[master_crab]

I haven’t seen driving behavior change in NYC over the past two decades.

Also, NYC has a different driving attitude than, say, Dallas. What people call aggression is often a difference in expectations. Drivers change lanes and merge far more assertively than in other parts of the country. As long as you aren’t causing the car behind you to panic brake, it’s considered acceptable. Hesitation from drivers tends to get more opprobrium than tight merges.

People block bike lanes and the box all the time. It’s annoying and you shouldn’t do it. But a lot of the rage is often unjustified. That FedEx truck needs to park somewhere and they aren’t going to roll over a fruit stand to do it.

It’s a dense, packed city. If you can’t give and take, you are going to hate it here.

[woodruffw]

I’ve lived here my entire life, and there’s a significant difference between normal “aggressive” driving and many of the driving patterns that have emerged post-COVID. For example: blocking the box is (unfortunately) somewhat normal, while running through red lights and making illegal turns has (anecdotally) increased significantly.

[nobody9999]

As the old saw about driving in NYC goes:

Green means 'Go!'

Yellow means 'Go faster!'

Red means 'The next six cars may go through the intersection.'

Okay, the third part is a little hyperbolic.

The above is from the 1980s and AFAICT (I've lived here nearly 60 years) not much has changed.

[bluGill]

Traffic safety engineers do not agree with all of those things. don't be an agressive driver even if everyone else is.