Short and to the point. Anyone who has driven in Puerto Rico usually ends up leaving with the observation that Puerto Rican's are horrible drivers. I don't think they are horrible drivers per say. In fact, I think they usually have very good control of their vehicles, and if they followed basic driving etiquette I am sure we would not see as many cars going around with evidence or 1 or more collisions.
However, many (but not all) Puerto Rican drivers can be accused of being: (a) aggressive, (b) inconsiderate, (c) selfish, and (d) inattentive.
I'll just briefly defend each adjective with at least one example. However, I really do not expect many to debate me regarding this. From my experience talking to people from Puerto Rico, they are fully aware of the issue even if they don't consider themselves the problem.
Aggressive in driving at excessive speeds, weaving in and out of traffic. Inconsiderate in never (or extremely rarely) yielding to pedestrians in particular. Selfish in willingly interrupting traffic and turning without the courtesy of signaling for cars waiting to cross their path. Inattentive in pausing too long at lights while on their cell phones.
I think aggressive is the primary complaint category. Keep this in mind: Puerto Rico is certainly not the only place with bad drivers. However, this just so happens to be a blog about Puerto Rico... and it is enough of a problem to warrant some attention.
Drivers in Puerto Rico scared me. They are nuts! Puerto Rico is 100 miles by 30 miles in size. There are about 3 million people there. There are 1.5 million cars. They pack the roads. The roads are all narrow, and mostly in bad shape.
Source: Driving in Puerto Rico
Now here is an important lesson that Puerto Ricans really need to learn for safety and efficiency in highway driving:
Keep Right Except to Pass
Basically this means, stay in the farthest right lane unless you are behind a slower moving car that you intend to pass. Once you have passed them, return to the right lane. This gives all faster moving cars the ability to safely pass without the interweaving that we see so commonly. In general, it keeps traffic moving much faster. At times, even aggressive in and out cars, get stuck in a bottleneck caused by a group of slow moving cars clogging both lanes.
Be alert and courteous and just remember to Keep Right Except to Pass. Is that so difficult?
P.S. You should remember to signal before making lane changes as well to maximize your safety and that of other drivers traveling in close proximity.
The Insider
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