Hawaii Drivers v. Mainland Drivers

[Miulang]

According to the Advertiser, Hawai'i drivers (I guess they mean the locals, not the immigrants) have some peculiar driving habits. I know of one sure way to keep cars from tailgating you...go buy a bike rack that sticks out about 2 feet from the back of your car. If the car behind you gets too close, it's likely to get impaled by the arm of the bike rack, if you have to stop suddenly. Since installing my bike rack, I've noticed that cars do keep their distance!

Miulang

[cezanne]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

Good article.. It's true that Hawaii drivers drive with a bit too much aloha (re:letting more than one car merge). What I don't understand is when people insist on trying to merge onto the freeway at the beginning of an onramp in near deadstill traffic creating another jam behind them. In those situations I go all the way to the front of the onramp then merge... followed by the shaka sign of course.

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

You know for some odd reason when some guy/gal/other tailgates me on the highway, they back off when I turn on my rear windshield wiper on my minivan. It's like: I can see you now so back off buddy, and they do.

One day I want to install rear window washers and aim them straight back and fill the tank with oil. They'll think I'm dripping oil outta my engine and they probably won't want all that stuff over their windshield. Yeah tailgaters, they'll probably end up in Hell or behind some cranky old lady driving a bus' up old Volvo sporting Earthday and hug your keiki bumper stickers on the back for them to stare at as she drives at house shopping speeds on the freeway.

[1stwahine]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

I think I drive pretty good considering what ails me. Then again, if someone rudely pists me off while I'm on the road...I'm at my best at road raging. I only go for short runs and only on Sundays to Ewa Beach to church. Today, we take a ride to Waikiki and enjoy SOB.heheheheheh Sunset On The Beach, silly!

[kimo55]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

It's true that Hawaii drivers drive with a bit too much aloha

it is a sad day in Hawaii when this kind of statement and mentality becomes acceptable.

[kimo55]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

According to the Advertiser, Hawai'i drivers (I guess they mean the locals, not the immigrants) have some peculiar driving habits

this is, of course, the perspective of a haole-centric, mainland owned, haole journalist written newspaper.
(haole dominated as well as haole sounding and slanted pieces...)

[Palolo Joe]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

The guy who wrote the Advertiser story was Michael Tsai. So much for there being an all-haole staff.

[pzarquon]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

The Honolulu Advertiser is "haole" insofar as it's Gannett owned, but given that much of the staff is local, I don't think that's relevant at all. I'll pick on Gannett for its business and management practices, and surely its news judgement is swayed by directives from the top, but the folks on the front lines there are just as local as the rest of us.

Besides, the story talked to several people, some of whom love things the way they are, and some who think local drivers are out of their minds. Which is to say, there's as much there agreeing with Kimo, had he bothered to actually read the piece. Sad day indeed.

I'm born and raised, a public school and UH grad. And I definitelythink some things local drivers do are just bonkers. Both on the "too nice for their own good" front, and on the "purely reckless" end as well. Of course, given local street design and our government's traffic "management" skills, everyone should get kudos for doing as well as they do.

[EastCoastTropics]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

I just quickly read the article....on my way out to work here. I had to laugh because alot of these habits I don't find peculiar at all! I've lived here on the east coast for over 20 years and have seen my share of bad drivers here. The article says that Hawaii drivers also:

• Don't know what the left lane is for.

• Don't know what the right lane is for.

• Block intersections.

• Roll past stop signs.

• Drive too fast.

• Drive too slow.

• Aren't courteous enough.

• Are way too courteous.

Let me just say that all these points above are sooo familiar and I find that drivers here are all of the above with the exception of the last point. The drivers here can be pretty rude!

• Don't know what the left lane is for.
Here, they know what the left lane is for, but don't give a crap!

• Don't know what the right lane is for.
Same here, in fact, right lane is also used for passing slower traffic in the middle or left lane!

• Block intersections.
Uh huh, and pretend that they don't know they're sitting in the middle of the intersection.

• Roll past stop signs.
What stop sign? There was stop sign there?!

• Drive too fast.
Trying to keep up with all the other drivers!

• Drive too slow.
Going the speed limit

• Aren't courteous enough.
So?

• Are way too courteous.
Not here!

[cezanne]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

it is a sad day in Hawaii when this kind of statement and mentality becomes acceptable.

Yeah take it from Mr. Aloha himself.

