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Deedle posted:From what I gather the congestion charge is a fee, not a tax, because taxes are levied to pay for things. The fee is levied to encourage people to not take the car. It's a toll.
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Sep 19, 2015 20:54
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Mooseykins posted:It's a toll. we will probably have to go to war over it to figure this out.
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Sep 19, 2015 21:51
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nitrogen posted:we will probably have to go to war over it to figure this out. Not a problem, i just hope that the collateral damage includes the destruction of the congestion charge system because it's loving bullshit. gently caress this city, gently caress the people who run it.
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Sep 19, 2015 21:54
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Foxtrot_13 posted:The US doesn't pay because they say it's a tax. Transport for London (the people who operate the charge) as well as other countries say it's a toll that diplomats have to pay, much like how British diplomats pay road tolls in the US. It's a tax, on the privilege of driving in London. Toll road fees (are supposed to) maintain the toll road and provide a route with reduced congestion, and there is almost always a way around the toll road to avoid the fee. The congestion tax in London covers all of the roads so it is unlikely that the tax is actually benefitting the road that you are using and the only way to avoid it is to not drive in London, which I will admit is probably easy thanks to London's mass transit. In my opinion, a toll road is a voluntary fee that provides a higher level of service but the congestion tax seems more a gently caress you to people who work in London and need to drive a car. Is the tube always as fast as taking a car? What if your job requires you to transport bulky items?
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Sep 19, 2015 21:54
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Crotch Fruit posted:It's a tax, on the privilege of driving in London. Toll road fees (are supposed to) maintain the toll road and provide a route with reduced congestion, and there is almost always a way around the toll road to avoid the fee. The congestion tax in London covers all of the roads so it is unlikely that the tax is actually benefitting the road that you are using and the only way to avoid it is to not drive in London, which I will admit is probably easy thanks to London's mass transit. It only covers an area of central London. And as you said, the fees don't go into maintaining anything, it's just a tax disguised as a toll to "reduce congestion" which it doesn't. It's only increased traffic in the roads around it, and barely reduced traffic inside; anyone who needs to go into the zone in a vehicle needs to go in, regardless of the charge. I have to take my van in frequently for work, and it costs me £10.50 for every day i go in the zone. (Mon-Fri) My last monthly bill for the CC zone was £136.50. Sometimes if i have a drop that's right on the edge of the zone, if i can, i park just outside and make the drop with my trolley, skip the fee.
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Sep 19, 2015 22:01
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If you go by this definition, tolls on many bridges and roads in the USA are actually taxes. Bridge tolls in California for instance. (money of which goes to pay for mass transit, not the bridges)
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Sep 19, 2015 22:04
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nitrogen posted:If you go by this definition, tolls on many bridges and roads in the USA are actually taxes. The CC Zone is just a cuntish tax. Toll roads in mainland Europe loving own. Very little traffic, much better routes, excellent roads, excellent services and rest stops. None of that here, it's poo poo.
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Sep 19, 2015 22:24
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Mooseykins posted:It only covers an area of central London. And as you said, the fees don't go into maintaining anything, it's just a tax disguised as a toll to "reduce congestion" which it doesn't. It's only increased traffic in the roads around it, and barely reduced traffic inside; anyone who needs to go into the zone in a vehicle needs to go in, regardless of the charge. I have to take my van in frequently for work, and it costs me £10.50 for every day i go in the zone. (Mon-Fri) My last monthly bill for the CC zone was £136.50. The CC goes to pay for for transport projects in London that includes road maintenance as well as other forms of transport infrastructure and is only paid by those who use the roads it can be classed as a toll.
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Sep 19, 2015 22:44
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if you cant avoid it its not a loving toll
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Sep 19, 2015 22:49
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PCOS Bill posted:What really drives me nuts is on my commute home from work I go through a small business district (shoppin center on both sides of the road) where there's one lane of traffic each way, turning lane in the middle, and I'm going the same way the masses are. EVERY TIME without fail I get behind the guy who lets every single person in in front of him who wants to pull out into traffic our way from both sides. I really don't understand why people have so much trouble with this. Leave a gap if you're already stopped and you can't pull forward any farther without blocking a driveway or intersection. If you can pull forward without blocking anyone in then do it. Don't stop and leave a ten car gap in front of you because you want to be the person to let people out. Don't leave a gap at all if traffic is still moving. Don't ever wave people out, but especially don't wave people out if they're turning left. Christ this stuff pisses me off almost as much as people who run past the end of on-ramps to force their way into traffic from the soft shoulder. I've seen so many near accidents because of completely inconsiderate attempts at being "polite." Not to mention the fact that it puts the driver who's pulling out into a lovely situation where doing the right thing and staying put makes them the one responsible for holding up traffic.
