Community Chat

[Marienkaefer2]

On 1/2/2015 happy housewife said:

On 1/2/2015 chickenbutt said:

Kittymom - We have a big problem with slow drivers on the freeway! Yeah, on the freeway. Getting on the freeway takes a lot of patience and finesse because you often find yourself stuck behind some bonehead who thinks it's appropriate to enter the freeway going 30MPH. Um, it's NOT! Yikes - how to get yourself killed in one easy lesson.

I have to say that back when I lived in Europe, at first, I was so surprised at how people zoomed around but one of the good things was that you learned to either get going or get out of the way.

I don't know where you live but anywhere I have ever lived the person entering the highway DOES NOT have the right of way - the cars on the highway already do have the right of way and those entering are supposed to merge in and if needed , stop and wait til the lane is clear. In the Pittsburgh area there are entrances where it is impossible to see around the hillsides and curves to know if there is a car coming in the right lane, until you are way at the end of the entrance ramp. Often at those places there is a STOP sign on the entry ramp. You are to stop and wait until the lane is clear and then you enter. Is it polite for a car on the highway to move over and allow the cars to enter - absolutely - but there are times when you can't move over because there is traffic in the other lane. My absolute pet peeve is people who hit that entry ramp at 55 or more with no clue if the lane is clear for them to enter the highway safely.

There are no stop signs on the on ramps to freeways where I live. If there were, you'd never merge. In Seattle, there are red and green lights, but those are in very busy areas. For the most part, you need to be up to speed to merge and keep up with traffic. Luckily, we have pretty courteous drivers here, generally speaking. When there is a lot of traffic on the on ramp, or semis, most will move to the left lane as much as possible to.leave the right lane open. Or, will slow down or speed up (whichever is necessary) to allow cars a place to.merge. If I'm on the interstate, I'm.always looking ahead at the on ramps and making decisions based on how many are merging. I don't think.it makes sense to.just have the mindset "I have the right of way." We're all sharing the road and consideration is necessary. Maybe if more people had that mindset, we'd have safer roads.

[151949]

On 1/3/2015 mstyrion 1 said:

On 1/3/2015 glb613 said:

On 1/3/2015 Ford1224 said:

My nephew, who drove 18-wheelers cross country for 25 years always told us to never get in the way of one. Even if they are driving in the right-hand lane which in most states is against the law, do not ever try to pass or get in front of one because they cannot slow down or stop in time not to hit you. He said with merging, even if one is only within sight and doesn't seem close, you have no idea how fast they are going, and you should stop and let it pass. It is better to get rear-ended by the car in back of you than risk being hit head on or side-swiped by an 18-wheeler.

He said very candidly that most drivers of large trucks and especially 18-wheelers really do think they own the road, and that he was guilty of that mindset himself. He was fortunate because although he had some close calls, he was never in a serious accident.

Driving in the right hand lane is against the law? Are you kidding. I pass semis all of the time and have never had an accident. Stop on an exit ramp? You and your nephew are giving terrible advice. Please, don't anyone do this.

driving in the LEFT lane for semi trucks is against the law in some states-not all.

I think you mis-read the post.

Some exit ramps have stop signs/lights. The busiest on ramps here have metered lights that control two lanes of traffic to merge onto the freeway. If you don't stop, you are violating the law.

ETA I see Ford corrected her original.

The entry ramp that was closest to our home in Pittsburgh had a stop sign at the end of the entry ramp because you could not see down the highway to see if there was traffic until you got to the end of the ramp. After several, accidents they posted a stop sign there. Unfortunately, people think they are supposed to be going 60 at the end of entry ramps and just drive right out onto the road without yielding to the traffic on the road. Many times I have had to drive onto the berm to avoid hitting the idiots.Meanwhile they just drive merrily away. Now that we drive the 1100 miles home to Pa in the spring and back to Fl in the fall every year I think I have seen it all.

People also really do not understand how far it takes to stop a heavy vehicle like a semi or a bus or motorhome or someone towing a trailer or fifth wheel. It takes a long time to stop - I don't understand why people doubt this. Think about all those thousands of pounds moving forward at 65 - 70 MPH and then needing to stop. All that inertia - didn't you people take science class ? Not to mention driver's ed? and, of course, if you stop too fast when towing a heavy weight it jackknifes - then you really have trouble.

[mstyrion 1]

On 1/3/2015 Marienkaefer2 said:

On 1/2/2015 happy housewife said:

On 1/2/2015 chickenbutt said:

Kittymom - We have a big problem with slow drivers on the freeway! Yeah, on the freeway. Getting on the freeway takes a lot of patience and finesse because you often find yourself stuck behind some bonehead who thinks it's appropriate to enter the freeway going 30MPH. Um, it's NOT! Yikes - how to get yourself killed in one easy lesson.

I have to say that back when I lived in Europe, at first, I was so surprised at how people zoomed around but one of the good things was that you learned to either get going or get out of the way.

