Turn Signal: What's that?

Living in New England, specifically Massachusetts, poses certain threats as well as things that you just learn to accept.

Some things that one learns to accept are the brutal winters and the omission of certain letters in common phrases. For instance, some people call the water fountain a/k/a/ cooler that you find in an elementary school a “bubbler”; some people refer to a milk shake as a “cabinet” and a submarine sandwich might be referred to as a “grinder”. Yes, I know some of these words are easily identifiable, while others don’t seem to make a lot of sense. Hey, it’s New England!

Well, in Massachusetts if you ask a driver what a turn signal is, you may get some answers that may surprise you.

In roaming around downtown Worcester recently, I spoke with a number of pedestrians and motorist alike and asked the simple question, “What is a turn signal?” What follows are a few choice quotes:

“It’s the thing that you turn on when you’re making a turn. I forget to use mine until I see a cop car.” – Anonymous Worcester resident who has been driving for 35 years.

“What’s a turn signal? It’s that thing on the steering column.”- Anonymous Holden teenager who has been driving for 4 years.

“I don’t know what it is. Ask my Daddy.”- Anonymous Shrewsbury youth who doesn’t drive.

“I used to use my turn signal until I was in an accident. The person who hit me saw that I was signaling to turn and sped up and slammed right into me!”- Anonymous Grafton resident who has been driving for 21 years.

So, as a driver in Worcester, what are you supposed to do? We at Worcester Is MAJOR strongly encourage you to use your turn signal at all times and if you happen to see someone signaling to turn, don’t speed up. Slow down, so that you don’t become known as a “Mass hole” driver.

Don't drink and drive and be careful with the rotaries.