Street altercation - What would you do? Tractor trailer driver tried to bully me!

[Ceiling Cat]

I had a street altercation with a tractor trailer today. I drove through an alley till I was almost on the street when a tractor trailer waiting on the street to get into the alley suddenly lurched into the alley. His cab was maybe only 10 - 15 ft. in the alley. The driver rudely tells me to back up 300 ft. so he could pass. I refused. I was not going to be pushed around. After 10 minutes he threatens to call the police, I invited him to do so.
I told him that I will get a report from the police and send it to his employer. Without saying a word he stomped back to his truck and backed it out into the street and let me pass. If he had waited another 10 seconds till I exited the alley it would have saved everyone aggravation. What would you have done?

 

[Old Milwaukee]

I had a street altercation with a tractor trailer today. I drove through an alley till I was almost on the street when a tractor trailer waiting on the street to get into the alley suddenly lurched into the alley. His cab was maybe only 10 - 15 ft. in the alley. The driver rudely tells me to back up 300 ft. so he could pass. I refused. I was not going to be pushed around. After 10 minutes he threatens to call the police, I invited him to do so.
I told him that I will get a report from the police and send it to his employer. Without saying a word he stomped back to his truck and backed it out into the street and let me pass. If he had waited another 10 seconds till I exited the alley it would have saved everyone aggravation. What would you have done

I would have backed up.

Driving a truck is not easy, picture your vehicle with 50 feet of trailer behind it. Why push your luck, give him a break.

 

[simon482]

there is a chance he didn't see you till he was in the alley or he thought he could get around you. if he had walked up to you and said "hey can you do me a small favour and back up a bit so i can get in" you should have backed up because it is a lot easier to back a car up then it is a truck. if he walked up and said "hey get the fuck out of my way" or another variation of that and was rude then yes you could have decided not to move OR you could have backed up anyway and just done a good deed and turned his mood around.

for him to threaten to call the cops is stupid, but seeing as how this is what i do for a living (i know i am about to catch a lot of shit for this) i know for a fact that SOME not ALL car drivers get in the way cuz they think they are entitled to the road and even though it is easier for you to move a bit then it is us you won't budge because a lot of car drivers think they own the fucking road. ( i am saying you, not as in you CC but just as a term)

it should not have gotten to the point where he should have been yelling at you. i have been in similar situations and every time i get out i do so with a smile and ask nicely if whomever could back up a bit and help me out. 7 of 10 times the driver backs up because i am polite, those 3 drivers though soon learn that the main part of a truck drivers life is patience and i will sit there and stare at them for hours till they move and not care.

being in the states as a driver i see that we truck drivers are looked at as good people that work hard and treated with incredible respect, in canada especially ontario and toronto we are looked at as a virus that is in the way.

guess what i am saying is being polite goes a long way and at the end of the day smiling and saying "no problem" and backing up 300 feet would have been a lot easier on you ceiling cat then being upset about it all day and coming home and still thinking about it.

 

[Old Milwaukee]

there is a chance he didn't see you till he was in the alley or he thought he could get around you. if he had walked up to you and said "hey can you do me a small favour and back up a bit so i can get in" you should have backed up because it is a lot easier to back a car up then it is a truck. if he walked up and said "hey get the fuck out of my way" or another variation of that and was rude then yes you could have decided not to move OR you could have backed up anyway and just done a good deed and turned his mood around.

for him to threaten to call the cops is stupid, but seeing as how this is what i do for a living (i know i am about to catch a lot of shit for this) i know for a fact that SOME not ALL car drivers get in the way cuz they think they are entitled to the road and even though it is easier for you to move a bit then it is us you won't budge because a lot of car drivers think they own the fucking road. ( i am saying you, not as in you CC but just as a term)

it should not have gotten to the point where he should have been yelling at you. i have been in similar situations and every time i get out i do so with a smile and ask nicely if whomever could back up a bit and help me out. 7 of 10 times the driver backs up because i am polite, those 3 drivers though soon learn that the main part of a truck drivers life is patience and i will sit there and stare at them for hours till they move and not care.

being in the states as a driver i see that we truck drivers are looked at as good people that work hard and treated with incredible respect, in canada especially ontario and toronto we are looked at as a virus that is in the way.

guess what i am saying is being polite goes a long way and at the end of the day smiling and saying "no problem" and backing up 300 feet would have been a lot easier on you ceiling cat then being upset about it all day and coming home and still thinking about it.

hate to admit this, but I agree with Simon on this one.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

He was waiting on the street at the end of the alley and he zips in at the last second. He came up to my car like a raving lunatic and demanded I back up 300 ft. When I asked him why he did not wait a few seconds to allow me to exit the alley, his response was "Just back it up". This guy was an asshole.
When He threatened to call the police I said " Please call the police Mr. ( name of the trucking company + the cab number ) I will be please to present your boss with a copy of the police report". He took off like he was on fire.

 

[simon482]

hate to admit this, but I agree with Simon on this one.

i am not always an asshole.

 

[simon482]

He was waiting on the street at the end of the alley and he zips in at the last second. He came up to my car like a raving lunatic and demanded I back up 300 ft. When I asked him why he did not wait a few seconds to allow me to exit the alley, his response was "Just back it up". This guy was an asshole.
When He threatened to call the police I said " Please call the police Mr. ( name of the trucking company + the cab number ) I will be please to present your boss with a copy of the police report". He took off like he was on fire.

