I usually arc right up the moment I hear someone saying anything disparaging of Canberra.

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But sitting in the brief misery of morning peak hour on Canberra's roads, I hope to god no outsiders are watching.

Because when the traffic backs up even a bit, Canberra drivers seem suddenly inclined to embody every single lazy quip or half-hearted swipe at our perceived privilege and sense of entitlement.

I've just sat down at my desk, having spent 35 minutes on a journey that normally takes 10, from Barton to the western edge of Civic.

And while there are several inflection points on the usually straightforward journey that are unavoidably hampering traffic, this doesn't explain the foolish, careless and downright stupid behaviour of other drivers.

Commonwealth Avenue is down to one lane - not that that's stopping many people from just forging on ahead anyway - and detouring via Kings Avenue is predictably fraught, what with all the lights, and need to change lanes. I swear some people seem to instinctively slow down the minute they see congestion ahead, even when moving forward is the most logical way to keep things going.

This sounds nonsensical, because it is; why can't people just keep moving?

Anyone who's ever braved the roads in Sydney will understand what I'm talking about; the volume of traffic there is, next to Canberra, unfathomable, and unspeakably scary,........

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