I'm willing to be half the congestion around here is due to that.

It's all because of assholes like you who sit in the right-hand lane and refuse to give one inch of ground to entrance lane drivers.

People here get overly butt-hurt if you merge in with force. I get flicked off, followed, honked at, yelled at for merging, the butt-hurt is strong around here. If I'm signaling to turn in, im not asking you to stop for me, I'm telling you bitch I'm starting to turn in your lane, unless you want to cause an accident you best get the fuck out of my way.

It's another case of OSPIS -- over-sized pecker imagination syndrome. Hint: You ain't all that much to be passing out ultimatums. Negotiate already. Or lose a quarter-panel and enjoy your resulting rate increase.

Uhh no, those are the SUV/Truck people, I drive a little R32 so I can maneuver my way around as I please. I never get mad driving and always let people merge or turn in, everyone else gets ultra butt-hurt unless you leave 100 feet of room around them and drive like a sissy.

Had to travel Braddock/495/395 during rush hour for the first time in a long time this past week. Forgot how polite and accommodating everyone is.

If we’re talking about merging onto a highway, and traffic is moving at-speed;
(1) use the acceleration lane to get your car up to the same speed as traffic - so you’re traveling at the exact speed as the cars you’re merging in with.
(2) move into their lane closer to the car in front of you than the one behind you.
VOILA!

Maybe you’re talking about a bottleneck in bumper-to-bumper traffic. 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 - just do it. If you’re in the lane that is ending, drive all the way up to the top and get in line. Everyone takes a turn. 1 2 1 2 1 2. If you try to get in early and stop the flow of traffic while you cut someone off, you screw it up.

If we’re talking about needing to get into the next lane when there’s bumper-to-bumper traffic and cars are waiting through 2-3 lights before getting through an intersection, that’s another story.

Uh-huh... Wrote:
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> It's all because of assholes like you who sit in
> the right-hand lane and refuse to give one inch of
> ground to entrance lane drivers.

Don't forget about the assholes who leave 2-3 car lengths of space in front of them at traffic lights.

Traffic Cop Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If we’re talking about merging onto a highway,
> and traffic is moving at-speed;
> (1) use the acceleration lane to get your car up
> to the same speed as traffic - so you’re
> traveling at the exact speed as the cars you’re
> merging in with.
> (2) move into their lane closer to the car in
> front of you than the one behind you.
> VOILA!
>
> Maybe you’re talking about a bottleneck in
> bumper-to-bumper traffic. 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 - just
> do it. If you’re in the lane that is ending,
> drive all the way up to the top and get in line.
> Everyone takes a turn. 1 2 1 2 1 2. If you try
> to get in early and stop the flow of traffic while
> you cut someone off, you screw it up.

Yep. If everyone just did the above traffic would be so much better. I fail to comprehend why people do not go to the end of the lane and then zipper merge from there. Why stop 300 yards before the end of lane? All you are doing is causing a bigger back-up behind you and bottling up traffic.

Joke Insurance Wrote:
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> Don't forget about the assholes who leave 2-3 car
> lengths of space in front of them at traffic lights.

They tell me they want to have room to pull out and escape in the event that someone tries to car-jack them. As if car-jackers would try to heist a car that was bottled up in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Jackers might not be the brightest types, but they are not as dumb as that!

.

I'm willing to bet 99% of people don't know the proper way to use the merge lanes. Including the OP.
Attachments:

Uh-huh... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Joke Insurance Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Don't forget about the assholes who leave 2-3
> car
> > lengths of space in front of them at traffic
> lights.
>
> They tell me they want to have room to pull out
> and escape in the event that someone tries to
> car-jack them. As if car-jackers would try to
> heist a car that was bottled up in
> bumper-to-bumper traffic. Jackers might not be
> the brightest types, but they are not as dumb as
> that!

That's a new one. I hear "I don't want the fumes from the car ahead of me." As if the other 20 cars around them aren't creating fumes. Idiots!

Uh-huh... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Joke Insurance Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Don't forget about the assholes who leave 2-3
> car
> > lengths of space in front of them at traffic
> lights.
>
> They tell me they want to have room to pull out
> and escape in the event that someone tries to
> car-jack them. As if car-jackers would try to
> heist a car that was bottled up in
> bumper-to-bumper traffic. Jackers might not be
> the brightest types, but they are not as dumb as
> that!

I was just thinking about this and makes NO sense. Wouldn't you want your car to be more bottled up to prevent a car jacker from taking it?

The OP definitely has a point for driving on the Parkway. When I'm southbound I normally take the left exit on Popes Head. Unfortunately, too many times when I've signalled to merge into the left lane before the exit the car on the left just behind me speeds up and blocks the lane. Then I have to cruise on by my turn in the right lane and get off at 123.

To combat the a**holes, I merge over before Braddock as soon as a space is available. Sure, I'm going slower than the left lane, and people get upset with me, but all of this is the fault of those who won't let me merge for my turn. Blame them.

