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Post by gato on Jan 5, 2021 11:11:16 GMT -5
My post office has a two lane solution for customers: the inside lane takes you to the drive up mailboxes, and then a right turn takes you through the parking lot and out to the street.
The outside lane, takes you past the drive up mailboxes and directly to the right turn, which leads to the parking area outside the post office where you can park, take in packages and so forth.
The problem has always been that those on the inside lane, having deposited their letters, now attempt a U turn to avoid going through the parking lot (cars backing, others waiting). This leads to near and actual collisions as those on the outside lane, naturally assume that the "insiders" will obey the conspicuous "No U Turn" sign they face after dropping their letters.
As has been proven so many times in the past, obedience to street signs is for "other people". I made an appointment with the post master to discuss this. He admitted he was frustrated, but agreed to be more aggressive in enforcement. Sure enough, next day there were TWO No U Turn signs being ignored.
The following week a line of orange traffic cones was added, guiding the "inner lane" crowd into the the parking lot. In order to make a U turn, the "inners" would have to drive over the cones. So they do.
Now the post office has someone out there to reset the scattered cones when he's not picking up trash and sweeping.
My preference would be spike strips to prevent the illicit U turns, but that's just me.
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Post by slacker 🐨 on Jan 5, 2021 11:20:56 GMT -5
That's like the bicycle riders who say "Hey, I'm a vehicle just like you cars" when they demand the same rights, but then say "I'm not a car, the lights don't apply to me" when they don't want to stop at a red light (or other rules they want to ignore).
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Jan 5, 2021 11:31:46 GMT -5
It is my contention this sort of thing is a huge reason why kids misbehave. Years ago I lived on a cul-de-sac that had a stop sign where it tee'd into the adjacent street. My neighbor never stopped; he just zoomed through if the coast was clear. One afternoon we had them over for burgers on the grill (their kids were at summer camp) and dad and mom were complaining about how their kids have no respect for authority or even basic rules. I commented with, "they learned it from you. You trained them to be this way." Both of them gave me the 'whatchoo talkin bout, Willis' look. "Seriously. You blast through that stop sign down there with your kids in the car. You break the law and it's no big deal, so what's wrong with breaking a stupid rule?" We were good friends so they didn't think I was being a jerk; I was just delivering the facts.  |
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Post by slacker 🐨 on Jan 5, 2021 11:58:35 GMT -5
It is my contention this sort of thing is a huge reason why kids misbehave. Years ago I lived on a cul-de-sac that had a stop sign where it tee'd into the adjacent street. My neighbor never stopped; he just zoomed through if the coast was clear. One afternoon we had them over for burgers on the grill (their kids were at summer camp) and dad and mom were complaining about how their kids have no respect for authority or even basic rules. I commented with, "they learned it from you. You trained them to be this way." Both of them gave me the 'whatchoo talkin bout, Willis' look. "Seriously. You blast through that stop sign down there with your kids in the car. You break the law and it's no big deal, so what's wrong with breaking a stupid rule?" We were good friends so they didn't think I was being a jerk; I was just delivering the facts. Where I live, there's a road going to our street that Y's out into two. When going back the other way, both arms of the Y have a stop sign, but one side has far more traffic than the other (my side is the low traffic side). Cars coming from the high traffic side seem to think they're the main leg and that the stop sign does not apply to them. They routinely just blow through without even slowing down. I pulled up and stopped on my side while a car on the other side was a good 5-7 car lengths from the stop sign trucking along at 35mph. When I pulled out (he still needed to stop at the sign, right?), he layed on his horn with a really long blast, rode right up on my rear without stopping and proceeded to gesticulate madly at me like I'd broken the law. He was so used to running that sign that he acted like it didn't exist! I've had a large number of similar experiences at that intersection...none as obnoxious, but many cases where cars clearly were not planning to stop until I pulled out and they had to at least slow down. |
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Post by Taildragger on Jan 5, 2021 12:41:58 GMT -5
That's like the bicycle riders who say "Hey, I'm a vehicle just like you cars" when they demand the same rights, but then say "I'm not a car, the lights don't apply to me" when they don't want to stop at a red light (or other rules they want to ignore). ^One of my pet peeves ^. Hate it when an oncoming bicyclist, still mounted, suddenly swerves into a crosswalk in front of me, effectively making a left turn in front of me and causing me to have to slam on my brakes to avoid hitting him. California traffic law specifies that a bicyclist is not a pedestrian unless dismounted. And don't get me started about bicyclists running stop signs and red lights, especially at blind intersections.
