Merge lanes and self righteous drivers

[Cookeh]

Really?

Yes.

 

[ubersonic]

Considered sending the vid to FedEx? They may offer you some free deliveries or something to smooth things over (especially if done publicly).

 

[ubersonic]

His XR2 was two thirds it's original size. Oh how i laughed

But that doesn't make any sense, if an XR2 was 2/3 it's original size then there wouldn't be enough room for his legs. Oh wait I see

 

[Rroff]

The people who travel down the empty lane and then want to merge are not pushing in, they are doing it correctly, It's the people who have this queue in one lane mentality that are causing the problems

When they are the only one doing it right all they do is cause a problem in the right or not (EDIT: In some cases that isn't a reason not to do it but in this instance I can't advocate it)

One of my colleagues at work still seems to think being in the right on the road magically shields you from problems :s 5 crashes later, some of them serious and she still hasn't learnt and still blames other people for incidents that were entirely avoidable on her part even if she was "in the right".

 

[p1RATE]

This happened to me last night. i didn't realize what was happening at first as i was driving through an area i don't know too well in kent. I was coming along the outside lane of a duel carriageway then a van sharply pulls from the inside to the outside lane after the car in front of me got past. He then hovered around the white line so i thought ok ill merge in now behind him, but the car behind decided to move up to try and block me from merging too. So i ended up merging in behind him whist the van drive continued to block the lane for the next 400 yards. It was such odd behavior it didn't click that these were angry little men trying to serve justice on the traffic around them until after i merged.

 

[Hotwired]

The reason why the GIF is misleading is that is depicting two completely different scenarios.

Two lightly loaded lanes can indeed merge freely without either lane having to slow much, if at all.

Two lanes at (or exceeding) maximum capacity will always form long queues when having to merge into a single lane, no matter how cooperative people are.

Are you suggesting people will post total lies to back up their argument on the internet?

 

[Orionaut]

Are you suggesting people will post total lies to back up their argument on the internet?

Its not lies, the creator of the GIF simply didn't understand the relationship between highway capacity and average speed.

(It is only obvious once you have properly thought about it.)

 

[Orion21]

The people who travel down the empty lane and then want to merge are not pushing in, they are doing it correctly, It's the people who have this queue in one lane mentality that are causing the problems

If I wasn't clear I think it make sense when there are queues and everyone should be using both lanes but when there are no queues (just a few cars) then travelling down the empty lane to try and make progress is 'pushing in'. But to be clear I mean that when the few cars are closely packed together not when they're spread out and you can merge in without anyone having to change their speed to let you in.

I'm one the drivers that is normally in the merge lane, but I don't try and go the whole way to the front of it and force in at the front if the space to merge easier is a few cars back. It is those that do that I am criticising, but I would also criticise people not using both lanes in the first place.

 

[BigDannyO]

The only reason I could see why a lorry would straddle the lanes is to maintain their safe following distance without losing position in the queue.

That right there is the whole reason merge in turn doesn't work in this country.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

I wonder if lane ownership is the problem with the more stupid people? It seems to be the people already in the correct (in their eyes) lane that have an issue with others 'pushing in'.

Instead of having one lane merging into the other have both lanes merging into the centre and position the cones in a funnel shape, puts everyone on an equal footing.

 

[Rimsy]

That right there is the whole reason merge in turn doesn't work in this country.

precisely. merge in turn only works if people are prepared to drive with a bit of a gap between them and the car in front which they don't.

if there was some kind of penalty for tail gating then perhaps the mindset would change..

 

[Minstadave]

precisely. merge in turn only works if people are prepared to drive with a bit of a gap between them and the car in front which they don't.

if there was some kind of penalty for tail gating then perhaps the mindset would change..

We don't have any real road policing anymore to enforce the penalty though.

 

[mattyg]

It annoys me when HGV's do it straggling lane 3.. Which they are not supposed to be in anyhow.

I have on occasion managed to time it correctly and get in on the inside of said van/HGV/Road captain. Making it look like he is now trying to squeeze in. Thus leaving him out to dry.

 

[Hotwired]

It annoys me when HGV's do it straggling lane 3.. Which they are not supposed to be in anyhow.

I have on occasion managed to time it correctly and get in on the inside of said van/HGV/Road captain. Making it look like he is now trying to squeeze in. Thus leaving him out to dry.

Sounds like a genius and heroic plan to juke around an HGV.

Presumably we won't hear from you if this doesn't always work out.

 

[wesimmo]

precisely. merge in turn only works if people are prepared to drive with a bit of a gap between them and the car in front which they don't.

if there was some kind of penalty for tail gating then perhaps the mindset would change..

This. But because people are too stupid to realise that not leaving space actually increases their overall travel time we'll always have the situation I have every morning.

Nose to tail driving, busy slip road coming up, everybody has to almost stop to create space for someone to join because of the concertina effect once the people at the front start slowing down.

 

[Hotwired]

This. But because people are too stupid to realise that not leaving space actually increases their overall travel time we'll always have the situation I have every morning.

Nose to tail driving, busy slip road coming up, everybody has to almost stop to create space for someone to join because of the concertina effect once the people at the front start slowing down.

Interesting logic.

Leaving space allows people to join the road and with more people joining this road you can still travel at the same speed with the same spacing?

No, you end up with more people on the road and less space. People decrease speed because the spacing is going down. Road speed decreases until more space is found (more lanes) or a major exit is reached and people get off.

Your problem is being on the road at the same time a large number of other people also want to use that same road.

 

[pepsilol]

People used to do this to me all the time on one of the M25/M23 sliproads. I just used to maintain my position, comfortable in the knowledge that they wouldn't keep trying to force me out of the line, because it would mean crashing their expensive BMW into my worthless Skoda. It worked every time without fail.

I have a completely different theory. I welcome the lesser car to hit me. I can afford my insurance premium, can they with a non fault claim?

 

[Bug One]

There is always the conflict between people who merge early, and those who merge at the last possible point to miss the queue.

What I hate is when traffic is moving cleanly, yet someone tries to get just that one car further, even when it's perfectly clear there's no room left to do it, and they force a situation where someone has to yield.

I get this all the time where the new M2 bridge exit merges into one lane entering the M25 towards the Dartford Tunnel. It's like some drivers can't see further than then end of their bonnet.

 

[RyanF]

Bothers me more when people shove their car up the arse of someone else just to stop you merging. Happens all the bleeding time on my way home from work.

 

[Akagi]

I have a completely different theory. I welcome the lesser car to hit me. I can afford my insurance premium, can they with a non fault claim?

Trust me, you'd move.

Probably...

Obviously if it gets too close for comfort I'd abandon the plan. Its faultless!