# What do you do when some bully tries to force their way into your lane? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 22, 2015, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574 "2015-05-22T07:18:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2015, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/81 "2015-05-27T16:27:19Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > That’s not the way it plays out. When one driver pushes in and gets an advantage, other drivers start to think they are losing out if they don’t try to push in and get an advantage also. If rudeness pays, then it pays to be rude. > In the Bay Area we have fairly long exit lanes, and often cars on these exit lanes will pass lots of cars stuck on the freeway. Which is great if they are actually exiting. But what happens is that cars go to the very end of the lane, where there is a solid white line between them and the freeway proper, and push into the freeway to get a 20 car advantage. > This is illegal, and every so often the Highway Patrol is sitting at the end of the lane to pull these assholes over. But mostly someone lets them in, so they do it more. And lead to a dangerous situation if they stop in front of people actually getting off. The lane is marked Exit Only, by the way > If no one let them off, so they wound up frequently taking an unwanted exit, their behavior should improve. > I stay in the next lane over since I’ve observed that the rightmost lane gets slowed down a lot by people braking to let the cheaters in. So I’m just an observer. > This behavior has spread to city streets, where there are a lot of people who stay in the left lane of a three lane road even though they want to take a right exit, and cut over at the last minute (this is called dive bombing) in the expectation that people will let them. Missing their exit a few times would encourage them to think ahead. Their behavior is not just impolite, it is dangerous. I see this sometimes in Houston, and it drives me crazy. Sometimes it’s the exit lane running smoothly and the main road is backed up, and sometimes the reverse. But I’ve seen in both cases, someone just totally stopped in the lane that should be going smoothly because they want to get into the backed up lane that’s going the way they need to go. I agree that they should just exit and recalculate their road, that’s what I would do in their situation. I would never just stop and hope to get over, partly because I’m not an asshole, but also because it seems super dangerous, and someone coming up behind me in the lane that should be going fast could plow right into me. I don’t know what could be done, other than better driver’s education, more cops watching out for that, or big freaking signs that say “Don’t stop on the highway for no good reason, you idiots”. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/82 "2015-05-27T20:05:52Z")
> [@diggerwam](#): > > … in the grand scheme of things, what do you lose by letting him in? … The collapse of civil society and ultimately of Western civilization! ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/83 "2015-05-27T22:30:28Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > The collapse of civil society and ultimately of Western civilization! So, nothing bad then… ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/84 "2015-05-28T00:42:19Z")
There is no prize for being macho on the highway. The only prize is arriving alive. So make way–and keep your insurance low. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/85 "2015-05-28T02:57:35Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > So, nothing bad then… Well, nothing important … ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/86 "2015-05-28T03:17:39Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > . > Also, use all lanes before a merge in zipper in. Don’t get into the lane WAY back and then complain about people going to the front and then merging in. There is a backup because people like you don’t let people merge. This is important, IMO. The idea that you are doing the right thing by getting in the right lane as far back as you can, and get mad at someone using the left lane to the merge point is one of the biggest problems in situations like this. There was a similar choke point where I commute every day. For a week, everyone would get in the right lane, and people would get pissed off at the people who would drive in the left lane, up to the merge point, and merge. After the first week, the road crew (or the state) put up a sign that said “use both lanes to merge point, then TAKE YOUR TURN”. Problem solved. > [@DCnDC](#): > > PS And is it any surprise that this person was driving a BMW? Not that assholes can’t drive anything, but my confirmation bias has clearly demonstrated that this sort of behavior is endemic among the Beamers, the Benzes, the Lexi, and for some reason the Nissan Altima drivers of the world. But maybe that’s just me (and DC in general). I don’t think the car matters much. I notice the same things about SAAB and Volvo drivers, in particular. Assholes, the lot! But no, I don’t think the person is automatically a jerk because of the car/truck they drive. However, if the person is in a mud-covered 4x4 truck with a gun rack, I DO make spot judgment calls. 😃 As to your complaint. IMO, you left too much space, and gave the BMW driver an “in”. As soon as his bumper gets in front of yours, he has the right-of-way. Of course, you could fight it for a few feet, but if you hit his car, what is the result? You lose time and money and gum up traffic further. Maybe he failed in manners, but there was still plenty of room to drive up to the merge point. As soon as the truck slowed and drifted in front of you, you should have moved up to his bumper if you wanted to let the BMW know you did not intend to let a second vehicle in. People are NOT mind readers. The BMW driver could have easily believed you were giving him the room needed to merge in front of him. Some folks do let more than one person merge in front of them for whatever reason. You didn’t seem all that aggressive in closing the gap between you and the pickup truck. So this guy in the BMW slipped in front of you? Meh. If this is the worst thing that happened to you in traffic, and you were so upset that you made a video, uploaded it, and opened a thread to pit the guy, you need to check your anger threshold. As far as I could tell, this didn’t even cost you a traffic light cycle. You lost one car length. Whoop-dee-fuckin’-do. