The latest traffic stupidities

[Seshat]

If behind a slow merger and you get the chance to, slow down to even slower than them while you've still got a lot of on-ramp to use.
That way when they FINALLY get out of your way, you've got some on-ramp to come up to speed on.
A trick my father taught me.


Two lane roundabouts:

Traffic on the roundabout has right of way.
Traffic on the inner lane trying to exit doesn't technically have right of way, but it's good manners to slow down to let them out if you're in the outer lane and can do so.

Outer lane = turning in the first 90o to 120o. (ie, first exit of a four-exit roundabout, first two exits of a five+ exit roundabout.)

Inner lane = turning anywhere from straight ahead to a 360.

If going left or right, flick your indicator on before entering.
If going straight, no indicator before entering.

Once you pass the exit before yours, flick your 'I'm about to exit' indicator on. Especially if in the inner lane. This would be left (Australia, UK) or right (USA).

If in the inner lane and the space between exits would prevent anyone from letting you through to exit, noone's going to mind if you flick your 'I'm about to exit' indicator on in time to signal your intention helpfully.

[EricKei]

I got stuck in a roundabout in New Orleans, Louisiana. I think I might be stuck in it still. Circling...circling...circling....

Ya mean, Lee Circle? It's one of the few in the area that I know of. It has two bits of weirdness: 1 - It has active streetcar tracks running through it (and, as elsewhere, they effectively have right of way even when they don't, unless you wanna have your car squished), and 2 - You can turn from both the inside and outside lanes. Naturally, not everybody in the outside lane plans to exit immediately...

[bunrotha]

Two lane roundabouts:

Traffic on the roundabout has right of way.
Traffic on the inner lane trying to exit doesn't technically have right of way, but it's good manners to slow down to let them out if you're in the outer lane and can do so.

Outer lane = turning in the first 90o to 120o. (ie, first exit of a four-exit roundabout, first two exits of a five+ exit roundabout.)

Inner lane = turning anywhere from straight ahead to a 360.

Unless driving an Audi* or white van, in which *always* take the lane that's clearest, and just cut off anything in your way. They will swerve and crash, while you exit as fast as your little wheels will carry you, and escape before anyone gets your registration plate.

If over 70, remember to stop short of the entry (no matter if it's clear or not,) then set off, proceed no more than a foot, see a squirrel/car half a mile away, emergency stop, and then get rear-ended by inattentive Audi* driver behind you. Same procedure if you have at least 3 pregnant women in the vehicle.

Source: Insurance investigator job for a while. This was never fun.

*Audi: Other premium idiot-wagons are available.

[wolfie]

Unless driving an Audi* or white van, in which *always* take the lane that's clearest, and just cut off anything in your way. They will swerve and crash, while you exit as fast as your little wheels will carry you, and escape before anyone gets your registration plate.

Unless of course they misjudge distances when cutting off a big rig, which DOESN'T swerve. Standard protocol - DO NOT swerve to avoid a collision, since you're likely to roll over, which is a worse wreck than you'd get by hitting the obstacle. Also, the obstacle you swerve to avoid can leave before investigators arrive to examine the wreck, leaving no evidence that there was an animal/other vehicle. If you hit it, it ain't gonna leave, so it's clear that there was an obstacle.

Of course, the trucker would get the Audi's license plate (at least according to Car Wars by Steve Jackson Games).

[Valentinian]

Two lane roundabouts:

Traffic on the roundabout has right of way.
Traffic on the inner lane trying to exit doesn't technically have right of way, but it's good manners to slow down to let them out if you're in the outer lane and can do so.

Outer lane = turning in the first 90o to 120o. (ie, first exit of a four-exit roundabout, first two exits of a five+ exit roundabout.)

I agree with all the rest of your post, but where do you live that doesn't let the left lane go straight through? Apart from a few roundabouts that have odd traffic flow patterns (and are very clearly signposted, thank goodness) in Canberra left lane can go left or straight.

New Jersey.
http://www.state.nj.us/mvc/pdf/Manuals/drivermanual.pdf
See page 63.

A recipe for gridlock.

Oh, and the senior drivers like to stop on the on-ramp and look over their left shoulder. Particularly annoying when the on-ramp is a new lane that continues for the next five mile.

Thank you! I knew someone on CS had posted that their state traffic laws said that cars coming in to a roundabout had right of way, but I couldn't remember where they were from. (And I think somebody else mentioned that that rule is part of what makes the circle around the Arc de Triomphe so scary?)

[Ophbalance]

13 seconds? That's EXCELLENT acceleration. 500 horses under the hood doesn't mean squat when you're approaching 80,000 pounds gross weight.

Yes but, you win right of weight . Someone is going to have a very bad day if they don't let you in.

[BearLeeBadenaugh]

Unless of course they misjudge distances when cutting off a big rig, which DOESN'T swerve. Standard protocol - DO NOT swerve to avoid a collision, since you're likely to roll over, which is a worse wreck than you'd get by hitting the obstacle. Also, the obstacle you swerve to avoid can leave before investigators arrive to examine the wreck, leaving no evidence that there was an animal/other vehicle. If you hit it, it ain't gonna leave, so it's clear that there was an obstacle.

Of course, the trucker would get the Audi's license plate (at least according to Car Wars by Steve Jackson Games).

