RP Listener Forum

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:35am

oldslabsides wrote:

I was speaking of people entering the freeway on a ramp. They must YIELD to the traffic already on the freeway.

ok. but they weren't talking about ramp traffic. it was left lane is ending get your ass in gear and merge traffic.
or are you just jumping in with a new road rage?

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:33am

JrzyTmata wrote:

it doesn't mean you have to yield for the entire left lane of traffic. just the guy in front.

I was speaking of people entering the freeway on a ramp. They must YIELD to the traffic already on the freeway.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:32am

oldslabsides wrote:

As if he doesn't have the horsepower to get out in front of you. wtf

YIELD, people - look it up if you're uncertain of the meaning.

civil behavior just makes life so much easier all round.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:31am

oldslabsides wrote:

As if he doesn't have the horsepower to get out in front of you. wtf

YIELD, people - look it up if you're uncertain of the meaning.

it doesn't mean you have to yield for the entire left lane of traffic. just the guy in front.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:31am

cc_rider wrote:

I don't know when they changed the law, but I got my BRD (?) driving license in the mid '80s, and it was the rule then.

Just researched this a bit and I think you are right. They didn't change the law. Maybe they did some kind of media campaign to remind everyone what the law is.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:29am

cc_rider wrote:

Most of my cars are old and show some damage. Not from accidents, but enough to show I'm not concerned about swapping a little paint. Plus they're body-on-frame, so even if I did get them repaired, my bill would be a lot less. My station wagon is about 4500#, and once some idiot in a Subbie pushed his luck thinking he could intimidate me. He ran out of merge lane and ended up in the grass. About 25 yards from going into the Colorado River.

I still get the occasional Beamer thinking I'm going to slow my F250 down to let his line-cutting a$$ in. After I've let in the guy in front of him, zipper-fashion. Not happening, Ace. Those tire marks will buff out though...

As if he doesn't have the horsepower to get out in front of you. wtf

YIELD, people - look it up if you're uncertain of the meaning.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:26am

drsteevo wrote:

I don't drive there that often, you are safe. And while I consider myself a fast driver, I only use the left lane in Chicago less than half the time because I rarely go over 80mph.

Notice he says he rarely goes over 80. Chicago's expressways are like speedways all the time.
there are 2 ways I can do my 20 mile commute : either on regular roads, which make for a mostly stressless 35 minute trip, or a terror filled trip on 294/90 which cuts 10 minutes off my trip and costs me a buck in tolls.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 11:20am

drsteevo wrote:

I have done that too.

I really hate it when you are turning left onto a divided highway and you have to stop in the median when some idiot behind you pulls into the median as well to your right, blocks your view, and tries to pass you onto the road. I ran someone off the road once who did that to me, but I had an old car so I always won the right of way battle over impatient assholes in nice cars.

Most of my cars are old and show some damage. Not from accidents, but enough to show I'm not concerned about swapping a little paint. Plus they're body-on-frame, so even if I did get them repaired, my bill would be a lot less. My station wagon is about 4500#, and once some idiot in a Subbie pushed his luck thinking he could intimidate me. He ran out of merge lane and ended up in the grass. About 25 yards from going into the Colorado River.

I still get the occasional Beamer thinking I'm going to slow my F250 down to let his line-cutting a$$ in. After I've let in the guy in front of him, zipper-fashion. Not happening, Ace. Those tire marks will buff out though...

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:33am

JrzyTmata wrote:

with all the security cameras around these days, don't get caught doing removing valve stems. I hope you're all just kidding but I think retaliation might make you a bigger asshole. You don't know who is driving that car. could be an inconsiderate idiot or it could be someone with small children or old people that just can't park well. Yeah, maybe they shouldn't be driving if they can't park. but there they are.

In Maryland it's almost impossible to get a handicapped permit.Sometimes before the wheelchair days I had to park illegally just so Pops wouldn't croak from over walkering on hot days.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:29am

JrzyTmata wrote:

I'm with you 100%. This I understand all too well. {#Meditate}

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:25am

Coaxial wrote:

Way to guilt them, Mom.

guilt schmilt. karma can be a bitch.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:22am

JrzyTmata wrote:

with all the security cameras around these days, don't get caught doing removing valve stems. I hope you're all just kidding but I think retaliation might make you a bigger asshole. You don't know who is driving that car. could be an inconsiderate idiot or it could be someone with small children or old people that just can't park well. Yeah, maybe they shouldn't be driving if they can't park. but there they are.

Way to guilt them, Mom.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:09am

with all the security cameras around these days, don't get caught doing removing valve stems. I hope you're all just kidding but I think retaliation might make you a bigger asshole. You don't know who is driving that car. could be an inconsiderate idiot or it could be someone with small children or old people that just can't park well. Yeah, maybe they shouldn't be driving if they can't park. but there they are.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:07am

helenofjoy wrote:

I LIKE this!

