I don’t think I’d go for a merge into 4 car lengths, I might consider 5 if I had to get over. My (midsize) car is listed at 192 inches in length, 16 feet. 16 x 5 = 80 feet. Take out my “car length” and we’re left with 64 feet. 64 / 2 = 32 feet in front of me and behind me (to you). 32 feet doesn’t equal
If the highway is “fairly crowded” I don’t think that you can expect to keep a five car buffer all the time. I mean, you may want to, and the law may say you have the right to it, but that’s not the way it’s going to happen, whether I signal or not. The more crowded it is the more “precious” that real estate is.
To be honest, I hardly ever find myself in this situation. The city I live in has crowded interstates only during rush hour. And during rush hour I hardly ever change lanes b/c we’re all going the same speed (slow!) anyway. When I do drive through “big” cities like Atlanta I do find myself using turn signals more often. I wasn’t thinking about that when I so boldly made my first response to the OP.
I use them nearly every time. The only time I don’t is if I’m in a bad mood and I’m in a turn only lane, or if I’m not sure which direction I’m turning (sometimes I want to make a left, but the traffic never dies down, and there’s another way home). It really infuriates me when my father (who never signals and is IMO a purposefully awful & uncourteous driver) is making a left at a four way stop and expects the other stopped cars to read his mind and give way.
I’ve seen a car in the left lane and one in the right both change lanes without signalling into the middle lane. One has usually been 5 feet further back, honked, and both have veered wobblingly back into their respective lanes, but it’s been close.
My experience was being in the right lane with another driver ahead. We were moving at the posted 50mph. The left lane was backed up (for a left turn) and stopped. A pickup pulls from a dead stop into the right lane to pass without signalling. I and the driver in front of me brake (there goes my passenger ‘mr. lunch’ onto the floor). The front driver gets a nice imprint of a tow ball in her hood as the pickup accelerates away. I imprint ‘Chrysler’ in the dust, but not even the paint, of her bumper.
I can remember this happening once, when I was 16. That was over 15 years ago, and I swear that I don’t remember it happening since.
If someone is so close that they could accelerate into that spot before I could get there, then they would be too close for me to attempt to change lanes. Either that, or they’re driving a dragster on a public road
When I meditate I actually lift slightly off the ground.
I don’t blame you for any snarkiness, my response could certainly be interpreted as worthy of snarkiness.
Actually, from everything that I can tell, the vast majority of people don’t pay attention when they drive. As a response I drive offensively to avoid them. I think driving defensively is just waiting on something to happen.
I’m going to have to claim no responsibility if some guy is driving a dark colored motorcycle at night without a headlight. I know you didn’t say at night, but if it’s the day time then it’s a moot point. As far as a pedestrian, back in my original response, this is already a time when I would use a signal.
You know what, I will reconsider using signals more often in moving traffic. I won’t ever cede not leaving on my signal while waiting in a left hand turn lane through 3 light changes.
Well, I always use them, even in right-turn only lanes, mainly because it reminds me of where I’m going. I always curse at drivers who don’t signal late at night when I’m out because they get angry with me for heading across the crosswalk because I stupidly assumed they weren’t turning. I’ve yelled ‘INDICATE DICKHEAD’ more times than I’d like to admit, whilst on the crosswalk and out of my window.
Ooh, I knew you were cool before this, but now I think I may swoon! You are wonderful in your righteous wickedness!
I am also in the group of consistent signallers, and I’ve always wondered about the people who pick and choose when to use them based on who’s around…do they think they are saving energy or something by not signalling? Why are they so opposed to using their signals even if they don’t notice someone around? What perverse pleasure do they get from saying “WooHoo, no one’s around, I can keep my turn signal OFF!”
I use my signals as intentions. I intend on turning, changing lanes, etc. and I’m sharing my intent with you. If, after I’ve signalled and you (generic you) are trying to impede my intentions by whatever means, then you’re an asshole and deserve a dirty look.
People are generally oblivious and inconsiderate IMO when they sit in the driver’s seat. How difficult is it to pull up closer to the car in front of you when you’re in a short turn lane that only holds ten cars? If your stupid ass is meandering slowly, then you’re possibly causing the inconvenience of others’ abilities to make that turn.
That’s the stickler there - I try to not inconvenience other drivers. Goes hand in hand with the don’t-make-others-brake-on-the-freeway notion mentioned upthread.
So where are all these assholes anyway? They’re not here obviously, because all of us do what we’re supposed to, right? Right?
I met a survivor from rush hour traffic,
Who said: Two vast and burning wrecks of metal
Stand in the road. Near them, on the exit ramp,
Half sad, a shatter’d visage sits, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command,
Tell that that the victims well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp’d on that frozen face,
The finger that mock’d them, and the heart that bled.
And on the past wind these words echo:
‘My name is Turn-Signalless, King of Blinkards;
Look on my driving, Ye Mighty, and despair!’
Nothing beside traffic remains: round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level highways stretch far away.
[sub]With apologies to Percey Bysshe Shelley and Ozymandias[/sub]
I always use signals. It’s just good etiquette, a standard of behavior that helps everyone to get along just a little better. Predictable traffic is safe traffic. Deliberately never using a signal is kind of an “I’m above it, fuck you” to the rest of the world.
Just off the top of my head:
You are driving on a local street with speed limit 35, and you and the car in front are travelling 35. The car in front suddenly brakes to turn right into McDonald’s. If you’re attentive and have enough following space you can avoid actually hitting him, but if he had used a turn signal you would have been prepared to brake when he does.
