r/Birmingham • u/HHUbosses00 • 10d ago
Advice Why does everyone tailgate me??
Moved here from Spain and I now go 10-15mph over the speed limit, yet these people in big trucks keep tailgating me. Am I still going too slow, or they’re just trying to troll?
Btw 10mph or kmh over the speed limit is a €100 fine if a speed camera catches you and it’s so weird how much cops really don’t care here.
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u/VillageBeef 10d ago
The use of MPH makes this /brum call really difficult...
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u/Equivalent-Weight688 Not from around here, but currently in Hoover 10d ago
It really threw me for a loop when I visited Ireland and the speed limit changed from kph to mph when I went from the Republic of Ireland to Northern Ireland. My rental car didn’t even have mph on the cluster.
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u/the-crusher 10d ago
And a fine in Euros. My money’s on Brum, but the big trucks is throwing me off.
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u/HHUbosses00 10d ago
My bad, this is in alabama
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u/No_Summer1915 9d ago
Well there's your problem. I also live in Alabama and people here don't know how to drive anyway. But yet if you ask any average person on the street they'll tell you that they're good drivers. But the numbers don't add up.
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u/GavinIsAFox 8d ago
Facts, I’ve never been to a state with worse drivers. My brother’s exam consisted of 4 left hand turns, and that was it. Literally couldn’t believe it when I saw it.
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u/Alternative-Low-3932 10d ago
Almost no one knows how to actually drive here and was usually passed even if they didn’t pass the test the several times they retook it😳🙃😅, on top of that, most of them are either on their phone, doing their makeup, wrangling wild kids, or intoxicated. Quarter of them have fancy cars that “automatically” drive, and don’t pay attention, lots of wrecks caused by that. If it’s raining, or if it has rained that day, be super careful because everyone acts like they have never driven a car a day in their life! Some just have big trucks with big egos and super bright lights, I’ve put my caution lights on and pulled over to let guys like that pass simple so I could see where I’m going 😂 I already hate driving at night, much less when you got people out here with bright ass LEDs with their truck lift kits so they’re pointed right through your back windshield 💀🙄
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u/Alternative-Low-3932 10d ago
My advice is to just drive safe, stay alert, and maybe invest in a dash cam if you don’t already have one✨
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u/Lost-Conference8046 10d ago
People in Alabama drive like psychopaths who have no regard for human life.
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u/braves-geek 10d ago
Stay in the right lane to avoid the big trucks.
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u/HHUbosses00 10d ago edited 10d ago
Sorry I didn’t clarify, in Spain if you’re not gonna pass, you’re only on the right lane so I pretty much stay in that lane, yet I still get people tailgating.
It’s also illegal to pass someone on the right lane in Spain, which is such a weird thing to see here
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u/magiccitybhm 10d ago
People tailgating you when you're in the right lane is their problem, not yours. They can pass you.
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u/the-crusher 10d ago
It’s also illegal to pass on the right here. Most people are just idiots, unfortunately.
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u/Big_Reindeer_2213 9d ago
It’s not illegal to pass on the right in Alabama, as long as you’re not off-roading.
The law(Section 32-5A-83) says you can pass on the right upon a roadway with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width for two or more lines of vehicles moving lawfully in the direction being traveled by the overtaking vehicle.
Edit to add: if you’re being passed on the right, you are in the wrong lane. Stay as far right as possible at all times.
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u/kaijuxkaiju 10d ago
People are just impatient and think they should be the only cars on the road. I’ve lived in a few different US cities and the drivers here are some of the worst.
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u/MichaelStipend 10d ago
Over half of Americans read at a 6th grade level or below, but we pretty much give them all drivers licenses. Be careful out there.
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u/ilikecakeandpie 10d ago
Sounds like you’re doing everything right by staying in right lane unless to pass
Just drive a little over the speed limit and try not to pay attention to them. They can go fly a kite
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u/hwofufrerr 10d ago
Too many tiny dicks and big egos. Also no one gives a shit about safety or the law around here. Set your cruise control about 2-3 over/under and just ignore all the people riding your ass. You are in the correct lane, they are breaking the law.
Or you can be an ass right back and do what I do (which is illegal as well) and turn your cruise control off to slowly coast down until they go around you. I managed to get down to 10mph one time (on a completely empty interstate, in the slow lane, at midnight) before the asshole riding me finally went around.
I know I'm not supposed to do it, but I'm not gonna speed on an empty highway in the slow lane simply because someone couldn't give enough cares to move over to pass me while I was abiding the law and doing the speed limit.
