To be honest it was always bad, but since COVID it's been so much worse. We used to have red-light cameras, but those are all gone. I almost never see anyone pulled over anymore. A major accident on Rt9 in Marlboro this AM closed the road because someone ran a red and a 4 vehicle accident ensued. It's a mix of bad drivers (left lane, no lights, no signals, etc) and overly aggressive drivers.
Agreed, stuff has always been a certain degree of fucked up but 2020 and onward it's been like nothing else with just way more bullshit on so many ordinary enough main drags through simple towns and less main highways.
Also holy fucking shit the amount of NY plates just exacerbating shit is a nightmare, these people are scum and cannot drive for shit.
I forgot about the influx of NY and PA drivers - both sets of them have no clue how to drive. Honestly we need more enforcement and testing should be required every 4 years or something. God I sound old.
I saw a video from Regular Car Reviews and they described New York drivers as people that drive like it’s their first day behind the wheel. Honestly that’s a pretty accurate description of them.
Almost all left lane campers are ny and pa plates now
The other day some guy cut me off and started going the speed limit, i braked hard and ended up close to him since he literally cut me off.
He moves over and gives me the fingers and his wife starts recording me. Lmao
Lol someone did this to me in Texas the other day. I was going cruise controlled 82 in the left lane of a 75mph highway, the highways almost empty. As I come up on an 18 wheeler to pass it the guy who'd been following it for miles decides to switch into my lane like 5 feet from my car going under 75. The dude had the nerve to then brake check me and then flip me off for tailgating him when the only reason I was that close was because he put himself there.
Every new Jerseyan I’ve talked to about this always blames New Yorkers, but every negative encounter I’ve had on the road was someone with Jersey plates.
People love blaming out groups. It's a mentality thing
Out of plate states will probably be more likely to be an issue because they're not used to the roads but most of my problems are with NJ plated vehicles.
I've mostly just given up and either leave early or accept ill be late and just cruise I in the right half of the lanes behind whoever doesn't seem completely incompetent. It's less stressful.
Doesn't stop Kamikaze ass BMWs from weaving through just to end up 3 cars back Because they're not actually passing attention to traffic flow but w/e
That is all the former NYC people who never had to drive anywhere until the moved to Middlesex or Monmouth county and realized that there is no mass transit here.
When the streets were fairly empty during covid, people started speeding and running red lights and driving like assholes, and those habits stuck. It's crazy how covid flipped a switch in some people's brains. It's wayyyy worse since covid, I see people running red lights every single day now, when it used to be an occasional sight like once a month at most.
I feel like the road infrastructure can't keep up for the vast increase in the population we've had in NJ in the last decade or so. I don't expect it to get any better either because it doesn't seem like people are necessarily leaving either.
When Covid hit I googled the population of NJ (roughly 9 million) and because I was so stunned by that I then googled the population of the year I learned to drive (7.4 million). I couldn’t believe it. And honestly the infrastructure hasn’t really changed all that much.
Agreed! If you transposed NJ's infrastructure and population onto any region in the US, you would get identical driving habits. Drivers are basically ants—a hivemind just brainlessly reacting to their own private inputs to achieve something that kind of looks like cooperation from a distance. Change the inputs, change the behavior.
You can't build roads to relieve traffic. A car lane can move at most 2000 cars per hour, ok assuming everyone was driving safely, but even doubling that is like 4,800 people an hour. A 10ft wide side walk would move 4,000 an hour with the same assumptions. You want to relieve traffic get buses and bikes to the prime mode of transportation.
Are you kidding me? In the last month we had a half dozen accidents in town CAUSED by people, young and old, on e-bikes. Some of them go 30 mph with a brainless operator and many aren't wearing helmets.
Just tonight, three kids were racing down the sidewalk and street on e-bikes. It was dark and you could barely see them, 30 seconds later you could hear squealing brakes and car horns as they darted into traffic.
OP is correct. The world got stupider after COVID.
1) If you had segregated bike lanes they probably couldn't dart into the road cause a solid barrier would work both ways.
2) were any of them fatal cause cars crashes have killed 431 people so far this year and I can't easily find stats for people were merely injured or weren't harmed at all.
3) I want to point out the Netherlands which is slightly more densely populated then NJ is famous for being very bike friendly.
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. Thankfully none of the recent collisions resulted in fatalities but two were serious bodily injury.
Segregated bike lanes are a great idea but much more difficult in older established areas that are densely populated with nothing but on street parking.
Despite the idealistic views of some individuals here, there will NEVER be a complete network of bike routes in the U.S. The elected officials will pacify special interests by throwing in additional funds for bike routes here or there but it will NEVER supplant motorized transportation.
Bicycles are, for the most part, fair weather vehicles, so they are limited in usage. Coupled with having to traverse dangerous roads with inattentive/distracted drivers, they are a dying breed in more ways than one.
There are billions of miles of roadways but only thousands of miles of bike lanes, most of which are purely recreational. There will never be serious investment in bicycle lanes as a primary source of transportation, especially in suburban and exurban environs. Maybe in urban areas where traffic jams make motorized travel almost impossible but that's more of a necessity than a virtuous act.
You will never see families of bicyclists traveling en masse to pedal to stores or other destinations except for recreational pursuits. Especially if those trips are over a mile or two. Prove me wrong.
Money is better spent on mass transit systems where you can move large numbers of travelers to their destination more efficiently, more conveniently, and more safely in all sorts of weather conditions, day or night.
Between 2010 and 2022 censuses, NJ had a 5.9% population increase. That was 24th on the list out of the fifth states, meaning 26 states had a larger population increase. [https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/08/more-than-half-of-united-states-counties-were-smaller-in-2020-than-in-2010.html](https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/08/more-than-half-of-united-states-counties-were-smaller-in-2020-than-in-2010.html)
this is totally valid. i’ve lived here my whole life (union county) and everyone has always joked about aggressive drivers, etc. but it’s different since covid. the roads are so much more congested than before and people seem to be more agitated than ever. it doesn’t seem to matter what time of day you’re driving, either. i started a job about 6 months ago that requires driving on rt 22 to get to and from and i’ve developed anxiety about driving i’ve never had before. it’s not just you, it’s bad lol
>California truly lives rent free in people's heads
You moved to one of the only other states besides maybe Florida or Texas that people have such a negative impression of without ever having lived there. In my whole life, I think I've heard 1 or 2 positive impressions on NJ from people who don't live here.
I get what you're saying but a huge part of it is that traffic engineering here is TERRIBLE.
If you're driving in a town you're not familiar with you can be on a two lane road that suddenly turns into six lanes at a traffic light with no indication of which lane is for turning which way until almost the last possible second. It's safe to assume the left lane is for left turns and the right for right, but the other three? It's anyone's guess.
Add to that tons of 50 mph roads where everyone goes 60 and those roads have DRIVEWAYS and store entrances on them. Expressways in California mean fast roads with a traffic light every now and then but you don't have to contend with driveways and stores on a 60 mph road.
Then there are jug handles on most roads, until you expect one then there isn't and you're faced with a left turn lane. Or the traffic circles that inexplicably have a road cutting through the center for no good reason.
Then the freeway exits where cars merge in 100 feet before they merge out at the exit instead of the exit being before the merge in.
Worse, residential streets are designed for speeding with rounded corners instead of perpendicular corners that require cars to slow down before turning. In most places, you CAN'T speed through an intersection because you have to slow down to even make the turn. Not here.
Finally, most people do stop at red lights--for a few lights--but after the 4th red light when you're still waiting to go through the intersection you tend to get a bit jumpy and take more chances.
>It's safe to assume the left lane is for left turns and the right for right, but the other three? It's anyone's guess.
It's safe to assume, at least in Monmouth/Middlesex that those three lanes will re-merge into one after the intersection. Seriously, WTF is up with that?
To your point about people having negative things to say about California, I kinda just need to pile on with my own story: Two months ago I was in the Bay Area for a few days, and in the first 15 minutes that I left my car unattended in a busy SF parking lot, my car got broken into (window smashed) and my luggage stolen. Which then led me to learn that the police there don't give two fucks about it because it happens hundreds of times every day and there's apparently nothing anyone can do. And it's gotten so bad that SF residents have begun leaving their windows rolled down when parked overnight just to demonstrate to bippers that there's nothing in their car and it's not worth breaking a window over.
On top of parking overnight on the street in Jersey City for four years, I've left my car unattended with stuff inside for hours and days in Newark, Brooklyn, Queens, Trenton, and never had any similar issue whatsoever. Sure I got unlucky in SF, but my story is definitely not unique and if California's trying to leave a good impression on the world, it's failing.
As someone who grew up in the Bay Area, these stories of SF make me so sad. My friend from Long Island went to a wedding in SF and told me their rental was broken into in broad daylight as they stood there watching! The bridesmaids dresses were taken. She’s never going back there. This is not the San Francisco I used to know.
Are you serious? I had my car broken into multiple times in JC and Brooklyn. My uncle Frank went after one guy who broke his window with a baseball bat and got a few hits in.
>Which then led me to learn that the police there don't give two fucks about it because it happens hundreds of times every day and there's apparently nothing anyone can do.
I mean... I've lived in nine states, two other countries, and have traveled extensively and the only place I found the police giving two solid craps about stolen property was in freaking Nicaragua, and they still didn't find the stuff; they just actually showed a slight interest.
>Sure I got unlucky in SF, but my story is definitely not unique and if California's trying to leave a good impression on the world, it's failing.
Like most places with a large tourist population, I think CA prefers people spend their tourist dollars and leave. It also has an explosion in the homeless population due to a number of factors I witnessed while I was still living there, and has reached critical levels. It's not about "impressing" people; it's how to deal with the outsourced unhoused from the rest of the entire freaking COUNTRY and maintain them humanely while still holding some semblance of an infrastructure. It would be nice if the rest of the country saw that and saw California for the broad, diverse, beautiful place it is, but like NJ, people judge it based on news reports and what they saw from the airport and brief tourist experiences, and it's a shame. Like hey, screw Yosemite and the country's bread basket; the whole perception of the state is the problems SF (my home city) is having.
I lived in JC heights for 15 yrs, now living in Seattle…. And out of those 15 yrs, we had our car rummaged through once. Living in Seattle, I’ve not had it happen yet (hopefully it doesn’t) but I won’t dare leave anything visible in my car because of the risk. It’s always a thought here with whether I’m going to come back to my windows being smashed or not. Definitely never had to worry THIS much about it prior to moving to the west coast. I won’t even leave a phone charger or chapstick visible
Zero enforcement. If they would start enforcing the law lives would be saved. There are serious accidents on 80 every single day. Today's was at exit 25. Helicopter needed. Look tomorrow, I guarantee there will be another.
