Traffic sins


  • Impossible Mission - B

    Things people should not do with their cars, that they do all the time:

    1. Thou shalt not tailgate! Seriously, it's just plain unacceptable. Do not do it at any time, for any reason. It's an extremely aggressive and threatening act, and it makes you come across as a thug. If the car ahead of you shows any signs that the driver is uncomfortable with how close you're following (flashing hazard lights, tapping their brakes, etc,) back off, and then stay back. Safe following distance is generally considered to be ~2-3 seconds. If you literally can't stand to be slowed down by 2-3 seconds, you do not have the proper temperament to be behind the wheel!
    2. Seriously, don't tailgate. Not even when stopped. When at a red light, stay far enough back that you can see the road behind the tires of the car in front of you. This is a good rule of thumb to ensure that just in case someone rear-ends you, you won't slide far enough to hit the guy in front of you and make the accident even worse. (This is not a theoretical concern; I've been hit like this by "cue ball" cars twice before. Both times, it wouldn't have happened if the idiot behind me had just stayed back a bit further!)
    3. Turn off your high beams if they're pointed at someone. Tailgating is threatening to harm someone; shining a light bright enough to blind them into their eyes (or their rear-view mirrors) is actually harmful, and you don't need high beams if there's another car in front of you; between your low-beams and his taillights you have all the information you need to know about where to drive.
    4. Use your turn signal. Changing lanes without signaling is not only illegal, it's extremely dangerous. If someone doesn't know you're planning on occupying that space, they might try to do so as well!
    5. Only use your turn signal when you mean it. It's so annoying to take action based on someone planning on changing lanes... and then they don't change; they just left it on, blinking and blinking and blinking for a mile and a half because they didn't turn it off after using it.
    6. Respect turn signals. If someone's signaling to pull into another lane, treat them as if they're already in that lane as far as you safely can. If they're slightly ahead of you, slow down a little to give them room to pull in. If they're in front of you, don't try to beat them to it and pass them. (No, not even if there's an upcoming break in a line of faster-moving cars in the next lane that will reach you before it reaches the car ahead of you. Respect the turn signal!) And whatever you do, don't speed up and pull into their blind spot when you see the turn signal come on. I mean, what kind of retard would ever think that that's a good idea?!? And yet, people do it all the time.
    7. Park facing out, not in. Parking involves moving from an area where there are other things moving to an area where there's nothing moving. Leaving a parking stall involves going from an area where there's nothing moving around you into a traffic zone where things are moving. (That's a bit of an oversimplification, but not much of one.) Backing up is harder than moving forward, for reasons that should be intuitively obvious to anyone with any real-world experience driving. Therefore, it is beyond stupid to think that performing the more dangerous maneuver in the more difficult style (ie. backing out of a parking stall) is a good idea! And yet, if you go to almost any parking lot, you'll see that about 70% of the cars are parked facing in, rather than out! And it's ridiculous! A couple days ago, I went to the grocery store, and some idiot tried to back out right into my car, because I was at an angle where he couldn't clearly see me. I had to blare my horn at him for almost 3 seconds before he realized that that sound probably means there's another car behind him and stopped moving. (I couldn't back up easily to get out of his way because there were pedestrians with shopping carts behind me.) If he had parked right in the first place, he'd have been able to see me with no trouble.

    Why do I have to deal with people breaking these simple rules on a daily basis?!?



  • For your health, I recommend that you never visit Poland.


  • FoxDev

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    A couple days ago, I went to the grocery store, and some idiot tried to back out right into my car, because I was at an angle where he couldn't clearly see me. I had to blare my horn at him for almost 3 seconds before he realized that that sound probably means there's another car behind him and stopped moving.

    I'm willing to bet that's not so much because it was hard for him to see you, more that he didn't bother looking at all.


  • Winner of the 2016 Presidential Election

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    Park facing out, not in.

    I don't do that. But I'm also not a complete idiot and therefore have never endangered someone while leaving my parking spot.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @asdf said in Traffic sins:

    I don't do that.

    Why not?


