Would you offer or accept a lift to/from a stranger?

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EggNo1978@reddit

I would. A single female or elderly person. And males if my husband was in the car x x

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Spottyjamie@reddit

It happened in my small rural town where you vaguely recognised everyone even if you didnt know them Now i live in a city i doubt it happens

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On a very cold November night I saw a woman standing in a lay-by in pouring rain. She was wearing bright clothing and standing very near the roadway as opposed to on the verge. I pulled in and reversed to her, opened the window and began clearing the front seat to make space for her. As she came to the window I asked if she needed a lift and where she was going. There was a short pause before she said..."You know I'm a working girl, don't you?".

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gogybo@reddit

She made a subtle proposition... "I'm sorry love, I'll have to turn you down"

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Friendly_External345@reddit

He must be up to summat!

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BobbieWickham29@reddit

I apologized to her ffs, for taking up her time then I drove off in a hurry. For days afterwards I was worried that 'they' might have taken my number plate and were intending to arrest me for soliciting or whatever.

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Friendly_External345@reddit

I didn't, but a blow job would be nice would be the appropriate answer.

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badreligionlover@reddit

I like this. Very good.

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sputnikmonolith@reddit

The opposite happened to me (Male) once when I was younger and had long hair - I was standing in the rain, in a long leather trench coat and someone pulled up and rolled their window down. I came over to thank them and ask if I could get a lift - but he saw my beard and immediately sped off. Took me a while to work out why haha.

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togtogtog@reddit

I've had and given _loads_ of lifts. It's been amazing. People have gone out of their way for me, putting me up, feeding me, telling me about interesting things to do, taking me to my destination. I think it tends to be kind, altruistic people who give lifts. I love the whole nature of it and try my best to pay the favour forward whenever I get the chance.

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BlackberryNice1270@reddit

You say 'this day and age'. We're no safer now than we were then - you just didn't hear about those crimes then. I mean, murders, obviously, but you rarely heard about sexual assaults/rapes because of victim blaming and sexism. I once hurt my ankle when I was about 13, which would have been late 1980's and had quite a distance to walk. A man saw me limping and, yes, crying, and stopped to pick me up - it was about another 20 minutes walk to where I needed to be and the buses ran maybe every 90 minutes. Despite my mother's constant warnings about accepting lifts from strangers, I did accept it. I would not have if my ankle wasn't so sore. He was perfectly kind and took me home. And, yes, despite a sprained ankle that was bruised and the size of a melon, I got into trouble for accepting the lift.

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FinnemoreFan@reddit

It’s most definitely attitudes, not actual danger, that have changed. When I was a child, about 10 probably, I tried to ride over a stone in the road at speed and came off my bike. I was a few streets away from home, it was a busy road. Thinking back, I wonder - what was I doing riding my bike around on the road at that age, alone, and how dangerous that accident could actually have been. I can’t imagine letting any of my children do the same, but it was normal in the 70s. Anyway, a man stopped his car and took me home. No drama there, an evident kindness. As an older woman, I would probably do the same now. But no man would dare, I’m sure.

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BlackberryNice1270@reddit

I once rode my bike in front of a car and got knocked over. The driver, who must have been having an absolute cardiac event, took me and my bike home (it was like 100 yards). My mam had to invite him in for a cup of tea, he was so white and shaking! Poor bloke.

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Easy_Effort7985@reddit (OP)

I did say “this day and age” but I never implied that the risk attached had changed. Simply that it feels like societal views around the idea had.

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BlackberryNice1270@reddit

Nope. 'Stranger Danger' was all the rage when I was a kid. There were adverts on telly and everything. Be prepared for an anxiety inducing rabbit hole, but look up Charlie Says from the 1970's. Unfortunately, children and women are overwhelmingly more at risk in their own homes, so the stranger danger thing isn't as much of an issue as they thought it was.

