How to Drive?

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RickyZ

Senior Member
Sep 20, 2012
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#41
Or if people kept more space between them and the car in front. There would be far less traffic...

Also if anyone is interested. Basically this is a traffic flow video based off 4 lane intersections. Was a share a year or so ago...I throughly enjoyed it toward the end :p


ofc the biggest issue with new traffic flow methods is drivers not being used to it and colliding. It seems we may be at an impasse.

I was driving steady down a road I hadn't been down in years and almost panicked when I hit a new roundabout in the middle of the night.

ATL also has a Spaghetti junction.
The traffic flows depicted in the video are totally unrealistic.
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
30,749
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#42
I wish the U.S. drivers would display the same driving smarts Europe has, where you stay in the right lane except for passing. It would cut down the need for some of these 6-16 lane highway/freeways. lol
Alabama just passed a Law doing just this. They give you a bit of leeway to pass and then move back into the right lane. Exceptions are: Construction, Accidents and such. Other than that, if someone stays in the left lane for more than a mile or so, they can be fined.
 

p_rehbein

Senior Member
Sep 4, 2013
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#43
Get over, or get pulled over, Alabamians.

Alabama state troopers want more people to know that the left lane on the interstate is not for long-term travel. In fact, using the lane for anything other than passing is illegal.

“If they need to pass a slower moving motorist than that’s when they can use that left hand lane to pass that motorist and safely get back over into the right lane,” State Trooper Cpl. Jess Thornton told WBRC

Alabama troopers warn left lane drivers: You're breaking the ...
 
Jun 10, 2019
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#44
Get over, or get pulled over, Alabamians.

Alabama state troopers want more people to know that the left lane on the interstate is not for long-term travel. In fact, using the lane for anything other than passing is illegal.

“If they need to pass a slower moving motorist than that’s when they can use that left hand lane to pass that motorist and safely get back over into the right lane,” State Trooper Cpl. Jess Thornton told WBRC

Alabama troopers warn left lane drivers: You're breaking the ...
huh I guess every state has their cash cows rolling
 
Dec 12, 2013
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#45
I wish the U.S. drivers would display the same driving smarts Europe has, where you stay in the right lane except for passing. It would cut down the need for some of these 6-16 lane highway/freeways. lol
That is how it is in AU......stay left unless overtaking.....they will fine you in a New York second if you are lolly gagging in the passing lane and not passing someone.....I also fully believe that ALL big rigs should be bound to the slower lane and find $5000 if they get caught in the passing lane and or speeding.............. :devilish::mad:
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
30,770
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#46
That is how it is in AU......stay left unless overtaking.....they will fine you in a New York second if you are lolly gagging in the passing lane and not passing someone.....I also fully believe that ALL big rigs should be bound to the slower lane and find $5000 if they get caught in the passing lane and or speeding.............. :devilish::mad:
Australia...that's what I said..'Europe' lol.
I resemble that 'big rig' comment, or used to, until I retired lol.
 

Grandpa

Senior Member
Jun 24, 2011
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#47
You drive at the speed that is the safest. In both scenarios.

When traffic is flowing fast it is best and probably safest to at least stay with the speed of traffic.

In the winter time it is hard to find a safe speed. 40mph can be too fast for sure. I try to not go slower than the big rigs.


Both of these scenarios are not following the law exactly. But I view the safety of myself and those around me to be more important than a sign on the side of the road.
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
30,770
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#48
You drive at the speed that is the safest. In both scenarios.

When traffic is flowing fast it is best and probably safest to at least stay with the speed of traffic.

In the winter time it is hard to find a safe speed. 40mph can be too fast for sure. I try to not go slower than the big rigs.


Both of these scenarios are not following the law exactly. But I view the safety of myself and those around me to be more important than a sign on the side of the road.
I was in Traffic school some 35 years ago and this similar scenario came up. The Officer doing the class said that here in California one can theoretically get a ticket for going the speed limit...if the flow of traffic is moving 10+ mph faster. The key, according to him, is move with the flow of traffic.
 

Mii

Well-known member
Mar 23, 2019
2,082
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#49
That is how it is in AU......stay left unless overtaking.....they will fine you in a New York second if you are lolly gagging in the passing lane and not passing someone.....I also fully believe that ALL big rigs should be bound to the slower lane and find $5000 if they get caught in the passing lane and or speeding.............. :devilish::mad:
I've seen plenty of signs here saying "NO TRUCKS LEFT LANE"...and yet I've seen them do it plenty of times also.