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    Corollary to "Don't Tailgate":

    • You know the size of the gap between your front bumper and the other car's rear bumper? Yeah, that safe following distance gap? Do not change lanes unless the distance between your back bumper and the other car's front bumper is at least as wide as that same gap.

  • Winner of the 2016 Presidential Election

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    Why not?

    Because I don't like to duck under a tree while loading my trunk.



  • @masonwheeler Presumably because backing into a parking spot is harder than backing out of one; if nobody else does it, people are going to take your parking spots when you drive by them (principle of least surprise, etc); and de-parking isn't even hard.



  • @masonwheeler you forgot the single most important sin:

    Drive in the lane as close to the roadside as practical given your current speed relative to other traffic. (This is actually THE LAW in a lot of places; unfortunately it's just usually not enforced.) Under no circumstances should you drive in a middle lane slower than the traffic behind you wants to drive for extended lengths of time or without a good reason (such as, "I'm exiting/turning from that lane in 500 meters" -- note this needs to be impending, not 10 km further down). And if you're in a middle lane and at any time you feel like the person behind you is following too closely and you have the opportunity to move over in a relatively quick manner, be the nicer person and let them pass. Even if they're speeding.

    They want to go faster, they literally have no way of communicating their desire other than creeping up on your ass, and literally the only thing preventing you from letting them past is the fact that you feel like you should be allowed to decide how fast they should be able to go because you're in front of them. If it would be no significant inconvenience to you to just let them do what they want to do, and you refuse just because you're an asshole, don't be surprised if you find that people tend to act like an asshole in return. By tailgating you.

    If it helps, just let them pass, and as they're speeding past you imagine them getting pulled over. There, they got caught. Now you can be happy for their suffering for being such an asshole and wanting to drive fast and the horrible inconvenience of you having to change lanes just to let them speed. You're obviously a much better person than they are. You don't get speeding tickets. And you can also pat yourself on the back for obeying the law, if it says not to camp out in the middle lanes.

    Just fucking let them pass you, though.

    tl;dr: If someone clearly wants to pass you and you're reasonably capable of letting them pass, JUST LET THEM PASS.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    your current speed relative to other traffic

    Instant fail on your part.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @anotherusername No.

    I spent my entire childhood getting shoved around by thugs and bullies who thought that force and threats of force were a good way to get what they want. Now that high school is over, that part of my life is behind me, and I will not be pushed around again! So I push back.

    The harder someone tries to force me to break the law in order to accommodate their own infantile desires to do the same, the worse I make it for them. I don't do it "just because you're an asshole," I do it for the exact same reason that the USA does not negotiate with terrorists: if you let someone push you around, you legitimize their behavior and invite more of the same. And I'm through with that.



  • @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    The harder someone tries to force me to break the law in order to accommodate their own infantile desires

    Fucking learn to read, because I did not say that you should break the law. I said you should MOVE OVER and LET THEM PASS, if it's REASONABLY POSSIBLE for you to do so.

    Not only is that not illegal, it's the polite thing for you to do. It's also the law in some places -- if you DON'T move over for faster traffic, you are breaking the law.

    Consider: the person behind you doesn't have a polite way of asking you to move over. There literally isn't one. The only thing they can do is come up behind and hope you get the message. Your kneejerk reaction to them as "bullying" is stupid and childish. Just fucking move over and everyone will be happy.

    Now, if they come right up on your bumper immediately? Fine, that makes them an asshole. But if they're riding back a ways for a while and they gradually start inching closer, that's your cue. They're asking as politely as they possibly can.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    Consider: the person behind you doesn't have a polite way of asking you to move over. There literally isn't one.

    Sure there is: back off to a safe following distance and briefly flash your high beams a few times. (Note: this is very different from continuously shining your high beams at someone, which can dazzle them. It's also different from flashing your high beams at someone while tailgating and refusing to back off, which is exactly as polite as a thug "asking" you to "please" hand over your wallet while mugging you.)



  • @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    Sure there is: back off to a safe following distance and briefly flash your high beams a few times.

    If that actually worked, more people would probably do it.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @anotherusername It works more than half the time when I do it...


  • FoxDev

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    Sure there is: back off to a safe following distance and briefly flash your high beams a few times.