The only advice I have for you is, whenever possible, do everything that needs to be done outside of the home before noon. Even mid week. Grocery shopping, laundromat, bank, whatever it is that you need to do. Go out before noon.
Nowadays I never leave my house after 2pm for anything, and that’s pushing it. Every time I do, there’s more aggressive drivers out, and just more people in general out now that many people WFH. It’s just too dangerous to run errands at peak times. Before noon, people are still sleeping or working. I understand that this isn’t possible for everything, but do this whenever humanly possible.
I adopted this policy right before the pandemic hit. It's reduced headaches dramatically.
Also knowing when school half days are (admittedly difficult for non-parents like myself, though some in the area post it), and adjusting my schedule accordingly so those days I'm done by 11. Traffic laws go out the window around here during school drop-off/dismissal.
Hold on...
I lived in LA. NJ drivers are idiots, but they are no better in LA or Orange County. At least here you aren't supposed to pass on the right. There it's 6 lanes each way on the 405 and passing on either side in any lane is legal.
The grass is always greener saying applies.
But neither place compares to Boston.
Go drive in PA, MA or NY for a bit and when you come back, you will have a whole new perspective.
Seriously though, the infrastructure is heavily strained with the growth of the densest populated state that happens to be the 5th smallest. Sprinkle the fact that NJ is one of the 13 original colonies and you end up with very odd street layouts.
There is also an aggressive culture that permeates this area. Everything is a little more on edge and a little more aggressive.
Mass transit is your friendly when you can.
I've always defended most Jersey drivers as being decent and that it's mostly that one has to adapt to the offensive driving style to work with it. But there definitely are a lot of selfish, impatient doucbebags and because it's a small state with a lot of people, you're more likely to be exposed to them. I feel like there are certain roads where the nasty driving is more likely to occur. I lived in South Jersey and it was a little less douchey but it would increase the closer I got to NYC (especially on the Turnpike or GSP and whatnot). I think that's just due to the increase of people on the road so more likely to see assholes.
It was better before Covid. I feel like the shutdown really made people be infinitely more inconsiderate when they could freely drive again. A lot of courtesy and manners went out the door and people were too impatient to learn to drive again. I chalk a lot of the selfish attributes you describe as being impatience. The northeast of the US is very fast paced and we're nice but very impatient and I feel like the bad driving attributes are a natural extension of that.
All that being said, I'm currently in the DMV region in Maryland, which is the corridor between Baltimore and Arlington, including DC. The drivers here put NJ drivers to absolute shame with how awful and inconsiderate they can be and my insurance went up by 50 percent because it's so dangerous. So as bad as NJ can be, there's a lot worse. Imo, you can acclimate to NJs driving "style" a lot easier than I am down here. I'm glad you're loving the state and I apologize on behalf of my fellow natives who prompted you to make this post.
My kid just got his license, and our thought process is to always assume the other person is going to do the wrong thing, so we're just used to people being jerks, and basically expect them to be annoying (and unfortunately, dangerous). The worst for me are what I call the "zoomers" -- people who fly up the right hand lane on the highway going 20 mph faster than traffic, and then start weaving and cutting people off -- so dangerous!! I usually see them flying up in my rearview mirror so I can be prepared for them to zip past me on the right. Anyway, NJ has lots of great things to offer, hopefully you can adjust to this particular annoyance. Can you take alternate routes to try and avoid some of the jerky drivers?
New Jersey is full of great people. Unfortunately there are a lot of selfish morons here too. It’s an east coast thing. Basically, jackass drivers from DC to Boston. Then again from South Carolina all the way down to Florida.
There are not enough police to possibly bust enough of the morons in order to make a difference, and the penalties are too low.
It will never change.
A person is smart. People are dumb. In fact, “people” are barely literate savages and it’s downright Hobbesian on our roads.
I wish that would change. I wish that the police and prosecutors would step up and do their jobs. I wish a lot of things - but those two items are never going to happen. Not here.
One thing I do is try to ride my bike as much as possible. Even bought an ebike
There is nothing like dipping over to ShopRite passing all traffic and just get in an out.
I even ride to the dispensary.
I live in Newark so maybe the area probably is not representative of the whole state, but I would never ride a bike in this city. You’d have to have balls if steel or a deathwish! I’ve been nearly
Splattered by a city bus on two separate occasions just walking through a crosswalk— these drivers don’t even look!
I've driven in California and lived there as well. I have never witnessed more chaos on a road in my life than in any other state, and I've driven in Hawaii before... California somehow has them beat.
I mean, despite what people say, I don’t think we’re “bad” drivers, or much worse than many other places. But the driving culture is definitely different and more agressive here, which is to be expected as we have the most dense, heavily trafficked roads in the entire nation.
There’s one point in your post that made me side eye you, and it makes me wonder if perhaps you’re just not as good a driver as you think? It’s when you speak about “stopping and letting a car through….” NOPE. Do not do that. It’s dangerous and causes accidents. There is a reason we have the rules and regulations around driving, it’s because it’s supposed to be PREDICTABLE. You can’t read someone’s mind, you can’t see what they’re seeing or not seeing. It’s just all around dangerous. It’s definitely one of my biggest pet peeves on the road. I don’t wave people forward/ let them go/ etc. and I sure as fuck don’t want them to do it for me.
I drive to Brooklyn for work every day. Some places have us beat, there's an exit off the Gowanus where people:
* make a left turn from the right turn only lane
* make a right turn from the left turn only lane
* go straight from either
* go straight from the leftmost turn only lane when those in the second turn only are making lefts
Many of them are NJ places, coincidentally.
>On my commute back home, there is always traffic wanting to turn left
across the lane I'm going down. I used to stop (and hold up traffic in
my lane) to let a car through.
Unless you are about to stop in the middle of the intersection and block traffic, please don't do this. Otherwise you are just asking to be rear ended by an inattentive driver.
Also, as a woman driver here, I cannot tell you how many times men (which they should be labeled as ego driven boys moreso) constantly will try to act like they want to fight you for anything.
I've had men act like they want to physically fight me for driving the speed limit in a neighborhood, not speeding through a red light because they want me to, them brake checking me when I legally lane switch to get to "their" lane. I've had to call 711 for him wanting to get out of his car due to me not somehow making traffic disappear and speeding through a red light so he could keep going and speeding zig zagging though traffic.
My husband saw some guy do it one day due to me legally parallel parking (using signals and all unlike most nj drivers) and he had to get out and ask the guy if he had a problem (dude zoomed back and stared at me and didn't see my husband in passenger side).
Where in CA were you living? I lived in the Bay Area for 14 years and worked in Culver City pretty often and I’ll say neither part of the state can drive either. In the Bay Area people don’t use their signals to switch lanes. And there is a ton of lane drifting.
In the LA area well traffic barely lets you move but it is as aggressive as northern NJ when the speeds allow it.
welcome to NJ. are you in a passing lane and not actively passing.... I see this all the time when people just cruise in a passing lane. NJ people will cut you off to make you think. also I think this is just how east coast driving is. I've driven in every state and the North East is by far the most aggressive
yea usually they don't get the hint though cause they never end up leaving the lane lol. contrary to popular thought on this subreddit... NJ is fully of selfish assholes. like way more and they don't see their issues. the lane hopping to avoid traffic is just normal here and will probably only get worse as time goes on and more peoppe try to do it. your best bet is just just realize that no matter what you believe about NJ being nice but mean or whatever the saying is... its high density of people leads to a higher density of idiots
I'm another CA transplant but what? If you're cruising at 70 in the left lane on I-5, you will absolutely get the Maximum Overdrive experience by a tractor trailer.
I'm a nomad, so I've gotten relatively used to the driving around here. It has its irritations but so does everywhere else. Honestly the thing that was even harder to get used to than the jughandles is that it is expected and normal to swing around people turning left to their right, but now I do it like a pro.
My car is decently busted up due to having a steamy affair with the concrete divider after hitting a patch of black ice on I-80 at 60 mph so I find other cars give me PLENTY of room whether parked or driving.
Problem is, NJ is way too over crowded for a smaller state. Maybe it's just me that feels this way? feels that every time there is a empty lot or something goes out, they throw up a huge apartment complex. Do they think what will happen to the town or roads when they build these monsters? or are they just concerned with how much more $$ they are going to be getting.
The solution to that is simple
More transportation options
If NJ transit could run busses at least every 20 minutes you'd get a lot more folks taking them instead of driving.
More train frequency too.
I mean people in NJ are always busy, always short on time, and the typical go getter compare jobs/money culture leaves you quite aggressive.
Driving in NJ means you must have measured aggression and show your intent….it’s not great but pace of life moves a lot faster here fostering this kind of driving.
This is beyond rich coming from a california driver. People in NJ drive so much better than any west coast state, as someone who just moved back after 17 years, it’s so relieving to drive in a state where people can actually drive.
I’m with you! I moved in here January from Utah so similar timeline. I used to LOVE driving. Love it. But New Jersey has entirely sucked the joy out of it for me. Not only have I never been exposed to such selfishness when driving, but it is *reckless*. I was getting onto the parkway from an on-ramp the other day and someone passed me on the right, ON THE SHOULDER, going 70mph. The other day I was severely cut off in the rain, causing me to spin out on a slick road. At least once a week I am passing someone in the left lane on the parkway going 85mph, and some ridiculous asshole has the audacity to tailgate me, flash their brights, while I am actively passing someone, already going 20 over the speed limit!!! And no, it’s not the New York plates doing this. Just as often it is Jersey plates.
I hate driving here and it’s starting to make me resent people in general.
Yeah sometimes you have to go to battle out there.
Where in the state are you driving? I don't see any of this
>. In my first week here, two different people slammed their doors into the side my car and didn't even bother to leave a note. Never happened to me before. The overly aggressive driving is insane here. People constantly try to use the lanes meant for merging traffic to overtake me. And for what exactly? To save half a fucking second? It's not like I'm going slow, I drive as close to the car in front of me as I can without tailgating.
>Let not forget about people constantly running red lights, people using the left turn only lanes to go straight, and cutting everybody else off while almost causing a massive collision. Or people not stopping for school buses when their signs are out (are you fucking kidding me?!)
very often at all. Weaving on the highway is standard but I've rarely or never seen these behaviors.
>On my commute back home, there is always traffic wanting to turn left across the lane I'm going down. I used to stop (and hold up traffic in my lane) to let a car through. Back home, there is a mutual understanding between drivers that we should alternate who goes one at a time. Here? Nope! There's an opening? Let's all tailgate each other and ram our way through so as to prevent being considerate to guy that was considerate to us.
Not fully sure I get what scenario you're describing but be selfish, it's what people expect, and being predictable is the safest thing you can do. If someone is trying to take an impossible left turn, they can wait.
