How hard it is really to not break the traffic laws? One of the common questions we see here on BF is regarding cyclists being scofflaws... typically as red light runners or stop sign runners.... while they violate the letter of the law, most likely they are obeying the spirit of the law and are not violating other road users ROW.

Most motorists speed... I admit that too is my failing... when on a freeway, I tend to keep up with the flow of traffic. But when traffic is not heavy, I drive at the speed limit, I keep a safe distance and I am down right anal about using a turn signal. On surface streets, I am a cyclist... who happens to be in a car. I drive below the speed limit often...

How freaking difficult is it for others to do the same thing? What I see often is aggressive driving... people on the freeway driving well above the flow of traffic, driving close, driving zig zag between the majority flow. I see people with cell phones locked to their heads driving like zombies. On surface streets I see selfish driving... people who barge ahead, cut others off, even use bike lanes to get just one more car ahead. It is as if there is a competition to be first... without any real reward. Not everyone is out there doing this, but there are enough selfish drivers to cause major problems for all other road users.

Imagine a queue for a movie... most folks stand in line, wait their turn. Now imagine that there are folks cutting and barging the lines... it only takes a few to make the line uncomfortable and tighten up... this is much like what we see on the road.

What does it really take for people to simply cooperate on the roads?