Driving at Disney World

[leftcoaster]

Saw a good one coming home this afternoon.

I'm heading South on a two lane in each direction road, that has a grass median in the middle. Across the road is a strip mall with a Home Depot, Kohls, a other stores. There are multiple entrances and exit, but all of them have lights. So I'm passing this one entrance/exit that allows Northbound traffic to enter the parking lot, and the exit allows people to exit to continue Northbound only.

A dummo apparently did not realize that he could not go Southbound at that exit. But that didn't stop him. He swings LEFT and proceeds to get into the median facing the opposite way of traffic, rides about 300 feet to the light, and sits there. When the light turns green for cross traffic (we were stopped at the light), he proceeds to swing through the intersection to make a "left" to get into the Southbound lanes. :mad:

[Randy B]

I have noticed that drivers at WDW are some of the most likely to be of the Left the brain at home type. When on vacation and on a private property like WDW traffic signs are not valid. Right?

I saw many many many people driving the wrong way on one way roads in Ft Wilderness (all the loops are single lane, one way roads). But the best one I witnessed was the day two drivers, each driving a HUGE truck, towing a monster popup trailer (wider than the truck and 15 ft long popup trailers). One was leaving going the correct direction and one was arriving going the wrong way. when they met they had to work like crazy to get past eachother. The road is barely one lane wide with dropoffs and objects (trash cans, recycle stations, site number sign posts, etc) very frequent along both sides of the road. They finally managed to pass but I still can't figure how. The place they did it was littered with about a dozen road side objects that should have made it physically impossible.

I have also noticed a lot more people who concider their own comfort more important than every one else. Like the day when it was lightly raining and a van came up the road, and pulled onto the sidewalk along side the comfort station. They drove right up to the building, blocking access to anyone walking up the sidewalk, and also blocking the sidewalk that continued past the side of the comfort station to the bus stop. Everyone who walked up had to walk off the side of the sidewalk, through a mud puddle. When the van stopped, about 5 adults poured out and swarmed into the restrooms. But they wre not in any hurry. The van was parked there for more than half an hour. Finally they decided they had hung around the restroom long enough and piled back in the van. Then they backed out and drove the wrong way down the road to get back to their campsite. :mad:

Its bad enough when the kids ride their bikes or scooters to the comfort stations and drop them right infront of the door to go in. But I watched plenty of adults do the same thing with bikes, golf carts, and a car or two.

There are huge traffic signs everywhere pointing out the "One Way" road, and signs all over to make sure nobody drives on the sidewalks. But since the drivers are on vacation the signs obviously don't apply to them.

One fun thing, I saw the Sheriff drive through the campground loop several times each day and quietly applauded each time they caught some of these idiots. :D:

Randy

[Big Wallaby]

This morning, listening to the Bus Support channel (basically the one FIW uses while servicing buses), there was a call from the Magic Kingdom that a family, in fact the family with the last car in the Magic Kingdom parking lot, wanted Diesel (bus repair truck) to come help a car that had... get this... a cat under it. They actually wanted someone to come and lift the car off the cat so that it could safely get out.

My guess is that they're still waiting there.

I have a solution. A couple, in fact:

• Grab a stick and work to poke the cat. Chances are, it won't let you and will, in the process of keeping you from poking it, move from its current location under the car to a safe location away from the car.
• Start the car. The cat will run like a bat out of hell. For added effect, gun the engine.
• Get everyone on one side of the car and make loud noises. Have everyone bark like a dog.
• Laser pointer, directed at the edge of the car's shadow on the ground, then moving steadily away from the car as the cat moves to follow and investigate the point on the ground.
• Reach under and try to grab the cat. This works much like the first option.

My next question... how did they know the cat was under the car to care? I mean, really... in order to know the cat was under the car far enough they can't just grab for it, someone had to get down on their hands and knees and check. Is this something they do on a regular basis, every time they go to start the car?

[Morning]

At least they weren't mean AND stupid.... if they were mean they would have tried to take a cat skin home as a souvenir. :D:

[ectomstr]

Just the other day as I was driving into work this orange (yes. orange) car slowly drifted into my lane. they were very very close to hitting me when I blew my horn at them. I was half tempted to call 9-1-1 and report them as they looked to almost do it to a bus as well as they headed towards Epcot.

The best are the ones in MK Cast Parking lot. Many times (as I've started my turns to look for a spot) I've had drivers begin the turn and they just stop and wait for people that are in costuming (right in front of costuming mind you) so that they are basically triple parked (blocking 3 cars). I can understand stopping if your person is right there. I can understand stopping if the person is trying to get into the car. But stopping and throwing on your hazards to wait for them? find a freakin' parking spot and tell your person to either A-walk or B-call you when they're outside.

[ktulu]

This morning, listening to the Bus Support channel (basically the one FIW uses while servicing buses), there was a call from the Magic Kingdom that a family, in fact the family with the last car in the Magic Kingdom parking lot, wanted Diesel (bus repair truck) to come help a car that had... get this... a cat under it. They actually wanted someone to come and lift the car off the cat so that it could safely get out.

Perhaps they wanted them to move the cat to the main traffic lanes where it belongs :D:

darren
I actually like cats and would not want to see harm come to them, but lets face it, they bring these kinds of jokes upon themselves...

[Syndrome]

I had a mini frog in a gap in my gas cap area once at the Hess by the Car Care Center. It somehow found a gap where I couldn't easily catch it, and I wanted to get it in my hands because if it just jumped off, I knew it would get smooshed by the constant traffic flow. I spent 10 minutes trying to rescue the stupid thing before it finally jumped off on its own, surely to its doom. Hey, can't say I didn't try!

I love how people get hypnotized by the flashing red light at World Drive and Griffin Road. They just sit there...and sit there...and sit there...apparently believing that it will someday miraculously turn green. It takes a lot of horn honking to prod them out of their stupor.

[Rob562]

Just the other day as I was driving into work this orange (yes. orange) car slowly drifted into my lane. they were very very close to hitting me when I blew my horn at them. I was half tempted to call 9-1-1 and report them as they looked to almost do it to a bus as well as they headed towards Epcot.

I actually had one that I called in to 911. I was on my way to work a few months ago. I was on the Mass Turnpike and came across a smaller, older-model car. They were doing about the speed limit, but couldn't stay in one lane. They'd drive in two lanes for a while, meander back over to the right-hand lane... I stayed back until I was sure I could get past, and kept an eye on them in my rearview mirror. At one point they passed me (doing probably about 80 in a traffic flow of 65-70), and then dropped back again while I stayed at a constant 70. I wasn't able to get a good look into the car, but it looked like a frail, elderly person (honestly couldn't tell male or female), who looked like they were also trying to eat crackers or something off the passenger seat...

After more meandering across multiple lanes (and this is over the course of more than 10 minutes of driving), I decided to call it in, telling the dispatcher the car's color, plate number and current location. I said that I didn't know whether they were drunk or drowsy or whatever, but they were all over the road. Kept him/her in my rearview mirror until my exit, and they continued on. Kept expecting to hear about a horrible multi-car wreck on the news, but didn't hear anything.

-Rob

[ktulu]

I was on the way to work one day and I saw the passenger leaning over holding the lighter under the crack pipe for the girl driving. I started to call it in but they took the next exit and I didn't want to send the cops on a wild goose chase. My other thought was to run them off the road.

[BRWombat]

Found myself Saturday on the road next to a lady driving with her visor mirror flipped down doing her full makeup routine -- lipstick, mascara, eye pencil.

I have to say, though, as scary as it was that someone would do that, she never once strayed from her lane.