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/87 "2015-05-28T06:05:59Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > [http://license-plate-look-up.net](http://license-plate-look-up.net) Yeah but then what do you do with THAT? Your going to track down the BMW owner in the OP and call and yell at them? That will just get you in possible legal trouble. There have been a few times Ive encountered truck drivers who gave me the finger and I wanted to call the phone numbers on the side of their trucks and give their company the business, but then I remembered how many times have I done the same to other drivers, I wouldn’t want those drivers tracking me down and calling my company. The other guy might be having a bad day, and has mouths to feed. Plus, he will just deny anything happened to his boss. If someone tries to run you off the road, is zipping, or doing something that maliciously is harming other drivers, then the best thing to do is call the police. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/88 "2015-05-29T13:02:03Z")
I usually just let them in and forget about it. I guess I have a ‘different than most attitude’ about driving. If someone is in a hurry or cutting in an out of traffic, I just move away from them or let them go. I hate people to bump into my car and just want them to get away from me. If they crowd me, I back off, move over, and/or let them go. If they almost hit me, I don’t get all upset about it and yell at them or flip them the bird. I’m usually just glad they didn’t hit me and move away from them. I watched a slo-mo drama unfold in the car line at the school a couple of days ago when dropping a kid off where I violated this rule, though. There is a big construction project going on at the school and all the cars a rerouted to one entrance into the school lot. Upon entry into the school lot, this single lane is then split into three lanes. These three lanes join up again at the end of the parking lot and are then directed back into single file to go back to the street. Of course, the street is heavily junked up, too, due to traffic lights before and after the school entry and exit, and there are police directing traffic, but there are so many cars it’s just a big mess. It can take 30 minutes to get through this mess, so we usually go early. So, I was waiting to blend back in to the single file merge after the drop off. The lady in the right lane was attempting to jump ahead by one car space (as if it would make any difference at all). The guy whose turn it was to merge was annoyed and they both of them kept moving up about one or two feet at at time as traffic allowed, jockeying for position. She rolled down her window to yell at him. He rolled down his window to yell back. She then threw trash at his car a couple of times. He got out and talked to her. She rolled up her window and shot him ‘the bird.’ He got back into his car. She threw more trash. I was just amused that something interesting was happening for a change- LOL! Then she started digging around in her passenger seat and pulled out her cell phone. While she was doing that, the line moved a couple of feet, so the guy moved up and took his ‘rightful’ spot. I moved up a little but left her her ‘rightful’ opening. She then started waving at and talking to me. I moved up a little and rolled down my window to see what she wanted. She was waving her phone and telling me that she was going to record him. But, while she was yammering about that, the line moved again. I waited a few seconds, but she was still complaining about the guy, so I moved on up and took her spot. So, she got right on my bumper and turned on her bright lights. And we waited. Then she parked and got out to go complain to the cops at the end of the line, blocking everyone behind her. Such joy. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/89 "2015-05-29T13:30:24Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Yeah but then what do you do with THAT? Your going to track down the BMW owner in the OP and call and yell at them? That will just get you in possible legal trouble. From post #19 in this very thread: > [@](#): > > I let him in front of me, then run a search on his license plate to find his address. Then I race to his house before he gets home and ax murder his whole family. I scrawl “learn how to merge properly!” on the wall in baby blood, do an upper-decker in his toilet, and then go home feeling good about having done my part for traffic safety. Next time, read more closely. ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/90 "2015-05-29T15:26:34Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > From post #19 in this very thread: > > Next time, read more closely. You’re obviously a man who’s familiar with Roger’s Rangers Standing Order Rule #20. _20. Don’t use your musket if you can kill 'em with your hatchet._ > **[Robert Rogers' 28 "Rules of Ranging"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Rogers%27_28_%22Rules_of_Ranging%22)** > > The 28 "Rules of Ranging" are a series of rules and guidelines created by Major Robert Rogers in 1757, during the French and Indian War (1754–63). > The rules were originally written at Rogers Island in the Hudson River near Fort Edward. They were intended to serve as a manual on guerrilla warfare for Rogers' Ranger company, a 600 strong contingent whose members were personally selected by Rogers. > The rules were the result of Rogers' blend of Native American tactics and his own innovative com... 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/91 "2015-05-29T15:42:30Z")
Sometimes [road rage backfires](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xmc7tUCZNw). ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2015, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/92 "2015-05-31T01:17:50Z")