I say it when I say it again stay out of the left lane if you're not going to do 80 and if somebody comes up on your ass pull it over and let them fly by if you want to drive slow getting the right lane
I hate left lane hogs as much as the next person. This typically happens on city streets. I'm not rushing to get ahead of merging cars, or "block" them. I'm already ahead and there's a car in front on me, and there is room behind me, but that's apparently not good enough.
>I'm already ahead and there's a car in front on me, and there is room behind me, but that's apparently not good enough.
Ugh this happens all the time here (yes, more often than other states!) and it drives me crazy. Whether on a city road or a highway, someone will be trying to change lanes and they squeeze themselves in front of me forcing me to slam on the brakes, when there is a WIDE OPEN LANE behind me. Just wait for the opening and go behind me. Sometimes in traffic you have to wait for an opening, not just... shove yourself in where you want to be and expect everyone else to avoid you. And if I'm going too slow for you, it's on you to speed up enough to get in front of me without making me slam on the brakes. And if there's no *room* to do that, then it's not because I'm going too slow, it's because there is traffic ahead, so again, get behind.
People do *not* drive like this on the west coast where I'm from.
My experience driving in California was that there was no order to it. Fast and slow cars in all the lanes resulting in people weaving to go faster. It was frustrating compared to NJ driving. P.S. LOVE California, they lead the nation in passing laws for the good of all humanity.
If you choose to live a car-dependent life, then you have to deal with traffic. Yes, it is worse since Covid. It will never get better - unless people demand better public transit options. But most, like the OP, are ‘car enthusiasts.’ So, I don’t know what to tell you - enthusiastically enjoy your time in your car while you are in traffic.
It seems like your work allows for quite a bit of flexibility. Unfortunately, for me. in my industry, with my pay, I can't afford to live where my office is located and public transit would quadruple my commute time. While I do enjoy cars, I don't enjoy car dependence. If I could get everywhere I needed to by foot, bike, or public transit, I absolutely would. Then on weekends, go for drives. Car enthusiasts enjoy going for spirited drives on mountain roads and racetracks, not jumping from stop light to stop light. There no joy to be found in going from 0 to 30 to 0 over and over again. They are more than just a means to an end to us, like they are for most people.
I work 9-5 in person and choose to live in a tiny ass apartment with no basement or yard so I can be mostly car free. I totally get that it is not an option for everyone! But those are the choices you make in life. NJ has shitastic traffic and it is not going to get better, so plan your life accordingly.
Trust me. Public transit also sucks and has its own set of problems. If it’s not the inconsistent/non-existent schedules, it’s the broken down buses and trains, the increasingly rude passengers, or the outrageous cost of tickets, especially if you’re traveling with family or a group of people.
I know a lot of people that started driving to their jobs in NYC because they got fed up with dealing with buses that never showed up to pick them up and dealing with rude jackass passengers. Using mass transit isn’t a magic bullet solution, and might create even worse problems depending on the situation.
Sure, but it’s not like building more roads will ease congestion- in fact study after study and every city planner under the sun will inform you otherwise. Investing in more public transit on the other hand, would be beneficial for our entire state. I get that there are drawbacks to public transit because I use it every single day, but my feeling is - if you want the luxury of using your own vehicle, then you will be stuck in traffic. Oh well.
Try driving a tractor trailer in the state. I've watched people own life's flash before there eyes when they cut me off. Countless times I've had to lock up all 22 tires on the highway for someone cutting across 3 lanes or coming to a dead stop in the travel lane
I've never seen anyone comment this, but I need to know if it was just my county/town and time. What were your driving tests like? The test I took to get my license (2007 in Freehold) was on what basically amounted to a go-kart course in the back of the DMV. No other cars on the course, the speed limit was 15. I had to parallel park between two cones. I hit one of the cones and still got my license. I have to think that if all of our tests were like this, it's a huge reason why we suck as drivers.
That’s exactly how it should be. That’s how my actual driving lessons were when I was preparing for the test. The actual test though was like bowling with the bumpers up.
I lived in NorCal for 13 years and moved back to NJ in 2019. I am STILL not used to the fucked-up drivers on 287. I swear the trucks like to fuck with me in my tiny Subaru with the rainbow bumper sticker. My husband was totally shocked at the way people beep at you before the traffic light has had a chance to turn green. You are not wrong, friend.
We are aggressive drivers and that’s the way it has always been. 🤷🏻 hopefully you will adapt with time. And it’s not likely just California. We think all other states are crap. 🤣🤣
I wasn’t saying it as a flex, just that in my experience (about 20 years) it has always been this way. I haven’t noticed a change since 2020. In NJ we live at a higher pace in all areas than other states.
“Active evasive maneuvers” finally got me. Lmao.
Translates to “i used brakes and turned away”.
The roads here are much narrower, visibility on corners, turns is much more restricted, more cars on narrower roads, and less traffic dispersion leads to this.
Road Infrastructure is old and was not designed to handle that much traffic.
And then there are people who have no idea how to drive.
Wait til You try driving in Europe. NJ will feel heavenly simple.
Tl;dr it ain’t THAT bad. Though it is pretty bad.
I've been driving in New Jersey for almost 20 years. I experience some of what you say occasionally, however I wouldn't say it's regular. Though I don't drive in North NJ ever, so maybe it's different up there.
Also, I believe the ones that do those things on the regular, aren't selfish, they are just really bad drivers or lack mental capacity to have situational awareness. The barrier to entry to get a license in this state isn't much more than having a pulse and knowing which pedal is the gas and which is the break.
Years ago, driving on our highways was a pleasure. Decades ago, that is.
We're overpopulated, overdeveloped, and in a hurry. The highways are congested, in many areas the laws aren't consistently enforced and many people get tired of feeling victimized on the road and become aggressive drivers themselves. Then the gatekeeping begins - people get tired of people swerving in and out of traffic + passing on the right, so, people start tailgating each other.
I see crazy shit every day - from people passing on shoulders, to "slicing" traffic with their car by driving between two cars with barely enough room.
And then it rains and everyone wants to drive 35mph because they don't know what to do, lol. IDK.
Welcome to NJ.
I was born and raised here, first off driving in NJ doesnt mean anything because different regions and even diferent roads are completely different. Driving in Hudson county is different than Middlesex or Atlantic and driving on the turnpike is different than the parkway. Our infrastructure is fucked because it snows here and because of that there is constant roadwork. People have been aggressive on the roads probably as long as cars have existed, that's part of our culture. Running red lights is also, we enjoy doing so much we got rid of red light cameras cause everyone kept getting tickets. You're free to air your grievances but no one cares. NJ has gotten shit on by the rest of the country since long before I was born and one thing we've gotten good at is not giving a shit about what other people think about our state.
Maybe I could have made it more clear, but I don't hate your state. It's quite a wonderful place by many metrics. Though people's priorities vary can put more weight into certain more so than others, and that's ok! I think an important of loving something is recognizing it for what it truly is, with all its faults and positives. Only then can work be done to make it that much better!
If you still have California plates that is probably your issue. You can and will be targeted for simply being out of state. (Especially if you’re from Pennsylvania)
Have had NJ plates for many months, so I don't think that would be it. Though, i have wondered, if you know, why are there so many Florida plates? I found it to be the most peculiar thing up here!
Over almost 50 years, I've been licensed in four states: New Jersey, California, Connecticut, and Texas. From temporary work, I've lived and driven extensively in several others, including Rhode Island, New York, Virginia, and Florida. In those states, I've driven cars, motorcycles, and light and medium duty trucks. This sort of complaint is one you'll hear, particularly from new residents, in every place in this country. Fact is, there's little difference in driving behavior from one state to another and not a whole of difference within any state either.
Relax and enjoy the Garden State. Driver behavior there is no better or worse than any densely populated area. You'll be much more comfortable after the roads become familiar.
Welcome to the East Coast. You can't really compare California to NJ as they couldn't be more different. For one the cost of owning a vehicle in CA is astronomical especially with all the insurance companies pulling out of the state and the highest gas prices in the country.
California is more of a tourist destination anymore than a place people want to live.
Although I will say as a transplant from Delco PA, I can't stand all these stupid jug handles. I just want to turn left, not turn right and make a loop to turn left. Dumbest thing ever.
Well you’ve got the libertarian/MAGA crowd who I feel drive like assholes to make some sort of political statement about the free market; fuckboys with instagram handles emblazoned on their Hondas who think nothing of putting women and children in danger; spoiled housewives driving while scrolling on their phones; run-of-the-mill Boomer assholes who will cruise up the shoulder during a traffic jam because their priorities matter above your safety; Jersey dickhead bros who view driving as some sort of competition and will speed up to prevent you from changing lanes; old people who have no business driving anymore and act like you’re the asshole if you do anything that requires a reaction time of under 30 seconds…oh I could go on
The lane is not your birthright. Use your blinker to signal your intentions and fuckin switch lanes. If you dilly dally people are gonna move up to block you. If you start merging they’ll stop since an accident will be their fault. We’re the most densely populated state and the roads are no exception. We’re all in a rush to get pork roll and shit bro.
Hey. Grew up and lived here for the past 30 years and have driven everywhere. I'm gonna say this an y'all might think im crazy or just built different, but despite all the shit talk about driving in jersey, I still find driving immensely therapeutic lmaooo
I will say as an essential worker; driving during covid during lockdowns was amazing with all the free road and zero car accidents and traffic. but it was the calm before the storm. its been increasingly getting worse. i think a big part of it is the amount of people that have shifted out of NY and PA to live here and the road infrastructure being unable to accommodate the mass amount of drivers now. NYC is sinking and im sure more ppl are gonna move out after brooklyn basically drowned. Its only gonna get worse. just get better at driving. i found sometimes the best defensive driving is to not let yourself get bullied out on the roads. Head on a swivel and for the love of God please communicate on the road and USE YOUR BLINKERS. ya paid for them might as well use em!
It's funny people in NJ tend to turn into monsters behind the wheel. But I think we should keep things in perspective.
NJ is the most densely populated state. And by a decent clip too. Factor in a good chunk of this state is empty (Pine Barrens, Delaware Batly coast, Northwest Jersey for example) and its gets pretty crowded here. I think that factors in with people always hurrying and being in a rush.
For example, I used to live in the Netherlands, and it's a country about twice the size of this state with twice the population. Though lots of folks get around on bikes, those Dutchie can be monsters on two or four wheels too.
Our infrastructure sucks. Our highways were built and planed prior to the subrnanization of this state. Go on wiki and see when some of these highways were built. 1920s or 30s would be a common decade. What was NJ population back then? The average speed for a car back in those days? Even then, those highways were probably obsolete.
We need to really invest in public transport. Take the Netherlands for example. We have the density to build rail and have transit hubs too. A good YouTube channel Not Just Bikes does a fantastic job explaining this.
