For those who have been driving or walking downtown the past few days, have you noticed the inordinate issues created between bad drivers & bad walkers? While the recent snowfall has been touted as the worst accumulation in 11 years, and therefore many are far from familiar with driving in wintry conditions, we are forced to imagine that in the interest of self preservation some would exercise a little more caution & consideration on the roadways.
From having been on both sides of this debate the past weekend, I’m floored as to how many near accidents or near crushings I witnessed in just a few hours on the roadways. While drivers should count themselves lucky (with our warm cars, our ability to carry large amounts of groceries home, and potentially save ourselves from falling in the muck), we should also yield to pedestrians at every conceivable exchange. However, those on foot should exercise some level of common sense, as I witnessed many individuals unwilling to move from roadways, therefore causing those already traction challenged to take evasive maneuvers or stop quickly, occasionally causing some to become stuck. The attitude from a few pedestrians seems to indicate that they are either impervious to 3,000 pounds of sliding metal, or that the winter holidays really do have a suicidal effect on the psyche.
Many drivers showed the greatest of common sense by following exceedingly close to cars ahead, attempting to accelerate quickly whenever traction became limited, and slowing down before attempting to climb large hills. With Virginia State Police reporting over 3,237 crashes, and 3,567 ‘disabled’ vehicles, we can only hope that all of our readers made it through the hazardous conditions safely. [Photo Credits]
Related posts:
- Armageddon Continues…
- Another SUV Hits Pedestrians on Rio Road
- Watch Out for Those Crazy School Bus Drivers!
As you drive by the pedestrian, offer them a ride.
But only if they can jump into your (traction challenged) car as it continues to move….
When we were pulling into the Doubletree, a dumbass UVA student thought that it would a good idea to stop on that upward incline. Ended up having to help push her stupid ass. On that note, if you own a snowplow you can print your own money. Ended up paying some traveling shovels to dig out the front half of the driveway. It’s a digger’s market out there.
Hey, I was one the people pushing that vehicle too! What a dumbass, she caused about four vehicles to get stuck.
I got stuck on 5th street and had to get out and push like 10 times…horrible
I left my car in a parking lot on Preston after realizing my low rider wasn’t going to make it. Some asshole rewarded me by punching in my window. I wasn’t the only one this happened to. Our doors were unlocked. Way to be, dude. I get a $400 bill at the auto repair shop. You get some jail time once they look up your DNA from the blood you left behind. That fistful of change was totally worth it, right? Merry Xmas.
It’s beautiful out there and it’s great to see all the kids having fun…I just wish we were recovering a little more quickly.
Stuff I’m wishing would happen here:
1. Parking ban on main roads during snow storms. It’s called Snow Emergency in most cities.
2. Free parking at city garages before, during, and after the storm. The garages just went free today.
3. Plowing DURING the storm. It’s clear that some roads weren’t touched until after the snow stopped. I didn’t hear or see a plow for the first 24 hours that the snow fell.
4. Close businesses before the snow gets deep so people (employees and shoppers) go home.
5. People shoveling shouldn’t push snow into the street. Pile it up around trees, on lawns, etc. If you push the snow onto your own street, it’s going to get slushy as cars drive over it, freeze at night, and then leave ice for you to skid on the next day. I can’t believe people don’t realize this.
The best is in the Harris Teeter parking lot. Upon going to get groceries I noticed a pile of snow three stories high……..and a car parked right in the middle of it!!!! Plowers cornered him in.
I own a 4WD truck, and on my way home from our office X-mas party that night, I stopped a few times to help people out. Here are thier stories…
1) A very nice lady (who, as it turned out, lived down the street from me) couldn’t get up the hill to our neighborhoood. She had been on the road for an hour trying to get home, and finally got stuck 1/4 mile from her house. I was glad and delighted to help her out.
2) Two grad-school looking dudes in an audi were stuck at the bottom of Elliot outside of the Newsplex, heading West try to get to 64. I told them to turn around and head back up to 5th stree, cause there was no way they were gonna get up the hill between Avon and Monticello. They asked me to do it for them because “neither one of them knows how to drive in the snow”. They were heading to VA Beach in a blizzard. What idiots.
3) The last notable story was a lady stuck in her mini-van, again at the bottom of Elliot outside the newsplex. She had bags of groceries and two children with her. She was in tears and completely freaking out, as her husband was not answering her calls for rescue. She was heading to Forest Lakes (I think?). I tried to drag her van up the hill, but my strapping broke. I quickly realized that even if I got her up the hill, she would just get stuck at the next one. I would have driven them to where they needed to go, but I had been drinking quite a bit at this point, and opted not to. Fortunately, the neighbor across the street came out and offered her and her small children a warm place to sit and wait while his 4WD vehicle warmed up. I backed her van out from the middle of the road and he ended up driving them home.
See… despite all of the snark, there really are some good folks out there. I just wish people would be more senisble when deciding to drive in the snow.