I used to be a moderately-avid cyclist myself, riding about 100 miles per week. I stopped mostly because of the ever-increasing danger posed by "distracted" drivers on the road. But while I was still doing it, I really resented other cyclists who were scofflaws and blamed them for the harassment (intentional "near misses" accompanied by blaring horn, thrown objects, spitting, verbal hassles) from vehicle drivers that I often encountered while cycling, even though I obeyed the laws. Felt like I'd been tarred-by-association with the broad brush of their bad behavior.
More and more, I have to wonder how some of the car/motorcycle operators currently on the road ever even passed a drivers' license test. They merge obliviously onto the freeway, change lanes without signaling or even looking to make sure it's safe to do so, and otherwise conduct themselves dangerously, discourteously and with utter disregard for the "rules of the road".
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Post by ninworks on Jan 5, 2021 15:57:33 GMT -5
It may just be me but it bugs me that people think their time is more important than mine. Otherwise, why would they drive like maniacs and disregard right of way and rules of the road? I live in the south and I think many people are wannabe NASCAR drivers. Why else would 75% of everyone on a 70MPH interstate fly up behind you doing 95 then drive 10 feet from your rear bumper just waiting for the first small opportunity to blow around you? They do it because law enforcement is terrified to pull anyone over on the highway for fear of getting ran over! Tailgating is a common occurrence here and nobody seems to realize how dangerous it is. Anytime I get a tailgater I slow down in hopes that I'll make them mad enough to pass me so I don't have to worry about them running into my backside. If they don't pass me I'll slow down another 5MPH and keep doing so until they do. Go ahead and flip me off. I don't care. How does that hurt me?! It just proves to me how big of an idiot you are.
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Post by Taildragger on Jan 5, 2021 16:47:16 GMT -5
It may just be me but it bugs me that people think their time is more important than mine. Otherwise, why would they drive like maniacs and disregard right of way and rules of the road? I live in the south and I think many people are wannabe NASCAR drivers. Why else would 75% of everyone on a 70MPH interstate fly up behind you doing 95 then drive 10 feet from your rear bumper just waiting for the first small opportunity to blow around you? They do it because law enforcement is terrified to pull anyone over on the highway for fear of getting ran over! Tailgating is a common occurrence here and nobody seems to realize how dangerous it is. Anytime I get a tailgater I slow down in hopes that I'll make them mad enough to pass me so I don't have to worry about them running into my backside. If they don't pass me I'll slow down another 5MPH and keep doing so until they do. Go ahead and flip me off. I don't care. How does that hurt me?! It just proves to me how big of an idiot you are. It's not just you.
What I find most aggravating in regard is this scenario:
You're on a 4 lane (2 lanes each direction) highway/freeway. About a mile before the lane closure, a sign is posted indicating that everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure. So, is that what happens? Of course not. Maybe 1/3 of your fellow motorists stay in or move into the right lane and speed up to "get ahead", since there are now fewer cars in that lane. The left/through lane gets slower and slower as you approach the construction zone. Why? Because all the "in a big hurry/I'm more important than you" jackasses are staying in the right lane as long as possible (usually up to the point where the cones or flag man start closing of the lane) and then trying to merge left into the now-nearly-gridlocked through lane. And boy-oh boy, do they get hot if you don't let 'em in. Back at ya, sez I.