    Try that in the UK, and you're gonna be flipped the bird if you're lucky. And if you're unlucky, the other driver will punch you in the face.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @RaceProUK How's he gonna do that when we're both still inside our cars moving at highway speeds?



  • @RaceProUK Ha, that reminds me of a time I was driving here in Oregon, during heavy rains earlier this year. A guy in front of me was in a white sedan, with no lights on. With the mist and fog and spray, he was invisible. So I flashed lights at him when I came up behind him. He followed me off the interstate and DEMANDED to know why I flashed him.


  • FoxDev

    @masonwheeler I'm sure you can think of a sequence of events that will suitably answer that question.



  • @masonwheeler assuming they were actually paying attention to you and willing to let you pass, they were probably going to move over for you anyway once you got close enough.

    Flashing your brights at someone can mean just about anything -- it depends on them already knowing what the issue was. Overtaking someone and settling just a bit closer than a regular following distance is fairly obvious though.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @RaceProUK I'm having trouble thinking of any such sequence of events that doesn't end with me driving off as soon as the person in question gets out of their car, to the nearest police station if necessary.




  • FoxDev

    @masonwheeler Not even when in the middle of queueing traffic stopped at the lights?


  • ♿ (Parody)

    @Captain said in Traffic sins:

    A guy in front of me was in a white sedan, with no lights on. With the mist and fog and spray, he was invisible. So I flashed lights at him when I came up behind him.

    I have done this several times in the past few months. None of them ever turned their lights on. :sadface:


  • 🚽 Regular

    I agree with everything but this:

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    1. Park facing out, not in. Parking involves moving from an area where there are other things moving to an area where there's nothing moving. Leaving a parking stall involves going from an area where there's nothing moving around you into a traffic zone where things are moving. (That's a bit of an oversimplification, but not much of one.) Backing up is harder than moving forward, for reasons that should be intuitively obvious to anyone with any real-world experience driving. Therefore, it is beyond stupid to think that performing the more dangerous maneuver in the more difficult style (ie. backing out of a parking stall) is a good idea! And yet, if you go to almost any parking lot, you'll see that about 70% of the cars are parked facing in, rather than out! And it's ridiculous! A couple days ago, I went to the grocery store, and some idiot tried to back out right into my car, because I was at an angle where he couldn't clearly see me. I had to blare my horn at him for almost 3 seconds before he realized that that sound probably means there's another car behind him and stopped moving. (I couldn't back up easily to get out of his way because there were pedestrians with shopping carts behind me.) If he had parked right in the first place, he'd have been able to see me with no trouble.

    First off, when you're in a parking lot, you're supposed to be at a very low rate of speed. Anyone who backs out of a parking spot similarly needs to be extra cautious, and if you inch out, you're not going to hit anyone unless you're doing it wrong. By the time I'm at risk of hitting someone who is at an angle, I am backed out far enough to see them, because I first back straight out before I turn the wheel. I can't think of any situation where I'm backing out at an angle where I'm in a collision course that I can't see. I've probably backed out of thousands of parking spots by now, and haven't so much as tapped someone, and the few times I might have been at risk at hitting someone was when they were flying through the lot at 40 mph, in which case, there's a good chance I would have been at as much a risk had I been facing out.

    Second off, the few times I've backed into a spot in a parking lot, especially at a retail center or grocery store, I've regretted it because inevitably there's some asshole who parks too close behind me, and I can't even get my stuff in the trunk.

    Third off, I often am aware of my surroundings before I get out of my parking spot. I take a quick look around to see what obstacles are on their way and can plan my exit accordingly. I don't dilly dally, I enter the car, turn it on, and back out.

    Fourth off, I've seen people back into spots and I hate them. I'm usually following them, and when they've found a spot, they pass it, and then suddenly stop and put their rear lights on, at which point I have to back up myself. Remember, low rate of speed, so while I'd be at a tailgating distance on the highway, it's a reasonable distance in a parking lot.



  • @The_Quiet_One agreed. Does it require more attention and caution while backing out of a parking spot? Yes, it does. I wouldn't call it a "traffic sin" though. Backing carelessly is, but parking in a way that requires you to back out isn't.


