OT: Welcome to Miami (home of the worst drivers in the US)

Papi_Chulo
Miami, FL (or the nearest big-booty club)
Was outta town this weekend - I live in Miami but flew out of Ft Lauderdale about 30-minutes north - was driving south on 95 which is probably the most-dangerous road in SoFlo.

A few years ago they added a pay-lane on parts of 95 which is the one all the way to the left - they have sticks to divide the pay lane from the regular lanes - it was Monday night around 10pm so traffic was medium and I was having a smooth uneventful drive tired after the flight - I was on the second most left-lane of the regular/non-pay lanes and there was a car about a car-length ahead of me to my left (leftmost regular/non-pay lane) - out of the blue a dark 4dr-sedan zooms-up up beside me on the left-most regular lane flying and switches lanes in b/w me and the car in his lane that was just one-car length ahead of me - it was as if he almost clipped my left-front-end it was that close but that kinda of driving is not that uncommon in Miami - so the guy makes a hard-right to switch into my lane in b/w me and the car in his lane just ahead of mine - he does this maneuver flying and as he gets into my lane to his right he then to tries to get back in his lane as he passed the car a car-length ahead of mine to my left - so he makes a hard-right to squeeze into my lane almost clipping me; then makes a hard-left to get back in his lane as soon as he passed the car in that lane and he goes sideways like 90-degrees to the traffic then cuts hard to the right to recover and goes over the sticks (about 4ft high) dividing the pay lane - after he cut left and was at 90-degrees to the traffic and goes over the sticks he cuts hard right and is now pointing in the right-direction but he was going so fast his momentum slammed him into the wall dividing north and southbound traffic - he hits the wall broadside w/ the left-side of his car - I thought that would be the end of it and at least he hadn't hit anybody - so he hits the wall broadside and I guess he jerked the wheel once he hit the wall so he bounces off the left-wall/center-divider and goes across all 6-lanes of 95 into the right-embankment - I didn't see if he hit anything as he was careening across all 6 lanes from center-divider to right embankment - but all of a sudden I see a Honda Civic spinning out a few car-lengths ahead of me (Civic was in one of the right most lanes of 95) - so the Civic spins out and does a 360 and ends up in the left-most regular/non-pay lane opposite/facing traffic; I assume the Civic was either hit by the 4dr-sedan careening across the 6-lanes or the Civic cut hard to avoid the out-of-control sedan (I kinda lost track of the 4dr-sedan as he careened from left to right as there were cars in front of me to my right) - this all happened basically in front of me and I passed it but couldn't pull over since I had traffic behind me and I was towards the left-lanes - I had slowed-down as soon as the 4dr-sedan had cut right in front of me to get in my lane so I had enough room to be out of his way as he lost control on his way to hit the left-wall/center-median and then careen from left to right across 6-lanes a few car-lengths ahead of me (I had slowed down significantly so I was not too-close to him when this was happening) , so I avoided him b/c he had my attention as soon as he zipped right in front of me; but the Civic was a close call as he was spinning-out from the the right-lane all the way across to the left-most regular lane and I didn't see him until he had spun past my lane and ended up in the lane to my left facing me.

I can only assume the driver of the 4dr-sedan was drunk AF b/c he should not have lost it like that and he kept on losing-it time after time when he could have come to a stop especially after hitting the left-wall/center-divider - either he was under the influence big-time or maybe it was a very-young driver driving a stolen-car and he was inexperienced and didn't know what he was doing - it was kinda surreal and not what I was expecting on my way home tired from my ATL trip.

16 comments

Latest

Clubber
5 years ago
Papi,

I drove all over Monroe, Dade and Broward for about 45 years. Got to where nothing surprised me other than someone being normal at driving. That said, can't think of anything like you describe, ever.
Papi_Chulo
5 years ago
^ yeah dude - I couldn't believe what was happening - didn't really sink-in/register till I was past it
goldmongerATL
5 years ago
If you'd of just got the fuck out of my way none of that would have happened.
Papi_Chulo
5 years ago
^ my bad
theDirkDiggler
5 years ago
I've only driven to and in Florida once, and i had switched with another driver several hours before we got to Miami, but i remember thinking the drivers in Florida (even the truckers) were some of the most unusual and unpredictable drivers ever. It was an extremely stressful and defensive 3 or 4 hours which i hope to never repeat. It was almost like night and day as soon as i crossed into the state line, not that Georgia drivers were great, courteous drivers or anything. Illinois isn't the bee knees either, but here i feel like i can just coast with one finger tip on the wheel as long as i maintain a decent following distance, and that most drivers (soberish) are at least somewhat predictable...
rickthecoconutcrab
5 years ago
I’m considering moving from Hawaiʻi to Florida. Based on your description of Miami drivers it seems they tolerate various sea creatures behind the wheel. Good to know!

Scuttle! Scuttle! Scuttle!
skibum609
5 years ago
Old people; tourists; criminals and non-english speaking drivers abound. Bihg surprise; however, the worst drivers in south florida are the canadians in Hollywood.
twentyfive
5 years ago
Disney couldn’t come up with a ride to match driving I95 in South Florida lol
minnow
5 years ago
Papi's lack of paragraphing leads me to believe that he was texting while driving home from airport.
MackTruck
5 years ago
I'm gonna dump a load all over I 95
MackTruck
5 years ago
Fortunately Crazyjoe does not destroy McDonald's shitters in that area
Clubber
5 years ago
25,

An excellent observation and I think you are correct. Perhaps a cross between Space Mountain and bumper cars and to simulate real drivers, all speech is garbled and you have to wear glasses that allow you to see almost nothing.
Papi_Chulo
5 years ago
This incident happened around North Miami either b/f or right after the NE 203st exit about 5-minutes north of the Golden Glades Interchange.

The Golden Glades Interchange is where I-95 and 826 meet/cross - it was redone several years ago and a whole bunch of ramps added (HOV ramps; etc) - anyway is kinda confusing and a lot happening at that interchange and several of the ramps are at a high altitude.

A few months ago it was reported in the news that a young couple (early-20s) was speeding in a white Mercedes doing over 100 - apparently they got in the wrong lane and got in a lane that was a 25-mph tight curve offramp and it's kinda a blind curve - it was nighttime and either they couldn't tell it was an offramp they got on or didn't see it was a curve and they flew-off the ramp which was at a high-altitude - the Benz flips over lands on it's roof (I think it also caught fire but can't remember) - anyway they were both instantly killed and in their early-20s - LE speculated they got on the offramp by accident and didn't know it was a tight-curve and the high-rate of speed they were going they didn't have a chance.

I spent 5-days in ATL - I'm already stressed being back in Miami - gotta get the f*** outta here when I get the chance.

gawker
5 years ago
That couple must have thought they had a Gullwing Mercedes.
grand1511
5 years ago
That big paragraph has to be about 700 words long (I quit counting at ~400 words)...and it's all one sentence. But it kind of works in conveying the chaos of the moment.
Papi_Chulo
5 years ago
^ at least I used some punctuation
😊
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