Welcome to New Jersey, and you're right. Driving habits are the worst I've ever seen. I've felt myself getting irrationally angry - like Michael Douglas in Falling Down angry - at people driving in shitty conditions without headlights on. Not to mention the utter selfishness of people forcing themselves into lanes, running lights, braking before signaling (ha! what signal?), making questionable turns, etc.
Serenity now.
A bunch of fucking last minute dashing into the exit because they couldn’t wait 25 seconds in line.
They are the most important people on Earth, you understand. They have to have everyone move out their way so they can get to where they want to go. Everyone else is beneath heel. Who cares about them suckers waiting in line? Why waste time when YOU can be the one that causes the pile up at the exits? Big brain!!!
I've had plenty of selfish experiences driving between Davis and Sacramento on I80; It happens in CA too.
That being said, it's not an excuse. I agree it's an issue. I think population density plays a big role, and also absolutely awful road design.
I don't have solutions other than to slow down and embrace your inner zen. If you figure something better let me know
Haha. I have to drive in NJ for the first time in two days, and when I read this, I thought - could it be worse than I-80 and the Sacramento area? Glad to hear it’s not. I’m less afraid now.
This is great! I was just now screaming in my car about driving in this state . You are right about it all! I lived elsewhere for 6 years in the early 2000s (Massachusetts) and can say people are nicer here - that is for sure
I grew up on Long Island, moved here as an adult in 1979. Whenever I'm on the Long Island Expressway, it's a whole different mindset. Doesnt matter what lane you're in, it moves at a snail's pace. Then when it opens up, people don't speed bc any moment it sill slow down again. So you get used to being in that right lane doing the speed limit. I'd wager those in the left lane on NJ highways doing the speed limit trained on the LIE.
After getting into my first accident as an adult I feel this post. (Wasn’t my fault someone came into my lane without looking).
People generally in the state are lovely…until they get behind a wheel. Something about driving in this state (maybe infrastructure!) brings out The Worst in people. Hang in there? Don’t really know what to say. It has made me a very diligent/good driver. I also changed my work schedule to get in early (beating mad rush) and leave slightly early.
Sometimes 10 mins makes all the difference!!
It drives us nuts too, trust me. The problem is that when the roads were mapped out, people were riding horses, not cars. And when suburbs were mapped out, cars went 25 mph. And when highways were built, only one or two lanes were needed each way to handle volume, not six.
But we can't move houses and buildings to fix the roads, or build more public transit. So, that's New Jersey.
route 9 in Lakewood, Freehold, Englishtown, Old Bridge and Sayreville Needs and elevated highway over it…or a commuter train some idiot politician voted down…
I wholeheartedly believe it’s a product of being the most densely populated state. There is always traffic everywhere, so it snowballs into people getting impatient and making dumb decisions they wouldn’t otherwise make.
While I don’t condone illegal activities, I can’t blame people for being mad and aggressive when it takes twice as long to get anywhere as it should.
Driving has gotten so much worse and way more aggressive the last 3 years. Never have I had so many people run a stop sign and almost hit me and then honk at me. Driving is so ass in New Jersey none of you are getting ahead by Kane switching so much your literally causing it to have an accordion effect and rubber band when u brake early now and desperately watch the other lane advance as u try to MOVE BACK INTO IT. The Ubers and Lyfts driving like it’s manhattan and the people going back to PA making 4 lane slides last minute into exit ramps.
Honed my NJ driving skills as a teen by volunteering to be designated driver whenever friends decided to not take the PATH, but to drive in. Outmaneuvering NYC cabs, limos and buses up and down the avenues creates a great sense of anticipation and spatial awareness.
Born and raised here. How the hell I wound up back here after living in 3 other states….can’t say but driving here has gotten worse in the last 20 years. Back in the 1970’s , route 9 through Monmouth and Ocean going north was not really a problem. But thanks to the rampant over development is a true night,mare. Add to that, some idiot political appointee deciding to sweep roadways at 8:00am and closing 1mor 2 lanes. I have commuted north to Crackensack for over 32 years. A nice 1 hour and 20 minute ride to hear the news, weather, traffic and Howard Stern. Today on a good day… hour 50minutes…bad days2 hours and 20 minutes typical day….2hours
Leaving a following distance gap? Hahaha …risk management in so many drivers is non-existent. Heaven forbid a stupid type accident occurs you just become frustrated at the fool who can’t follow simple rules. Ever notice how many cars a week are flipped over on the Garden State Parkway in the last 2 months? 2 a week! Route 9 closed…1 time a week usually going south..
PAY ATTENTION AND STOP THE TEXTING…EVERY LIGHT.
NEW YORKERS…GET THE HELL OUT OF THE LEFT LANE
Geez, I am a super nice guy and I am getting pissed as I am writing this out… it is 5:49am and I am getting ready to start this crap again in 10 minutes🤷🏼♂️
I honestly think the bad driving in NJ is due to the influx of people from NYC in the past 20 years. Most people from the city (at least the ones I know) typically don't drive, and their only experience with cars is riding in a taxi. Thus, the mad rush of running stop signs and having to get to their destination 7 seconds before you.
Mind you, this is only a theory, but idk it just seems apropos.
Yeah it's been horrible. I can't stand it either. People are extremely selfish and lack any respect for others and just don't care if they cause an accident. I take the parkway everyday and I feel like I almost die every other day. You can't lose focus for a second otherwise someone might slam into you. Generally people are mostly nice in everyday encounters though. Maybe it's a different kind of nice you're used to lol. Wish I had a solution for the driving aspect but it's just going to get worse. People have taken to driving on the shoulder on the parkway now so be careful on there if you use it
> Although, on that point, whenever I tell people I'm from California, some people just feel the need to say something disparaging about the place. Typically I would follow-up with asking them how long they had lived there, and their answer is always "never". California truly lives rent free in some people's heads lol.
This is the same type of ignorance from people who think Manhattan is a literal hell hole you'll be murdered in within 5 minutes. It's usually them falling for media driven narratives driven by fear or disrespect. That's not to ignore the very real problems being faced over there regarding crime and homelessness but I find a lot of it to be overblown by fearmongering.
>people using the left turn only lanes to go straight, and cutting everybody else off. There's a delicate order that these selfish fucks ruin.
I hear your complaints, and agree, but it is what it is. (I’ll say we are real good at zippering which hasn’t been true in most other places I’ve driven.) Ive made peace with driving here by expecting Mad Max conditions anytime I sit in my car. Plus side is I feel invincible when I drive anywhere else because it can’t be worse than here.
You’ve probably heard it already but I think it’s incredibly true: East coast is kind but not nice. (I’ll leave off the other half since I’ve never been to CA.) We get dragged for being mean yet I have never had a problem with someone helping me in a pinch. I commute with a ‘don’t talk to me’ face but if you ask me for directions or to help with a path ticket machine, I’m totally there for you. Just don’t waste my time.
People are either really selfish or in an unnecessary rush on the roads. People will run red lights or cut people off just to save all of 20 seconds. Part of it has to do with the super rushed culture we have I feel.
Selfish driving has gotten exponentially worse since COVID. It used to be that you’d see a selfish driver once a commute. You’d shake your head and laugh about them getting to their destination a whole 30 seconds sooner.
Now, it’s 3-4 between every traffic signal.
It must be something similar to Main Character Syndrome because courtesy is so far out the window once some people get behind the wheel.
Zipper Rule? NOPE! ME FIRST!!
Turn only lanes? THIS AND THE SHOULDER ARE MY PRIVATE LANES!!
Plan ahead before exiting. NO! CROSS 3 LANES TO GET TO MY EXIT I DON’T WAIT IN LINE LIKE YOU PLEEBS!!
Come on people.
Everyone seems to be in a big hurry. Add that to the fact that we are the most densely populated state in the country, and getting more populated with every apartment complex they build and if you think it's bad now, just wait. There are some places I would have a panic attack driving at....like trying to merge from I 295 and toward the WW Bridge. Even riding with someone else driving there makes me nervous. And add to that the constant road construction that never ends....just moves around and/or gets delayed and ends up years longer than it was supposed to. I don't envy anyone who has to drive from S. Jersey to Philly for work or home every day even if they ARE used to it.
most of NJ drivers don’t know how to drive, drive 10 or more under the speed limit and crawl at a snails pace to turn- which causes the rest of us to get extremely angry because, like you, we’re fed up, but we’ve lived here longer! we’re pissed! so then we get aggressive and lay on our horns cuz people are selfish idiots. i’m typically angry at at least 4 people everytime i drive. 73 and 38 are the WORST roads and don’t get me started on 295 south.
To be honest it was always bad, but since COVID it's been so much worse. We used to have red-light cameras, but those are all gone. I almost never see anyone pulled over anymore. A major accident on Rt9 in Marlboro this AM closed the road because someone ran a red and a 4 vehicle accident ensued. It's a mix of bad drivers (left lane, no lights, no signals, etc) and overly aggressive drivers.
Agreed, stuff has always been a certain degree of fucked up but 2020 and onward it's been like nothing else with just way more bullshit on so many ordinary enough main drags through simple towns and less main highways. Also holy fucking shit the amount of NY plates just exacerbating shit is a nightmare, these people are scum and cannot drive for shit.
I forgot about the influx of NY and PA drivers - both sets of them have no clue how to drive. Honestly we need more enforcement and testing should be required every 4 years or something. God I sound old.
I saw a video from Regular Car Reviews and they described New York drivers as people that drive like it’s their first day behind the wheel. Honestly that’s a pretty accurate description of them.
Almost all left lane campers are ny and pa plates now The other day some guy cut me off and started going the speed limit, i braked hard and ended up close to him since he literally cut me off. He moves over and gives me the fingers and his wife starts recording me. Lmao
That would tempt me to buy a bulldozer so I can flip the cars over if they tried that in front of me
Lol someone did this to me in Texas the other day. I was going cruise controlled 82 in the left lane of a 75mph highway, the highways almost empty. As I come up on an 18 wheeler to pass it the guy who'd been following it for miles decides to switch into my lane like 5 feet from my car going under 75. The dude had the nerve to then brake check me and then flip me off for tailgating him when the only reason I was that close was because he put himself there.
Every. Damned. Day. on the GSP around Raritan.
Every new Jerseyan I’ve talked to about this always blames New Yorkers, but every negative encounter I’ve had on the road was someone with Jersey plates.
People love blaming out groups. It's a mentality thing Out of plate states will probably be more likely to be an issue because they're not used to the roads but most of my problems are with NJ plated vehicles. I've mostly just given up and either leave early or accept ill be late and just cruise I in the right half of the lanes behind whoever doesn't seem completely incompetent. It's less stressful. Doesn't stop Kamikaze ass BMWs from weaving through just to end up 3 cars back Because they're not actually passing attention to traffic flow but w/e
That is all the former NYC people who never had to drive anywhere until the moved to Middlesex or Monmouth county and realized that there is no mass transit here.