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notactuallyizzy@reddit

A few years ago I was driving home from my situationship's house at maybe 2am, the journey was through weird windy country roads and the weather was atrocious, full blown storm I saw a girl roughly my age (19-22??) walking in the direction I was driving, and I immediately pulled over to offer her a lift She looked a bit confused but accepted the offer, maybe it was the fact that I was a girl her age, maybe she was too drunk to care She let me drive her a couple miles before asking me to drop her at the end of a lane, and she said her house was at the other end. I did offer to take her the whole way but she was insistent that she was fine I live in a city now and I'm never driving around at night so the opportunity hardly presents itself often, but I'm glad she accepted my offer and hopefully got home safe :)

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resident_queerdo@reddit

I wouldn't. Have been offered lifts from strangers when walking home in my Red Cross uniform. Once from 'colleagues' coming by in an ambulance, once from a total stranger, thanking me for my service or whatnot. Both would have been safe I think. I was too embarrassed to accept though. In the latter case, I had thought it a good idea to get a table off Craigslist on the way home from work because it was 'close enough' to home. (That was before I had a car.) That was a long, long walk and I would have loved to accept. But I was so embarrassed that someone had seen me carrying that stupid table around. If I wasn't in uniform, hard pass every single time. I used to get such weird 'offers' all the time when I was younger. Once I walked past a block of flats with lads outside smoking and one of them randomly asked me if I wanted to come inside with them. I was like, uhm, no? I used to be *very* naive, especially at 18, thinking every dude just wanted to be my friend, but 5 friends at once? Seemed too good to be true, even to me.

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MrsStinley@reddit

I saw an older man walking down a fast road with a bunch of flowers. I was worried he had dementia and was wandering off from somewhere. I turned round and came back. He wasn’t confused but his car had broken down and the AA taken it and home to the garage. He couldn’t afford a taxi so was walking about 5 miles to his village. I had to persuade him to get in and take a lift! I couldn’t bear the thought of him being on that fast road and getting knocked down or something

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Footner@reddit

Yes, I also give people lifts if they need them

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Andy-Tate@reddit

I have done both, but I'm a 6'1" 250 pound man. I have been told I look like a "big scary redneck" by people who like me. There aren't a lot of people out there trying to rape and murder me. When I stop to offer help to strangers broke down on the side of the road, I get mixed reactions. I own mirrors so I know when they don't take the help.

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Bigallround@reddit

There was a lady in crutches walking down the side of an A road near my rural town. No path and blind bends. I pulled over to ask if she wanted a lift. She was immediately suspicious and reluctant to get in. She did agree to it, but as she got in she told me if there was any funny business that she'd anal penetrate me with a crutch. In her defence I'm a big, bald man and probably look a bit like a sex offender. Coupled with my piece of shit van, I can see why she was wary.

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sock_cooker@reddit

"Don't threaten me with a good time "

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sockeyejo@reddit

I like her 😂

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sock_cooker@reddit

I have done. There was an old lady at the doctor's surgery who was having trouble getting a taxi, so I offered her a lift. I had my work name badge on so she could confirm who I was, we had a lovely chat and I dropped her outside her house. I'd offer someone a lift if I thought they needed one and if I saw one of my neighbours at a bus stop, I'd offer them a lift home.

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Fit-Thanks-3834@reddit

Used to hitch hike regularly as a young person and met some lovely and interesting people. No axe murderers, luckily

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Dry-Grocery9311@reddit

Yes. I mean, what are the odds of two serial killers meeting at random.

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Luxury_Dressingown@reddit

I (late-30s F, on the short side) accepted a lift last year. I was walking back from town to my village on a country lane through some big flat fields. I was less than a km from home but there was a 20m stretch of the lane that was completely flooded to about halfway up to my knee, as well as the fields on either side - it was a nice day but it had rained loads in the last week. I wasn't wearing the right shoes or trousers that I'd not mind getting soaked in muddy water, so I was contemplating my options when a little car came down the same road, saw what I was doing, and offered a lift across. It was another woman, probably a bit younger than me, so I accepted. Not sure I'd have accepted from a man.

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uncertain_expert@reddit

Yes, I’ve both offered and accepted rides before - after messing up bus times I hit hitch-hiked to my last job interview (and other job). Picked up a guy who’d come off his bike once, I happened to have my bike rack in the boot so loaded him up and got him to a train station. Biggest thing that stops me is that I’m often in the car with my wife and kids and there just isn’t room.