You encounter a car in front of you that is stopped in the road. Is he stalled, asleep, having a heart attack, or just waiting to make a left turn? Should you go around him to the right, or will you be surprised if he suddenly continues forward?
You are in the center lane of a three-lane highway and need to move right to prepare to exit. Traffic is heavy. If I do not see a signal I am not going to make space to let you in. (I will grant you there are some idiots out there who will actually close up space to avoid letting someone get over if they signal in such a situation.)
You are approaching a red light and there is traffic lined up. There is an uncontrolled intersection in front of you, before the light. There is also a line of opposing traffic. One car in the opposing traffic wants to turn left in front of you to go down that stree to your right. You don’t see a turn signal so you pull right up behind the car in front of you instead of leaving a gap so he can turn. (I encounter this nightly on my commute from work.)
I’m fairly obsessive about using them, for standard turns, lane changes, and driving around a parking lot.
But if I’m in a left turn only lane waiting for the green arrow it seems kind of–overconscientious. “Just an additional safety factor”–yeah, and that’s what Captain Queeg said about the yellow stain.
You forgot the {twisting-hand finger-snap} that goes along with that I would still suggest using the turn signal. I have seen people who are in that lane and when they get to the light apparently think “Oh, Crap! I thought this was a through lane. Well, I’ll just zoom ahead and merge back with through traffic anyway.”
But then how do I indicate to the kind, gentle drivers in the left turn lane that I do not desire them to make a space for me?
…Or if I do want them to make a space for me, how would I indicate that, if I’m going to have the blinker on anyway?
…Darned ambiguous overloaded communication signal. :mad:
In my opinion the signal is more useful in that circumstance in its “changing lanes/not changing lanes” usage, since the “I’m turning left/not turning left” meaning is already being indicated by the fact I’m in a left turn lane. The first usage is informative; the second, redundant. (All assuming the people in that lane ‘get it’, of course.)
If I found myself stuck in the rightmost left turn lane and desired to go straight, I would turn on my right turn signal, and pray that somebody saw it and let me into the straight lane. If they didn’t by the time I got to the end of the lane I would grumblingly have no choice but to turn left and hope to rectify my course later, since the alternative would be ro upgrade from ‘refraining to doubly indicate that I’m turning left’ to ‘breaking the law’, which is not usually a jump I’m willing to make.
No, it’s a realization that the vast majority of people don’t pay attention when they drive, incorrectly use turn signals, leave signals on for miles at a time, etc, etc, etc. I choose pay 100% attention when I drive and not leave my safety in the hands of the other people on the road. If you rely on the guys turn signal in front of you, you’re trusting your life that he’s going to do what you think that turn signal means, instead of paying attention to what he actually does.
I’m attentive and leave enough space to avoid hitting him whether or not he uses his turn signal. This example really makes no sense. If the guy suddenly brakes then he’s probably just realized that he almost missed the turn and doesn’t have time to use his turn signal. Ask your local traffic cop, the person who rearends someone is found at fault about 100% of the time, turn signal or no turn signal.
Another stretch of an example. Who cares what he’s doing? How many lanes are on this road? If it’s a two lane road and he’s in the left lane the I pass on the right. If it’s a one lane road then I wait behind him until he moves.
Don’t worry about me, I’ll get in. I don’t wait until the last second to get into a turn lane if the traffic is heavy. If for some reason I am forced to wait until the last second, I would slow way down and use a turn signal.
No, you don’t pull up behind the car in front of you. You are not allowed to enter an intersection unless you can go all the way thru. This is a huge pet peeve of mine. Why would you ever do that? That’s a much worse infraction that not using turn signals. You wait until there is enough room to clear the intersection before entering the intersection. Common sense. Do you think that if you use turn signals that allows you to break other driving laws?
So, you recognize that other people on the road need all the help they can get, and respond by deliberately not sending the legally required indicators to help them drive more safely? (And you shouldn’t criticize the crappy drivers, Mr. Incorrectly Uses Turn Signals.)
Or are you saying that you seriously believe that absolutely everyone other than you drives with their eyes closed, (thus rendering your signals irrelevent due to lack of an audience) and that you are only able to survive the constant storm of cars blindly crashing into one another all around you due to your awesome attention and driving skills?
We’re not worried about your safety. We’re worried about when your reckless lack of signalling causes the driver behind you to become confused and cause an accident. See the difference?
No, I’m saying they shouldn’t rely on turn signals as indicators of what people are going to do. If you’re waiting to turn right onto a road, and the person that you are waiting for has his turn signal on indicating that he is going to turn right onto the road you are currently on, do you just go ahead and pull out right in front of him? Or do you wait and make sure that he actually turns? I know which one I do. Waiting to see if the guy turns is the only way to make sure you don’t get creemed. The guy just criticized me and then more or less admitted that he would pull into an intersection that he couldn’t make it thru. Why shouldn’t I criticize him?
Yes, you have figured me out, this is exactly what I’m saying. :smack:
I’m aware that you’re not worried about my safety. Confusion can be avoided by observing what peope actually do, instead of relying on signals. That goes for just about every aspect of life, not just driving.
I would still suggest using the turn signal. I have seen people who are in that lane and when they get to the light apparently think “Oh, Crap! I thought this was a through lane. Well, I’ll just zoom ahead and merge back with through traffic anyway.”