Rate the states: Drivers

[Mr. Illini]

Which states are your favorite and least favorite in terms of driving style for the area? Maps encouraged.

Illinois: Chicagoans are the best, which I say primarily because they taught me how to drive so I drive like them. Very fast but also courteous in terms of letting people in, etc. The perfect amount of aggression without being a d*ck about it, IMO. For downstaters, see Indiana.

Wisconsin: On the slow end. Please get out of the left lane.

Minnesota: Same.

Indiana: On the slower end, like Wisconsin. They are not nearly as bad about camping out in the left lane while driving slowly, though.

Iowa: Like Wisconsin and Minnesota, but even slower.

Michigan: Similar to Chicago drivers but a little tamer. Second best in the Midwest.

Ohio: Damn slow, but not to be blamed. The cops are like hawks in their state, so I don't blame them. I always make sure to slow down when I am driving through.

Pennsylvania: Slowest of the states that I would consider northeastern. They usually stay over to the right though. Around Philly it is a little quicker.

New Jersey: Pretty nutty. Fast and aggressive and also pretty jerky and unpredictable. Expect to get cut off a lot. Still much prefer them to slowpokes.

New York: Just fast. Drive like Chicagoans in terms of speed but less courteous than us. Smoother and more talented than their New Jersey counterparts.

Maryland: Moderate in speed but just dumb. Refuse to let others merge, will routinely stop when trying to merge on the expressway, never know what they're doing. It's like MD doesn't have driver's ed.

California: Similar to New Jersey, but even faster.

Gray states I have no opinion of/no experience with.

[Joe Republic]

Utah: Turn off your f[Inks]ing high-beams at night when there's other cars around.

California: That weird lever sticking out the left side of your steering column?  Try flicking it up or down; it makes a funny clicking sound, but it has an important purpose for other drivers.  I know, I know, you guys like to maintain the element of surprise.

Nevada:  I apologize for trying to change lanes in front of you, but I don't think keeping you twenty feet further away from your destination is going to matter in the long run.  Driving isn't a competition.  Oh and SUV drivers, if you guys could go a day without killing any pedestrians that'd be awesome thx.

[Gass3268]

Nothing is worse than FIB drivers. Nothing.

I had family that lived in Illinois for like 4 years, never stopped using their Wisconsin plates because they didn't want people to think they were Illinois drivers.

[Mr. Illini]

Nothing is worse than FIB drivers. Nothing.

I had family that lived in Illinois for like 4 years, never stopped using their Wisconsin plates because they didn't want people to think they were Illinois drivers.

Wouldn't want anyone thinking you have any sense of urgency at all

[dead0man]

My perceptions are more region based.

The south:you guys suck.  Slow, no idea what the passing lane is for, and very much enjoy pulling out in front of you.  and slow.  (except around Atlanta, where everybody is fast...very fast..not as fast as me, but fast enough.  Still will pull out in front of you though.)

Midwest, east of the Mississippi-generally the best....some places are slower, like Ohio for the reasons the OP mentioned.  There will be people from every place that don't understand how turn signals work, or how to properly pass on a controlled access highway, but they (we) seem to be better than the other places.  I've never driven east of Johnstown PA.

West of the Mississippi-slower, and less good at general driving than the people on the other side of the big muddy, but still much better than the South.  Missouri gets a special mention though.  Worst drivers north of the deep south.  I don't know if it's still the case, but in my day, you didn't have to take any behind the wheel training to get your license at 16.  I had a buddy that moved from MO to IL after getting his license in MO, IL made him take drivers ed.....he DROVE to drivers ed by himself.

[Mr. Smith]

Utah: You morons need to stick to your lane, I know your roads are wide, that doesn't mean you get to weave all over the place though

California: Stop cutting people off, and dear heavens there's a lever on the left side of the steering wheel that you can use when signaling.

The South: Keep your left arm inside the window for once.

Arizona: See that sign that says State Highway 89...that's the route number, not the Speed Limit, slow down a bit. The fact that drug dealers are better than you at staying in close proximity to the limit is just sad.

[ilikeverin]

Maryland drivers are TERRIBLE.  They're godawful.  I once saw a driver go about 75% of the way into an intersection at a red light, then put their car in reverse and try to back up as if that would somehow "undo" running the red light.  Ugh.

I agree that Michigan drivers are generally pretty good, except for driving too fast for my Minnesotan sensibilities.

