Huh? What if you see someone you know, walking, and want to get their attention?
What – You mean like those kneebiters who honk in the alley because they’re too lazy to get out of the car and use the intercom to call their friends?
That’s a strange law! IIRC, NJ also makes it illegal to use the left lane on freeways & turnpikes for anything other than passing, and semis will get a ticket for using the left lane without a damn good reason. Now THAT is a sensible law! (Motorways in the UK are the same - I got a warning ticket for staying too long in the “passing” lane on the M1 a couple of years ago.)
I’ll give someone a little honk if they don’t realise the light has changed green, & had people alert me similarly if I’m not paying attention. It’s not a MOVE IT ASSHOLE honk. More like tapping someone on the shoulder in line at a bank if they don’t hear the teller saying “next in line, please.”
Somehow sticking your head out the window and bellowing “THE LIGHT’S CHANGED!” seems ruder than honking. And sitting quietly through a whole light cycle because the person in front isn’t paying attention (hey we’ve all done it) just seems weird.
Nope. Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t do it, but according to what I was told in my probationary class and what I read in the manual lo those many years ago, you shouldn’t honk at pedestrians unless you’re about to smack into them. The reasoning is that if you honk at a pedestrian who’s not expecting it, they might be startled, get discombobulated, and who knows what might happen. (I guess they think the person might, while disoriented, jump from being startled and wind up in traffic.)
Actually, if they have this law, I’m not aware of it - and if it exists, I’ve never seen it enforced. What I do see, however, are signs that instruct trucks to stay in the right lanes only. That’s way cool. Much easier to see the traffic ahead of you, much easier to change lanes, etc.
I agree, a little toot’s more helpful and polite than any other alternative. So yeah, it’s a weird law, but I’d say it’s one of those no one-knows=about-it-so-we-don’t-bother-with-it laws, one that has gone the way of the spitting-on-the-sidewalk laws. 
No, I meant like yesterday, when I was coming home from work, saw a pal standing on the corner waiting for the light and honked at him. He saw me and didn’t cross, I pulled over and drove him the rest of the way to his place. If I hadn’t honked, he would have crossed and the moment would have passed.
The intersection I was talking about had been that way from probably twenty years. But within a couple weeks of my post a “No turn on red sign” popped up, making the question moot.
Coincidence? or do we have a Denver traffic planner lurking out there?
During the gas shortages in the '70s, many states that had prohibited right turns on red lights changed their laws to allow turns after a full stop, no oncoming traffic, etc. This was to avoid wasting gas while sitting at a stop light where it was safe to make the turn. They also encouraged pulling right up to the car in front of you rather than ‘creeping’ up a few feet at a time.
Seeing it from the fuel consumption point of view, it would make sense to make the safe right rather than waste the gas. The law didn’t require it as such, but if you’re in a conservation state-of-mind, it can only further your efforts. Of course if you have an SUV, you’ll probably take all the time you need at the safe right turn, changing CDs, putting on makeup, yelling at the kids, wasting gas…
I live near LA and consider myself a considerate driver - I don’t honk at people if they’re holding me up being cautious (waiting for pedestrians or red lights). I do honk at people who are being flaming idiots by pulling out in front of me when I’m driving max speed down an 8-lane road.
But I also consider myself an efficient driver. On my way home from work, there’s a cross street - one of which is a major throughfare for people heading towards the 405 Freeway, the other is a smallish 4-lane that peters out to a stop sign and 2 lane road. I frequently drive down the smallish one because it’s closer to where I work, and I invariably hit a red light at the intersection with the larger street. It’s an exceedingly LONG red light, so unless I hit it when it’s green (it’s an even shorter green), I make it a practice to turn right onto the larger street, since I can turn right on red after all, and I’m still going in the general direction I need to be going.
It’s possible the guy was doing the same sort of thing - intending to turn right since the light was red and he didn’t want to wait for it to turn green, but since he ended up having to wait for the green anyway, he just went straight (“screw you slowpoke, I don’t want to end up behind you at the next frigging turn!”). I know plenty of other people who follow this logic while driving - I can make a right here and not have to wait for this long-ass red light to turn green, then turn left again at the next street which has a protected green. Or something like that.
He was still an a-hole for honking and hollering. People around here sure need to learn some patience!
Rilchiam, I don’t think you’re required to turn right on red. However, if the intersection allows it, I think it is polite to do so IF the person behind you is displaying his right turn signal. If he’s not signaling, and the lane you’re in isn’t right-turn-only, then you can assume he’s heading straight (not that he necessarily will be, only that he hasn’t advised you otherwise), and take all the time you want. If he is displaying his right turn signal, though, I’d turn - if nothing else, to encourage the use of turn signals. After all, you can change CDs at the next light.
(Of course, honking under such circumstances is definitely rude. For one thing, from behind you he would have no way of knowing for sure that your turn path was clear; sometimes there is an obstruction that is only obvious to the person at the head of the line. And for another, it isn’t his decision to make - only you decide when it’s time to turn. Plus, what he did was stupid. Honking at someone under those circumstances is a lot more likely to provoke contrary behavior - sitting there until the light turns green, slooooooowly putting the car into gear, pausing to ensure no pedestrians within half-mile radius, then just barely moving around the turn.)
If this was during rush hour, then that’s even more of a reason to turn. People who have lived here a long time or learned to drive here (I’ve only lived in LA since 1997, myself) often regard the front-of-the-line position as a sacred trust, almost, during rush hour: you aren’t supposed to zone out or do other things like change CDs if you’re first. (Would that everyone felt this way.) It sort of makes sense, too, because the slightest hangup during rush hour can cause all manner of delays. Think of people who break at the top of the freeway onramps. (Obviously, not turning right on red is not nearly as big a problem as not speeding up on an onramp, but it can still be a problem, especially in a heavy-use intersection.)
One final thing: he may have wanted you to go on red because he was afraid a pedestrian would hold you up on green. There are some intersections where it’s almost impossible to turn right on green because of the numbers of pedestrians crossing - people do walk in LA! - and in that case not turning on red would be folly. I assume this was not one of those places.
To sum: it’s polite to turn as soon as possible, especially if the driver behind you is signaling a right turn or if it is rush hour. But even if you were being somewhat rude, the guy behind you was much more so. (Assuming he was honking because he wanted you to turn, and not trying to call your attention to a flat or something.)