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SoggyWotsits@reddit

I was doing my weekly shop in Morrisons in the rain once, and a little old man laden with bags asked me if I could give him a lift. I was a bit surprised, but agreed as he looked like he was struggling. Luckily it was only across the other side of the town I was in. I’m female and a scrawny 5’4”, but he didn’t seem like any sort of risk. I’d like to think someone would show kindness to my grandparents if any of them were still here.

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ProfessorYaffle1@reddit

Sometimes, but not very often I'm a woman so tend to be a bit cautious - I'd be more likely to offer if I had another person in the car with me. Did it a few months ago, I was driving my mum , we spotted an older woman who had obviously just tripped and fallen, (bleeding hands and knees) We stopped to check on her and ended up driving her home as there would have ben a long wait for a bus. It became increasly obvious that she was drunk, which I guess was why she had fallen, but she was friendly and harmless. (I realised when I got out to help her up tht she's ben drinking, so sidestpped my mum's initial polite attempt to let her sit in the front, I didn't want her being in a position to touch or grab the steering wheel!) More recently, I stopped to pick up an elderly cuple at a bus stop - I'd just had to get an uber from the town cnetre to the park and ride, becasue there had been an acident at the entrance to the bus station so they were cancelling a lt of busess. I know that on that route, there's only one bus an hour so they were going to be therefor another 45 minutes minimum, and it freezing cold and dark. Calculated risk since even older people can be dodgy, but I'd like to think f it had been my mum that someone would have helped her out. (and they turned out to be lovely!)

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Remarkable_Movie_800@reddit

I once accepted a lift from a bus driver - yes I know it sounds like I just took the bus. But it was the end of the route/day - he asked where I was going and asked if I wanted to stay in the bus as the depot was that way anyway, so he took me to where I was going, really nice of him. I often consider offering people lifts. But I'm worried people would think I am a creep. I'm a smallish woman so also worry I could pick up the wrong kind of person.

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Moto-Ent@reddit

I gave someone a lift from Newquay airport the other day. His bus was another 3 hours so gave him a lift and dropped him at a station with a train going where he needed. I’ve done lots of hitchhiking in north wales to get back home after walking or climbing. Met lots of very friendly people that way. Also done lots in France which is far far easier.

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hdhxuxufxufufiffif@reddit

Yes, I arrived at a rural train station in the rain last year. There was an older couple waiting to pick up their grown-up daughter who was the only other passenger to get off. They saw me and asked where I was going and it was apparently on their way. They seemed normal enough so I jumped in (I'm a big middle aged man so I'm very complacent about strangers and their intentions). It saved me a thirty minute walk in the rain and no one's using my skull as a candelabra so it worked out ok.

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DownrightDrewski@reddit

I think being a large man absolutely changes the risk profile. I have absolutely no worries about being their intentions. Last time I got a lift from a stranger was a good few years ago, and very much appreciated as it saved me walking over a mile with a car battery. I'd just done him a favour by fitting his new windscreen wipers, and when he realised I was on foot he offered me a lift.

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PsychologySpecific16@reddit

I mean if they plan to assult or murder you, they have probably already taken your size into account.

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anomalous_cowherd@reddit

Same here, I'm a big guy so happy to take a lift if offered or to give one. My Dad used to offer lifts to strangers all the time when I was growing up and I just saw it as a decent thing to do, although these days it does risk you being mentioned in the local Facebook group as a weirdo so I don't bother. I did give a guy a lift a few years ago who had his thumb out in the rain, he wasn't going far and it was on my way. A while after he got out I realised I'd put my wallet on the passenger seat before picking him up and it was gone now. I turned back and flew back to where I dropped him off and was deciding how to tackle it, revenge fantasies in full flow, until I stopped suddenly at some lights and saw my wallet slide out from under the front seat...

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DameKumquat@reddit

I've taken lifts from total strangers twice (woman) Once, I was on a track and fallen off my mountain bike. I'd just recovered consciousness and concluded my shoulder was dislocated and was thinking about how to disentangle myself from the bike. Guy in land rover came along and had to help move me to get past. I was in no state to cycle the next couple miles. He suggested giving at least my bike a lift back to where I was staying, and would be best to give me a lift too. I went along. More recently, on holiday in Germany. Elderly driver pulled over, I assumed he wanted directions, but he was the neighbour to our apartment and wanted to offer me a lift to the supermarket. I figured it was likely fine. and I could take him if necessary. Sweet chap. Also many people not known to me but someone else has said they could give a lift. Only thing that's gone wrong was the divot who took me to the wrong rail station but drove off before I noticed. Had to grovel to kid's nursery that I'd be 45 minutes late.

