Dealing With Impatient Drivers

I was sitting at an intersection this afternoon with my left turn signal on, and I had to wait for a couple of minutes for a break in traffic as it was right after work and there was a long line of cars going straight. Anyway, there was an idiot in an SUV behind me who kept laying down on his horn. I suppose he wanted me to get T-boned. There was no way I could cut out in front of the oncoming cars without getting hit. I also saw his hood bounce a few times, so I was afraid he would push me out into the intersection. Of course when I eventually was able to turn, he swerved around me and sped off.

What are some good techniques to not let impatient drivers like that get to you?

No SUV is gonna push a big truck anyway.

My experience has been that Truckers are usually patient in this scenario because they know you can’t just pull a big rig into oncoming traffic. The four-wheelers can get mad all they want.

Make all your moves safe and legal. Someone else’s patience isn’t your responsibility.

You’ll get called No. 1 (you know the finger) a few times. What you need to remember is; they don’t know what you know. They can be behind your big truck, thinking you should turn. But you might be hauling a 45,000lb load and that takes time to get moving.

Ignore those idiots. They have no idea how to drive. Always remember you are the captain of the ship and the CEO of yourself.

I could care less how high someone else's blood pressure goes up. I make sure I am doing what is safe and legal. Most drivers experience this type of behavior from others on the roadways. I experience it daily from drivers inside cemetaries. You can't believe how nasty some folks can be when you interrupt their passage inside a cemetary. And I don't mean during a funeral. I just smile and wave at them, of course with all fingers extended, lol.

Crossing traffic is no joke. You're the professional driver if someone drives under your trailer while you're crossing their travel lanes it's your fault. I never rush because of the people behind me. They can wait. You've got a greater responsibility to safely get that truck down the road. @40,200 people died in car accidents in 2016. Forty thousand two hundred people....never got where they were going.

Here in NYC they’ll honk as soon as the light turns green. I still have to move my foot from the brake pedal to the gas pedal!! Sometimes I just become extra slow or if they persist I just stop. Can’t control them, just you.

When I drove cross country over the summer, I swear I only heard a horn two times & if I remember correctly, it was me on the horn. Felt like an ass.

As a newbie i used to put my hazrards on and pull the brakes. they dont know if your truck stalled. they will go around you. lol

i did this when backing into spaces and doors to the super truckers. They hate waiting.

we need patience. i just figured all other drivers are idiots trying to kill me so i slow down and let them pass.

You're the good driver, they're not. It's a general rule of thumb that the masses do everything terribly and don't appreciate that they're doing everything terribly. Driving's no different. You just learn to ignore it.

You're the good driver, they're not. It's a general rule of thumb that the masses do everything terribly and don't appreciate that they're doing everything terribly. Driving's no different. You just learn to ignore it.

Think about that last sentence....

Ignoring an impatient driver is not a safe or professional practice. Depending on the nature of their hurried behavior, you may need to take evasive action to avoid an accident. Maintain an increased level of caution whenever in heavy traffic, when turning, when someone is merging onto the interstate or approaching to pass.

The absolute best way to "deal" with impatient drivers; proactive space management, focus, always look for an "out", and highly effective situational awareness. "Vigilant" best describes the behavior necessary to safely counter other's impatience.

My favorite example of this was on I-287 several years ago. It was about 2200 on a week night so traffic was relatively light, weather was clear; however as I scanned my mirror on the driver's side I noticed two vehicles approaching me at a high rate of speed; the following vehicle was drafting the lead vehicle (NASCAR wanna-be). I anticipated the following vehicle would dart in front of me as soon as they cleared my truck...common. I prepared accordingly; slowing down, making sure I had open shoulder on the right to use if need be and kept a watchful eye. Sure enough the following vehicle cut-me-off before completely clearing my bumper, basically forcing a quick move into part of the shoulder. I immediately hit my camera upload button so the event was uploaded and captured.

Point being; had I not been paying attention, scanning my mirrors every 15-20 seconds, I would NOT have been prepared to "deal" with the aggressive impatience. Otherwise the likely outcome would have been an accident.

Always be aware of what's going on around you at all times. Never let your guard down or assume the other driver will do the right thing.

Safe travels my friends...

The right answer is as many have mentioned before. Never let it bother you, control your own rig, and be safe.

I normally listen to music or talk radio within my truck, so I barely hear what some idiot is doing 53ft behind me, more so if they're just fuming away and honking in the city. Welcome to Atlanta, Boston, and New York daily routes haha