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Sep 19, 2015 23:34
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Foxtrot_13 posted:The CC goes to pay for for transport projects in London that includes road maintenance as well as other forms of transport infrastructure and is only paid by those who use the roads it can be classed as a toll. I'd be amazed if it actually went into road maintenance because the roads inside the zone are still poo poo. If it does go into the public sector it's probably part paying for cycle lanes that are going to reduce useable road for vehicles that need it.
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Sep 20, 2015 11:38
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Mooseykins posted:I'd be amazed if it actually went into road maintenance because the roads inside the zone are still poo poo. If it does go into the public sector it's probably part paying for cycle lanes that are going to reduce useable road for vehicles that need it. Someone told me that cycle lanes in the UK are funded by EU money (which seems to be right: http://www.ctc.org.uk/eu-transport-committee-agrees-to-include-cycling-in-major-transport-fund ) So, the reason that all these useless cycle lanes (going from nowhere to nowhere, or going from somewhere to dumping the cyclist in the middle of a 4 lane roundabout with nowhere to go) is that the local council gets cash for every metre of lane they create. Regardless of how useless or dangerous it is.
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Sep 20, 2015 12:25
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I'll just leave this here. Not my picture, DPS provided this. This is Interstate 10.
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Sep 20, 2015 20:57
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spog posted:Someone told me that cycle lanes in the UK are funded by EU money The stupid cunts still don't use them. I drove past loving miles of cycle lanes most days without a single bike-riding oval office in sight. They've basically halved the traffic capacity of a lot of already-congested roads by building this poo poo. Then they have signs like "We're building segregated cycle lanes!" about as if we're meant to be loving pleased about it. Get me out of here. I've had enough of this shithole. I can't wait to leave.
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Sep 20, 2015 21:01
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The Locator posted:I'll just leave this here. Not my picture, DPS provided this. It's that a semi backwards on I10?
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Sep 20, 2015 23:19
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The Locator posted:I'll just leave this here. Not my picture, DPS provided this.  I guess it just goes to show they will let any idiot have a CDL these days.
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Sep 20, 2015 23:23
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Crotch Fruit posted:How many miles did he get away with this stunt? This happened recently here. Two Romanians took their truck the wrong way down a motorway, drove down the hard shoulder a few miles with their hazards on, then did a U-turn at a junction slip road, and swapped drivers while in motion. To be fair, the u-turn was loving decent. They got banned from driving in the UK, one for a year, the other for two years. Stupid thing is, if they found they'd got on the motorway the wrong way, stopped immediately and called the police, the police and highways agency would rush there, put on a total closure and guide the truck the right way and send them on their way.
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Sep 20, 2015 23:50
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Geirskogul posted:It's that a semi backwards on I10? Yes. Yes it is. Crotch Fruit posted:How many miles did he get away with this stunt? No idea. A friend of mine in the Border Patrol posted this to his FB page - he works out of Blythe, so it's no doubt somewhere near the border.
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Sep 20, 2015 23:57
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The Locator posted:I'll just leave this here. Not my picture, DPS provided this. How drunk was the driver?
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Sep 21, 2015 01:24
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The Locator posted:No idea. A friend of mine in the Border Patrol posted this to his FB page - he works out of Blythe, so it's no doubt somewhere near the border. Found the spot: https://www.google.com/maps/@33.603...!8i6656!6m1!1e1 They're maybe a quarter mile down from the exit, hopefully that's where they got on.
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Sep 21, 2015 02:32
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Saw a Prius cut off the van behind me to get into the lane that goes onto the freeway on ramp at the other side of the intersection to...not go onto the freeway. All that for nothing.