If it's 2 lane highway I can understand, but not for any other reason. If you have a truck in front of you doing 10 under for a long haul that's considerably less money per hour.
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
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#50
In Florida it means that the interstates are now a parking lot.
Looking at the OP, I never saw a parking lot move 55-90mph...but then again...Florida, where they go to court over 'hanging chads' :eek:
 

Whispered

Well-known member
Aug 17, 2019
4,551
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www.christiancourier.com
#51
  • you commute down a busy interstate with a posted 55mph maximum speed limit. traffic is dense, almost bumper-to-bumper, and the average speed of the vehicles you share the road with is over 70mph, with the slow lanes moving steadily around 65mph and the fast lane near 80mph and some vehicles moving closer to 90mph as soon as they can.
    • what should you do?

  • you are driving down the same interstate in winter, and cold snap has turned the entire road surface into a dangerous mix of slush and solid ice. the lanes are not visible. there is a posted minimum speed of 40mph, and although not as crowded, most traffic is creeping under 25mph.
    • what should you do?
  • Go with the flow of traffic at speed and at a safe assured clear distance from the car in front of you.

  • Ditto
 
Dec 12, 2013
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#52
I've seen plenty of signs here saying "NO TRUCKS LEFT LANE"...and yet I've seen them do it plenty of times also.

If it's 2 lane highway I can understand, but not for any other reason. If you have a truck in front of you doing 10 under for a long haul that's considerably less money per hour.
What I cannot stand....absolutely fires me up....is when two get beside each other and run miles side by side because both are loaded and one will not speed up or cannot speed up in hills to over take the other one.......and the idiots will pull out to pass in an area where they cannot get by......:mad::devilish::mad::devilish::mad::devilish::mad::devilish:o_Oo_Oo_Oo_O
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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#53
I was in Traffic school some 35 years ago and this similar scenario came up. The Officer doing the class said that here in California one can theoretically get a ticket for going the speed limit...if the flow of traffic is moving 10+ mph faster. The key, according to him, is move with the flow of traffic.
i went to a driving class once to get a ticket expunged.
i asked the officer about this subject, and that's what he said too, more or less -- that driving safely outweighs the letter of the speed limit sign, so that you should keep up with the flow of traffic, trying to keep space between you and the other cars. which can, situationally, include speeding because the mass of traffic is speeding, or in order to pass someone quickly and get out of the way of other drivers in the fast lane.
he agreed that the attitude our dear friend Ouliphant expressed can create dangerous traffic conditions, and encourage road rage and more dangerous behavior by frustrated drivers behind you, which are worse for the safety of everyone than driving 5 or 10 mph over the limit to keep up with the flow of traffic.
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
37,957
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#54
i went to a driving class once to get a ticket expunged.
i asked the officer about this subject, and that's what he said too, more or less -- that driving safely outweighs the letter of the speed limit sign, so that you should keep up with the flow of traffic, trying to keep space between you and the other cars. which can, situationally, include speeding because the mass of traffic is speeding, or in order to pass someone quickly and get out of the way of other drivers in the fast lane.
he agreed that the attitude our dear friend Ouliphant expressed can create dangerous traffic conditions, and encourage road rage and more dangerous behavior by frustrated drivers behind you, which are worse for the safety of everyone than driving 5 or 10 mph over the limit to keep up with the flow of traffic.
suppose the posted speed limit is 55, and the actual average speed of the traffic is 65.
and suppose the traffic is fairly dense -- there's not all kinds of open space where anyone can easily pass without waiting.

am i sinning against the people i share the road with if i go 55, impeding the highway, so that i create a pile of tailgating traffic compressed behind me, all trying to get around me? it's not like i don't know what i'm doing.

am i doing them all a service by slowing down the whole interstate? by creating a line of a dozen cars bumper to bumper behind me, all stewing and muttering about 'whoever it is in that car up ahead' ?

or am i doing good to them? if i'm doing good, should i get in the fast lane and block the progress of the 'biggest offenders'?
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
37,957
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#55
suppose the posted speed limit is 55, and the actual average speed of the traffic is 65.
and suppose the traffic is fairly dense -- there's not all kinds of open space where anyone can easily pass without waiting.


am i sinning against the people i share the road with if i go 55, impeding the highway, so that i create a pile of tailgating traffic compressed behind me, all trying to get around me? it's not like i don't know what i'm doing.

