Horn Axiom. Agree or Disagree?
Over the decades of driving, I have put together a personal viewpoint on horn use. My unscientific opinion is that probably 98% or more of horn honks are negative and unnecessary. They fall into one of three categories.
Unaware. Someone else does something wrong, illegal, unsafe…and they just have no idea what they did was a problem. Horn honks directed at them have no impact because they weren’t even aware they did anything. Many times they may not even be aware the horn was for them and think it must be for someone else if there are other cars.
Aware, doesn’t care. Someone makes a conscious decision to do something and is aware of the situation. Maybe they decide to lane change too aggressively, maybe they go through a 4-way-stop out of turn. Could be they do something illegal or unsafe, maybe it isn’t illegal but not a well know rule.
Personal example, I was at a 4 way intersection the other day with a traffic light that was an unprotected left turn. I was number 1 to turn left on the green light, but had to wait for a gap in opposite traffic, so I pulled forward in the intersection to wait until clear. The traffic was heavy enough that I had to wait until the light turned yellow, then red, then when the final opposite car was clear I completed the turn since I was already in the middle of the intersection. Well, someone coming from the cross street decided to gun it when their light turned green and I had been in the intersection for 30+ seconds, and when I completed the turn in front of them they just LAID on their horn. This aware and doesn’t care might involve someone that was legal and doing something right, or illegal and doing something wrong.
- Aware, does care. Maybe someone accidentally cuts you off because they didn’t clear their blind spot. They know what happened and feel bad about it, then all of a sudden the other person lays on their horn after the lane change was already complete and makes them feel worse about it.
Using the horn should really be a very rare occasion to signal to someone only when there is active danger or conflict, such as backing up to you in a parking lot or they have started a lane change and you are about to get side-swiped. Yes, of course it can be used for other things like a polite quick double-tap to someone that is distracted when a light turns green or pulling up outside someone’s home and getting their attention.
Thoughts or disagreements with this?