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @Captain said in Traffic sins:

    Presumably because backing into a parking spot is harder than backing out of one

    I'm not sure it is.



  • @loopback0 well, you have more room to back out -- unless there's a person or car there, in which case you don't.

    Backing in means you have to back between two parked cars (or at least the lines that you're supposed to stay inside). It's trickier to back that precisely, and when you're backing out you don't have to be precise as long as you make sure there's nobody coming behind you.



  • @Lorne-Kates said in Traffic sins:

    Corollary to "Don't Tailgate":

    • You know the size of the gap between your front bumper and the other car's rear bumper? Yeah, that safe following distance gap? Do not change lanes unless the distance between your back bumper and the other car's front bumper is at least as wide as that same gap.

    Good rule. Except that if you actually follow it, you'll never drive anywhere during commute traffic, because there isn't a single gap that big anywhere on the entire road. If you try to create such a gap, another car will have filled it before the gap is big enough for you to move at all.


  • Discourse touched me in a no-no place

    @anotherusername I find that being able to swing the front end around in the road and not between two cars makes backing in easier (and driving out too) but I back in almost every time so maybe it's a personal thing.



  • @anotherusername it's a tradeoff between difficulty and visibility/awareness. backing in requires you to manage a smaller space, but with reduced demand on awareness because the space behind you isn't likely to change during the process. and driving out forward with full visibility and a better sense of the space you have is much easier.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @The_Quiet_One said in Traffic sins:

    First off, when you're in a parking lot, you're supposed to be at a very low rate of speed. Anyone who backs out of a parking spot similarly needs to be extra cautious, and if you inch out, you're not going to hit anyone unless you're doing it wrong. By the time I'm at risk of hitting someone who is at an angle, I am backed out far enough to see them, because I first back straight out before I turn the wheel. I can't think of any situation where I'm backing out at an angle where I'm in a collision course that I can't see. I've probably backed out of thousands of parking spots by now, and haven't so much as tapped someone, and the few times I might have been at risk at hitting someone was when they were flying through the lot at 40 mph, in which case, there's a good chance I would have been at as much a risk had I been facing out.

    All of this is very logical and sounds like it makes a lot of sense. And yet it still happens. The time a couple days ago wasn't the only time either; just the most recent. And if it happens repeatedly to me, I bet it happens to other people as well!

    Second off, the few times I've backed into a spot in a parking lot, especially at a retail center or grocery store, I've regretted it because inevitably there's some asshole who parks too close behind me, and I can't even get my stuff in the trunk.

    I've never had this happen. (Mostly because I load my groceries in an unoccupied seat instead of the trunk.)

    Third off, I often am aware of my surroundings before I get out of my parking spot. I take a quick look around to see what obstacles are on their way and can plan my exit accordingly. I don't dilly dally, I enter the car, turn it on, and back out.

    Which is great, right up until it's not. Unless you have a backup camera, you have a massive void area back there where it's literally impossible to see from the driver's seat. All it takes is once for some little kid to run out into your path...

    Fourth off, I've seen people back into spots and I hate them. I'm usually following them, and when they've found a spot, they pass it, and then suddenly stop and put their rear lights on, at which point I have to back up myself. Remember, low rate of speed, so while I'd be at a tailgating distance on the highway, it's a reasonable distance in a parking lot.

    When I've got someone behind me and I want to pull into a spot, I'll hit my turn signal, and come to a complete stop more than once before pulling past the spot and turning to back in. If the person behind me can't understand what it is I'm about to do from those very clear signals, it's not my fault that they're an idiot. I did everything that was possible to do to make my intentions clear, until such time as they invent a car with an LCD screen on the rear window.


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    @loopback0 well, you have more room to back out -- unless there's a person or car there, in which case you don't.

    Backing in means you have to back between two parked cars (or at least the lines that you're supposed to stay inside). It's trickier to back that precisely

    If you have a camera (particularly one with active projection lines that turn with your steering wheel) it's trivial. If not, it's still not particularly difficult; just point your side-view mirrors downward a little. (If your car is old enough that you can't adjust both side-view mirrors from the driver's seat, then... I'm sorry.)