And remember, always do at least 2 tires so even if they have a good spare they are still out of luck.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:07am

DaveInVA wrote:

This is whatr you need, Will really make the assholes day when they find their valve stems missing and tires flat.

How to use....

That could get somebody hurt.

Not because they didn't notice and drove off on a flat tire and wrecked the tire and rim and couldn't steer properly, but because I came out of the store and saw you doing it to the car I parked in the only space the asshole who parked next to me (who left before you got there and before I got back) left me and I explain all this...by hand. Plus you'll pay for the bill at the tire shop.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:05am

ScottFromWyoming wrote:

No it isn't. It's what I call being an asshole. The sign says "Lane Ends Merge Right," not "Speed Up 20MPH and See How Many Suckers You Can Pass." You're supposed to merge over wherever you happen to be, ideally without changing your speed much, and the people in the next lane are supposed to allow you in. Once this happens, though, all of a sudden the left lane is empty for the next 200 yards and the assholes of the world think it's a good idea to shoot forward as far as possible, then force traffic to stop so they can nose into the lane when there's no room left.
It certainly is not. Please walk to the nearest police station and surrender your driver's license.
It's criminal is what it is.
Still criminal.

Zackly

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 9:03am

DaveInVA wrote:

This is whatr you need, Will really make the assholes day when they find their valve stems missing and tires flat.

How to use....

I LIKE this!

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 8:55am

DaveInVA wrote:

This is whatr you need, Will really make the assholes day when they find their valve stems missing and tires flat.

How to use....

Love that one. Doesn't cause any actual damage, but creates colossal inconvenience.

I wonder if wrecker drivers carry a supply of valve stems? I'm sure they'll still charge the cost of a tow, but it would save them the hassle of hooking the car up.

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 8:51am

helenofjoy wrote:

No, but I have Parking Hog rage! I park about 3 blocks from my workplace so I can get a little exercise in on the way to the building since I can't bike anymore. Who are these parking hogs who insist on parking in such away that they effectively take up two parking spaces? I've been thinking of making up little cards to put on their windshields to remind them that there are others who need parking too and it would be considerate of them not to take up all the free parking just for themselves when they don't have to! I also thought about a dart gun.

This is what you need, Will really make the assholes day when they find their valve stems missing and tires flat.

How to use....

Posted: Jul 25, 2012 - 8:49am

drsteevo wrote:

No, you are supposed to merge when it is safe to do so, before the lane ends. If you are driving faster (which you should be because you are in the FAST LANE), then you will probably pass a few people before you lane ends. This is how you are supposed to drive. It keeps traffic flowing better. It doesn't slow traffic down because you are going faster than traffic and you get into an open space.

Here is a full debate on the subject: http://drmomentum.com/aces/archives/003800.html

If you live in Wyoming, you probably rarely face this situation, but I drive in Chicago all the time. Chicago has the fastest average speed of any city I have driven in, and you are crazy if you actively piss off the other drivers.

p.s. I am an excellent driver! {#Lol}

Between you and Hippiechick I'm not sure I ever want to go to Chicago

I actually face the situation every day as my commute highway has a bottleneck approaching a bridge.

You are supposed to merge when it's safe to do so, and it's incumbent upon both drivers to make it safe. So the merging driver must slow to the speed of the next lane, the driver in the next lane must slow to allow the merge. The zipper: fine. Yes. But if there's a natural gap in the next lane and I merge into it safely before the bitter end of my lane, this is not an invitation for the driver behind to speed up and pass everyone just because the lane's now clear. They still need to be throttling back to match the speed of the lane they're merging into, not speeding up to jump to the head of the line.

I don't know what to say about making it a law that you don't merge until the lane runs out. There's a reason they give you a couple hundred yards to get your shit together and move over. Telling everyone to just wait until there's no more lane just brings everyone to a halt. I mean, when they put up a sign that says "lane ends 1/2 mile," why do you think they do that? To give you time to find a way to move over. The whole reason the next lane's moving slower is because somebody up ahead made someone else slam on their brakes, probably when they ignored the "lane ends" signs and just shoehorned their way into traffic without trying to go with the flow.

This thread is appropriately named. If I see someone pass up an open chance to merge into the lane behind me and instead shoot ahead of me and then insist on getting into the lane where there's no opening? Kill. I want them dead.
==================

Upon reading your link, I agree with it, providing we define "heavy and slow" traffic. It's the situations where traffic is moving reasonably well and there are reasonable gaps in the lane and people skip those to try to gain a few extra car lengths that actually cause some of the slowdowns that necessitate a "zipper."