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Nuthetes@reddit

Depends on the stranger. About 10 years ago I was on the Isle of Wight and the council didn't change the bus times and I missed the last bus and this cheerful middle aged lady offered to drive me into the big town where she says a bus to my hotel would be. I accepted no question. Now, if it was scrotey looking guy I may have had second thoughts.

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buginarugsnug@reddit

I'm a young woman, I would only offer other women a lift. Me and a friend once got delayed in London and it took ages to get a train back to where my car was parked. There was a girl just a bit older than us (we were 18) and it turned out her parents lived round the corner from me! To save them going out to get her at 10pm, I gave her a lift.

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Xaavuza@reddit

If I was flagged down due to an apparent emergency probably depending on the situation. If it was a general 'can I have a lift' no way, especially not if it was a woman.

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Missbhavin67@reddit

In the seventies i hitched all over the uk. Mostly gigs but all sorts of reasons. Met all kinds of people. Most were fine. Some weird and a few creepy. Only once did I feel unsafe although my tale of the wanking lorry drivers is one for another day. These days the only stranger I'd get in a car with would be a taxi driver. Unless it was an absolute emergency

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Easy_Effort7985@reddit (OP)

Go onnn...

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Missbhavin67@reddit

The wanking drivers??

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Ok-Slip-8663@reddit

About a year ago I was driving to the supermarket and saw an old lady waiting at the bus stop. I did my shop (40 mins ish) and then when I drove past she was still there. I’m a young woman in my 20s and had nothing else on that evening so pulled up and asked if she wanted a lift home. She’d been waiting over an hour for a bus, felt like neither of us were a threat to each other.

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Kapika96@reddit

In the right circumstances, yes. Happened a few years ago. Messed up my leg and even with my walking stick every step was painful (and slow). Needed to get some food from the shop though, so not much of a choice. A guy offered me a lift therd and back and I accepted. Incredibly helpful. I wouldn't accept it while fit and healthy though. I usually don't mind walking.

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Strong_Roll5639@reddit

Not now but I have done! When I was about 16 I was waiting for the bus wearing my Sainsbury's uniform and an old couple stopped and offered me a lift. I thought it was lovely but my mum went mad haha

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kernowgringo@reddit

I pickup hitchhikers whenever I see them, I also used to do a good amount of hitchhiking. Met some really interesting and nice people over the years doing it. I've helped delivery drivers and I've had people buy me lunch and give me money for the bus, I try to repay this by picking them up when I see them now

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Icy-Engineering9912@reddit

No, unless it was extreme weather and the driver was female.

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BeanOnAJourney@reddit

I walk in the countryside a lot, as an enjoyable way of getting exercise and fresh air, and i always have my camera with me as it's a good opportunity for photography as well, so it should be quite obvious i'm not stranded and in need of a lift. I've lost count of the number of dodgy men pulling alongside and asking if I "want a ride". I would never accept such an offer, nor would I from those more clearly well-intentioned, and i'm sorry to say that I wouldn't offer a lift to a stranger either. I would offer assistance if I was able but i' not letting anyone in my car.

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Scarred_fish@reddit

Giving hitchikers lifts was the norm in the 90s and early 2000s, but there was a period of time when I stopped. A man picked up a young woman around 2005 who had had an argument with her boyfriend and was walking home in the rain. He drove her home and then a few hours later had the police at his door, he was accused of sexually assaulting her. It turned out she had made it all up to get sympathy from her boyfriend, but by the time he was cleared he had lost his job, become an alcoholic hermit and finally took his own life. I do still pick up hitchikers now, but only if I'm driving a vehicle with in-cab cameras. However you don't see nearly as many. It's a very sad reflection of how far backwards society has gone.

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Real-Strawberry-1395@reddit

My partner and I saw a young woman in a tiny dress as we were leaving the 24hr petrol station one night. It was so bloody cold. Me 46f said let’s offer her a lift as I was driving, she jumped in, no hesitation whatsoever. Maybe it’s because we were a couple but I’m glad she accepted, I’d have fretted all night otherwise.