am i doing them all a service by slowing down the whole interstate? by creating a line of a dozen cars bumper to bumper behind me, all stewing and muttering about 'whoever it is in that car up ahead' ?

or am i doing good to them? if i'm doing good, should i get in the fast lane and block the progress of the 'biggest offenders'?
say i'm still in this scenario and i convince myself to get in the fast lane and speed up to 57mph. i'm praying that God will please forgive me for the extra 2mph but i really just can't drive behind that truckload of live chickens on their way to the slaughterhouse anymore, i've got to pass it.
a group of cars going 75mph comes streaming up behind me, slamming on their brakes and is now weaving back and forth in the lane inches from each other and inches from my own bumper, flashing their lights. they've barely escaped slamming into the back of my car, when i pulled in front of them going almost 20mph slower.

how does the law of love apply here?
slow back down to 55mph, because that's what the signs say, so that i'm even with the chicken truck and keep traffic blocked for the next 8 miles it takes me to actually pass it?
maintain 57mph, while the group of speeding cars suddenly slamming on their brakes and getting compacted behind me grows and grows for the next 6 miles it takes me to pass the chicken truck?
speed up to 65mph, pass the chicken truck within a half mile of road, then get out of the way of the other drivers as soon as i can?
should i just stay behind the foul-smelling tractor trailer and slow down to 53, constantly shifting between 4th and 5th gear, and light a scented candle?


to me, it seems like the loving thing to do, to not give offense to others, is when i intend to pass the chicken truck, i accelerate up to at least 70, so that i minimize the time i'm alongside the semi - which is a dangerous condition - and i minimize the time i'm speeding, and i do the most i can to avoid putting a stumbling block before the people who are all flying down the left lane.
((i wouldn't tell anyone they have to stay behind the tractor trailer and endure the odor and the cloud of feathers.))
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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#56
i'm bringing all this up because it seems to me there really is a kind of functional 'situational ethic' on our highways.

but it's not a situational ethic at all, really - there is a kind of law that is greater than the thing posted on the speed limit signs, that is invariant, and that is to be courteous to all the other drivers. and this leads to safety, and to peace on the road.

it is as if, the written commandment given on the signs is insufficient to address the reality of driving in traffic.
the law of love is not really situational - it is universal - but it looks different in practice in different situations. sometimes it supersedes the law painted on signs, yet it remains innocent, that is, the letter of the law would still condemn, but the officer and the court would set that aside because of the greater law at work.


does this make any sense?
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
37,957
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#57
If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the sabbath day,
will you not immediately pull it out?
(Luke 14:5)
_________this
 

JesusLives

Senior Member
Oct 11, 2013
14,554
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#60
While in the Army, and having to clean up the carnage left after accidents where the direct cause was speeding, and believing what God/Christ said when He said to "obey the Laws of Caesar for the Glory of God," I obey the posted Speed Limits.

If folks don't like it, they can pass, OR, we can pull over and discuss it...….makes no never mind to me either way.

Christians who habitually speed when driving are habitual Lawbreakers...…..not too many other ways to describe it. I do enjoy the various excuses they come up with for doing so though.

Preacher Jon driving down the street in his Town on a 45 MPH Speed Limit area. Preacher Jon's in a bit of a hurry and is driving 55. Driver behind him turns to his wife and says: "Ain't that Preacher Jon? I thought he was suppose to be some wonderful Christian, and he's driving like a crazy man."

Preacher Jon, on same street driving 45 MPH. Driver behind him turns to his wife and says: "Ain't that Preacher Jon? He's driving like an idiot, don't he know EVERYONE drives 55 or more on this street?" His wife responds: "He's a Christian you know. He's obeying the Law."

Doesn't matter what question a person asks, or what scenario they come up with to try and justify Christians breaking the Laws of Caesar or the Laws of God, they are wrong, and may well end up dead wrong.

The whole world is watching professed Christians just begging them to slip up and do something that is wrong......in this way, the world can justify their unbelief and sinful life styles.

I obey the Laws of Caesar, and the Commandments of Christ that He gave us while here on earth during His Ministry. But, now, that's probably just me.
Da Blond has a heavy foot so in this case I'd be a lawbreaker accused of being a Judaizer......go figure....something only a blond could do..... Tourist's words to me as I leave the house..... Don't speed.... My reply..... no more than normal.