I don't know where you live but anywhere I have ever lived the person entering the highway DOES NOT have the right of way - the cars on the highway already do have the right of way and those entering are supposed to merge in and if needed , stop and wait til the lane is clear. In the Pittsburgh area there are entrances where it is impossible to see around the hillsides and curves to know if there is a car coming in the right lane, until you are way at the end of the entrance ramp. Often at those places there is a STOP sign on the entry ramp. You are to stop and wait until the lane is clear and then you enter. Is it polite for a car on the highway to move over and allow the cars to enter - absolutely - but there are times when you can't move over because there is traffic in the other lane. My absolute pet peeve is people who hit that entry ramp at 55 or more with no clue if the lane is clear for them to enter the highway safely.

There are no stop signs on the on ramps to freeways where I live. If there were, you'd never merge. In Seattle, there are red and green lights, but those are in very busy areas. For the most part, you need to be up to speed to merge and keep up with traffic. Luckily, we have pretty courteous drivers here, generally speaking. When there is a lot of traffic on the on ramp, or semis, most will move to the left lane as much as possible to.leave the right lane open. Or, will slow down or speed up (whichever is necessary) to allow cars a place to.merge. If I'm on the interstate, I'm.always looking ahead at the on ramps and making decisions based on how many are merging. I don't think.it makes sense to.just have the mindset "I have the right of way." We're all sharing the road and consideration is necessary. Maybe if more people had that mindset, we'd have safer roads.

ITA Marien.

Here, people travelling in the right lane stay aware of those trying to merge onto the freeways and if possible, slow down a little to allow them on. Our freeways run through town and are terrifically busy during rush hours. If the right lane drivers didn't show courtesy, no one would ever be able to get on the freeways.

the idea of "taking" the right of way is not smart. You may have the right of way, but that'won't keep you out of an accident. Only being aware of surroundings and using a little common sense courtesy will help you avoid getting hit.

[mstyrion 1]

On 1/3/2015 happy housewife said:

On 1/3/2015 mstyrion 1 said:

On 1/3/2015 glb613 said:

On 1/3/2015 Ford1224 said:

My nephew, who drove 18-wheelers cross country for 25 years always told us to never get in the way of one. Even if they are driving in the right-hand lane which in most states is against the law, do not ever try to pass or get in front of one because they cannot slow down or stop in time not to hit you. He said with merging, even if one is only within sight and doesn't seem close, you have no idea how fast they are going, and you should stop and let it pass. It is better to get rear-ended by the car in back of you than risk being hit head on or side-swiped by an 18-wheeler.

He said very candidly that most drivers of large trucks and especially 18-wheelers really do think they own the road, and that he was guilty of that mindset himself. He was fortunate because although he had some close calls, he was never in a serious accident.

Driving in the right hand lane is against the law? Are you kidding. I pass semis all of the time and have never had an accident. Stop on an exit ramp? You and your nephew are giving terrible advice. Please, don't anyone do this.

driving in the LEFT lane for semi trucks is against the law in some states-not all.

I think you mis-read the post.

Some exit ramps have stop signs/lights. The busiest on ramps here have metered lights that control two lanes of traffic to merge onto the freeway. If you don't stop, you are violating the law.

ETA I see Ford corrected her original.

The entry ramp that was closest to our home in Pittsburgh had a stop sign at the end of the entry ramp because you could not see down the highway to see if there was traffic until you got to the end of the ramp. After several, accidents they posted a stop sign there. Unfortunately, people think they are supposed to be going 60 at the end of entry ramps and just drive right out onto the road without yielding to the traffic on the road. Many times I have had to drive onto the berm to avoid hitting the idiots.Meanwhile they just drive merrily away. Now that we drive the 1100 miles home to Pa in the spring and back to Fl in the fall every year I think I have seen it all.

People also really do not understand how far it takes to stop a heavy vehicle like a semi or a bus or motorhome or someone towing a trailer or fifth wheel. It takes a long time to stop - I don't understand why people doubt this. Think about all those thousands of pounds moving forward at 65 - 70 MPH and then needing to stop. All that inertia - didn't you people take science class ? Not to mention driver's ed? and, of course, if you stop too fast when towing a heavy weight it jackknifes - then you really have trouble.

who doubted it?

We probably all took science classes.

Did you take reading comprehension?

[raven-blackbird]

if you want to see crazy drivers...............just be here when it rains.............we don't know how to handle rain LOL.......................................raven

[Kalli]

I was new to towing a bumper pull trailer when my horse got cancer. I had to trailer him down to New Bolton Center from NE PA at least 4 times, which meant I spent the last 30 mins of each trip to NBC, and the first 30 of return trips, in busy traffic near Philadelphia. I can't tell you how many times drivers in small cars would zip in and out around me, taking advantage of the fact that I was trying to keep a space between my truck and the vehicle in front of me.

When you're towing LIVE CARGO, you have to give the animal time to adjust and balance his weight. I needed that empty space in front and so often folks just cut in there meaning I had to back off my speed to create that spot again (until the next driver cut in!!) It went on and on like that. Too bad I couldn't lob manure at them...bet they'd have left that spot open then, eh?

-Kalli