It’s High Season in the Palm Springs Area and, while I think that means that it’s the highest point of the year in the Coachella Valley in terms of people being in town, I’m also quite certain that 9 out of 10 drivers on the road must be high – as the things they are doing on Highway 111, Fred Waring, Washington Street, Indio Boulevard, and all spots in between right now are freaking insane.
Seriously, it gets worse every year and, at this point, I find it highly unusual when I see a driver do a thing they are supposed to do, such as just using a turn signal, for example.
You may think I am trying to be cute here, but, honestly, these are the things I never anticipate any other driver doing in the Palm Springs Area this time of year:
- Stopping at and yielding the right of way correctly at a 4-way stop
- Waiting to turn left when a pedestrian is in the crosswalk
- Not stopping at a green light
- Actually stoping at a red light
- Signaling before switching lanes
- Actually turning when the turn signal is on
- Waiting for a safe time to pull out of a driveway
- Pausing for those trying to back out of a parking space
- Driving within 5 mph of the speed limit
- Not mistaking the gas for the brake
- Obeying turn signal lights (and not driving through because it just turned red and “it’s just one more car, right?” even through that move makes everyone else wait and screws up the timing of everything and, sorry, let me get back to this…)
- Pulling out of their parking spot in a normal, timely fashion when people are waiting
- Not totally forgetting literally all of the rules of the road while on El Paseo
- Stopping when a school bus has the stop sign thing engaged
- Not stopping 8 feet short of the crosswalk (and seriously what is that all about?)
- Not stopping 8 feet past the crosswalk (just go at that point, dude)
- Taking up just one parking spot
- Showing any courtesy to anyone
And this is just the drivers! Don’t even get me started on the golf carts and cyclists in the middle of the damn road and people running across the road at night instead of walking 100 feet down to use the crosswalk!
Anyway, I am sure I missed quite a few. Feel free to add your thoughts in the comments.
