I'M 65, BORN and raised in Philly. When my wife retires and we opt to leave town, my main reason will involve managing my blood pressure, because driving around Philly almost always raises it. Every locale has its own cultural aspects, and over time those aspects become accepted reality. That includes a locale's driving culture. Philly's has always been in the Dark Ages. It has never been a car-friendly town.
In my younger years, I knew something was wrong with the driving culture here when co-workers, having learned I'd visited New York City, would launch into a rant about "those crazy New York drivers, especially the cab drivers." Frankly, I loved driving in NYC. People drove like people who plopped down thousands of dollars on a machine so they can get somewhere in the shortest time possible, without being reckless. Time was not only money, it was life itself - all that any of us have.