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fickle_tartan@reddit

No-one has ever offered me a lift but whether I'd say yes would very much depend on the situation and the person offering - being a woman makes it a slightly more complex situation. I have offered other women walking home alone at night lifts though, one took it, one didn't.

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4x6x8@reddit

I live in a town where the station is 1.5 miles from the town. There’s a sort of unwritten vibe that if it’s late and there’s no taxi or Buses folk give people lifts to the town.

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RgCrunchyCo@reddit

I hitchhiked a lot when I was younger, especially when I was leaving or returning from leave in the military. Most were quite pleasant trips but one guy who picked me up seemed to immediately query after the frequency of my masturbation habits and tell me how I could overcome the urges. It was snowing heavily at the time so I didn’t want to get out the vehicle but it certainly was an awkward trip.

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NewRoad5549@reddit

I have done before. You never know what kind of connection it can lead to though, i knew a couple many years back now... and that is how they met. He saw her walking in the rain, offered her lift... few years later they're engaged.

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spikeymist@reddit

I don't drive anymore but when I did I would offer a lift as long as my young daughter wasn't in the car, also only people on their own.

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LegoNinja11@reddit

Parent's social group for primary and high school has always had an understanding that as long as our own kids are in the car (ie no single kid/adult situation) getting others home in the rain is appreciated. Beyond that I did appreciate a lift from a farmer while in uni having completely misjudged the time it would take to walk from Bangor over to an event on Ynys Mon (Anglesey)

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adamMatthews@reddit

I’ve only done it once on an impulse. I used to drive around or after midnight when the motorways were completely clear. I’d stopped at a service station, and got a dozen box of Krispy Kreme doughnuts massively reduced because they needed to be binned as midnight. There was a family on the hard shoulder in the cold around 1am and it was starting to rain, impulsively pulled over and asked if they wanted doughnuts. Not sure why, I know that increases risks etc and they’re strangers, but nobody else was on the road and recovery services take hours at that time. Ended up giving the mum and kids a lift to the next service station while dad stayed with the car. I have a memory of someone giving us a pack of Uno cards when I was younger and we’d broken down, so I guess this is now a pay it forward chain and hopefully the kids do similar when they grow up.

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Droidy934@reddit

If I (64M) was on my own I would offer (my passengers usually don't like to have strangers). Haven't needed a lift in a long time, but I would try if I did.

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Twidogs@reddit

I used to hitchhike all of the time in England and Europe in the late 80s and early nineties. sometimes just to see where I could get to and then make contact with people I knew in the area I ended up.

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Kim_catiko@reddit

No to both. I am a very distrusting person. I have watched too many true crime documentaries too.

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fluentindothraki@reddit

I live in Glasgow but do a fair bit of driving around the country. I have given lifts a grand total of 5 times (mainly because there isn't always room in the car). I still remember every single one of them because each of them. They were all lovely people. First one was on a long stretch of country road with no houses, bucketing down, Christmas Eve. I see someone walking and stopped spontaneously because it's Christmas and I felt so sorry for them. It was a young black kid and he was utterly surprised but really happy. He had missed his bus and he kept saying I should come and have dinner with his family (he had been worried he was keeping them waiting). I declined because my dinner was waiting for me, too but I think of him every time I drive on that road. There was a lovely Czech couple who wanted to do a couple of days on the west highland way. He had studied in England but loved Scotland and had dragged his GF over to show her the sights There was a young, really rough looking, hungover young guy sitting on the stairs in a hospital. I had been to a checkup and was feeling fine and he looked like he was miserable soo I asked him if he was ok, if I could do anything. He said he was waiting for his brother to pick him up in an hour so I offered to drive him home. But I made him promise to drink less and get into no more fights (because that's what had happened, he had been in a drunken fight the night before, only realised in the morning how badly hurt he had been, brother gave him a lift to the hospital and promised to pick him up later One was an utterly delightful student from the US with an interest in clouds, ferns, Nordic mythology, greek mythology, geology, literature. We had 6 hours together in the car and we were not bored for a single second. There was also a group of 3 lassies from Germany, journey women in their mediaeval clothes, travelling for a year and a day without money. We still talk about them because they were brilliant, brave , optimistic, cheerful, interesting, full of stories. I am a middle aged female and alone in the car (apart from with the Germans and the Czechs when my husband was there as well)

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lapsedPacifist5@reddit

Yes. Picked up the odd (not in that sense... Hmm well maybe one of them) hitchhiker in the 80/90s they don't really seem to be a thing anymore. Last time I did give a complete stranger a lift it was a woman who seemed in distress at a bus stop, sat on the floor in pouring rain, got out talked to her, she was in pain and waiting on her husband to help her walk home. Sat her in the car waited until he turned up and gave them both a lift home.

