Description

People are failing to signal when turning on to Pine Street from State St. while speeding. So even if they slow down they still take that corner pretty fast. Some people do signal but they fail to use their blinker correctly. They turn on their signal while turning or at the start of their turn rather than before turning. I've seen a lot of pedestrians including myself almost get run down by bad drivers. Also that angle of the street is sharp, specially with a telephone poll right on the corner so vehicles end up driving in the middle of the street when entering Pine St. several cars almost hit each other. I'm concerned that there is a game of Russian Roulette going on. Even if there have been no accidents (that I know of) this is trouble waiting to happen. Also with the entrance to the gas station being on that same corner it's very busy and congested. A lot of pedestrian traffic walk on the side of the road where there is no side walk to gain entry down the steep bank to the corner store. When crossing the road I and others have almost been run over by vehicles entering Pine too quickly. Sometimes I get the impression they don't slow down on purpose and are angry that I'm there. The driver doesn't realize that I did in fact look both ways and no one was coming when I stepped out, but when they speed and take random turns without signaling they don't give others time to react. I also get the impression some of these bad drivers get angry and actually speed up when they see us in the road. We need to run out of their way. They don't realize that if they hit us it is their fault. They'll probably argue that we simply stepped out in front of them when this is not true. A lot of drivers don't realize that in about 3 seconds they've traveled 110 feet at 25 mph. So when they enter Pine going 35mph or even 40mph they are not giving us pedestrians enough time to react. But the drivers still act like they are annoyed that we are in their way. I believe that Pine Street needs to be 1. A one way street in which people are NOT allowed to turn onto Pine but only exit from Pine onto State St. 2. There needs to be speed bumps. 3. NO parking allowed on the street between Penobscot St. and State to maximize visibility. and 4. There should be Public Service announcements on proper driving behavior because obviously Bangor residents need it. For example when people run red lights and hold everyone up that has a green light. They argue that they ran it because someone in front of them is already running it. But they don't understand that the vehicle in front of them has nothing to do with them. If the light is RED that = STOP! Not run light if someone is already in intersection. Also ditches are not passing lanes. I can't tell you how many times down town I've almost got ran over when someone will stop for me at a cross walk and I proceed to cross but the impatient driver behind them decides to pass on the stopped vehicles right, then zoom through the crosswalk as I jump back. Too many drivers in Bangor are very impatient and are not "thinking" they aren't using their "heads". Driving with your emotions is dangerous. Also keep in mind that a study done by insurance com ranked Bangor Maine one of the Top 10 Most dangerous cities to drive in the USA. I think more than ever Bangor needs PSA's to remind them to take drivers ed and/or a refresher course. I'm serious. Something needs to be done by the increasing poor driving ability of Bangor drivers before it's too late.