You also have to consider that a bad experience sometimes makes people wary about doing something.
I was a passenger in a car going from South Fallsburg back to the city. A young couple was waiting, with who I assumed correctly were their parents at a popular hitching area. I stopped. the father asked if I was going to Brooklyn. I replied I was, to Flatbush. I was asked if I could take the youg couple to Boro Park. I said yes. The father told me that they are from WilliB, but didnt want to take me to far out of the way and they would catch a bus from BP back to WilliB. I didnt argue, especially since neither I, or the driver knew our way around WilliB and we would arrive well after midnight.
Of course, it was time for the young couple to climb in. Not going into details, the wife couldnt sit next to her husband (this was in a minivan that had 2 separate seats in the middle row, but to each their own), so I had to move to the middle row next to the husband and the wife climbed into the passenger seat in front.
The conversation in the van was non-existent, neither I nor the drive speak much yiddish. The wife who spoke english, wouldnt speak with men. The driver and I conversed in english and the couple conversed in Yiddish. We basicly ignored each other. It was quite uncomfortable.
Of course, there was a lot of traffic and we didnt get to the GWB until close to 1AM. At that point, we didnt feel comfortable leaving this couple in BP to search for a car service and told them we would take them to WilliB. Due to the language barrier directions to their apartment was not easy. We spent 30 minutes driving around until we happened to find the right street. It was now 2am and we had to figure out how to get out of WilliB and over to flatbush. We finally found a copy who gave us directions.
Now, dont get me wrong, I do not regret the chesed at all. But at the same time, it is in the back of my mind anytime I see someone looking for a ride.
It is very easy to say “did you think about that?” to someone who doesnt stop to pick someone up. To those who are standing with their thumbs out, did you ever think about what I just wrote and why someone is hesitant to stop?