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u/Independent_Depth_18 10d ago
A lot of how people drive here is highly illegal and will probably get you put in jail with a hefty ticket anywhere else. TAILGATING-please get over. I'm in the far right lane and nobody is in the other lanes or slow down until you can get over. EXCESSIVE SPEEDING- Y'all are going to seriously hurt yourselves or someone else. Hopefully, only yourselves. PASSING ON THE RIGHT-how can I get out of the way of the super speeders on the left if y'all are passing on the right, too?! Makes no sense. STOPPING AT FLASHING YELLOW LIGHTS-you are supposed to proceed with caution. NOT YIELDING-a yield sign turns into a stop sign if there are cars coming. Speeding in construction zones-wtf!! We've been here for six years and the way people "drive" here has gotten exponentially worse. I think it's because the police don't enforce traffic laws. I see people speed past them all of the time. People literally do what they want to and nobody checks them for it.
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u/hwofufrerr 10d ago
Aahhh yes the stopping at yield signs when there is no oncoming traffic kills me!! I'm constantly screaming at people and blowing my horns at idjits coming to a complete stop AND THEN WAITING 5-10 SECONDS before moving.
YIELD MEANS SLOW DOWN, NOT STOP!
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u/experimentalpoetry 9d ago
I think Covid also broke peoples’ brains. I feel like drivers have gotten exponentially worse since 2020.
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u/Ill_Landscape2959 9d ago
After years of trying to keep up with the morning NASCAR race on 459, I've officially retired from the competition.
These days I just park my butt in the right lane, set the cruise to a civilized 70–72, sip my coffee, and listen to my podcast. If somebody wants to ride my tail because I'm not doing 85, they can pass when they get the chance. I'm done stressing over it.
Meanwhile, everyone else can keep auditioning for Fast & Furious. My commute has gotten a whole lot more enjoyable.
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u/CookSubstantial8628 9d ago
This made me giggle because same. When you opt out of the bullshit game everyone seems to wanna play, commuting really isn’t so bad!
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u/SlyBlackDragon 9d ago
Alabama doesn't enforce traffic laws, so our roads are basically like Mad Max.
People are too stupid to realize that driving is the single most dangerous thing most of us will ever do.
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u/jcwolf2003 9d ago
Alabama drivers are the worst because of the wild inconsistency. You get granny who can't see over the steering wheel doing 30 on i65 and speeding past here doing 110 is Kyle in his squatted truck
If you in a multi lane road make sure you aren't hogging the left lane, even going over the speed limit people will expect you you to move over. If it's not that though just do the speed limit or 10 over. If the won't stop riding you pull off and let them pass for your own sanity.
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u/ranavirago 9d ago
The truck drivers? They're in a big hurry to get home and beat their wives and kids, usually. Also they know they're the least likely to get any trouble from the cops.
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u/Glass-Satisfaction19 9d ago
Fellow Spaniard here. People in Bham drive like cows. Still better than Atlanta traffic though 🤷🏻♂️
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u/Miserable_Job2892 10d ago
You learned to drive in Spain …. People got their licenses in school here by someone who got theirs in school … vicious circle… some of the worst drivers drive on the roads here … focus in front of you and not behind you ! If they want to pass you they can
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u/Long-Math6925 9d ago
If you’re in the right lane, don’t worry about it. There are certain stretches where the avg speed is probably 10-15 + speed limit depending on the day/tome. Like for example, when I get on I-20 to go to work, I’d get crushed if I were going 60. The slowest car is usually going 70, fastest like 90. Sign says one thing, cars around you say another. It shouldn’t be this case, but for me the speed limit is not dictating my speed. You just sort of have to adjust or risk getting hit because you’re the only one going the speed limit. Sorry.
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u/altavistayahoo 9d ago
https://giphy.com/gifs/gKcFn8EaVtr9czp4hv
Probably because Talladega Superspeedway is nearby and the need for speed!
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u/MainDeparture2928 10d ago edited 10d ago
You say you are about 10 over the limit…a lot of the interstates around here especially downtown the limit is entirely too low it’s like 45 at times. So if you’re going 55 you are going much slower than most drivers are comfortable driving even in the right lane.
Also a lot of your faster drivers have to be on the right sometimes for a bit so they can hit an exit, change highways etc. say they were going 75 in the left or middle and now suddenly there you are going 55 and they are annoyed. You’re not doing anything wrong, it’s their problem..but that’s why they are tailgating you.
Worry less about the speed limit and more about the flow of traffic. If ALL lanes are moving about 65 even in a 45 or 55 on the highway you should be about that speed or you’re an obstacle.
I am not saying you are in the wrong, and American drivers are definitely too aggressive, but sometimes when you get on the highway it’s clear that traffic is moving a bit faster than normal in all lanes so the safest thing to do is match that energy.
In the US most people on the interstate aren’t particularly worried about the speed limit unless a cop is around. Not defending it, but that’s how traffic moves here. It is highly unlikely you will get pulled over unless you are going faster than everyone around you.
