Let me make this as simple as I can. When you approach a 4-way stop, you defer the right of way to the person who arrived first. When you approach a 2 way stop, and you have the stop sign, there are rules of the road. I face this situation daily. I live on a county highway that crosses a county highway. My road has the red flashing light the north/southbound traffic has the yellow flashing light. Let me make this clear, North/South does not have to stop. The flasher is yellow.
On to the dumbasses. When you approach the East/West intersection you have to stop and give right of way. If you are turning right----You have right of way. It doesn’t matter if I got there first, you have right of way. If you are travelling straight across the intersection, you yield to those turning right, and then you have right of way. Finally, fucktard, if I am turning left, I must yield to you. I must, by law, yield to you. No goddamn hand signals, no flashing of the headlights, I must give you the right of way. It is not courtesy that holds me back, it is the fucking law. So go, goddammit. I don’t hold back when it is my turn to go, so go. Else we will have more crashes here and you will claim, but I waved him through.
If that is what torques your jars, never drive in New England. The rules of the road regarding right of way were shredded long ago. I have seen drivers stop at a green light to wave through a car turn left.
Can we turn this into a rant about round-abouts? Seriously, I’ve been almost killed on those damn things numerous times from people driving against traffic in the inner lane. This isn’t Europe, we aren’t used to driving in damn circles. We like corners! Dear Road Commision: stop building these things!
In its eternal quest to disrupt smooth traffic and hasten the day drivers rise up to smash their cars, others’ cars, each other, and all traffic lights, Missoula has a few roundabouts and is getting more. The fact roundabouts are not a part of the American landscape and are certainly not usual, customary, or sane only adds to the appeal of having to use them in the presence of drivers who have lost all semblance of human form and are steering with their asses while attempting to scratch their way through their seatbacks.
Unlike most NE’ers I rather enjoy the way we drive. But I agree, we have shredded the common rules and now play by our own. I rather like it, but I always end up nearly killed when I drive elsewhere.
I’m confused. I’ll make some clarifying assumptions, the first being that you’re in Ft. Bragg, California, and operating under the California Vehicle Code; the second is that both you and your pittees are stopping at the flashing red lights. In that case, you’re very, very wrong. At an intersection at which some, but not all, directions are controlled by stop signs or flashing red lights, the ONLY determiner of right-of-way (for those stopped) is who got there first (all-way stops are another kettle of fish). That direction-of-turn business only applies to uncontrolled traffic; i.e., the cars facing the flashing yellow lights. Even then, I don’t think there’s ANY law that guarantees right-of-way to cars turning right, except where indicated by a sign or signal specifying that.
I have no idea why you’re making the assumption that he’s in California. Considering we’re talking about one of the few active duty military members of the board, I think that the default assumption would be that he’s at Fort Bragg, in North Carolina.
For the OP, you have my sympathy. My impression had been, while I was active duty, that the worst places to drive, in the US, were military bases - not because they’re necessarily bad drivers, but as other posters have hinted at, there are regional rules, or at least collective insanities, that work - if everyone involved is using the same playbook. When you’ve got the Boston driver meeting the NYC driver meeting the California driver meeting the Florida driver bad things happen.
…add the El Salvadorean/Chinese/Indian/Arab/Southerner/whatever plus an inordinate number of Type A bosses and lawyers, and welcome to DC! I personally experience at least one near-miss every time I get in a car here.
…and if it rains/snows or even if the sun is bright, welcome to the parking lot.
The OP is stopping at a red flasher. He is complaining about assholes in the cross traffic that stop on their yellow flasher, thereby screwing up the traffic fung shui.
Been there. The magic roundabout there scared the bejeebus out of me (and you don’t want bejeebus all over the car.) My boss (who grew up there) navigates it without effort, but it still makes me nervous.
This is big in Rhode Island. Also people waving others on when it’s not like they couldn’t make their turn in, like, one second. You know, it’s one thing to give someone a break if there’s a long line behind you, but here they do it when there’s not another car in sight.
I guess it’s to make up for all the times they’ve boldly blocked traffic on the right side of the road so they could make a left. Or the lack of turn signals, I don’t know which.