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Adorable-Design2436@reddit

It depends on their gender and vibe. If it's a young woman who looks like she looks after herself, speaks normally, shows normal body language + isn't persistent then I'd accept. Also I would accept a lift from a guy if he fits the above criteria and seems really genuine but I would hesitate more than with a woman

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iffyClyro@reddit

In bad weather I’ve stopped and give old ladies a lift a few times. Even stopped and gave the odd “rough” looking guy a lift. Wouldn’t try to give any teens/young adults a lift cause no matter how pure your intentions that just looks weird. When I was young my mum gave me Somali woman and her son a lift to the hospital during a torrential downpour that was near biblical proportions.

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Easy_Effort7985@reddit (OP)

Interesting that you think it looks weird if they're young, but not in any other situation.

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iffyClyro@reddit

It’s not “interesting” at all. If your 14 year old daughter came home and told you a nice man stopped and gave her a lift you’d freak out. If your 50 year old, bare knuckle boxing dad said “aye some guy gave me a lift” you wouldn’t bat an eye. It’s about a power dynamic and how it could be interpreted.

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insertitherenow@reddit

It’s probably a bit weird sadly nowadays. I hitched all over the place in the 80’s and 90’s. That said I did experience some weird folk along the way. A lorry driver once got his lad out and asked me if I liked it.

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bnnyrabbit@reddit

hell no im a 19 year old woman and clearly not built for fighting back

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Coat-Trick@reddit

Just make sure you take your bunny to attack if necessary 😅

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bnnyrabbit@reddit

i have scars everywhere because of him scratching me https://preview.redd.it/7opwmvj6ydng1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=81cb6fdbf6c338b1150ecc163fbabfb84ef438ab and one from a bite

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Coat-Trick@reddit

Soft and fluffy one minute, vicious evil little thing the next!

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Section101@reddit

I remember in the 90s when my dad would ask for directions, the person would sometimes say oh I’m going that way and get in. Life was very different then, we’re too aware of danger now.

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Annual-Cookie1866@reddit

I took some bar stools to a charity shop, they outright refused to take them due to being full I guess. Fella behind me was in the shop specifically for bar stools but didn’t have a car. Naturally I acted as a delivery service for him.

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sockeyejo@reddit

I used to hitch hike all the time when I was a teenager in the 90s. Then life happened, I was eventually diagnosed with C-PTSD and anxiety and other mental health issues, and wouldn't hitch hike these days. I've given lifts to folk in need, stopped to help replace punctured tyres, offered the use of my phone to people whose car had broken down, even helped cyclists with their punctures and slipped chains, and given directions whenever asked. But I don't think I'd stop for a stranger just hitching a lift, especially if they weren't in obvious distress.

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BlackJackKetchum@reddit

I’m open to sharing taxis. I would offer a lift to old folk / one, two women, but if I didn’t have my wife with me I wouldn’t expect the females to say yes. I would not seek a lift from unknown men.

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VxDeva80@reddit

Thirty years ago my mum often used to stop and give a lift to a lady that worked in sainsburys. We used to see her walking when coming home from school, it would have been a three mile walk for her and we drove past sainsburys to get home. I assume she felt quite safe seeing kids in the back in school uniform. She was always greatful.

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cokendsmile@reddit

You must have shared this before… because I’ve read this before… maybe few years ago

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VxDeva80@reddit

I'm sure I have done, Ive been on Reddit for a few years.

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Easy_Effort7985@reddit (OP)

I have assumed this about my own experiences, my mum in the front and me in the back possibly offered some reassurance to whoever we picked up

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ElizabethHiems@reddit

I was standing at the bus stop many years ago and a woman stopped to offer me a lift. She was so excited, she just passed her test, didn’t need to use the bus and was over the moon about being able to pick someone up so they needn’t wait either.