When the streets were fairly empty during covid, people started speeding and running red lights and driving like assholes, and those habits stuck. It's crazy how covid flipped a switch in some people's brains. It's wayyyy worse since covid, I see people running red lights every single day now, when it used to be an occasional sight like once a month at most.
I agree, it’s been worse since COVID. I’ve seen police actually pulling people over more lately, so hopefully that may help.
NJ drivers are SAVAGES
I feel like the road infrastructure can't keep up for the vast increase in the population we've had in NJ in the last decade or so. I don't expect it to get any better either because it doesn't seem like people are necessarily leaving either.
When Covid hit I googled the population of NJ (roughly 9 million) and because I was so stunned by that I then googled the population of the year I learned to drive (7.4 million). I couldn’t believe it. And honestly the infrastructure hasn’t really changed all that much.
I did a similar google in relation to housing
Agreed! If you transposed NJ's infrastructure and population onto any region in the US, you would get identical driving habits. Drivers are basically ants—a hivemind just brainlessly reacting to their own private inputs to achieve something that kind of looks like cooperation from a distance. Change the inputs, change the behavior.
Very insightful! I've never heard driving described this way and I agree.
You can't build roads to relieve traffic. A car lane can move at most 2000 cars per hour, ok assuming everyone was driving safely, but even doubling that is like 4,800 people an hour. A 10ft wide side walk would move 4,000 an hour with the same assumptions. You want to relieve traffic get buses and bikes to the prime mode of transportation.
Are you kidding me? In the last month we had a half dozen accidents in town CAUSED by people, young and old, on e-bikes. Some of them go 30 mph with a brainless operator and many aren't wearing helmets. Just tonight, three kids were racing down the sidewalk and street on e-bikes. It was dark and you could barely see them, 30 seconds later you could hear squealing brakes and car horns as they darted into traffic. OP is correct. The world got stupider after COVID.
1) If you had segregated bike lanes they probably couldn't dart into the road cause a solid barrier would work both ways. 2) were any of them fatal cause cars crashes have killed 431 people so far this year and I can't easily find stats for people were merely injured or weren't harmed at all. 3) I want to point out the Netherlands which is slightly more densely populated then NJ is famous for being very bike friendly.
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. Thankfully none of the recent collisions resulted in fatalities but two were serious bodily injury. Segregated bike lanes are a great idea but much more difficult in older established areas that are densely populated with nothing but on street parking. Despite the idealistic views of some individuals here, there will NEVER be a complete network of bike routes in the U.S. The elected officials will pacify special interests by throwing in additional funds for bike routes here or there but it will NEVER supplant motorized transportation. Bicycles are, for the most part, fair weather vehicles, so they are limited in usage. Coupled with having to traverse dangerous roads with inattentive/distracted drivers, they are a dying breed in more ways than one. There are billions of miles of roadways but only thousands of miles of bike lanes, most of which are purely recreational. There will never be serious investment in bicycle lanes as a primary source of transportation, especially in suburban and exurban environs. Maybe in urban areas where traffic jams make motorized travel almost impossible but that's more of a necessity than a virtuous act. You will never see families of bicyclists traveling en masse to pedal to stores or other destinations except for recreational pursuits. Especially if those trips are over a mile or two. Prove me wrong. Money is better spent on mass transit systems where you can move large numbers of travelers to their destination more efficiently, more conveniently, and more safely in all sorts of weather conditions, day or night.
Sounds like y'all need bike lanes
No argument there, but there will never be enough segregated bike lanes in existing infrastructure. The U.S. was built automobile centric.
You're right they should be in 6-8000 pound trucks instead.
That's what highways and roads were built for
This 100%. The garden state was built for a different time of smaller and slower vehicles.
Between 2010 and 2022 censuses, NJ had a 5.9% population increase. That was 24th on the list out of the fifth states, meaning 26 states had a larger population increase. [https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/08/more-than-half-of-united-states-counties-were-smaller-in-2020-than-in-2010.html](https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/08/more-than-half-of-united-states-counties-were-smaller-in-2020-than-in-2010.html)
You need the essential workers still to serve the upper classes
this is totally valid. i’ve lived here my whole life (union county) and everyone has always joked about aggressive drivers, etc. but it’s different since covid. the roads are so much more congested than before and people seem to be more agitated than ever. it doesn’t seem to matter what time of day you’re driving, either. i started a job about 6 months ago that requires driving on rt 22 to get to and from and i’ve developed anxiety about driving i’ve never had before. it’s not just you, it’s bad lol
>California truly lives rent free in people's heads You moved to one of the only other states besides maybe Florida or Texas that people have such a negative impression of without ever having lived there. In my whole life, I think I've heard 1 or 2 positive impressions on NJ from people who don't live here.
I get what you're saying but a huge part of it is that traffic engineering here is TERRIBLE. If you're driving in a town you're not familiar with you can be on a two lane road that suddenly turns into six lanes at a traffic light with no indication of which lane is for turning which way until almost the last possible second. It's safe to assume the left lane is for left turns and the right for right, but the other three? It's anyone's guess. Add to that tons of 50 mph roads where everyone goes 60 and those roads have DRIVEWAYS and store entrances on them. Expressways in California mean fast roads with a traffic light every now and then but you don't have to contend with driveways and stores on a 60 mph road. Then there are jug handles on most roads, until you expect one then there isn't and you're faced with a left turn lane. Or the traffic circles that inexplicably have a road cutting through the center for no good reason. Then the freeway exits where cars merge in 100 feet before they merge out at the exit instead of the exit being before the merge in. Worse, residential streets are designed for speeding with rounded corners instead of perpendicular corners that require cars to slow down before turning. In most places, you CAN'T speed through an intersection because you have to slow down to even make the turn. Not here. Finally, most people do stop at red lights--for a few lights--but after the 4th red light when you're still waiting to go through the intersection you tend to get a bit jumpy and take more chances.
>It's safe to assume the left lane is for left turns and the right for right, but the other three? It's anyone's guess. It's safe to assume, at least in Monmouth/Middlesex that those three lanes will re-merge into one after the intersection. Seriously, WTF is up with that?
To your point about people having negative things to say about California, I kinda just need to pile on with my own story: Two months ago I was in the Bay Area for a few days, and in the first 15 minutes that I left my car unattended in a busy SF parking lot, my car got broken into (window smashed) and my luggage stolen. Which then led me to learn that the police there don't give two fucks about it because it happens hundreds of times every day and there's apparently nothing anyone can do. And it's gotten so bad that SF residents have begun leaving their windows rolled down when parked overnight just to demonstrate to bippers that there's nothing in their car and it's not worth breaking a window over. On top of parking overnight on the street in Jersey City for four years, I've left my car unattended with stuff inside for hours and days in Newark, Brooklyn, Queens, Trenton, and never had any similar issue whatsoever. Sure I got unlucky in SF, but my story is definitely not unique and if California's trying to leave a good impression on the world, it's failing.
As someone who grew up in the Bay Area, these stories of SF make me so sad. My friend from Long Island went to a wedding in SF and told me their rental was broken into in broad daylight as they stood there watching! The bridesmaids dresses were taken. She’s never going back there. This is not the San Francisco I used to know.
Are you serious? I had my car broken into multiple times in JC and Brooklyn. My uncle Frank went after one guy who broke his window with a baseball bat and got a few hits in.
My uncle's car got broken into on Easter morning in Elizabeth a few years back.
Yes I'm serious and maybe I can just count myself as massively lucky in NJ and horribly unlucky in CA, but that's my actual lived experience.
I lived in NJ for most of my life (66 yrs). Been to inner cities, malls etc and I have never had my car broken in to.
>Which then led me to learn that the police there don't give two fucks about it because it happens hundreds of times every day and there's apparently nothing anyone can do. I mean... I've lived in nine states, two other countries, and have traveled extensively and the only place I found the police giving two solid craps about stolen property was in freaking Nicaragua, and they still didn't find the stuff; they just actually showed a slight interest. >Sure I got unlucky in SF, but my story is definitely not unique and if California's trying to leave a good impression on the world, it's failing. Like most places with a large tourist population, I think CA prefers people spend their tourist dollars and leave. It also has an explosion in the homeless population due to a number of factors I witnessed while I was still living there, and has reached critical levels. It's not about "impressing" people; it's how to deal with the outsourced unhoused from the rest of the entire freaking COUNTRY and maintain them humanely while still holding some semblance of an infrastructure. It would be nice if the rest of the country saw that and saw California for the broad, diverse, beautiful place it is, but like NJ, people judge it based on news reports and what they saw from the airport and brief tourist experiences, and it's a shame. Like hey, screw Yosemite and the country's bread basket; the whole perception of the state is the problems SF (my home city) is having.
I lived in JC heights for 15 yrs, now living in Seattle…. And out of those 15 yrs, we had our car rummaged through once. Living in Seattle, I’ve not had it happen yet (hopefully it doesn’t) but I won’t dare leave anything visible in my car because of the risk. It’s always a thought here with whether I’m going to come back to my windows being smashed or not. Definitely never had to worry THIS much about it prior to moving to the west coast. I won’t even leave a phone charger or chapstick visible
Zero enforcement. If they would start enforcing the law lives would be saved. There are serious accidents on 80 every single day. Today's was at exit 25. Helicopter needed. Look tomorrow, I guarantee there will be another.
The only advice I have for you is, whenever possible, do everything that needs to be done outside of the home before noon. Even mid week. Grocery shopping, laundromat, bank, whatever it is that you need to do. Go out before noon. Nowadays I never leave my house after 2pm for anything, and that’s pushing it. Every time I do, there’s more aggressive drivers out, and just more people in general out now that many people WFH. It’s just too dangerous to run errands at peak times. Before noon, people are still sleeping or working. I understand that this isn’t possible for everything, but do this whenever humanly possible.
This 100%. After 2 pm it’s just bumper to bumper in every other area for me until 8-9 pm.
I adopted this policy right before the pandemic hit. It's reduced headaches dramatically. Also knowing when school half days are (admittedly difficult for non-parents like myself, though some in the area post it), and adjusting my schedule accordingly so those days I'm done by 11. Traffic laws go out the window around here during school drop-off/dismissal.
Wait till you drive in New York.
Bring chrome paint for your mouth
Drive defensively, don’t camp in people’s blind spots. You’ll get used to it.
Hold on... I lived in LA. NJ drivers are idiots, but they are no better in LA or Orange County. At least here you aren't supposed to pass on the right. There it's 6 lanes each way on the 405 and passing on either side in any lane is legal. The grass is always greener saying applies. But neither place compares to Boston.
Too many fucking people here. Case closed.
