Chris516

I had another 'incident' with a USPS driver towards the end of my ride. The only difference from the last time, was the driver was part of a contract company, apparently being 'out-sourced' to deliver the mail to the local USPS location that is right outside of town. Does anyone experience a level of disgust from USPS drivers/contractors, that is above what seems like the 'norm' for road rage on cyclists' in your locale?

10 Wheels

They all give us a friendly wave.

FBinNY 

Quite the opposite. I find that truck driver courtesy is somewhat proportional to fleet or corporate size. Afer the county bus drivers, the best and most courteous are UPS, Fedex, USPS and the like. National fleet tractor trailer drivers are about the same, as are the utility (Verizon, ConEd) drivers.

All these large operations are constantly reminding drivers on safety issues.

OTOH the worst drivers are those who use trucks to do business but are not in the trucking business, ie. plumbers, electricians, etc.

As for postal contractors, it probably varies contractor to contractor.

unterhausen

I'm sure it varies from driver to driver. There is a ups driver that passes me on my commute that is always too close. Of course, he knows where the right side of his truck is, but it's still annoying. The USPS drivers are relatively bad, but I don't see them as much

-=(8)=-

School bus drivers are the only group of professional drivers I have consistently had problems with.
Postal drivers dont even rate on my scale of scary vehicle operators

FBinNY 

One thing that separates commuting from normal road riding is that as a commuter I see the same people every day. The same cops, the same bus drivers, UPS and Fedex, and so on. Also many of the same motorists. That means there's sort of a relationship that develops over time.

I make it a point to engage all these in a positive way and treat them as neighbors and fellow road users. They respond in kind. This is such a regular thing, that If I take the bus, the driver will ask "where's the bike?".

Since you see the same UPS driver, catch him at some opportunity, and explain driver to driver that his close passes are ratling you and ask for a few more feet. I'll bet you get it.

FBinNY 

I agree, that as a class these rank fairly low. I suspect that they are the dregs of professional drivers with little training and high turnover. I think it's obscene that parents are expected to trust their children to these clods.

vol

I didn't have problem with UPS, but had several close calls with USPS. Once a USPS truck sped across an avenue to get to the post office parking just on the other side of the avenue, with me and other pedestrians nearby; not sure what the hurry. Fedex is 2nd to USPS. Sanitation trucks is another fear for me when they speed.

FBinNY 

Keep in mind, you're not sharing the road with fleets, you're sharing it with humans. So regardless of what color the truck is painted, you never really know who's at the wheel.

mtbikerinpa

I had a case where a UPS driver insisted on passing between me(in the lane) and oncoming traffic, cutting in hard enough to rock the body noticeably and turn in 2 driveways later. All on video and I was going speed limit. He got a talking to by his supervisors

Chris516

I used to have problems with some of the regional truck drivers, and some school bus drivers, but not anymore. It is the USPS drivers/driving contractors that are consistently nasty.

School bus drivers in the immediate area don't bug me anymore. The behavior of the USPS drivers/contractors is a bit of a mystery to me. Since they were only bringing mail to the local sorting facility.

The UPS drivers don't hassle me.

CB HI

I know a couple of former USPS workers in southern MD. The negative culture there is quite different from the culture in almost every other location.

No surprise for me that Chris516 is having problems with USPS.

Chris516

Well, I would expect it from 'big rig' and 'box truck' drivers. But they don't hassle me at all. So that is why the USPS drivers' around here are a mystery. UPS doesn't hassle me.

Maybe it is a regional thing.

curbtender

You got to figure distracted driving is built into their jobs. Makes sense to consider that when riding around them.

Chris516

Well, The USPS truck was #2 for the day.

Not long after I had started my ride this afternoon, I was at a red light. When a Mercedes convertible slammed on their brakes to keep from rear-ending me. I did verbally respond. But other than that, they didn't even honk their horn at me. So they obviously were not paying attention.

But the USPS driver/contract driver kept hitting his horn. Besides, For all intensive purposes, he works for the U.S. Government. That is why the verbal confrontation with the USPS driver is the one that got my ire.

Leastbest

I was a UPS driver for 37 years and had the same route for 35 years. It was on the south shore of Lake Erie so I saw a lot of cyclists. Always gave them lots of room and if I got lucky I'd get a minute to say hi and hear a story or two.

ItsJustMe

"intents and purposes". FYI.

spivonious

I always get a wave from the USPS, UPS, and FedEx drivers I encounter on my route. And since I got a local bus driver in trouble, I always get plenty of space from him.

I agree with other posters that the non-trucking trucks are the worst (contractors, plumbers, electricians, etc.).

Chris516

I would agree, if the contract driver had only honked once. Since he repeatedly 'beat the horn', he definitely wasn't distracted.
You are definitely different. Since you have seen the situation from both sides.

vol

Reminded me of this thread.

howsteepisit

All I can tell is that you were honked at more than once. What else happened?

buzzman

I've had pretty good luck with USPS and UPS drivers. Not that there are not exceptions. I give all delivery service employees the benefit of the doubt at this time of the year.

ItsJustMe

I've never encountered a delivery driver that wasn't careful and courteous. But then again, around here we get to know our delivery drivers, and they us.

Six jours

Seems to me that it's the same handful of posters who are always having "incidents" with other road users. Hmm...

Chris516

After I pulled into the USPS sorting facility's public lot(yesterday evening), I immediately turned around and told the driver I would report him today. I did exactly that, this afternoon. What the driver didn't know, is that I am not some dumb idiot cyclist. I memorized specific details about him, and the truck he was driving. If anything surprised me, it is that the USPS sometimes uses contract drivers and trucks to transport the mail.

There were probably 30+ Christmas USPS patrons in the public parking lot, that saw the incident.

Around here, it is an entirely different story. It is pretty much like being personable is a crime.

Try living in the DC-Metro region. Then you will begin to understand why, I encounter a lot of garbage.

When I lived in Minnesota, in the coastal city of Duluth, I never encountered any where near the level of hostility towards' cyclists' that exists' in the DC-Metro region. Even cops have hit cyclists around here, on several occasions. That never happened in Duluth.