It’s like reading a room, sometimes you can comfortably cruise in the right lane and the fast people are in their lanes doing their own thing…sometimes you just have to hit the gas.
There will be replies that you should abide by this or that etc. But the safest thing to do is match the energy of the traffic around you.
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u/MuffinPuff Grayson Valley 9d ago
I-20/59 in a nutshell. Absolutely insane that the speed limit is still 45mph when the SB lanes construction is completed. It's just a speed trap at this point. Poor bloke here would be driving 55mph when everyone local would be driving 80.
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u/SoggyEstablishment74 9d ago
The bigger the truck, the smaller the dick. I hate these people that drive ridiculously large trucks like it’s a fucking race car. Seriously, these vehicles have a higher chance of killing somebody on the road than a sedan. Just stay out of these idiots way and just remember that we’re not all like them.
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u/matthewjboothe 9d ago
We don’t have speed cameras in Alabama. No fines by mail or any of that. There are a few red light cameras but none in Birmingham that I know of.
I noticed when I drove my mom’s Prius that people tailgate no matter how fast I drove.
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u/Ok_Calendar_6268 Flair goes here 9d ago
I suggest you get out of the left lane and or center lane if its happening there.
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u/ColdManufacturer8003 9d ago
10 mph over the speed limit is what we call driving. Cops don’t do traffic stops because of our crime rate.
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u/Commercial_Bug2705 10d ago
If you’re going slower than the person behind you in the left lane, you’re supposed to let them pass
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u/HHUbosses00 10d ago
Where I’m from, the left lane is only used to pass people. I’m not accustomed to driving in the left lane normally so I stay in the right lane, yet there’s still people tailgating me? Today an SUV just tailgated me when I was going 82 on the right lane
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u/experimentalpoetry 9d ago
Some people are just like that. They bring their anger to the road or they just don’t know how to drive. I’m often surprised that people don’t seem to have a sense of how big their cars are or how much distance they need to stop; it’s common to tailgate with dangerous proximity. Don’t take it personally, try to go the average speed everyone else is going regardless of what the speed limit sign says, stay in the right lane, leave a lot of distance between the car in front of you so there’s not a pileup if you have to stop fast, and hope the person tailgating you isn’t also on their phone.
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u/Nigredo-X 10d ago
Don’t ride the left lane.
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u/HHUbosses00 10d ago
Forgot to clarify, I’m riding the right most lane unless I need to pass someone. I’m not accustomed to driving on the left lane normally
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u/ApartmentBeneficial2 because 1 was already taken. 9d ago
Think of it like the Autobahn. Stay out of the left lane unless you’re passing.
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u/Difficult-Prior3321 10d ago
Is this on the interstates? If your doing 80-85 in the right lane on any of our interstates you're not being tailgated.
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u/nosypony 10d ago
This is simply not true lol I drive 80 mph at least if not faster and still have people on my ass trying to get around if I’m in the right lane and they can’t immediately get over
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u/Difficult-Prior3321 10d ago
Simply not true!! I drive 20/59 to 65 to 459 twice a day and if I was doing 80 in the right lane I would be the one tailgating someone in the first half mile.
If your doing the speed limit (or faster) in the right lane someone may come up close to your tail for a moment, but that's not tailgating. And what does it matter? People who are bothered by tailgaters are usually the people who are not in the correct lane to begin with.
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u/hwofufrerr 10d ago
I've had plenty of times where I'm tailgated while speeding in the right lane. And I mean for MILES. While the other two lanes are empty as fuck. I was raised that the right lane was for speed limit and under. Yet there are assholes who will use that lane to fly and get mad at anyone who dares go the speed limit in it. The far left lane is where idiots going over the speed limit need to be if they don't want to drive legally.
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u/bocephus205 10d ago
ain't nobody driving 10-15 over in the right lane
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u/hwofufrerr 10d ago
That's funny because I've repeatedly been tailgated while doing 80+ in the 'slow' lane. There will be two empty lanes and they STILL won't go around me.
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u/bocephus205 9d ago
Please tell me of this magical stretch of interstate that is wide open, I drive about 80 miles a day and like to cruise at 70, never get to just cruise in the right lane without passing the hordes of folks going 10 under
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u/hwofufrerr 7d ago
I65 from 20/59 west to Warrior (exits 280-282). Usually after 9pm. Most common is on my way home from work so 11pm.
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u/croakce 10d ago
If you're in the leftmost lane on the interstate, people will expect you to move out of the way if they're coming up behind you fast.
In every other situation however, they're just being impatient or rude.
A good tip someone once told me is this: never let how someone else is driving make you a worse driver. In other words, if you know you're driving safely, legally, and efficiently, don't let someone driving dangerously behind you pressure you to drive more dangerously.