  • FoxDev

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    When I've got someone behind me and I want to pull into a spot, I'll hit my turn signal, and come to a complete stop more than once before pulling past the spot and turning to back in.

    I guarantee the person behind you is thinking "Why the fuck is this idiot stopping all the time?"



  • @RaceProUK or thinking that since you drove past, you must not want the spot, so they swing into it.


  • 🚽 Regular

    @masonwheeler said in Traffic sins:

    @The_Quiet_One said in Traffic sins:

    First off, when you're in a parking lot, you're supposed to be at a very low rate of speed. Anyone who backs out of a parking spot similarly needs to be extra cautious, and if you inch out, you're not going to hit anyone unless you're doing it wrong. By the time I'm at risk of hitting someone who is at an angle, I am backed out far enough to see them, because I first back straight out before I turn the wheel. I can't think of any situation where I'm backing out at an angle where I'm in a collision course that I can't see. I've probably backed out of thousands of parking spots by now, and haven't so much as tapped someone, and the few times I might have been at risk at hitting someone was when they were flying through the lot at 40 mph, in which case, there's a good chance I would have been at as much a risk had I been facing out.

    All of this is very logical and sounds like it makes a lot of sense. And yet it still happens. The time a couple days ago wasn't the only time either; just the most recent. And if it happens repeatedly to me, I bet it happens to other people as well!

    Not to me. Or at least not often enough to warrant a thread rant about it. I'm going to make a wager that the people who back out like a jackass is just as likely to go out forwards like a jackass just as well.

    Second off, the few times I've backed into a spot in a parking lot, especially at a retail center or grocery store, I've regretted it because inevitably there's some asshole who parks too close behind me, and I can't even get my stuff in the trunk.

    I've never had this happen. (Mostly because I load my groceries in an unoccupied seat instead of the trunk.)

    When you have kids, that's not an option.

    Third off, I often am aware of my surroundings before I get out of my parking spot. I take a quick look around to see what obstacles are on their way and can plan my exit accordingly. I don't dilly dally, I enter the car, turn it on, and back out.

    Which is great, right up until it's not. Unless you have a backup camera, you have a massive void area back there where it's literally impossible to see from the driver's seat. All it takes is once for some little kid to run out into your path...

    Which, again, can happen when you're facing forwards. A lot of cars have long hoods, and you still don't always have a full 180 degree view of your front, especially if you're a sedan parked in between two SUV's.

    Fourth off, I've seen people back into spots and I hate them. I'm usually following them, and when they've found a spot, they pass it, and then suddenly stop and put their rear lights on, at which point I have to back up myself. Remember, low rate of speed, so while I'd be at a tailgating distance on the highway, it's a reasonable distance in a parking lot.

    When I've got someone behind me and I want to pull into a spot, I'll hit my turn signal, and come to a complete stop more than once before pulling past the spot and turning to back in. If the person behind me can't understand what it is I'm about to do from those very clear signals, it's not my fault that they're an idiot. I did everything that was possible to do to make my intentions clear, until such time as they invent a car with an LCD screen on the rear window.

    When I see a car ahead of me use their turn signal, I assume they're turning in front of their car. If they make frequent stops upon doing so, I don't think they're backing into a spot, I think they're just a spazzy idiot driver, because 9 out of 10 times, that's what they turn out to be.

    Perhaps if we lived in an alternate universe where the vast majority of people DO back into parking spaces habitually, we'd all be aware of the pattern and be better prepared for what people are going to do in a parking lot. We don't live in such a world, though. I'd even say your 70% figure in the OP is lower than the reality. At least in my experience, it's more like 90%, and even then, a portion of the remainder didn't even back into the spot, but rather took advantage of two open spots, one in front of the other, and just pulled through.


  • FoxDev

    @The_Quiet_One said in Traffic sins:

    but rather took advantage of two open spots, one in front of the other, and just pulled through

    I do that all the time if I can


  • Impossible Mission - B

    @RaceProUK said in Traffic sins:

    I do that all the time if I can

    Yeah, that's nice when it's available. But either way, pulling out forward is always preferable to backing out.