[admin]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

Keep this thread focused on the topic of local drivers, not each other.

[kimo55]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

The Honolulu Advertiser is "haole" insofar as it's Gannett owned, but given that much of the staff is local, I don't think that's relevant at all.

haolefied is one of many ways I can describe a newspaper that tells OHA; "wait, we gotta approach this verrrrryyyy slowly. You can't put a Hawaiian cultural center in kakaako. This whole area should be studied for years to find the "highest and best use". (towers and big development)
and tells us;
"drivers here drive with too much aloha"
and I refer to the newspaper, not the interviewees.

[Moto]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

What I don't understand is when people insist on trying to merge onto the freeway at the beginning of an onramp in near deadstill traffic creating another jam behind them. In those situations I go all the way to the front of the onramp then merge... followed by the shaka sign of course.

Agree with cezanne, that is appropriate according to the situation. However, the thing that Mr. Oide was stating in the article, I believe is for normal flowing situations.

A lot of drivers will drive to the end of the on-ramp, then stop to look if it is safe to merge into traffic from a dead stop. The way to enter the freeway is to stop where you have a good view of the oncoming traffic and when you see an opening in the traffic approaching, drive down the on-ramp where you can pick up speed and match the speed of the flow of traffic so you can easily merge into traffic. When I try to do this at the UH on-ramps (the ones that are really short), about 20% of the time, the drive behind me will toot their horn as if to tell me to move to the end of the ramp.

What's worse, is when there is a large opening in the traffic and two or three cars will go down the on-ramp trying to enter traffic, and the car in the front suddenly stops at the end of the on-ramp to see if he/she can enter traffic. That is really dangerous because the drivers behind may not be looking forward, but checking to see if the opening still exists (yes, sometimes people driving in the middle lane of the freeway will cross that solid line to come into the right lane and now fill the opening that you were planning to merge into) and not see the car that stops in front of them. For this reason, I no longer drive on the on-ramp in tandem with another car. I will wait until the on-ramp in front of me clears and then accelerate when an opening in traffic appears.

Another thing I see a lot is when that car is stopped at the end of the on-ramp, people behind them will accelarate down the (now shortened) on-ramp and merge into traffic before the stopped car can merge onto the freeway.

[cezanne]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

Keep this thread focused on the topic of local drivers, not each other.

OK, sorry boss and sorry Kimo.

I just didn't understand how the statement "drive with a bit too much aloha" is "unacceptable mentality". I think it's pretty selfish to think "screw everybody behind me, I'm letting anymany I want in front of me because I wish to exude da aloha!" "Oh you like make left turn into this oncoming two lane traffic? Go go! I let you! (boom... that car gets smashed by other car in the other lane who had no clue that I was being nice and letting people go). I have first hand experience of being the broadsidee. Worse yet is that it was my fault by default because I was making the left!

[kimo55]

Re: Hawai'i drivers v.Mainland

What's worse, is when there is a large opening in the traffic and two or three cars will go down the on-ramp trying to enter traffic, and the car in the front suddenly stops at the end of the on-ramp to see if he/she can enter traffic. That is really dangerous because the drivers behind may not be looking forward, but checking to see if the opening still exists

It may be dangerous as hell, but the car hitting the stopped vehicle is at fault. It is the following car's responsibility to keep a distance, and, of course NOT crash into the car ahead of you. No matter what.
And every cop will tell ya that. and they have to me. You try to excuse your impact and the cop will say;
"It does not matter. YOU must keep a safe distance and allow for 'dumb' moves."
This happened to me (I hit a car) and I was competely at fault. Assumed the car was continually accelerating. But instead, they were being very cautious.
(too cautious for some people, I suppose).


yes, it is selfish to think "screw everyone beind me", then drive badly. But of course, that is not really what driving with aloha is. Unless that is the immoveable view of someone who would prefer to see everyone here, drive like they do in el lay.

I think we covered the "locals drive with too much aloha" subject a while ago.
This was some kinda poll in da pepah.
My perpective is; the more this island is covered with too many people wanting to move here from all parts, and the majority of these are from mainland cites where the driving habits are nowhere near Hawaiian Style, and add that to too much overdevelopment = too many people = too many cars = too many people wanting to get where dey going fastah, we goin have an island driving style that slowly has morphed into something resembling the 405/101 area. and it will be the popular view that people should NOT drive anymore with 'aloha'.
That is the proverbial sad day I lament. and that day is here.