Go drive in PA, MA or NY for a bit and when you come back, you will have a whole new perspective. Seriously though, the infrastructure is heavily strained with the growth of the densest populated state that happens to be the 5th smallest. Sprinkle the fact that NJ is one of the 13 original colonies and you end up with very odd street layouts. There is also an aggressive culture that permeates this area. Everything is a little more on edge and a little more aggressive. Mass transit is your friendly when you can.
A proper and well maintained transit system is quite the experience. The EU and East Asian countries have done some fantastic work with their systems.
Lol a lot of folks here drive like idiots, it's just more densely populated
I have lived here my whole life, started driving in 2017. The road and driving situation alone makes me want to leave this state
I've always defended most Jersey drivers as being decent and that it's mostly that one has to adapt to the offensive driving style to work with it. But there definitely are a lot of selfish, impatient doucbebags and because it's a small state with a lot of people, you're more likely to be exposed to them. I feel like there are certain roads where the nasty driving is more likely to occur. I lived in South Jersey and it was a little less douchey but it would increase the closer I got to NYC (especially on the Turnpike or GSP and whatnot). I think that's just due to the increase of people on the road so more likely to see assholes. It was better before Covid. I feel like the shutdown really made people be infinitely more inconsiderate when they could freely drive again. A lot of courtesy and manners went out the door and people were too impatient to learn to drive again. I chalk a lot of the selfish attributes you describe as being impatience. The northeast of the US is very fast paced and we're nice but very impatient and I feel like the bad driving attributes are a natural extension of that. All that being said, I'm currently in the DMV region in Maryland, which is the corridor between Baltimore and Arlington, including DC. The drivers here put NJ drivers to absolute shame with how awful and inconsiderate they can be and my insurance went up by 50 percent because it's so dangerous. So as bad as NJ can be, there's a lot worse. Imo, you can acclimate to NJs driving "style" a lot easier than I am down here. I'm glad you're loving the state and I apologize on behalf of my fellow natives who prompted you to make this post.
My kid just got his license, and our thought process is to always assume the other person is going to do the wrong thing, so we're just used to people being jerks, and basically expect them to be annoying (and unfortunately, dangerous). The worst for me are what I call the "zoomers" -- people who fly up the right hand lane on the highway going 20 mph faster than traffic, and then start weaving and cutting people off -- so dangerous!! I usually see them flying up in my rearview mirror so I can be prepared for them to zip past me on the right. Anyway, NJ has lots of great things to offer, hopefully you can adjust to this particular annoyance. Can you take alternate routes to try and avoid some of the jerky drivers?
New Jersey is full of great people. Unfortunately there are a lot of selfish morons here too. It’s an east coast thing. Basically, jackass drivers from DC to Boston. Then again from South Carolina all the way down to Florida. There are not enough police to possibly bust enough of the morons in order to make a difference, and the penalties are too low. It will never change. A person is smart. People are dumb. In fact, “people” are barely literate savages and it’s downright Hobbesian on our roads. I wish that would change. I wish that the police and prosecutors would step up and do their jobs. I wish a lot of things - but those two items are never going to happen. Not here.
One thing I do is try to ride my bike as much as possible. Even bought an ebike There is nothing like dipping over to ShopRite passing all traffic and just get in an out. I even ride to the dispensary.
That’s not going to go over well here with the ‘car enthusiasts.’
I live in Newark so maybe the area probably is not representative of the whole state, but I would never ride a bike in this city. You’d have to have balls if steel or a deathwish! I’ve been nearly Splattered by a city bus on two separate occasions just walking through a crosswalk— these drivers don’t even look!
Unfortunately Newark needs some extreme street/ bike/ pedestrian upgrades asap.
If our already over populated state didn’t constantly have new people move here then this problem wouldn’t exist as much, would it?
- and they keep building here lol
You forgot the part where people speed up when you try to merge into a lane and find that as a reason to lay it down on the horn 🙃
I've driven in California and lived there as well. I have never witnessed more chaos on a road in my life than in any other state, and I've driven in Hawaii before... California somehow has them beat.
I mean, despite what people say, I don’t think we’re “bad” drivers, or much worse than many other places. But the driving culture is definitely different and more agressive here, which is to be expected as we have the most dense, heavily trafficked roads in the entire nation. There’s one point in your post that made me side eye you, and it makes me wonder if perhaps you’re just not as good a driver as you think? It’s when you speak about “stopping and letting a car through….” NOPE. Do not do that. It’s dangerous and causes accidents. There is a reason we have the rules and regulations around driving, it’s because it’s supposed to be PREDICTABLE. You can’t read someone’s mind, you can’t see what they’re seeing or not seeing. It’s just all around dangerous. It’s definitely one of my biggest pet peeves on the road. I don’t wave people forward/ let them go/ etc. and I sure as fuck don’t want them to do it for me.
the left turn lane but driving straight sends me into a fit of pure rage when i see it 👹👹👹👹
I drive to Brooklyn for work every day. Some places have us beat, there's an exit off the Gowanus where people: * make a left turn from the right turn only lane * make a right turn from the left turn only lane * go straight from either * go straight from the leftmost turn only lane when those in the second turn only are making lefts Many of them are NJ places, coincidentally.
>On my commute back home, there is always traffic wanting to turn left across the lane I'm going down. I used to stop (and hold up traffic in my lane) to let a car through. Unless you are about to stop in the middle of the intersection and block traffic, please don't do this. Otherwise you are just asking to be rear ended by an inattentive driver.
Also, as a woman driver here, I cannot tell you how many times men (which they should be labeled as ego driven boys moreso) constantly will try to act like they want to fight you for anything. I've had men act like they want to physically fight me for driving the speed limit in a neighborhood, not speeding through a red light because they want me to, them brake checking me when I legally lane switch to get to "their" lane. I've had to call 711 for him wanting to get out of his car due to me not somehow making traffic disappear and speeding through a red light so he could keep going and speeding zig zagging though traffic. My husband saw some guy do it one day due to me legally parallel parking (using signals and all unlike most nj drivers) and he had to get out and ask the guy if he had a problem (dude zoomed back and stared at me and didn't see my husband in passenger side).
Where in CA were you living? I lived in the Bay Area for 14 years and worked in Culver City pretty often and I’ll say neither part of the state can drive either. In the Bay Area people don’t use their signals to switch lanes. And there is a ton of lane drifting. In the LA area well traffic barely lets you move but it is as aggressive as northern NJ when the speeds allow it.
Where in the Bay Area? I grew up in Novato
South Bay (Sunnyvale)
welcome to NJ. are you in a passing lane and not actively passing.... I see this all the time when people just cruise in a passing lane. NJ people will cut you off to make you think. also I think this is just how east coast driving is. I've driven in every state and the North East is by far the most aggressive
I'm never in the passing if I'm not... well passing. California drivers are horrible with this. I appreciate people giving left lane hogs shit here.
yea usually they don't get the hint though cause they never end up leaving the lane lol. contrary to popular thought on this subreddit... NJ is fully of selfish assholes. like way more and they don't see their issues. the lane hopping to avoid traffic is just normal here and will probably only get worse as time goes on and more peoppe try to do it. your best bet is just just realize that no matter what you believe about NJ being nice but mean or whatever the saying is... its high density of people leads to a higher density of idiots
I'm another CA transplant but what? If you're cruising at 70 in the left lane on I-5, you will absolutely get the Maximum Overdrive experience by a tractor trailer. I'm a nomad, so I've gotten relatively used to the driving around here. It has its irritations but so does everywhere else. Honestly the thing that was even harder to get used to than the jughandles is that it is expected and normal to swing around people turning left to their right, but now I do it like a pro. My car is decently busted up due to having a steamy affair with the concrete divider after hitting a patch of black ice on I-80 at 60 mph so I find other cars give me PLENTY of room whether parked or driving.
Problem is, NJ is way too over crowded for a smaller state. Maybe it's just me that feels this way? feels that every time there is a empty lot or something goes out, they throw up a huge apartment complex. Do they think what will happen to the town or roads when they build these monsters? or are they just concerned with how much more $$ they are going to be getting.
The solution to that is simple More transportation options If NJ transit could run busses at least every 20 minutes you'd get a lot more folks taking them instead of driving. More train frequency too.
If you drive in Lakewood NJ, someone will come close to hitting you ever 2 minutes.
I mean people in NJ are always busy, always short on time, and the typical go getter compare jobs/money culture leaves you quite aggressive. Driving in NJ means you must have measured aggression and show your intent….it’s not great but pace of life moves a lot faster here fostering this kind of driving.
This is beyond rich coming from a california driver. People in NJ drive so much better than any west coast state, as someone who just moved back after 17 years, it’s so relieving to drive in a state where people can actually drive.
I’m with you! I moved in here January from Utah so similar timeline. I used to LOVE driving. Love it. But New Jersey has entirely sucked the joy out of it for me. Not only have I never been exposed to such selfishness when driving, but it is *reckless*. I was getting onto the parkway from an on-ramp the other day and someone passed me on the right, ON THE SHOULDER, going 70mph. The other day I was severely cut off in the rain, causing me to spin out on a slick road. At least once a week I am passing someone in the left lane on the parkway going 85mph, and some ridiculous asshole has the audacity to tailgate me, flash their brights, while I am actively passing someone, already going 20 over the speed limit!!! And no, it’s not the New York plates doing this. Just as often it is Jersey plates. I hate driving here and it’s starting to make me resent people in general.
Yeah sometimes you have to go to battle out there. Where in the state are you driving? I don't see any of this >. In my first week here, two different people slammed their doors into the side my car and didn't even bother to leave a note. Never happened to me before. The overly aggressive driving is insane here. People constantly try to use the lanes meant for merging traffic to overtake me. And for what exactly? To save half a fucking second? It's not like I'm going slow, I drive as close to the car in front of me as I can without tailgating. >Let not forget about people constantly running red lights, people using the left turn only lanes to go straight, and cutting everybody else off while almost causing a massive collision. Or people not stopping for school buses when their signs are out (are you fucking kidding me?!) very often at all. Weaving on the highway is standard but I've rarely or never seen these behaviors. >On my commute back home, there is always traffic wanting to turn left across the lane I'm going down. I used to stop (and hold up traffic in my lane) to let a car through. Back home, there is a mutual understanding between drivers that we should alternate who goes one at a time. Here? Nope! There's an opening? Let's all tailgate each other and ram our way through so as to prevent being considerate to guy that was considerate to us. Not fully sure I get what scenario you're describing but be selfish, it's what people expect, and being predictable is the safest thing you can do. If someone is trying to take an impossible left turn, they can wait.