Hahaha, Car Wars, haven't thought about that game in ages! IIRC, I first saw it as a choose your own adventure book sometime in the mid 80's.

[Jetfire]

Two traffic WTF's in my area, while I was driving (which I rarely do since I don't own a car).

The first was on Sunday. I was on the main highway getting on the main bridge across the river in my city.

There's an on ramp that merges right onto the bridge and basically has no accelleration lane, so traffic regularly has to stop at the yield at the end of hte ramp and wait for a break in city-speeds (~50kph) traffic.

One car saw me coming and could tell there wasn't enough room for him to safely get out, so he stopped at the end of the ramp.

A second car came up behind him and I don't know what he was thinking, but he was coming up the ramp FAST. Luckily he realized the first car was stopped and slammed on his brakes, but I did see the first car inch ahead a little just in case. (And I was ready to move over to the other lane one way or another if I had to). No accident but 1 set of hot brakes away from one.

Second event was last night. My city has a brand new (less than a year old) 2 lane roundabout on the old highway through the south end of the city. I was on the highway and going straight, on the inside (right) lane. Traffic was light, so I got in right away and started my turn.

Guy was in the next entrance, waiting to pull in. He was stopped and waiting, so no one thought anything of it. I go past that exit and flick on my signal to indicate I'm getting off the exit after him.

I guess that guy saw my signal come on and figured I was going off, even though I was already PAST the exit so the next exit was after him. He started pulling out, I hit the brakes, and then he realized I was still coming and stayed stop so I could get away.

So far, the Roundabout they put in has worked quite well. It's smaller than it should be (Truckers are told they HAVE to use both lanes when going through it), but it has really evened out the traffic flow in that area of the city.

Of course, next summer they are replacing an old bridge further down the highway from the roundabout and doing major intersection work on the nearest major intersection to that bridge, so that roundabout will become the only real way to get to the Mall for most of the summer. That's going to make things lots and lots of fun!

[Slave to the Phone]

On my way to work today, a lady was stopped at a red light waiting for an opening so she could make a right. Apparently the guy in the pick-up truck also wanting to make a right didn't bother to notice the lady in the bright red sedan.

I probably didn't need to stop, the truck rear-ended herso he was going to get the ticket no matter what he said, but I stopped anyhow. Lady was fine, just badly shaken up. The jerk in the pick-up didn't even get out of his truck, just rolled his window down and waved his papers at her. Pissed off lady refused to go get them and called the cops. I gave the lady my contact info and left.

[Lovecats]

How about "DO NOT F***ING STOP AT THE END OF AN ON-RAMP!" People who do this absolutely infuriate me! If you cannot merge into traffic, then stop EARLY. At the BEGINNING of the ramp, so you have room to ACCELERATE to traffic speed. If you stop at the END of the ramp, then you need approximately ELEVENTY BILLION MILES of open space on the freeway in order to get up to speed. And since you couldn't find a space big enough to merge in while going faster than "zero", what do you think your chances are of finding that much larger space?

Not to mention some people (like me!) are trying to accelerate up to traffic speed while looking for an opening, and when you come to a COMPLETE STOP in front of them it makes life much more exciting than it should be! And brings them to a stop at the end of the ramp, meaning they ALSO need a large break in traffic... Oh, and of course there are the impatient people behind us who zip around us AT SPEED because they have seen smaller spaces they can actually merge into.

Yeah, I hate those bastiges!

There are a couple of on ramps around here that you're pretty much blind until you get to the end of the ramp. Meaning you can't see what's coming until you're already there. I will say that most of them you have a clear view but there are those few....

[Slave to the Phone]

Out here in the land of "we don't need no stinking daylight saving time" there are traffic lights at the end of the on-ramp getting onto the freeways.

Needless to say, they aren't called acceleration lanes...

[protege]

How about "DO NOT F***ING STOP AT THE END OF AN ON-RAMP!" People who do this absolutely infuriate me! If you cannot merge into traffic, then stop EARLY

But, there are some ramps that you have to stop at the end. I'm thinking of the Route 51 cloverleaf. No yields, all stop signs. Same with the junction on 51 and I-70. It sucks, but there are stop signs. Nothing like trying to use a short ramp...and trying to merge into 55-70mph traffic from a dead stop. Ideally, they would be yields. But, because of the heavy traffic density, it's much safer to stop and wait for a gap than randomly pull out into traffic.

[klhanson]

There are a few roundabouts here in northeast ohio where there is a yield for the traffic in the circle where you have to yield to the traffic coming in from the side.. but it's not a stop.. just a yield.

[Kogarashi]

But, there are some ramps that you have to stop at the end. I'm thinking of the Route 51 cloverleaf. No yields, all stop signs. Same with the junction on 51 and I-70. It sucks, but there are stop signs. Nothing like trying to use a short ramp...and trying to merge into 55-70mph traffic from a dead stop. Ideally, they would be yields. But, because of the heavy traffic density, it's much safer to stop and wait for a gap than randomly pull out into traffic.

Likewise, there was one limited-access highway in CT that I didn't like driving on because there was a stretch where the on-ramps had stop signs, due to poor visibility. As you said, it was much safer to actually stop and wait for a gap.

[Seanette]

Don't even get me ranting about the stupid "traffic metering" in my area, that will stop cars on the on-ramp. Amazing there aren't more serious traffic problems caused by those than what they purport to solve.