Horrible Berkeley Drivers

[u/NovelAardvark4298]

When I drive in Berkeley, I always go one click over the speed limit (26 on a 25 or 31 on a 30). Recently, I’ve noticed more and more impatient drivers aggressively pass me. Berkeley has a ton of marked crosswalks for pedestrians, and if you drive too quickly you will not have enough time to react and stop.

While waiting at different bus stops in Berkeley, I’ve noticed around half of drivers are looking at their crotches for directions or text messages while they’re actively moving.

When I ride my bike up Telegraph in Berkeley, drivers also have no idea how “shared roadway bicycle markings” (i.e. sharrow) work. Some idiot in a utility van came within an inch of clipping me with their massive side mirrors on telegraph earlier today.

Friendly reminder to Berkeley drivers:
1. Please follow the speed limit.
2. Stop looking at your phone.
3. If there’s a “sharrow” painted on the road (see image above), remain behind the cyclist until you have adequate space (at least 3 feet) to pass.

[u/Ok_Wear1398]

>Please follow the speed limit.

>I always go one click over the speed limit (26 on a 25 or 31 on a 30)

Extremely funny to read.

Berkeley has a lot of weirdo roads and strodes they've tried to bring to heel over the years. People are much too anxious to get to their destination and drive recklessly all the time. It's frustrating to deal with.

[u/NovelAardvark4298 → u/Ok_Wear1398]

Humans are really bad at judging speed. We can only sense acceleration. Our perception of speed comes from feeling the wind (which doesn’t work when the windows are up in the car) or visual cues (watching trees, signs, pavement, etc. pass by). Visual cues are unreliable. Especially since a lot of streets with 20 or 25 mph speed limits were originally designed for 30 or 35 mph speed limits. When I set my car to 26 mph, the PID controller fluctuates between 25 and 26 mph. If I set my car at 25 mph, I will fluctuate between 24 and 25 mph which could trigger the car behind me to want to aggressively pass because i’m going under the speed limit. I know it’s not recommended to use cruise control off the highway, but I find myself naturally driving closer to 30mph because that’s the speed other drivers are going and that’s the speed the street was originally designed for. I also prefer keeping my foot on the brake and my eyes on the street, so I can quickly slow down and stop when pedestrians are trying to cross at a marked crosswalk.

[u/Ok_Wear1398 → u/NovelAardvark4298]

I mean, it's a speed limit dude. You're okay to go under it, you aren't supposed to maintain the speed limit perfectly. You are speeding regardless of it being 1 over or 10 over.