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Sep 21, 2015 07:27
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Do rednecks see it as a challenge to their manlihood if they're passed? For the second week in a row, I'm driving down MS-30, a two lane road between Bumfuck, Mississippi, and BrotherSisterLoveHoller, Mississippi. A car is in front of me, varying wildly between the limit, 5 over, and 5 under. I pass them, so I can use cruise control (at 5 over, so I'm not slowing anybody down, it's not that). Last week, the second I do this, Ole Mr. Sisterfucker in a lovely Kia SUV starts tailgating me. I stick to cruise control, eventually he passes me, only to catch up to the semi ahead of us and apparently not figure out how to pass it. This week, I go to pass the guy, he speeds up. I'm in a faster car, and I know he's doing it to screw with me, so I stay hammer down, and finally pull ahead at about 20 over. Then he tailgates me. Then, after about 3-4 passing sections, he passes me, violently swerving in front of me, only to tear off at about 80. 3-4 miles later, he slows down to 35. Knowing he's again trying to screw with me, I maintain a safe distance, at about 20 below the limit, while a semi is tailgating me. He pulls off, eventually, and flips me the bird. Like ... dude, I'm not here to screw with you, and I don't really care if you're in front of me or behind me. Just pick one, or hell, pick a speed, and I'll figure out the rest.
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Sep 21, 2015 21:20
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Krakkles posted:Do rednecks see it as a challenge to their manlihood if they're passed? (Inside the car and out)
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Sep 21, 2015 22:04
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Was behind this van taking a left turn, he pulled really far right in the lane going in and I thought it was amusing how bad he was and then OH MY GOD WHAT THE gently caress ARE YOU DOING he continued turning left making it a u-turn back out the way we came in right in front of me as if I wasn't there and almost hit me overcorrecting back into the opposite lane. I was actually in my car for once (had to drop a couple bags of stuff off at Goodwill - need to offset some of that bad karma now and then) so if he had hit me it would have just been a really annoying afternoon instead of trip to the hospital, at least.
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Sep 21, 2015 22:12
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Cage posted:Were you driving the mustang? Those are always idiot magnets. This time, however, it's a '15 Fusion Ti. The definition of sleepy sedan, with a decent Ecoboost mill thrown in for fun.
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Sep 21, 2015 23:20
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Man, no one ever revs their engine at me when I'm in the 'Stang (I think it's happened maybe three times since 2010) and I love accelerating hard at lights (though only up to the speed of traffic or the speed limit, because drag racing on public streets is retarded).
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Sep 22, 2015 00:28
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Caught a gem earlier today; Jetta TDI rolls coal ahead of me right after the radio report on VW's tanking stock. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeHZTD7pN8w :34 if someone cuts you off, but they're invisible to you and stay in the oncoming lane, did they ever cut you off in the first place? 1:03 work van was tailgating me HARD. I slowed down to the speed limit to encourage him to pass me. He did, and promptly rode up on the next guy close enough to be on the brakes every 5-10 seconds. Work truck directly behind him, towing a trailer does the same to the van. I stay 10-15 car lengths behind them all watching, and still ride up next to them at each of the 4 stoplights we hit. Nothing happens, I just can't understand how people can constantly drive 5 feet off of everyone's bumper. 2:05 Red lights optional past 9pm, I suppose. NoWake fucked around with this message at 05:44 on Sep 22, 2015 |
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Sep 22, 2015 05:40
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Part of my commute involves driving on a dual carriageway which has the national speed limit applied to it. It was a bit foggy this morning so I'm doing 60 in the left lane when a riced to gently caress Impreza comes barreling up behind me doing over 80, and chooses to slam on his brakes and honk at me despite having a free lane to go around in. The more retarded part of this is the Mazda 6 estate hanging literally a metre off the back of the Imprezas bumper as it speeds off into the fog. And the even more retarded part of this mornings commute was passing 5 cyclists, 3 of which were wearing black and had no lights or reflectors whatsoever, one was wearing bright clothes but still had no lights and the last one was kitted up like Lance Armstrong but actually had lights and reflectors which I was thankful for.