I thought of this thread when I was driving thru, I think it was Oklahoma, and saw this [sign](http://charwinccrs.com/LuckyKitty/IMG_4585.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/93 "2015-05-31T01:38:34Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Sometimes [road rage backfires](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xmc7tUCZNw). Sweet street justice. Get a load of [this guy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yeipzl1uZY&feature=youtu.be) Nearly kills the guy then proceeds to give him crap about it but it doesn’t go well either. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2015, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/94 "2015-05-31T11:27:02Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > Sweet street justice. > > Get a load of [this guy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yeipzl1uZY&feature=youtu.be) Nearly kills the guy then proceeds to give him crap about it but it doesn’t go well either. I love that video with my whole body. ---
**Author:** ![curlcoat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea5d25/32.png) [@curlcoat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curlcoat)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2015, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/95 "2015-05-31T20:49:41Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > Sweet street justice. > > Get a load of [this guy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Yeipzl1uZY&feature=youtu.be) Nearly kills the guy then proceeds to give him crap about it but it doesn’t go well either. Oh my god, I totally laughed! ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2015, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/96 "2015-05-31T21:50:22Z")
The very worst asshole-clusterfuck we encountered makes this look like a bunch of pikers. We headed north on I-25 out of Trinidad, and a ways up ahead, the freeway was closed, routed through Walsenburg. So it squished down to one lane before being sent over the overpass into town. But some of the drivers just could not cope with going slow on the interstate, so they _brodied across the grass verge_ onto the road that was parallel to the freeway. Which helped not a bit, because we who stayed on the freeway were not only merging with the left lane, but then, when we got to the end of the ramp, we had to merge with the idiots who had jumped onto the side road. I mean, they gained absolutely nothing, except maybe the enmity of the people who had stayed on the freeway. ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/97 "2015-06-01T18:20:06Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > Good driving is not about “everyone on the road should play fair and if you don’t you’re gonna have me to contend with, asshole”. > > Good driving is about “I am going to try to play fair and I am also, in addition to that, going to try to make my driving inconvenience the smallest number of other drivers possible”. > > Going around “punishing” various licensed idiots for their bad driving behaviors is dangerous. Not just to you and the idiots, but to the rest of us. People like your above-described BMW driver, if blocked from completing their ill-gotten merge, tend to do abrupt things trying to do it anyway and/or horn their way into some other tiny space. Or, annoyed by your brights in their rear-view mirror, they stand their vehicle on its nose to teach you a lesson, and maybe you rear-end them or, more likely, you stop in time but someone in the chain of tightly packed cars behind you doesn’t. > > Which, umm, enlarges the category of licensed idiot drivers if you see what I mean. > > Be a good driver. Be _nicer_ than the other guy. I’ve got a very simple rule for this situations, if they use the blinkers I let them in, if they don’t signal fugget 'bout it, no way, no how. ---
**Author:** ![Kimbosquee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/45deac/32.png) [@Kimbosquee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimbosquee)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2015, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/98 "2015-06-02T23:47:43Z")
I guess I figured it was okay to pit the guy after reading this thread earlier before it happened. [Who are the bigger assholes, people who cut into backed up traffic, or the do-gooders who let them? - The BBQ Pit - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=583398) Lol at those videos, but my petty little retaliation has nothing on those. On the subject of road rage, is there anything wrong with this picture IYHO? [- YouTube](http://youtu.be/ichSNj5kTJ0) I think this would have been a more worthy pit, but maybe I was in the wrong once again and am willing to learn. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2015, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/99 "2015-06-03T00:00:29Z")
> [@Kimbosquee](#): > > I guess I figured it was okay to pit the guy after reading this thread earlier before it happened. [Who are the bigger assholes, people who cut into backed up traffic, or the do-gooders who let them? - The BBQ Pit - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=583398) > > Lol at those videos, but my petty little retaliation has nothing on those. On the subject of road rage, is there anything wrong with this picture IYHO? [http://youtu.be/ichSNj5kTJ0](http://youtu.be/ichSNj5kTJ0) > I think this would have been a more worthy pit, but maybe I was in the wrong once again and am willing to learn. I think you’re a shitty driver. You should have been moving over and preparing to exit long before the Nissan passed you on the right. ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2015, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574/100 "2015-06-03T02:48:42Z")
I confess, sometimes [I would like to drive a tank too.](http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/32973341/british-tank-crushes-learner-drivers-car-in-germany) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-some-bully-tries-to-force-their-way-into-your-lane/720574.md?page=6)