OP, on a standard left turn, I was trained to turn into the leftmost lane going in my direction. On a right turn, I should turn onto the rightmost lane going in my direction. Then, if it’s safe to do after I’ve gotten into my lane, I can change lanes. This is not actually required in my state and I am permitted to turn into any lane that is available to me. It’s still a good idea because it reduces potential lane conflicts to a minimum.
If you are both at a green light, the person turning left should wait for you because you while turning right have the right of way. If they aren’t yielding to you, assume they are a terrible driver and drive accordingly.
I’m not sure what you’re doing here but you shouldn’t assume that a person making a right turn across from you while you make a left turn is going to stay in their lane. You should be yielding to them. In fact, it’s a bad idea to assume that a person signaling or in a right turn only lane is turning at all. Also, as I noted above, in my state, I can turn into any lane I want heading in the direction I’m going. If you are turning left in front of me and assuming I will stay in the rightmost lane, in my state, you are the asshole and you could be liable for the collision that results.
No, it obviously doesn’t apply to that situation. Most parallel multiple turn lanes are conveniently marked with dashed lines leading you through the intersection to the lane you belong in them. Use some common sense.
This seems painfully obvious to me. For what it’s worth, it’s also supported by the Maryland driver’s manual. You are supposed to stay in your lane and there should be lane markings through the intersection to show where traffic is supposed to go while turning. I assume people who don’t do this are careless and/or inattentive rather than ignorant.
I am aware of one intersection in Maryland with parallel left turning lanes and no mid-intersection lane markings. It’s a weird intersection where, depending on the time of day, the number of left turning lanes can be two or three and the number of lanes traveling in the opposite direction can also change from between two and four. At this intersection, any painted lane markings would have to be repainted twice per day to be accurate. Even without lane markings, the guidance to stay in your lane unless it is safe to change lanes should still hold. Shockingly, the intersection seems to work without lane markings because most people are familiar with the intersection and understand what they are supposed to do. The obvious problem is that if a person is unfamiliar with the intersection, how they are going to respond could be a crapshoot.
Correct if the “center lane” you are heading to is the second-most through lane on that street. Again, the lane markings through the intersection should show you what to do.
Correct.
This turn is perfectly legal in Maryland. In theory, as my driving instructor suggested, you should still make a right turn into the second lane from the right. You are correct that you should theoretically be safe making a near-instantaneous lane change into that left lane because there shouldn’t be any cars there. Check your mirror anyway just to be sure.
I often do the same thing for the same reason but I also check my mirror and the right turning lane across from me as I’m turning to make sure no one is sneaking up on me in the lane I’m heading to.
