Honk Honk: What Drives Montanans Crazy on the Road (Opinion)

Montanans are the nicest, most thoughtful people I've ever met, but anyone can get upset while driving. Fortunately Montana wasn't ranked high on Forbes' list of states with the most angry and confrontational drivers, but people can still experience anger even if it doesn't result in aggressive behavior. Here's what I've noticed frustrates Montanans while on the road:

Bad Snow Drivers

Encountering someone who doesn't know how to drive in snowy weather is justifiably terrifying. I don't mean to disrespect inexperienced drivers, as no one is an expert the first time they try. Here are tips on how to winterize your vehicle.

Slow Drivers

I've done some traveling and Montanans are the fastest drivers I've seen in the country, though that's mostly due to our top speed limit being higher than in most other states. Freeways aside, driving on a one-lane road I often have to pull over because I can feel the driver behind me getting antsy.

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Headlights on the Freeway at Night

Night driving on the highways is particularly dangerous in Montana because of all the wildlife here, so sometimes drivers understandably turn on their headlights for extra vision. The problem is when someone forgets to turn them off so they shine into the eyes of a driver going the opposite direction.

Drivers That Won't Take Their Right of Way

I don't know why people refuse to take their right of way, maybe they somehow believe they're doing the other driver a favor by staying back. What they're actually doing is confusing everyone and creating a potentially dangerous situation.

Jay Walkers

I'm always happy whenever I see the fresh paint of a new crosswalk. I encourage city planners to add a lot more crosswalks because without them I've noticed drivers get enraged at the catastrophic inconvenience of having to slow down for evil pedestrians who have the audacity to walk across a street. How dare they? I joke, jaywalking is illegal and people shouldn't do it, but let's not let it ruin our day when we see it happen.