# How do you define being "cut off" while driving? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 18, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914 "2010-03-18T17:29:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/1 "2010-03-18T17:29:43Z")
Being “cut off” while driving is one of those terms I’ve heard used incessantly, but never bothered to really think about what it means. Out of curiosity [I finally googled it up](http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_cutting_someone_off_mean) and apparently being “cut off” means simply that someone pulls into your lane in front of you at a closer distance than you are comfortable with. Some people defining being “cut off” extending out to 50 yards. How close does someone have to be to\* you\* in merging before you define it as being “cut off”. What is your acceptable personal space zone in driving? > [@](#): > > To “cut someone off” means that you drive your car into their lane in front of them. Some drivers are more sensitive to having this happen to them than others. I personally only feel “cut off” if the driver pulling in front of me does it at a fairly close distance say under 30 feet. Some drivers may be offended if you pull in front of them at distance of 50 yards. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/2 "2010-03-18T17:35:24Z")
Close enough that I have to seriously brake (not just tap) to avoid hitting them or maintain a proper following distance. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/3 "2010-03-18T17:37:06Z")
If I have to hit my brakes to avoid a collision, I feel like I’ve been cut off. If I just have to take my foot off the gas, I don’t consider that cut off, but I do think that’s rude as well. Plus, anyone who moves in front of me at a distance less than 1 car length, unless traffic is stopped/jammed, has cut me off as well, regardless of how fast they’re going. So if a truck turns into my lane 100 yards away, but I’m going 45 and he’s going 5 and takes forever to come up to speed, I’d still consider that cut off. ---
**Author:** ![tacoloco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tacoloco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tacoloco)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/4 "2010-03-18T17:37:56Z")
Happened to me yesterday. I’m driving down the highway and some knucklehead decided they needed to be in the far right lane from the far left. It didn’t require slamming on the brakes, but if I had my attention anywhere else than eyes front, I may have hit him. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/5 "2010-03-18T17:49:11Z")
> [@Darth\_Sensitive](#): > > Close enough that I have to seriously brake (not just tap) to avoid hitting them or maintain a proper following distance. This is it for me also. If there is a reasonable amount of space between me and the guy in front of me, I don’t consider a car pulling in cutting me off. If there is less than one car length (you would be surprised) then I do. I never consider someone entering my lane from a forced merge a cut off, unless there is an every other car merge situation and some knucklehead feels he has to make it two merges in one space. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/6 "2010-03-18T17:50:04Z")
Yep. If I have to hit my brakes in order to not hit them. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/7 "2010-03-18T18:31:28Z")
If I have to brake or slow down (if I have to slow down, they should have fallen in behind me). ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/8 "2010-03-18T18:55:52Z")
I only consider myself cut off if I have to brake. And if I don’t have to _slam_ on brakes, it’s no big deal to me. But let me tell you, if anyone ever slows my husband down in the slightest, he is pissed off! I don’t get it. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/9 "2010-03-18T19:02:26Z")
What everyone else said, but especially this: > [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > …(if I have to slow down, they should have fallen in behind me). Seriously! Get behind me, shit-for-brains, if you’re going to drive slower than I am. Can you not gauge speed, or are you just an asshole? Having to slow down is annoying enough, but what you _really_ shouldn’t do is make me slam on my brakes, then start driving 10 mph slower than I am. I need a rocket launcher for my car. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/10 "2010-03-18T19:05:42Z")
Being ‘cut off’ is one of those things that upset people that I really don’t get. I mean, unless I have to slam my breaks, and I fear for my life, I could care less if you cut in front of me. Go for it! Enjoy. In upstate NY, people really take it hard. Every single time I go to NYC though, the problem disappears. Everyone cuts off everyone and it is no big deal, it seems to me. I drive defensively, always have. I am aware. If you need to get in front, even if I have to tap my breaks, it’s not a big deal…I’m aware of you. My sister in law sees RED when it happens. I have no idea what the big deal is. Now, if someone cuts me off, I do hope that they will keep their speed up. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/11 "2010-03-18T19:07:19Z")
It’s like the people who pull out in front of you when you’re the only car on the road, then proceed to make you wait as they make a turn two blocks later - you couldn’t let me go by? You had to interfere with my stress-free evening? ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/12 "2010-03-18T19:13:23Z")
Having to brake sharply and/or take evasive action to avoid a collision when when someone pulls in front of me defines being “cut off”. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/13 "2010-03-18T19:22:30Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > It’s like the people who pull out in front of you when you’re the only car on the road, then proceed to make you wait as they make a turn two blocks later - you couldn’t let me go by? You had to interfere with my stress-free evening? Or if you’re waiting at a light and some moron coming up behind you moves into the lane next to you, floors it when the light turns, then gets right back in your lane and makes a turn, causing you to stop and wait. WTF is that all about? Just stay behind me at the damn light so I don’t get stuck behind you! ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/14 "2010-03-18T19:30:56Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Having to brake sharply and/or take evasive action to avoid a collision when when someone pulls in front of me defines being “cut off”. That, and similar actions described above. I’d also add being in a situation where you’re forced into another lane or onto the shoulder to avoid a side-by-side collision. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/15 "2010-03-18T20:21:21Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Being ‘cut off’ is one of those things that upset people that I really don’t get. > > I mean, unless I have to slam my breaks, and I fear for my life, I could care less if you cut in front of me. Go for it! Enjoy. The thing that drives me crazy the most about this is if there is nobody behind me, yet the person pulling out in front of me couldn’t wait five seconds for me to go by, they had to pull out right in front of me instead. And of course, they’re always in a big hurry to pull out, but once they’re in front of you then they just poke along. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/16 "2010-03-18T20:26:46Z")
> [@astro](#): > > Being “cut off” while driving is one of those terms I’ve heard used incessantly, but never bothered to really think about what it means. It’s sort of a weird term, I think. It sounds like something that would happen to John Wayne Bobbitt. ---
**Author:** ![tacoloco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7993a0/32.png) [@tacoloco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tacoloco)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/17 "2010-03-18T20:33:28Z")
Nzinga, the only time it really bothers me if it was a situation that was dangerous. The old adrenaline rush is rough sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/18 "2010-03-18T21:38:35Z")
> [@tacoloco](#): > > Nzinga, the only time it really bothers me if it was a situation that was dangerous. The old adrenaline rush is rough sometimes. No doubt. I completely understand that, it gets to me too, if I have to slam breaks to avoid a collision. And it’s not like I don’t completely understand getting upset behind the wheel…you should hear me grumble when someone doesn’t just go when the light turns freakin’ green. What on earth are they waiting for? ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/19 "2010-03-18T23:08:36Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > The thing that drives me crazy the most about this is if there is nobody behind me, yet the person pulling out in front of me couldn’t wait five seconds for me to go by, they had to pull out right in front of me instead. > > And of course, they’re always in a big hurry to pull out, but once they’re in front of you then they just poke along. :mad: GAH! Got angry just thinking about this. I seem to encounter this more than anything. Someone has gotten tired of waiting for traffic to pass and decides to gun it out in front of me, causing me to hit my brakes. After the danger has passed, the first thing I do is look in my rear view, only to discover there was NO ONE behind me. _sigh_ ---
**Author:** ![Soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2010, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914/20 "2010-03-18T23:19:04Z")
I live in Atlanta and I don’t consider myself “cut off” until I hear tires screeching or I have to swerve. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-define-being-cut-off-while-driving/532914.md?page=2)