[angus]

Ah, but of course, the map:



Or something like this.  Increasing wavelength of colors corresponds to increasing driving pleasure.  Neutral absorption density corresponds to states in which I have never driven.  Some are difficult. For example, NY has some nice long stretches and some beautiful scenery, but I've driven more in the densely populated areas of that state so my opinion is weighed more by those memories.

[Nutmeg]

Maryland drivers are TERRIBLE.

Agreed, as someone who has driven a car in 48 states plus the nation's capital. The average Marylander is both aggressive and confused, a unique combination. A common joke in D.C. both on local blogs and in person is that any car involved in a wreck or nearly running over pedestrians in the crosswalk is from Maryland; it's often true. Driving While Having Maryland Plates being the supposed crime.

Best drivers: All states that are not Maryland.

Worst drivers: Maryland.

[Crumpets]

Oregon and California drivers are the worst on the West Coast. Oregon drivers I think are just lost most of the time, and will drive slowly looking at every address and street sign before making an abrupt U-turn. California drivers, on the other hand, simply pay no attention to any of the rules of travel, whatsoever, and act like rude cyclists if their bicycles were the size of cars.

That being said, I think they're much better in their home states, and the above only applies to those who are driving out-of-state.

[DemPGH]

The driving that I've done has mainly been interstate where traffic tends to move routinely, but I'll make a few general observations.

Pittsburgh is notoriously difficult to find your way around in because things are poorly marked, the area is not known to be friendly, and the city is very difficult to navigate because of its age and how it is laid out. Eg., some little alleyway might actually be an exit or you simply may not be able to get from here to there and have to take a side street or a bridge. Have a GPS, even if you think you know where you're going.

Around western PA the worst drivers tend to be old people because of some sense of entitlement or something. They're most likely to pull out in front of you and go slow, or not obey road signs, or just be generally inconsiderate drivers. Younger men tend to be the most aggressive, especially in trucks, and on two lane roads and backroads they love to tailgate. That's what I notice, and younger and middle aged women tend to be the most considerate drivers. Older men and women, though, are just terrible.

[Clarko95 📚💰📈]

courteous in terms of letting people in, etc. The perfect amount of aggression without being a d*ck about it

Do we drive on the same expressways lolz

[exopolitician]

Massholes: Truly awful drivers, but they aren't dicks about it. That's just how they learned to drive, I guess. Also, I don't understand why everyone decides to turn on red without even pausing, and its like Stop signs don't exist here. Stop that sh!t, you drive me crazy! (This includes RI drivers)

Texas: Same as Massholes, except they go out of their way to be dicks about it. Tailgating on purpose, speeding to be selfish and not giving a rat's ass about anyone else on the highway, no turn signals, ect ect.

Oklahoma: See Texas, but only because that's probably their only form of entertainment is to be bad drivers...cause ya'know....Oklahoma.

Florida: Everyone speeds, at least up in the Panhandle.

[Хahar 🤔]

As mentioned by many, Maryland drivers are the worst, which is funny because Maryland driver's ed requirements are so onerous. I went ahead and got my license in California because it just wasn't worth it to try to do it in Maryland. I definitely feel like learning to drive in Maryland (Burtonsville, to be specific) prepared me to drive anywhere else.

[Adam Griffin]

FLORIDA DRIVERS ARE THE WORST

In Atlanta, you can be going 100 in the far-right lane on a six-lane highway and you'll still have jackasses flying by you and/or staying behind you flashing their lights

[angus]

I don't understand why everyone decides to turn on red without even pausing,

haha.  That is fairly common in PA as well.  A lasting impression for me, from the five years I lived in Boston, is that I never got used to folks making a left turn as soon as the light changes to green.  I have it drilled into me that if you're making a left turn and you have a green light but not an arrow, then you must be patient and wait till all the oncoming traffic passes before turning left.  I don't know about the rest of Massachusetts, but in Boston it was the norm for anyone waiting to turn left to immediately floor it when the light turns green and take the left before the oncoming traffic starts forward.

One time, we were going somewhere...I forget where, but I was sitting in the front seat by the driver...and we were at a red light about to go left, and the driver actually got a green arrow.  He immediately said, "aw, man, a green left-turn arrow?  There's no sport in that!" and acted frustrated as he made his left turn.

Seriously.