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Sep 22, 2015 12:23
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http://imgur.com/gallery/8YSu4AS If i was going to die, i hope i'd have the presence of mind to go out like this. Edit: (noone dies in this gif) Killstick fucked around with this message at 12:56 on Sep 22, 2015 |
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Sep 22, 2015 12:26
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NoWake posted:
I will run red lights late at night/early in the morning if it's a road I know, and I can tell beyond a shadow of a doubt that nobody's coming. Many lights near me will start flashing yellow after 10pm as well. I wouldn't give anyone else poo poo for doing it safely.
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Sep 22, 2015 13:13
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I treat red lights as stop signs at super late/really early hours, but never blow full through them. I'll be damned if I'm sitting through a light cycle at 4:45am, though.
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Sep 22, 2015 13:45
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I occasionally have to deliver newspaper routes. I blow stop signs like they're not even there, blast down residential streets at 45mph, and there are a few red lights I treat like stop signs. I am the fastest at throwing routes at my site, but my co-workers refuse to ride with me and I've scared off a couple contractors with my "style". I suppose I am one of "those people"  This is all between 1AM and 5AM, though, when it's pretty much clear. You start getting traffic on the major arteries at around 0530 or so around here. EDIT: what's REALLY fun is getting pulled over for a DUI fishing expedition and the cop gets mad when they ask "have you been drinking tonight?" "No, I'm throwing papers and I've got 200 left. Can I go now?" Beach Bum fucked around with this message at 14:29 on Sep 22, 2015 |
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Sep 22, 2015 14:27
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Dealt with a complete rear end the other day. So I live right off a major street in Denver. Like, speed limit is 65, and between daylight hours it's practically packed. Here's a pic of the merge lane onto this street:  It's tiny, maybe 250 feet? Either way, in the middle of traffic, it's hard to get up to speed, so I often just wait for the light to change (and it's often, about 1.5-2 minutes tops even during rush hour.) This opens up a gap wherein I can get on the road much more comfortably. Cue jackass from adjacent trailer park coming up behind me. Cars on the road are packed but still going at speed, so I just wait. 10 seconds pass, and he starts pulling out to my left and stops, I suppose realizing he can't get far trying to get around me that way. This is bad because he's now blocking my view of oncoming traffic, so I have to pull up a good 10 feet or so to regain that view. At this point I have maybe 200 feet to accelerate, and 0-65 in a stock, base model 4 banger Honda isn't exactly instantaneous, and there's still the problem of having room on the road to actually merge into. So I wait again, and the light has changed, but the remaining traffic has to pass. Apparently another 10 seconds is too much time for trailer park rear end in a top hat, so he turns and tries to go around me, in the shoulder. I'm not okay with this, so I slam on the gas and he doesn't get a chance to get in front of me. But god drat, can't people have patience when trying to merge onto one of the busiest roads at 4 in the afternoon?
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Sep 22, 2015 15:44
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Mooseykins posted:gently caress this city, gently caress the people who run it.
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Sep 22, 2015 15:59
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Protocol7 posted:I'm not okay with this, so I slam on the gas Protocol7 posted:But god drat, can't people have patience 
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Sep 22, 2015 16:10
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I don't like letting assholes like this get their way, even if it contradicts my usual driving methodologies. I was still able to safely merge in front of a semi. I don't see the problem.
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Sep 22, 2015 16:34
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Here is the source of your vehicular problem.Protocol7 posted:So I live in Denver...
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Sep 22, 2015 16:40
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Protocol7 posted:Dealt with a complete rear end the other day. Christ, if someone wants to go faster than you just let them loving go, don't cut them off. Yesterday afternoon I saw two cyclists. With proper reflectors. In light colored clothing. Waiting at a red light patiently. I didn't know how to respond.
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Sep 22, 2015 17:05
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I don't understand how people in Memphis can screw up merging onto a freeway so bad. Most on-ramps are a quarter mile long. Get up to the speed of traffic, find a hole and merge. I saw a lady in a Suburban go apeshit because she was trying to merge going 45 while traffic was going 65. Flipped people off for not getting out of her way too (in fairness there was nowhere for them to go).
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Sep 22, 2015 17:22
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PCOS Bill posted:Christ, if someone wants to go faster than you just let them loving go, don't cut them off. But if there's only one lane, they're obligated to sit and wait until the car ahead of them creeps into traffic. It's not great, but that's how the world works. Lean on the horn or something but you don't pull on to the shoulder to pass someone, ever.
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Sep 22, 2015 17:23
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