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BillytheKidder
Wholenote
You can’t do this with a guitar.
Posts: 105
Formerly Known As: Billy the Kidder
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Post by BillytheKidder on Jan 5, 2021 18:20:24 GMT -5
>>everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure.<< Ask any traffic engineer, the most efficient way to merge is to use both lanes for as long as possible and merge at end. I believe in some states, it is the law to merge that way. abc7chicago.com/zipper-merge-illinois-what-is-law/5972855/#:~:text=Not%20only%20is%20the%20zipper,actually%20merge%2C%22%20said%20Sgt. |
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Post by windmill on Jan 5, 2021 19:17:44 GMT -5
After driving the freeways down in the Big Smoke over the holidays,I want to know where do you get the permit that allows you to go as fast as like while everyone else has to do the spoeed limit.
It was happening often enough, and with expensive cars, that they must not have been in fear of being caught and penalised for speeding
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Post by Pinetree on Jan 5, 2021 21:15:14 GMT -5
I was once riding in a car with Shadoe, and she was pretty much driving across all of the lines in the parking lot... so I teased her about it.
She said: "The rules of the road are not the rules of the parking lot".
I've never forgotten that.
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Post by Taildragger on Jan 5, 2021 22:26:16 GMT -5
>>everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure.<< Ask any traffic engineer, the most efficient way to merge is to use both lanes for as long as possible and merge at end. I believe in some states, it is the law to merge that way. abc7chicago.com/zipper-merge-illinois-what-is-law/5972855/#:~:text=Not%20only%20is%20the%20zipper,actually%20merge%2C%22%20said%20Sgt. Sorry, I don't buy that.
Might work like that in a perfect world, but not in today's free-for-all/road rage traffic environment.
Maybe motorists are more thoughtful and polite where you are. Not the case, here.
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hilltop87
Wholenote
My Strat is my friend
Posts: 885
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Post by hilltop87 on Jan 5, 2021 22:36:25 GMT -5
The roads are full of rude turds.
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Post by LTB on Jan 5, 2021 23:39:28 GMT -5
My post office has a two lane solution for customers: the inside lane takes you to the drive up mailboxes, and then a right turn takes you through the parking lot and out to the street. The outside lane, takes you past the drive up mailboxes and directly to the right turn, which leads to the parking area outside the post office where you can park, take in packages and so forth. The problem has always been that those on the inside lane, having deposited their letters, now attempt a U turn to avoid going through the parking lot (cars backing, others waiting). This leads to near and actual collisions as those on the outside lane, naturally assume that the "insiders" will obey the conspicuous "No U Turn" sign they face after dropping their letters. As has been proven so many times in the past, obedience to street signs is for "other people". I made an appointment with the post master to discuss this. He admitted he was frustrated, but agreed to be more aggressive in enforcement. Sure enough, next day there were TWO No U Turn signs being ignored. The following week a line of orange traffic cones was added, guiding the "inner lane" crowd into the the parking lot. In order to make a U turn, the "inners" would have to drive over the cones. So they do. Now the post office has someone out there to reset the scattered cones when he's not picking up trash and sweeping. My preference would be spike strips to prevent the illicit U turns, but that's just me. Where are police when you need them |
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Post by gato on Jan 6, 2021 6:23:46 GMT -5
"Where are police when you need them?"
The postmaster told me that he can occasionally get the city to assign a patrol car for an hour, but it's a very sporadic thing.
I've never seen one there in the last 20 years .... except when they respond to accidents caused by the U turns.
