Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Cynical Optimist]

Is it just me or do a very high percentage of Koreans not understand how to apply a steady amount of pressure to the gas pedal?

I see it with bus drivers and taxi drivers ALL the time! And I'm not talking about blasting around city streets -- I'm talking about on the highways and big streets when they have like 10 car-lengths of open road in front of them! They press the gas and then let go and coast, then give it a good shot of gas again and coast. Then maybe they'll brake for no apparent reason and then follow it up with another good strong shot of gas.

I know I'm overly sensitive to this and I'm just whining, but it drives me nuts. There's absolutely no reason to drive like this. And these people are professional drivers! They should know how to drive smoothly!

I can't imagine what they're thinking -- the only way I can relate to this kind of driving is to remember when I would drive go-carts as a kid. And actually, the go-cart mentality might explain much of the driving behavior here!

[eamo]

I've noticed it.

I think there was an urban myth a lot of years ago that pressing the gas on and off repeatedly can save gas overall. I find it's usually old guys who do this.

Whether it saves gas or not, and I highly doubt that it does, it is ubearable to be a passenger in a vehicle going gas-on, gas-off, gas-on, gas-off. I feel I'm getting seasick after a few miles of that.

[BigBuds]

I was going home one night pretty drunk and had to tell the taxi driver how to drive properly otheriwse I was going to throw up in his cab. He got the hint wand as magically able to drive properly and accelerate steadily.

[blaseblasphemener]

You're not being overly sensitive, OP. It's a fact. When bus drivers and taxi drivers are some of the worst drivers, you know that Koreans generally don't have much of a clue when it comes to driving. It's all about getting to the next yellow or red light fast, while talking on your cell phone, and taking both hands off the wheel to use the manual transmission, while daring the guy you just blindly cut-off in traffic to hit you. Every day I am flabbergasted.

[skinhead]

[poet13]

I've come close to throwing up in a taxi from that before too, and I wasn't even drunk.

I wonder if when they're out on the open road if they slip into some kind of fantasy and role play it. Maybe having a shoot out with the car next to them, and speeding up and slowing down helps them avoid bullets or something....

[Richard Krainium]

It's not just a Korean thing, it's an Asian thing. Ask anyone who's traveled around Asia or lived in Hawaii. It DRIVES me NUTS.

Fast, slow. Fast, slow. WTF!

[sadsac]

It's their navagation telling them to speed up or slow down. Koreans are by far the worst, most inconsitent, rude and ignorant drivers on the planet, bar none.

[Richard Krainium]

[Cynical Optimist]

Cool, I'm glad I'm not alone on this!

I have noticed some people driving like this back home in the States, but it's not very common. Here, I'm actually impressed when people don't do it.

My worst experience with this was when I had a friend visiting from back home. I told him how comfy and nice the Korean buses are (compared to the buses we'd shared in Costa Rica). I accidentally bought tickets for the cheaper bus (4 seats across, not 3) for our 5 hour trip from Geoje Island to Seoul. We got the seats all the way at the back of the bus -- the toasty ones close to the engine! We were extremely hungover and sweating booze. So if that wasn't bad enough, the g0ddamn bus driver was driving the thing like it was a f*ing speed boat or something -- REALLY jamming the gas and brake in rapid succession and making sharp little swerves left and right that would send my head away from the window and then crashing back against it. I wanted to kill the ba$tard.

[riley]

That gas-brake-gas combo is what generally makes me sick to my stomach on any bus trip longer than a half hour. I never puke, just feel really lousy. It sucks.

[Ilsanman]

It also launches all the standers on the bus all around, either wrenching your shoulder to stay standing, or fall down, or into someone's lap.

I would guess it's because the roads are all full of potholes, but they're not, so I see no reason for this.

[Zolt]

I think it's probably the brain damage caused by years of soju and makkoli: Their feet tremble permanently, making it impossible to keep steady gas.

[RACETRAITOR]

Wanna know something even scarier? They don't have shoulder checks in this country.

[Kimchieluver]