers are the literal worst. I get cut off, have to slam on my breaks because someone doesn't understand the right of way, big trucks running red lights, getting passed on a back road by someone driving 65MPH in a 35MPH zone dirt road. This is weekly, I expect people to pull out like an idiot and that thinking has saved me from accidents multiple times. I have lived all over the country, and I have to say that Vermonters are at least as bad as New York or New Jersey.

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TwoNewfies t1_irmy72x wrote

Not aggressive as a general rule I agree, but. Those big pickups, often white for some reason. Green plates, bumper humping, and passing on sharp curves where neither lane can see ahead!

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SlytherinTargaryen OP t1_irmymuj wrote

Replying to VioletMcBitchin (#63,750)

I’m living in the Chittenden area! Major issues with college kids who are still new to driving and come from states where you need to shove your way onto the highway.I know VT drivers aren’t perfect, and a lot of people looove to blast their way down backroads where we know there aren’t any speed traps. But I wrote the post mainly because I’ve been seeing a few plates get confused when traffic stops and pulls over for emergency vehicles. Some places do the same; some don’t.

The Burlington area suuuuuucks for driving across the board. But there are still some sleepy towns that are a lot calmer overall.

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[deleted] t1_irmzg7w wrote

Replying to VioletMcBitchin (#63,750)

Easily more annoying than anywhere else. My small town here has a four way stop. If there are locals stopped at it they all stare at each other until one of them waves the others through. I don’t know how they can be this way

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memorytheatre t1_irn3v80 wrote

The general sentiment of this I get but jfc how smug can one be. Less than half of the people living here were born here. The Vermont exceptionalism that some people have is beyond ridiculous. The amount of A-hole drivers in green plated trucks is epidemic. The amount of scared drivers going 40mph up the on-ramp to 1-89 is insane. The number of Vermont drivers glued to the right lane as they are passing an on-ramp with merging traffic is very dangerous.

Leaf peepers and Mass/NJ/Conn. drivers are indefensable.

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bibliophile222 t1_irn8gq4 wrote

I'm confused on the last point: does this really not happen in other parts of the country? I spent a bunch of years in MA before moving back up here, and cars on both sides also pulled over for ambulances.

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QualityRescue t1_irnq5jt wrote

Every state bordering us hates how we drive and if you venture out of state into a big city with green plates you will automatically be labelled as a traffic hazard.

Let that sink in before becoming preachy about 'everyone else' being bad drivers.

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GuideAggressive5800 t1_irnrm1z wrote

Replying to tgeekb (#63,731)

As a Vermonter I wish I could downvote this stupid passive aggressive preachy bullshit more than once. Reddit can be the absolute worst sometimes.

OG, do you really think people will read your sermon and nod understandingly, and make sure to end the error of their sinful flatlander ways?

Real Vermonters leave well enough alone and leave people alone.

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StoryofIce t1_irnsfzo wrote

Im sorry, but green plates do this to me more than any other plate.

The amount of people that ride my butt in the left lane when I’m already going over the speed limit and trying to get back in the right lane is obnoxious.

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tgeekb t1_irnt81b wrote

Replying to GuideAggressive5800 (#64,998)

I have a feeling it’s all very young people. I’ve been visiting Vermont for 20 years at least and, as you said, the majority are awesome, kind people who don’t sound like the OP. They’re making a bad name for the rest of you.

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Traditional_Lab_5468 t1_irntyub wrote

Is that last bullet not universally understood? I thought that was just the law everywhere in the US...

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MrHoonigan802 t1_irop1d2 wrote

Speak for yourself. Green plates are fast shitty drivers too. Know why? They don't care about "the beauty" they've already seen it!

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Americ-anfootball t1_irp3u0x wrote

Replying to QualityRescue (#64,932)

100%, the reputation of Vermont drivers that I've heard around Western Mass and CT is that Vermonters love going at least 10 under on 91, and are oblivious and unassertive, often to the point of creating a hazard

Literally every state likes to stereotype their neighbors and claim that they're the shittiest drivers and have no common sense. They're all correct, though, because people in general are more inattentive and unsafe behind the wheel than we're willing to admit, it just has nothing to do with your state lol

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YouConstant6590 t1_irpoe5y wrote

Lol, hard disagree on Vermonters not driving aggressively 😂 Nor do they slow down, stop passing illegally, etc. when the weather sucks. Sounds like your town is great, though!

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