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Pet Peeves for Motability scheme drivers: Honking horns and one-way chaos

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Going for a drive should be a pleasurable and peaceful experience, with our cars providing our own personal cocoon from the world outside.

With the open road ahead of you and your favourite playlist soundtracking your journey, you’re able to quickly escape the stresses of the day and find a sense of calm in a space that’s purely yours.

Unfortunately, the real world often has a habit of getting in the way of this bliss.

A few ill-timed red lights can turn a gentle cruise down Easy Street into a slog down the Highway to Hell.

So, to help you prepare for the road and exorcise those driving demons before they even rear their heads, here are some of the biggest driving pet peeves for drivers – and how to deal with them!

Needless honking of horns

There are plenty of crazy things people do while driving. But anyone who has ever driven around a city will recognise the cacophony of horns that arises to greet even the most minor of bad driving habits.

While it might feel like a good way to vent your frustration, these loud noises can negatively affect other people – such as young children and elderly people who may not be as confident on the roads, or those who deal with anxiety.

We should also bear in mind the many drivers who have some degree of autism. Some may be oversensitive to sounds, so hearing a car horn may function to interrupt their concentration rather than alert them to another driver’s annoyance.

Put simply, it’s impossible for us to tell any other driver’s situation, so the least we can all do is try to be as courteous and understanding as possible. If we try to keep ourselves from getting caught up in blaming other people for our own frustrations, the roads can be a much more pleasant environment for everyone.

So, if you find yourself ready to beep the horn on your Motability vehicle, take a brief moment to decide whether it’s really needed or whether it’s just your frustration bubbling to the surface!

And if someone beeps their horn at you, take a deep breath to regain your composure, then keep on driving carefully!

Tailgaters

You’re doing the speed limit. There’s someone behind you making it perfectly clear they’d like you to either accelerate or move aside – and they’re a little too close for comfort.

This is called tailgating, and for the person in front it can feel quite intimidating, as well as dangerous. If you have to brake quickly in this situation, the driver behind may not have enough road to avoid a collision.

If this happens to you, remain calm and react to the situation at hand. If you’re on a motorway, you might be able to move into a slower lane to allow the driver behind to overtake. If you’re on a single-lane road, continue on within the speed limit, or pull in where it’s safe to do so.

The safety of yourself and other road users is most important here, so make sure you don’t take any risks.

And if you ever feel yourself inching closer to the car in front yourself, take a moment to recognise the situation. Then simply gradually ease off the gas to give them some distance.

After all, we’re all just trying to get from A to B.

One-way systems

There are only three things certain in life – death, taxes and councils creating labyrinthine one-way systems around town centres.

They may make sense to the city planners who plan them and locals who use them daily, but to anyone without a civil engineering degree or an encyclopaedic knowledge of a town’s avenues and alleyways, they can often be a nightmare!

This is where a little forward planning can come into its own.

Make sure you figure out your route before you head out onto the road, and stick with what your satnav or phone tells you to – we’ve all got caught out thinking we’ve spotted a shortcut, only for it turn into an epic journey that Frodo Baggins would turn his nose up at.

People using disabled spaces as a drop-off point

Getting a parking space in our crowded city centres is hard enough at the best of times but if you’re a disabled driver, a spot is at even more of a premium.

While there are (thankfully) often a good amount of disabled spots available for people who need them, it can be incredibly frustrating if they are taken up by people without a disabled parking permit and who are ‘just popping in the shop for a minute’ or ‘picking someone up quickly’.

For people who genuinely need these spaces – including drivers who got their car through the Motability scheme – it’s not just an irritation. It can stop them from doing what they need to do or make them late for important appointments.

There are of course endless more driving pet peeves (people leaving their high beams on, anyone?) but, if we all just take our time and try to relax on the road, then there’s no reason we can’t all get to where we’re going without turning the roads into a Mad Max-style royal rumble!

Find out more about our Motability scheme. If you have further questions or would like to speak with an award winning Specialist about your options in person, use our TrustFord dealership finder to find your nearest dealership and receive free advice from our trained Motability experts.