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Jan 6, 2021 7:32:47 GMT -5
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Post by slacker 🐨 on Jan 6, 2021 7:45:03 GMT -5
>>everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure.<< Ask any traffic engineer, the most efficient way to merge is to use both lanes for as long as possible and merge at end. I believe in some states, it is the law to merge that way. abc7chicago.com/zipper-merge-illinois-what-is-law/5972855/#:~:text=Not%20only%20is%20the%20zipper,actually%20merge%2C%22%20said%20Sgt. Cooperative zipper merge is the best, but the "cooperative" aspect is where it falls down. Too many people in the lane that remains open refuse to let people in from the other lane, forcing them to force their way in, which in turn cause a wave of brake checks. I've never understood why queueing up in the lane that remains open early isn't better, but the experts say it isn't. It seems like people should be able to move over, maintain a reasonable (50 or so) speed and it's no big deal, but it always devolves into stop and go mayhem. |
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Post by Taildragger on Jan 6, 2021 11:21:36 GMT -5
>>everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure.<< Ask any traffic engineer, the most efficient way to merge is to use both lanes for as long as possible and merge at end. I believe in some states, it is the law to merge that way. abc7chicago.com/zipper-merge-illinois-what-is-law/5972855/#:~:text=Not%20only%20is%20the%20zipper,actually%20merge%2C%22%20said%20Sgt. Cooperative zipper merge is the best, but the "cooperative" aspect is where it falls down. Too many people in the lane that remains open refuse to let people in from the other lane, forcing them to force their way in, which in turn cause a wave of brake checks. I've never understood why queueing up in the lane that remains open early isn't better, but the experts say it isn't. It seems like people should be able to move over, maintain a reasonable (50 or so) speed and it's no big deal, but it always devolves into stop and go mayhem. It's equally because too many people stay in the closing lane way too late and then try to force their way into the open lane 2 and 3 cars at a time, with no regard for the "zipper" concept. Maybe what's needed is a second sign that says "begin zipper merge NOW", a hundred yards before the lane closes. Though I wouldn't expect the ones who seem to disregard all other signs would pay any attention to that one.
Seems to me that who's at fault for the whole bottleneck situation at the merge is one of those "chicken and egg" deals.
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Post by HenryJ on Jan 6, 2021 11:27:25 GMT -5
I am of the strong opinion that TV station news department, radio station news departments, and newspapers should have segments on laws pertaining to bicycle riders, pedestrians, as well as drivers. There are laws, but it seems that nobody knows them.
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Post by K4 on Jan 6, 2021 14:31:54 GMT -5
I pulled out of the driveway today. 100 yards up the street is a cross street that has stop signs. 25 Mph speed limit.
Some lady, probably texting blew through the stop sign at about 40, I slammed on my brakes barely missed getting hit. She had the audacity to flip me off.
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Post by Taildragger on Jan 6, 2021 14:43:47 GMT -5
I pulled out of the driveway today. 100 yards up the street is a cross street that has stop signs. 25 Mph speed limit. Some lady, probably texting blew through the stop sign at about 40, I slammed on my brakes barely missed getting hit. She had the audacity to flip me off. Yeah, many times I've nearly been hit and then gotten flipped off by people who don't bother to look over their left shoulder to check if they can safely merge onto the freeway from the on ramp. |
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Post by LTB on Jan 6, 2021 20:26:24 GMT -5
>>everybody should merge into the left lane because the right lane is closed for resurfacing (or whatever) ahead. In other words, there's plenty of time for everybody to move into the through lane in an orderly fashion and well before the closure.<< Ask any traffic engineer, the most efficient way to merge is to use both lanes for as long as possible and merge at end. I believe in some states, it is the law to merge that way. abc7chicago.com/zipper-merge-illinois-what-is-law/5972855/#:~:text=Not%20only%20is%20the%20zipper,actually%20merge%2C%22%20said%20Sgt. Sorry, I don't buy that.
Might work like that in a perfect world, but not in today's free-for-all/road rage traffic environment.
Maybe motorists are more thoughtful and polite where you are. Not the case, here.
I agree! It makes absolutely no sense to wait until the lane ends to merge over. That only creates traffic issues |
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