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I now interrupt your regularly scheduled WWIII/Nothing Ever Happens to ask a question:
So, the Bike discussion down below generated a lot of angst and heat, so I'd like to poll The Motte on our driving habits a bit (in the CW thread because I do fear we are going to get some strong feelings).
How do we feel about the following:
You should turn on your turn signal every time you switch lanes or otherwise would be expected to use it, even if nobody is around.
Stop signs and red lights need to be fully stopped at, even if nobody is around and you know there isn't a red light camera.
Speed limits should be followed to the letter when possible.
The left lane is for passing only, and also, if you are in that lane and not passing and someone cuts you off or rides your bumper, that is fine.
If someone does not make room for you and you need to come over (and properly signaled) you can cut them off guilt free.
I can break some of these rules (or others) but other drivers should not.
Any other possible driving scissor statements?
If you'd like to be mad at me: Yes, Yes, No, Yes with qualification, Yes, No.
1: Yes. Using your turn signal should be an automatic part of any anticipated lateral movement of your vehicle. You should not assume that no one is around just because you aren't aware of them.
2: Yes. You should not assume that you are aware of everyone around you. Though, I guess I really mean no to the question as written, because I don't care about a slow rolling (<5mph) stop at all under any circumstances. Any speed above 5mph, though, is just running a red light with extra steps. This is why roundabouts are superior, because when no one is there you never have to stop.
3: No. Speed limits are nearly uniformly wrong, and should be followed only inasmuch as they may be enforced. I routinely drive below the speed limit in residential neighborhoods, for fear of hitting pedestrians; I typically drive a little above the speed limit on the highway. But get me an empty rural twisty, I'm not doing 35; get me on an open highway I'm hitting a daily triple.
4: Tailgating is never ok. It is the one driving crime I think should be punished more often. When you get too close to react properly, you risk an accident, people vastly overestimate their reaction times. Nor is it fun or efficient or otherwise rewarding.
5: Yes, mostly, though I think in most cases the reason you need to come over and there isn't space is because you waited until the last minute, in which case I will not let you in and will dare you to hit me. If you know your exit is coming up, you should be in the correct lane at least 1/2 mile and preferably a mile in advance. As soon as you see a "lane ends ahead" sign you should be trying to get over. Don't ride to the very end and then expect to squeeze in.
6: I don't break any of my own rules, but I do break some of other people's rules, so I think we all come out the same.
7:
-- You can tell a lot about someone from assessing their choice of car. Even if you think your car says nothing about you, it does.
-- Cars should abide by the "Gentleman's Agreement" to stick around 300hp, and anything larger than that should be heavily taxed. 300hp is plenty to have a quick mid size sedan, a very fast small car, or a reasonably drivable large SUV/pickup truck. Capping horsepower on most cars would encourage people who want to drive fast sporty cars to buy small cars, and discourage people from driving giant SUVs and pickup trucks they can't handle too fast.
-- I don't really know that I'll ever want or trust a self driving car, but I see 75% of people on the road and I wish they had one. At the same time, if regulators don't make self-driving systems EXTREMELY conservative and predictable in their behavior, we deserve to get paperclipped.
I pity the fool who has never experienced the sublime beauty of the zipper merge.
That only works when cars are neatly spaced at double the safe distance, such that they can just move in without anyone dropping speed. In moderate traffic and above, doing something similar requires progressively greater slowdowns in order to merge successfully, frequently resulting in a jam.
I’m guessing it’s not a coincidence that the video is from Idaho?
It does take the majority of the drivers knowing what they're doing, the rest can be soft pressured into it, which is what happened to me the first time I participated in the maneuver. But it does fall apart without a critical mass that's on the same page.
It prevents jams, and OP's "switch lanes ASAP" idea is what causes them.
I've seen it done in big European cities, in moderate / moderate-high traffic. In fact, under low traffic you might as well not bother, since whole point is using the road efficiently, which is a lot less important when there's few other cars around.
What speeds were you going, out of curiosity?
Zipper merge works fine at 20mph - lots of lanes in my area do it. That much is an everyday maneuver, especially when everyone is synchronized by a red light. Highway speeds, I’m less convinced.
Oh yeah, I wouldn't do that on a highway. Did jumping into the conversation straight from hr comment feed screw me over again?
Maybe it was me that was missing the context. I wouldn’t worry about it either way.
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