I blame the exit. If traffic is that tight and people are going 70 in the left lane, it’s not worth your life. I’d find another way. Otherwise, go 70, get over and get off.

People don't merge correctly for the same reason that they don't pull up past the line before making a left hand turn, they're idiots!

Fight back Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The OP definitely has a point for driving on the
> Parkway. When I'm southbound I normally take the
> left exit on Popes Head. Unfortunately, too many
> times when I've signalled to merge into the left
> lane before the exit the car on the left just
> behind me speeds up and blocks the lane. Then I
> have to cruise on by my turn in the right lane and
> get off at 123.
>
> To combat the a**holes, I merge over before
> Braddock as soon as a space is available. Sure,
> I'm going slower than the left lane, and people
> get upset with me, but all of this is the fault of
> those who won't let me merge for my turn. Blame
> them.

People lose their fucking minds on that section of the Parkway. They all want to do 70 and don't understand that there are cars that need to exit to the left at Popes Head or Burke Centre Parkway.

Merging? How about just fucking moving when the light turns green?

People don't go when the light turns green because they are all looking down at their phones at the red light.

Give me a reason why people don't go when the light turns green...

Billy Buick Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> People don't go when the light turns green because
> they are all looking down at their phones at the
> red light.

+1

I'm always the one stuck behind the texting idiot beeping my horn. The idiot then looks up from her phone and then moves, barely makes it through the yellow light and I get stuck.

I wish I could flatten those peoples tires.

Traffic Cop Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If we’re talking about merging onto a highway,
> and traffic is moving at-speed;
> (1) use the acceleration lane to get your car up
> to the same speed as traffic - so you’re
> traveling at the exact speed as the cars you’re
> merging in with.
> (2) move into their lane closer to the car in
> front of you than the one behind you.
> VOILA!
>
> Maybe you’re talking about a bottleneck in
> bumper-to-bumper traffic. 1 2 1 2 1 2 1 2 - just
> do it. If you’re in the lane that is ending,
> drive all the way up to the top and get in line.
> Everyone takes a turn. 1 2 1 2 1 2. If you try
> to get in early and stop the flow of traffic while
> you cut someone off, you screw it up.


Yes, this is exactly right. Another name for the proper technique is the "Zipper merge". http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/ Read any traffic science study and they talk about "road capacity" and wasting empty road space. Think about it from the stand point of maximum road capacity. When cars merge early instead of going all the way to the end of the merge lane, they are wasting that empty road space and thereby reducing the overall road capacity.

4K Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Merging? How about just fucking moving when the
> light turns green?

OMG! Ain't that the fucking truth. I believe people would rather live their lives in their car than get where they're going. If a study could show how disruptive it is to the flow of traffic for drivers to be so preoccupied with other things, that they continually miss the cues, I would not be surprised if it showed 25-30% increase in travel time for commuters; 10% increase in number of fender-benders; 60% increase in road rage incidents; and God only knows how many deaths due to spontaneous peaks in stress for short periods of time on 5 continuous days out of 7.

My purpose driving in the Fairfax area this year is same as always. Drive 35 mph in a 35 mph speed zone.
Drive in the left lane and let speeders and tailgaters pass on the right.
Piss others off with my driving the limit.
Watch those who pass me on a daily basis get pulled over and ticketed for speeding.
Again, I really enjoy pissing off tailgaters and aggressive drivers.

Ain't life grand. Yep!

Johnny P. my ass! You're Gerrymander2!

If there were not as many people/cars on the road, it wouldn't matter, but with so many, we have to be focused on the driving so we can keep momentum up, tempers down, reduce accidents and get where we're going in efficient time. We're like a train - everyone heading in one direction. We shouldn't try to do it solo or in opposition to one another. We should work together. Can someone start singing the Pepsi song, please?

OhHellNo! Wrote:
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> Johnny P. my ass! You're Gerrymander2!

More like John Nester.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Nestor

Not yet mentioned, my pet peeves:

- Maroons who stop short of the "box" so the sensor doesn't trip and the light doesn't change (or stop past it, but that's mostly their problem)

- Their idiot cousins who sit at a red light waiting to turn right, with two or more lanes on their right and one lane turning left, instead of asserting their right-of-way to turn into the near lane. Obviously if they have a trailer or some other reason, this doesn't apply, but it can be a huge blockade. For those who are timid that the turning driver will veer across two lanes (a serious concern around here), just time it so you're turning just ahead of someone: their choices then are (a) pretend they know how to drive and turn into the near lane or (b) drive blindly into you.

What's a maroon?

Dark red onion Wrote:
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> What's a maroon?

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=maroon

Sense 2.

Sorry I am not not up to date on urban (nigger) slang.

Dark red onion Wrote:
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> Sorry I am not not up to date on urban (nigger)
> slang.

...or much of anything else, since it's been in common use by whites for decades. Starting with Bugs Bunny.

Bugs Bunny is not a white person, he is a frickin rodent!