[exopolitician]

I don't understand why everyone decides to turn on red without even pausing,

haha.  That is fairly common in PA as well.  A lasting impression for me, from the five years I lived in Boston, is that I never got used to folks making a left turn as soon as the light changes to green.  I have it drilled into me that if you're making a left turn and you have a green light but not an arrow, then you must be patient and wait till all the oncoming traffic passes before turning left.  I don't know about the rest of Massachusetts, but in Boston it was the norm for anyone waiting to turn left to immediately floor it when the light turns green and take the left before the oncoming traffic starts forward.

One time, we were going somewhere...I forget where, but I was sitting in the front seat by the driver...and we were at a red light about to go left, and the driver actually got a green arrow.  He immediately said, "aw, man, a green left-turn arrow?  There's no sport in that!" and acted frustrated as he made his left turn.

Seriously.

Its something that is going to take some time getting used to, I've only been here a month and the driving habits here are still so foreign to me.

[dead0man]

I don't understand why everyone decides to turn on red without even pausing,

haha.  That is fairly common in PA as well.  A lasting impression for me, from the five years I lived in Boston, is that I never got used to folks making a left turn as soon as the light changes to green.  I have it drilled into me that if you're making a left turn and you have a green light but not an arrow, then you must be patient and wait till all the oncoming traffic passes before turning left.  I don't know about the rest of Massachusetts, but in Boston it was the norm for anyone waiting to turn left to immediately floor it when the light turns green and take the left before the oncoming traffic starts forward.

One time, we were going somewhere...I forget where, but I was sitting in the front seat by the driver...and we were at a red light about to go left, and the driver actually got a green arrow.  He immediately said, "aw, man, a green left-turn arrow?  There's no sport in that!" and acted frustrated as he made his left turn.

Seriously.

My ex-father-in-law did that ALL the time.  Except he was a southern gentleman and nobody (few?) else did it in his area of the country (the northern suburbs of Atlanta, Marietta and such).  So it surprised everybody involved.  He called it a Pittsburgh turn...and damn it, when I looked that up last time there was just a reference or two on some random message board, now there is a WIKI!? for it?

Anyway, nobody does them here nor anywhere else I've lived except him.  He drove fast too.  Faster than me and I think he may be the only person I've been around that I can say that about.  We had a lot of fun together   But I'd never do that turn.  Have thought about it, dozens of times....but I know the time I do it will be the time the person just goes from the green and doesn't see me being a dickhead.

[politicus]

So why are Marylanders bad drivers? It seems strange that they should be different from neighbouring states.

[Nutmeg]

So why are Marylanders bad drivers? It seems strange that they should be different from neighbouring states.

I don't have a good answer, but one theory I have is that many of the residents of Maryland's Prince George's County (and Montgomery County) grew up in D.C. and either chose to move (due to D.C.'s rough couple of decades, or they decided to cash out and sell their homes) or effectively were forced out due to rising prices. Many of these people likely did not own a car while living in D.C., so their experience driving came later in life, and so they just aren't good at at.

However, this theory does not explain why drivers are bad in some other parts of the state. While riding in a car driven by a friend of mine who grew up in Baltimore County, I noticed she aggressively would accelerate to block other cars from merging when they signaled their intentions ahead of time. I asked my otherwise-reasonable friend why she would do such a thing, and she responded that when learning to drive, she had been taught (by her parents, I assume) that someone else's use of a turn signal should be your signal to block them from executing that lane change and get some kind of space advantage over you. Amazing.

[Mr. Illini]

courteous in terms of letting people in, etc. The perfect amount of aggression without being a d*ck about it

Do we drive on the same expressways lolz

Maybe I am just used to it, although I contest that Chicago drivers are much better about letting people merge than northeastern drivers of any state. They will let you in, but also (myself included very much so) have an "if you're going to go then GO" attitude. Meaning that if I am going to let you merge or have flashed my brights to let you go at a stop sign, then GO GO GO. Nothing gets on my nerves than hesitant drivers.

[Green Line]

Everyone thinks their own state has special drivers.  In reality everyone drives pretty much the same.

[RINO Tom]

As a native Illinoisan (from Peoria), your assertion that Downstate drivers drive slow is absurd, IMO.  People in Peoria fly, and the cops have actual sh*t to worry about, so they never pull anyone over.  People are regularly going 75 on the 55 roads, and the interstate cutting through downtown always has cars flying.

Agreed on Wisconsin.