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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.
You don't need to, but it is a good habit to get into. If I were teaching someone to drive I'd tell them to do it even if no one is around.
For stop signs, no. In principle you should be ready to, but if you are moving slowly and can see there is zero traffic, I think it's reasonable to just take a stop sign slowly.
For red lights, yes. You always obey the lights.
Not necessarily. In general, you should try to roughly follow them, but as long as you are travelling at a safe speed relative to everyone else on the road, I'm not going to be too stressed if you're two or three km/h over.
(Reversing this due to Commonwealth country.)
No. Yes, there's sort of a convention that the right lane goes faster than the left lane, but it's only a very soft convention. It in no way excuses misbehaviour.
That said, I am now wondering if this is different in America. Adjust as needed if you have different road rules.
I don't really know or care about guilt here. If somebody is a jerk and doesn't let you in when they ought to, well, they're a jerk, but you should still drive safely and that means you shouldn't try to force your way in. That's just asking for an accident.
There is a rule that overrides all other driving rules, and that rule is to ensure your safety, the safety of other occupants of your vehicle, and the safety of other road users. I'm not going to police the exact order of any of those things, but I will say that if you are ever in a circumstance where your choices are to break a road rule or let either injury or property damage occur, break the road rule. The road rules exist to ensure people's safety, so if breaking them is necessary to keep people safe, you should break them without fear or shame.
I hate GPS devices. Hate them. If I get lost on the way somewhere I usually pull on to a side road, stop, and then refer either to a paper map or bring up a map on my phone or laptop. GPS in the car drives me insane.
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