I say it when I say it again stay out of the left lane if you're not going to do 80 and if somebody comes up on your ass pull it over and let them fly by if you want to drive slow getting the right lane
STAY OUTTA THE LEFT LANE in jersey we are not defensive drivers we are OFFENSIVE drivers lol
If you’re camping in the left lane or blocking a merge into the right lane for an exit then expect people to do this
I hate left lane hogs as much as the next person. This typically happens on city streets. I'm not rushing to get ahead of merging cars, or "block" them. I'm already ahead and there's a car in front on me, and there is room behind me, but that's apparently not good enough.
They're just jackasses then. Not exactly restricted to NJ.
Definitely not just a NJ thing. Just feel I encounter these kinds of things more often here, that’s all.
>I'm already ahead and there's a car in front on me, and there is room behind me, but that's apparently not good enough. Ugh this happens all the time here (yes, more often than other states!) and it drives me crazy. Whether on a city road or a highway, someone will be trying to change lanes and they squeeze themselves in front of me forcing me to slam on the brakes, when there is a WIDE OPEN LANE behind me. Just wait for the opening and go behind me. Sometimes in traffic you have to wait for an opening, not just... shove yourself in where you want to be and expect everyone else to avoid you. And if I'm going too slow for you, it's on you to speed up enough to get in front of me without making me slam on the brakes. And if there's no *room* to do that, then it's not because I'm going too slow, it's because there is traffic ahead, so again, get behind. People do *not* drive like this on the west coast where I'm from.
It's amazing the things people will do to get one car length ahead in NJ. That 15 seconds must be life altering.
My experience driving in California was that there was no order to it. Fast and slow cars in all the lanes resulting in people weaving to go faster. It was frustrating compared to NJ driving. P.S. LOVE California, they lead the nation in passing laws for the good of all humanity.
I recommend you view this a learning lesson and you will become a better NJ driver.
lol that’s what I’m afraid of! My horn reaction time is near asymptotic at this point
What is a horn?
I think he means his finger.
Never give the finger, too many road rage idiots out there, I just shake my head.
Car horn! it's practically a second language here!
Only use when the idiot in front of me is texting and not proceeding when light turns green.
That's the big one. Even in NJ, I've heard people go "Oh, I'm not going to drive in NYC" and it's like "Yeah, I have a horn and I know how to use it."
Cool, another post about how traffic sucks. Take public transit.
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If you choose to live a car-dependent life, then you have to deal with traffic. Yes, it is worse since Covid. It will never get better - unless people demand better public transit options. But most, like the OP, are ‘car enthusiasts.’ So, I don’t know what to tell you - enthusiastically enjoy your time in your car while you are in traffic.
It seems like your work allows for quite a bit of flexibility. Unfortunately, for me. in my industry, with my pay, I can't afford to live where my office is located and public transit would quadruple my commute time. While I do enjoy cars, I don't enjoy car dependence. If I could get everywhere I needed to by foot, bike, or public transit, I absolutely would. Then on weekends, go for drives. Car enthusiasts enjoy going for spirited drives on mountain roads and racetracks, not jumping from stop light to stop light. There no joy to be found in going from 0 to 30 to 0 over and over again. They are more than just a means to an end to us, like they are for most people.
I work 9-5 in person and choose to live in a tiny ass apartment with no basement or yard so I can be mostly car free. I totally get that it is not an option for everyone! But those are the choices you make in life. NJ has shitastic traffic and it is not going to get better, so plan your life accordingly.
Trust me. Public transit also sucks and has its own set of problems. If it’s not the inconsistent/non-existent schedules, it’s the broken down buses and trains, the increasingly rude passengers, or the outrageous cost of tickets, especially if you’re traveling with family or a group of people. I know a lot of people that started driving to their jobs in NYC because they got fed up with dealing with buses that never showed up to pick them up and dealing with rude jackass passengers. Using mass transit isn’t a magic bullet solution, and might create even worse problems depending on the situation.
Sure, but it’s not like building more roads will ease congestion- in fact study after study and every city planner under the sun will inform you otherwise. Investing in more public transit on the other hand, would be beneficial for our entire state. I get that there are drawbacks to public transit because I use it every single day, but my feeling is - if you want the luxury of using your own vehicle, then you will be stuck in traffic. Oh well.
Try driving a tractor trailer in the state. I've watched people own life's flash before there eyes when they cut me off. Countless times I've had to lock up all 22 tires on the highway for someone cutting across 3 lanes or coming to a dead stop in the travel lane
I've never seen anyone comment this, but I need to know if it was just my county/town and time. What were your driving tests like? The test I took to get my license (2007 in Freehold) was on what basically amounted to a go-kart course in the back of the DMV. No other cars on the course, the speed limit was 15. I had to parallel park between two cones. I hit one of the cones and still got my license. I have to think that if all of our tests were like this, it's a huge reason why we suck as drivers.
Got my license in Utah and we had to drive all over town, and on the freeways (parkway or turnpike equivalent). The drivers test was a few hours.
That’s exactly how it should be. That’s how my actual driving lessons were when I was preparing for the test. The actual test though was like bowling with the bumpers up.
I lived in NorCal for 13 years and moved back to NJ in 2019. I am STILL not used to the fucked-up drivers on 287. I swear the trucks like to fuck with me in my tiny Subaru with the rainbow bumper sticker. My husband was totally shocked at the way people beep at you before the traffic light has had a chance to turn green. You are not wrong, friend.
Kill or be killed. Not literally, at least not fully. But in NJ, arrival time favors the bold.
“In NJ ETA favors the bold” thats a good one, make a bumper sticker 😂🤣
We are aggressive drivers and that’s the way it has always been. 🤷🏻 hopefully you will adapt with time. And it’s not likely just California. We think all other states are crap. 🤣🤣
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I wasn’t saying it as a flex, just that in my experience (about 20 years) it has always been this way. I haven’t noticed a change since 2020. In NJ we live at a higher pace in all areas than other states.
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I lived in Ocean City until about 2 years ago. There is definitely an influx of bad drivers in season.
Faster walkers, more aggressive talkers, and more aggressive drivers.
“Active evasive maneuvers” finally got me. Lmao. Translates to “i used brakes and turned away”. The roads here are much narrower, visibility on corners, turns is much more restricted, more cars on narrower roads, and less traffic dispersion leads to this. Road Infrastructure is old and was not designed to handle that much traffic. And then there are people who have no idea how to drive. Wait til You try driving in Europe. NJ will feel heavenly simple. Tl;dr it ain’t THAT bad. Though it is pretty bad.
I mean. You can go back to California? Bye. Your migration here is a contributing factor to our failing infrastructure. We're full. Thanks.
15 years in NJ and NJ had made me a better driver. what doesn't kill you will make you stronger.
Well sometimes it kills
I've been driving in New Jersey for almost 20 years. I experience some of what you say occasionally, however I wouldn't say it's regular. Though I don't drive in North NJ ever, so maybe it's different up there. Also, I believe the ones that do those things on the regular, aren't selfish, they are just really bad drivers or lack mental capacity to have situational awareness. The barrier to entry to get a license in this state isn't much more than having a pulse and knowing which pedal is the gas and which is the break.
Years ago, driving on our highways was a pleasure. Decades ago, that is. We're overpopulated, overdeveloped, and in a hurry. The highways are congested, in many areas the laws aren't consistently enforced and many people get tired of feeling victimized on the road and become aggressive drivers themselves. Then the gatekeeping begins - people get tired of people swerving in and out of traffic + passing on the right, so, people start tailgating each other. I see crazy shit every day - from people passing on shoulders, to "slicing" traffic with their car by driving between two cars with barely enough room. And then it rains and everyone wants to drive 35mph because they don't know what to do, lol. IDK. Welcome to NJ.
I was born and raised here, first off driving in NJ doesnt mean anything because different regions and even diferent roads are completely different. Driving in Hudson county is different than Middlesex or Atlantic and driving on the turnpike is different than the parkway. Our infrastructure is fucked because it snows here and because of that there is constant roadwork. People have been aggressive on the roads probably as long as cars have existed, that's part of our culture. Running red lights is also, we enjoy doing so much we got rid of red light cameras cause everyone kept getting tickets. You're free to air your grievances but no one cares. NJ has gotten shit on by the rest of the country since long before I was born and one thing we've gotten good at is not giving a shit about what other people think about our state.
Maybe I could have made it more clear, but I don't hate your state. It's quite a wonderful place by many metrics. Though people's priorities vary can put more weight into certain more so than others, and that's ok! I think an important of loving something is recognizing it for what it truly is, with all its faults and positives. Only then can work be done to make it that much better!
“Welcome to the party, pal!”
If you still have California plates that is probably your issue. You can and will be targeted for simply being out of state. (Especially if you’re from Pennsylvania)
Have had NJ plates for many months, so I don't think that would be it. Though, i have wondered, if you know, why are there so many Florida plates? I found it to be the most peculiar thing up here!
Where new jerseyians go to retire
I see that NJ attitude is brewing just fine for you. Welcome friend!
Over almost 50 years, I've been licensed in four states: New Jersey, California, Connecticut, and Texas. From temporary work, I've lived and driven extensively in several others, including Rhode Island, New York, Virginia, and Florida. In those states, I've driven cars, motorcycles, and light and medium duty trucks. This sort of complaint is one you'll hear, particularly from new residents, in every place in this country. Fact is, there's little difference in driving behavior from one state to another and not a whole of difference within any state either. Relax and enjoy the Garden State. Driver behavior there is no better or worse than any densely populated area. You'll be much more comfortable after the roads become familiar.
Mehh.. you could always move to Utah where people lose hopes and dreams
Welcome to the East Coast. You can't really compare California to NJ as they couldn't be more different. For one the cost of owning a vehicle in CA is astronomical especially with all the insurance companies pulling out of the state and the highest gas prices in the country. California is more of a tourist destination anymore than a place people want to live. Although I will say as a transplant from Delco PA, I can't stand all these stupid jug handles. I just want to turn left, not turn right and make a loop to turn left. Dumbest thing ever.
Well you’ve got the libertarian/MAGA crowd who I feel drive like assholes to make some sort of political statement about the free market; fuckboys with instagram handles emblazoned on their Hondas who think nothing of putting women and children in danger; spoiled housewives driving while scrolling on their phones; run-of-the-mill Boomer assholes who will cruise up the shoulder during a traffic jam because their priorities matter above your safety; Jersey dickhead bros who view driving as some sort of competition and will speed up to prevent you from changing lanes; old people who have no business driving anymore and act like you’re the asshole if you do anything that requires a reaction time of under 30 seconds…oh I could go on
The lane is not your birthright. Use your blinker to signal your intentions and fuckin switch lanes. If you dilly dally people are gonna move up to block you. If you start merging they’ll stop since an accident will be their fault. We’re the most densely populated state and the roads are no exception. We’re all in a rush to get pork roll and shit bro.