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Elegant-Mission-4470@reddit

Yeah, I hitchhike up/down the steep, fairly rural road to my house when I'm late or just too tired and hot/cold (middle of summer/winter) and not driving a car. It started by strangers offering once or twice before I decided fuck it, I'm gonna stick my thumb out. Many kind folk about, it works a lot of the time.

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CapableSong6874@reddit

It is interesting. Thinking about it, technically you would be safer now being able to fire off a few photographs on your mobile phone of car and driver. I have used care sharing applications where you share petrol costs and meet at a designated point which may take away a percentage of people that would have traditionally hitched.

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oscarx-ray@reddit

I got stranded without money one town over after a night out. I wasn't familiar with where I was so asked a stranger for directions to walk back home. He offered me a lift, and I gratefully accepted. Very grateful, very kind offer to a random, giant drunk man. If it was an afternoon and I was sober, I'd have just sucked it up and walked so as not to put someone out, but it was greatly appreciated in these circumstances.

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AfterMarketTurboJet@reddit

I have taken lifts from strangers, and given lifts to strangers. Not so sure I'd do either these days, there's way too many weirdos now.

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Kaioken64@reddit

You just see the stories about weirdos more due to the internet. There's just as many weirdos now as there was then. Although I agree that knowing about the weirdos means I wouldn't pick up a stranger or jump in a car with one.

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Knowlesdinho@reddit

An older gentleman told me he used to hitchhike to and from work in the 60s. I wonder if accepting a lift was more prevalent when less people owned cars. As for me, if it was extreme circumstances, then probably. What I mean by extreme is that I'm miles away from home, no access to money and public transport is cancelled due to an incident.

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jahalliday_99@reddit

I’ve given hitchhikers lifts over the years. Not seen one for a good while though. The last time was in about 2017, I picked up a couple of Lithuanian girls at beaconsfield services who were holding up a sign for Birmingham. As I was going that way it made sense. Turns out they were going to Alton towers which is near me so I took them the whole way. They’d been waiting ages for a lift, very few people pick up hitchhikers now.

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BG3restart@reddit

My sister is 9 years older than me and would hitchhike all the time. She'd go clubbing at night and leave the club well after the last bus, so just hitch a ride home. When she was in her first year of university, her and a friend hitchhiked from their university in the north of England, all the way to Austria to stay with some relatives of her friend. At one point in Germany, they even stayed the night with a bloke who had given them a lift and he took them out to dinner. By the time I'd reached my late teens, that just wasn't something people did anymore. If my kids went clubbing, I was the one picking them up and driving them home at 3am.

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Ludrin@reddit

Would depend wildly on the situation, normal day to day? Hell no. Someone needing to get to a dying relative / partner in labour or something etc then yes.

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Easy_Effort7985@reddit (OP)

How would you know those situations without first pulling over to speak to the person?

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Ludrin@reddit

Flagging me down / stopping me on the way to the car. Didn't know you'd meant specifically whilst already driving. If I see someone in distress I'd at least stop to make sure they were okay I guess.

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Next_Assignment1159@reddit

Gave a lift to a stranger the other day. Older gentleman flagged me down explained his situation - needed to get to car parked other side of roadworks so he could drive long way round to other side of hospital and pick his wife up from Chemotherapy. Son jumped in the back. Chap got in. I commiserated with him about his wife's situation and gave him some tips on coping with Chemo plus names of local Cancer Support groups. It felt like I was meant to pick him up and help him out plus son and I felt good about it. The more we normalise helping one another the better.

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Fellowes321@reddit

When I was younger, hitchhiking was a thing people did. A delivery guy picked my mate and me up and he turned out to be quite a funny guy. He said that driving was his first job since leaving prison. My mate jokingly said “it wasn’t for killing hitchhikers was it?” There was a very long pause.

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ColourfulSmarties@reddit

About 4 back I was walking home from a Christmas party and it was pouring down with rain, a car with a 3 young girls in pulled over and offered me a lift home, I thanked them but declined, I only had 5 more minutes to go. I didn’t think they were weird and were genuinely trying to be nice but I don’t think I’d take or offer a lift from a stranger tbh.

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