There are many things to love about Vancouver, from the hikes to the food to the art. However, it seems that what truly grinds people’s gears is how drivers act behind the wheel.
While Vancouver may be known for its laid-back atmosphere, it’s a different story on the road.
Recently, Daily Hive reported on a Good Samaritan’s experience helping an elderly couple who were stranded after their car broke down during rush hour. While Adrian Larkin tried to help the couple tow their car away, he witnessed passing drivers shout, swear, and wave the middle finger to the couple.
Larkin said the encounters were disappointing and added that drivers in the city need to “chill the fu*k out.”
“When people get behind the wheel of the car… they turn into proper a**holes,” he said.
Since sharing his experience, Daily Hive has received more than a dozen responses from readers detailing even more reasons why driving in Vancouver is the absolute worst.
“I’ve driven in Boston, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Florida — I have NEVER seen worse drivers than here in Vancouver,” one person wrote.
So, we’ve compiled a number of reasons why people get annoyed on the road:
The road rage epidemic
Daniel Tadevosyan/Shutterstock
“Road rage is an epidemic in Vancouver,” one reader says.
Much like Larkin said, people echoed his criticism that when people get behind the wheel, they feel comfortable angrily acting or saying what they want and then revving their engine to speed past.
“When they don’t get their way, they can become enraged at the injustice they perceive,” one person commented.
A common experience for drivers is also feeling pressured to turn left at an intersection by vehicles behind them. This is why one person said they would “never” try to force someone to turn, and we agree.
“Unfortunately I’ve had head-shaking, hands up in the air, the finger and yelling directed at me at many intersections throughout Vancouver for not performing a blind turn,” Lee said. “This seems to be happening with increasing regularity.”
We’ve also noticed similar impatience at green lights. For example, drivers honking at people at an intersection within a fraction of a second after the light turns green.
Douchebag drivers, slow down
Speeding driving car in traffic (zhu difeng/Shutterstock)
Previously, Daily Hive shared an opinion piece from Daniel Bettridge back in 2017, which addressed “douchebag drivers” and pleaded with them, “For the love of god, please, PLEASE stop speeding!”
However, as the years went by, speed seemed to continue to be an issue for drivers.
According to ICBC, speeding is one of the leading causes of car crash fatalities in BC.
Those who don’t get the message could be fined $138 to $483, and “the cost increases the more you are over the speed limit,” the ICBC site reads.
On the flip side, one Daily Hive reader said while there are people that seem to be “flying along in a blind rage” on the road, there are also people that just go too damn slow.
“They drive about 10k below the speed limit and then just zone out, ignoring everything around them,” David wrote.
Bad habits
Hayk_Shalunts/Shutterstock | ICBC
One person suggested that driver’s licences are handed out like candy, and “enforcement for law-breaking is basically non-existent.”
Whether people have been driving for years, a few months, or maybe coaxed into nabbing a licence, it’s clear that folks seriously need to brush up on their driving skills.
Here is a list of bad habits Vancouver drivers notice on the roads:
- Not using the indicator to signal intentions to merge or turn
- Running yellow and red lights
- Rolling through stop signs instead of coming to a complete stop
- Not using the left lane as a passing lane
- Not noticing or letting drivers merge into a lane
- Driving too slow on the highway
- Driving in the HOV lane despite not having enough people in the vehicle – you cheater
Is infrastructure the problem?
Vancouver traffic/Shutterstock
While many agree that the drivers on the road are to blame for the anxiety people feel driving around the region, others point out that better infrastructure would help.
James wrote that so many people are using “densifying road space,” which enhances the terrible road conditions.
“With all the different choke points one can experience when trying to travel regionally. I find it results in the driving experience feeling very zero-sum,” he said.
James added that transit options need to keep up as the population grows.
Another person, Lenny, commented,” It’s only getting worse as density increases. The sooner we move to a city where it’s more convenient to zip around on bike or by transit, the better.”
Of course, the annual outrage people feel every winter about Metro Vancouver’s response to snowfall is also worth a mention.
What did we miss? What are other reasons driving in and around Vancouver is annoying? Let us know in the comments below.