road ethics

Honest question here,... Why don't you "travel in the exit lane to avoid traffic, then get back into lane right at the end"?
Why does doing that make somebody a jerk?

why? Because you are the cause of the delay and not the only one trying to make work on time, genius!

People have the legal option to drive in the exit lane as long as it's still a lane with a dashed line. If it's a more efficient way to get where you're going then what's the problem? I still don't understand why you would sit at the back of the line being angry when you have the option to drive past the whole mess.

I can't help but wonder if you're angry because you're jealous that other people are getting ahead and you're not. You have that option you know. You can do it too. Are you afraid nobody will let you in?

Merging causes delay and that's an inescapable fact. You can complain all day long about how traffic should be but that wont change what it is. So in the scenario you described you have two options. You can be angry at the back of the line, or you can get there first. Why do you choose anger?

State "keep right" laws

http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html

Ignorance is no excuse.

i explained that the conditions of my city make the left lane not a passing lane, by overwhelming consensus and convention. also, i don't live in a state.

#1 You asked:

Supposed to move over? According to which law?

#2 I assume you live in D.C. It also has a Slower Traffic Keep Right Law.

Sorry was unclear - but, thank you, yes, I did ask for a law, & neglected to offer a context re location, my bad - I meant, what law permits tailgating as an appropriate form of inter-driver communication?

The left lane is the passing lane in most places, of course, and technically (but in no way realistically) in mine too

Not in DC, not in the US

Oh, well that whole back and forth was pointless. It's comparing apples and oranges, we don't know how people drive in your country.

Passing lane is not a technical thing, it's a very real in our country because it is big and we can afford those lanes except during rush hours in major metropolitan areas.

What? It's 'very real' on the books here too - it's just unenforceable, because there is literally no space for all the freaking cars. NOSPACE

and we can afford it, we just have an ashhat for a mayor. other cities don't have this problem.

(we drive the same)

"very real" I mean it is not just on the books and is enforced, hence it is very real with everyday implications.

By "afford" I was metaphorically referring to space/land and not money. If you don't have enough space to use left lanes for passing then you aren't really experiencing the same issue we are talking about.

i have not ONLY driven around the city i live in. i'm in north america. and a reasonable physical infrastructure is not necessarily constrained by square area.

I've driven for a year in London doesn't mean I really qualify to shimmy in as an expert. I flew a plane for 20 minutes before doesn't mean I can walk to a pilot's lounge and tell them how the 767 jet is not that great to pilot.

And if you are in North America and not the US, you are not qualified for this conversation if you are Canadian, they are simply to nice as a group. If you are Mexican then I'm not qualified to give and take with you, cause I saw people drive normally after a shooting took place on the highway, and that is a whole other level on expert road rage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BkasHdSb1nQ

Right 4 long into right 2 tightens

I'm not sure he knows that car is RWD.

I have lived in a lot of different places, and while the road laws in different states are mostly the same, the design of the highways/freeways and streets really affects how you should drive them.

California highways are madness where you need to get to the far left often long before your exit and the middle lane is the fast lane. This is also true of some congested three-lane cities.

For most other places, the best policy is to be on the right unless you are passing. So what if you are moving faster than most of the traffic? Odds are there will be some maniac going faster than you, and you want to be on the right side when you see them coming.

The current thing that bothers me is that most of the lights in the city I live have no dedicated left turn, so everyone waiting for a left turn takes it at the end of a yellow or start of a red. I have almost had an accident a couple of times because of this.

You want to know why? Because passing on the RIGHT is frowned upon. I don't like passing on the right. slower traffic keep right applies no matter how fast you are going.

But going 100+ is perfectly fine? Fine logic you have there, lol.

What in the hell are you talking about? I'll repeat. Slow traffic keep right. Just remember that and you'll be fine. No one likes the self imposed speed police.

I beleive it is illegal to drive over the posted speed (self appointed speed police or not). And yes I know, that people go over the limit but if you read highway laws I don't think that you'd be covered if you are caught.

But then in another post you said that passing on the right is illegal.

So, you think people should follow some laws but shouldn't be held back by other laws?

Not trying to start an arguement, but I hear this all the time and not sure how you (and others) decided which laws can/should be broken and others not, and that everyone should follow your version of complying to laws.

edit for typos

You're right. Nice catch. I advocate slower traffic to keep right. But I can't advocate using the exit lane to pass on the right Yourself?

Yes, passing on the right from exit lane is more dangerous than going 5-10 over speed limit.
I still hate it though when I'm going the speed limit (or 5 miles over) and someone gets on my rear end and I'm not breaking any laws.
Cars have improved safety (crumple zones, airbags etc.) but can't deny laws of physics in regards to stopping distance and increased impact when colliding at high speeds.

My husband seems to think there's a rule about "keeping with the flow of traffic" but has yet to show that to me in writing.

To hell with common courtesy then right? Like I said before, if someone decides they think 10-15 mph over the limit is what they want to travel, then move over. Why? Because YOU want the guy that's in the left lane traveling at the speed limit to move over wen you approach them

I think there are two situations here:

One is the scenario where there are two lanes. I am in the left lane already going 5+ miles over the speed limit with the right lane completely clear, and another car comes up on my butt. Whether I am already going over the speed limit or not, yes, I should get over if the right lane is clear. Even if the guy is being a douchecanoe, if he wants to go faster than me, I get over and let him pass me in the left lane...as I glare at him while he passes for generally being a jerk. Not sure how him pushing me over is any more courteous than me getting out of the way for him, which is what you seem to be implying???

The second scenario is the one I mentioned a few pages before. If I am in the left lane going 5+ miles over the speed limit and CONSISTENTLY PASSING CARS IN THE RIGHT LANE, then the douchecanoe whose headlights I can't even see in my rearview mirror because he's so close should be patient and get off my toosh. In this situation, be prepared for me to tap my breaks.

Common courtesy goes both ways.

3rd scenario. Move over, he goes by, life goes on.

No need to make some TV show dramatic situation out of it.

And how exactly do you expect me to move over safely while speeding and consistently passing vehicles on the right that are going much slower than me with little to no space to do so?

Would you like for me to go even faster so that I can get out of your way quicker and get in front of the line on the right?

Or maybe slam on my brakes so that I can get into the back of the line on the right?

Again, common courtesy goes both ways. If you would like for me to be courteous to you and get out of your way, then show me the same courtesy by respecting that I am also on the road, probably with my children in the car, and will gladly move over for faster cars as soon as I am done safely passing the cars on my right.