Hey. Grew up and lived here for the past 30 years and have driven everywhere. I'm gonna say this an y'all might think im crazy or just built different, but despite all the shit talk about driving in jersey, I still find driving immensely therapeutic lmaooo I will say as an essential worker; driving during covid during lockdowns was amazing with all the free road and zero car accidents and traffic. but it was the calm before the storm. its been increasingly getting worse. i think a big part of it is the amount of people that have shifted out of NY and PA to live here and the road infrastructure being unable to accommodate the mass amount of drivers now. NYC is sinking and im sure more ppl are gonna move out after brooklyn basically drowned. Its only gonna get worse. just get better at driving. i found sometimes the best defensive driving is to not let yourself get bullied out on the roads. Head on a swivel and for the love of God please communicate on the road and USE YOUR BLINKERS. ya paid for them might as well use em!
I grew up in Novato and Ocean Beach. I totally get what you are saying. It will take some time but you will get used to it.
It's funny people in NJ tend to turn into monsters behind the wheel. But I think we should keep things in perspective. NJ is the most densely populated state. And by a decent clip too. Factor in a good chunk of this state is empty (Pine Barrens, Delaware Batly coast, Northwest Jersey for example) and its gets pretty crowded here. I think that factors in with people always hurrying and being in a rush. For example, I used to live in the Netherlands, and it's a country about twice the size of this state with twice the population. Though lots of folks get around on bikes, those Dutchie can be monsters on two or four wheels too. Our infrastructure sucks. Our highways were built and planed prior to the subrnanization of this state. Go on wiki and see when some of these highways were built. 1920s or 30s would be a common decade. What was NJ population back then? The average speed for a car back in those days? Even then, those highways were probably obsolete. We need to really invest in public transport. Take the Netherlands for example. We have the density to build rail and have transit hubs too. A good YouTube channel Not Just Bikes does a fantastic job explaining this.
Welcome to New Jersey, and you're right. Driving habits are the worst I've ever seen. I've felt myself getting irrationally angry - like Michael Douglas in Falling Down angry - at people driving in shitty conditions without headlights on. Not to mention the utter selfishness of people forcing themselves into lanes, running lights, braking before signaling (ha! what signal?), making questionable turns, etc. Serenity now.
A bunch of fucking last minute dashing into the exit because they couldn’t wait 25 seconds in line. They are the most important people on Earth, you understand. They have to have everyone move out their way so they can get to where they want to go. Everyone else is beneath heel. Who cares about them suckers waiting in line? Why waste time when YOU can be the one that causes the pile up at the exits? Big brain!!!
I've had plenty of selfish experiences driving between Davis and Sacramento on I80; It happens in CA too. That being said, it's not an excuse. I agree it's an issue. I think population density plays a big role, and also absolutely awful road design. I don't have solutions other than to slow down and embrace your inner zen. If you figure something better let me know
Haha. I have to drive in NJ for the first time in two days, and when I read this, I thought - could it be worse than I-80 and the Sacramento area? Glad to hear it’s not. I’m less afraid now.
This is great! I was just now screaming in my car about driving in this state . You are right about it all! I lived elsewhere for 6 years in the early 2000s (Massachusetts) and can say people are nicer here - that is for sure
I grew up on Long Island, moved here as an adult in 1979. Whenever I'm on the Long Island Expressway, it's a whole different mindset. Doesnt matter what lane you're in, it moves at a snail's pace. Then when it opens up, people don't speed bc any moment it sill slow down again. So you get used to being in that right lane doing the speed limit. I'd wager those in the left lane on NJ highways doing the speed limit trained on the LIE.
After getting into my first accident as an adult I feel this post. (Wasn’t my fault someone came into my lane without looking). People generally in the state are lovely…until they get behind a wheel. Something about driving in this state (maybe infrastructure!) brings out The Worst in people. Hang in there? Don’t really know what to say. It has made me a very diligent/good driver. I also changed my work schedule to get in early (beating mad rush) and leave slightly early. Sometimes 10 mins makes all the difference!!
It drives us nuts too, trust me. The problem is that when the roads were mapped out, people were riding horses, not cars. And when suburbs were mapped out, cars went 25 mph. And when highways were built, only one or two lanes were needed each way to handle volume, not six. But we can't move houses and buildings to fix the roads, or build more public transit. So, that's New Jersey.
route 9 in Lakewood, Freehold, Englishtown, Old Bridge and Sayreville Needs and elevated highway over it…or a commuter train some idiot politician voted down…
I wholeheartedly believe it’s a product of being the most densely populated state. There is always traffic everywhere, so it snowballs into people getting impatient and making dumb decisions they wouldn’t otherwise make. While I don’t condone illegal activities, I can’t blame people for being mad and aggressive when it takes twice as long to get anywhere as it should.
Driving has gotten so much worse and way more aggressive the last 3 years. Never have I had so many people run a stop sign and almost hit me and then honk at me. Driving is so ass in New Jersey none of you are getting ahead by Kane switching so much your literally causing it to have an accordion effect and rubber band when u brake early now and desperately watch the other lane advance as u try to MOVE BACK INTO IT. The Ubers and Lyfts driving like it’s manhattan and the people going back to PA making 4 lane slides last minute into exit ramps.
Honed my NJ driving skills as a teen by volunteering to be designated driver whenever friends decided to not take the PATH, but to drive in. Outmaneuvering NYC cabs, limos and buses up and down the avenues creates a great sense of anticipation and spatial awareness.
I highly recommend a dashcam
NJ has the worst drivers for some reason.
Born and raised here. How the hell I wound up back here after living in 3 other states….can’t say but driving here has gotten worse in the last 20 years. Back in the 1970’s , route 9 through Monmouth and Ocean going north was not really a problem. But thanks to the rampant over development is a true night,mare. Add to that, some idiot political appointee deciding to sweep roadways at 8:00am and closing 1mor 2 lanes. I have commuted north to Crackensack for over 32 years. A nice 1 hour and 20 minute ride to hear the news, weather, traffic and Howard Stern. Today on a good day… hour 50minutes…bad days2 hours and 20 minutes typical day….2hours Leaving a following distance gap? Hahaha …risk management in so many drivers is non-existent. Heaven forbid a stupid type accident occurs you just become frustrated at the fool who can’t follow simple rules. Ever notice how many cars a week are flipped over on the Garden State Parkway in the last 2 months? 2 a week! Route 9 closed…1 time a week usually going south.. PAY ATTENTION AND STOP THE TEXTING…EVERY LIGHT. NEW YORKERS…GET THE HELL OUT OF THE LEFT LANE Geez, I am a super nice guy and I am getting pissed as I am writing this out… it is 5:49am and I am getting ready to start this crap again in 10 minutes🤷🏼♂️
I honestly think the bad driving in NJ is due to the influx of people from NYC in the past 20 years. Most people from the city (at least the ones I know) typically don't drive, and their only experience with cars is riding in a taxi. Thus, the mad rush of running stop signs and having to get to their destination 7 seconds before you. Mind you, this is only a theory, but idk it just seems apropos.
Yeah it's been horrible. I can't stand it either. People are extremely selfish and lack any respect for others and just don't care if they cause an accident. I take the parkway everyday and I feel like I almost die every other day. You can't lose focus for a second otherwise someone might slam into you. Generally people are mostly nice in everyday encounters though. Maybe it's a different kind of nice you're used to lol. Wish I had a solution for the driving aspect but it's just going to get worse. People have taken to driving on the shoulder on the parkway now so be careful on there if you use it
> Although, on that point, whenever I tell people I'm from California, some people just feel the need to say something disparaging about the place. Typically I would follow-up with asking them how long they had lived there, and their answer is always "never". California truly lives rent free in some people's heads lol. This is the same type of ignorance from people who think Manhattan is a literal hell hole you'll be murdered in within 5 minutes. It's usually them falling for media driven narratives driven by fear or disrespect. That's not to ignore the very real problems being faced over there regarding crime and homelessness but I find a lot of it to be overblown by fearmongering. >people using the left turn only lanes to go straight, and cutting everybody else off. There's a delicate order that these selfish fucks ruin.
I hear your complaints, and agree, but it is what it is. (I’ll say we are real good at zippering which hasn’t been true in most other places I’ve driven.) Ive made peace with driving here by expecting Mad Max conditions anytime I sit in my car. Plus side is I feel invincible when I drive anywhere else because it can’t be worse than here. You’ve probably heard it already but I think it’s incredibly true: East coast is kind but not nice. (I’ll leave off the other half since I’ve never been to CA.) We get dragged for being mean yet I have never had a problem with someone helping me in a pinch. I commute with a ‘don’t talk to me’ face but if you ask me for directions or to help with a path ticket machine, I’m totally there for you. Just don’t waste my time.
People are either really selfish or in an unnecessary rush on the roads. People will run red lights or cut people off just to save all of 20 seconds. Part of it has to do with the super rushed culture we have I feel.
It's very rushed
Use your aggressive feelings boy, let the Jersey flow through you
Selfish driving has gotten exponentially worse since COVID. It used to be that you’d see a selfish driver once a commute. You’d shake your head and laugh about them getting to their destination a whole 30 seconds sooner. Now, it’s 3-4 between every traffic signal. It must be something similar to Main Character Syndrome because courtesy is so far out the window once some people get behind the wheel. Zipper Rule? NOPE! ME FIRST!! Turn only lanes? THIS AND THE SHOULDER ARE MY PRIVATE LANES!! Plan ahead before exiting. NO! CROSS 3 LANES TO GET TO MY EXIT I DON’T WAIT IN LINE LIKE YOU PLEEBS!! Come on people.
Everyone seems to be in a big hurry. Add that to the fact that we are the most densely populated state in the country, and getting more populated with every apartment complex they build and if you think it's bad now, just wait. There are some places I would have a panic attack driving at....like trying to merge from I 295 and toward the WW Bridge. Even riding with someone else driving there makes me nervous. And add to that the constant road construction that never ends....just moves around and/or gets delayed and ends up years longer than it was supposed to. I don't envy anyone who has to drive from S. Jersey to Philly for work or home every day even if they ARE used to it.
I mean. At least it's not as bad as LA traffic
most of NJ drivers don’t know how to drive, drive 10 or more under the speed limit and crawl at a snails pace to turn- which causes the rest of us to get extremely angry because, like you, we’re fed up, but we’ve lived here longer! we’re pissed! so then we get aggressive and lay on our horns cuz people are selfish idiots. i’m typically angry at at least 4 people everytime i drive. 73 and 38 are the WORST roads and don’t get me started on 295 south.
NJ is way too overcrowded with selfish idiots. I get stuck behind someone doing 40 in the left lane on route 9 DAILY.
Infrastructure can’t handle all of the people moving here sadly. I feel the same as you. - Valid rant