"hey man calm down, how far do you need me to go back". 5 mins and your day and you would have felt good for doing something nice and you could have turned his day all the way around and got him smiling again. several hours later and it is still in your mind and bothering you. he may have been upset cuz he got very bad news and he took it out on you, there is a million different reasons for someone to be upset and yelling and someone going 2 seconds out of their way can make a huge difference.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

it should not have gotten to the point where he should have been yelling at you. i have been in similar situations and every time i get out i do so with a smile and ask nicely if whomever could back up a bit and help me out. 7 of 10 times the driver backs up because i am polite, those 3 drivers though soon learn that the main part of a truck drivers life is patience and i will sit there and stare at them for hours till they move and not care.

.

Amazingly there was no yelling or even voices raised. The asshole just said that he had a lot of time and he was going to wait me out. I told him I had just picked up coffee from the McD down the alley and I was going to enjoy my java. After 10 minutes he got fidgety and threatened to call the cops. He was an asshole, if he had asked politely and said he did not see me can you help me out and back up, I would not have believed him but I would have turned it around and let him by.

 

[simon482]

Amazingly there was no yelling or even voices raised. The asshole just said that he had a lot of time and he was going to wait me out. I told him I had just picked up coffee from the McD down the alley and I was going to enjoy my java. After 10 minutes he got fidgety and threatened to call the cops. He was an asshole, if he had asked politely and said he did not see me can you help me out and back up, I would not have believed him but I would have turned it around and let him by.

so instead of taking the high road, backing up and sipping your coffee while he went by. you decided to big as big an asshole as him and let it get to this point.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

"hey man calm down, how far do you need me to go back". 5 mins and your day and you would have felt good for doing something nice and you could have turned his day all the way around and got him smiling again. several hours later and it is still in your mind and bothering you. he may have been upset cuz he got very bad news and he took it out on you, there is a million different reasons for someone to be upset and yelling and someone going 2 seconds out of their way can make a huge difference.

I am not the least upset by this, I would be more upset if I allowed myself to be bullied by a scumbag that wanted to finish off his Friday afternoon early after he dropped his load and does not care if he has to heap on some intimidation on the next guy to finish early. I am just putting this topic up for discussion. I suspect that this dirtbag bullies people all the time on the road. He got his today. By the way he took off when I told him that I will send a police report to his employer tells me that he might not survive another complaint against him.

 

[simon482]

i am waiting for you to say "well he started it"

 

[simon482]

I am not the least upset by this, I would be more upset if I allowed myself to be bullied by a scumbag that wanted to finish off his Friday afternoon early after he dropped his load. I am just putting this topic up for discussion. I suspect that this dirtbag bullies people all the time on the road. He got his today. By the way he took off when I told him that I will send a police report to his employer tells me that he might not survive another complaint against him.

or maybe he was just having a bad day and didn't feel like having it get worse. karma is a bitch.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

so instead of taking the high road, backing up and sipping your coffee while he went by. you decided to big as big an asshole as him and let it get to this point.

The alley is barely big enough for two cars to pass, let alone allowing a tractor trailer to pass. Look at the diagram, all he had to do was pull his cab back 20 ft. Would you have backed up 300 ft?

 

[The Oracle]

He was waiting on the street at the end of the alley and he zips in at the last second. He came up to my car like a raving lunatic and demanded I back up 300 ft. When I asked him why he did not wait a few seconds to allow me to exit the alley, his response was "Just back it up". This guy was an asshole.
When He threatened to call the police I said " Please call the police Mr. ( name of the trucking company + the cab number ) I will be please to present your boss with a copy of the police report". He took off like he was on fire.

Let me ask you a question. If he had been more polite would you have backed up?

Sounds like it was just his lack of respect that got under your skin.

 

[simon482]

The alley is barely big enough for two cars to pass, let alone allowing a tractor trailer to pass. Look at the diagram, all he had to do was pull his cab back 20 ft. Would you have backed up 300 ft?

yes actually i would have because a 20 foot car is a lot easier to back up than a 75 foot truck and trailer. backing up that 300 feet and letting him pass would have taken you about 5 mins which is probably 15-20 mins less then what you sat there for.

 

[CapitalGuy]

truck driver was a jerk and you did the right thing. Next time he will be a more polite driver, and wait the 10 seconds rather than act as though he owns the road. If you had backed up his sense of entitlement would have increased, as would his assholeness. Good kitty.

 

[Ceiling Cat]

Let me ask you a question. If he had been more polite would you have backed up?

Sounds like it was just his lack of respect that got under your skin.

Yes, I probably would have ( read post 8 ). I am would like to know if there are any people out there that would have helped the rat out after he jams hi tractor trailer into the alley at the last second then rudely tell them to back it up ( 300 ft. )

 

[simon482]

the other thing i find hard to believe about all of this is that if the alley is as narrow as you say it is then his truck wouldn't have been able to fit anyway so there was no need for him to be turning in there anyway.

 

[simon482]

and again in the states truck drivers and trucking is looked at as a respected profession and people are nice to the drivers, in canada but especially ontario and toronto we are looked at as a virus.

 

[dj1470]

Give truckers a break. It's not easy. You drive an 18 wheel beast through downtown Toronto sometimes with all the pricks driving cars, peddling bikes, and the whole mess of jaywalking idiots and then see how your nerves are working.