  • @masonwheeler Yeah, nobody agrees with that.



  • @The_Quiet_One said in Traffic sins:

    a portion of the remainder didn't even back into the spot, but rather took advantage of two open spots, one in front of the other, and just pulled through.

    I would suspect that portion to be very large. I routinely back into my own driveway (or did when I had my own driveway), but other than my personal spot in my apartment complex, I don't think I've ever backed into a spot in a parking lot. If my car is facing out of a space in a lot, it's because I drove through the open spot from the other aisle.

    Never mind the significant number of parking lots with the slots angled toward traffic flow — easy to drive forward into and back out of, but which would require either turning >90 degrees or opposing the flow of traffic to back into and drive forward out of.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    if you DON'T move over for faster traffic, you are breaking the law

    There is literally nowhere in the world where "faster traffic" is defined as "faster than the speed limit".

    Let's enshrine this in a sin:

    Thou shalt not ever think exceeding the speed limit is justified, or condoned by any law.

    Unless you're an emergency vehicle, there is absolutely nothing in any lawbook that allows you to exceed the speed limit, or requires you to yield to those who do. Nothing. Ever.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @Captain said in Traffic sins:

    @RaceProUK Ha, that reminds me of a time I was driving here in Oregon, during heavy rains earlier this year. A guy in front of me was in a white sedan, with no lights on. With the mist and fog and spray, he was invisible. So I flashed lights at him when I came up behind him. He followed me off the interstate and DEMANDED to know why I flashed him.

    And then you murdered him with your HOOK HAND!!!!


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @HardwareGeek said in Traffic sins:

    Good rule. Except that if you actually follow it, you'll never drive anywhere during commute traffic, because there isn't a single gap that big anywhere on the entire road. If you try to create such a gap, another car will have filled it before the gap is big enough for you to move at all.

    Start to go. Tap the brakes. The car behind you now knows you are coming into their lane, and the red lights cause them to freak out and brake.

    Mission solved.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @Lorne-Kates said in Traffic sins:

    Thou shalt not ever think exceeding the speed limit is justified, or condoned by any law.

    I see we're back to "downvote when facts disagree with my feelz". 👍


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    Not a rule, but more of a "you should".

    You should be able to judge distances between you and other objects by visual cues alone. That is-- you should be able to close one eye, turn off your depth perception, and still be able to maintain a safe following distance-- know when you are approaching an obstacle-- navigate between two stationary objects, etc.



  • @Lorne-Kates said in Traffic sins:

    There is literally nowhere in the world where "faster traffic" is defined as "faster than the speed limit".

    "Literally", eh? TIL that California is "literally" nowhere.

    21654. (a) Notwithstanding the prima facie speed limits, any vehicle proceeding upon a highway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at such time shall be driven in the right-hand lane for traffic or as close as practicable to the right-hand edge or curb, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction or when preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

    (b) If a vehicle is being driven at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at such time, and is not being driven in the right-hand lane for traffic or as close as practicable to the right-hand edge or curb, it shall constitute prima facie evidence that the driver is operating the vehicle in violation of subdivision (a) of this section.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    @Lorne-Kates said in Traffic sins:

    There is literally nowhere in the world where "faster traffic" is defined as "faster than the speed limit".

    "Literally", eh? TIL that California is "literally" nowhere.

    21654. (a) Notwithstanding the prima facie speed limits, any vehicle proceeding upon a highway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at such time shall be driven in the right-hand lane for traffic or as close as practicable to the right-hand edge or curb, except when overtaking and passing another vehicle proceeding in the same direction or when preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

    (b) If a vehicle is being driven at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at such time, and is not being driven in the right-hand lane for traffic or as close as practicable to the right-hand edge or curb, it shall constitute prima facie evidence that the driver is operating the vehicle in violation of subdivision (a) of this section.

    So you just posted a quote which proves me right? And people think I'm the 🦊?



  • @Lorne-Kates I just posted a quote which literally says that it doesn't matter if the faster traffic is going faster than the speed limit... the only thing that matters is that it's going faster than you.

    edit: apparently this might only apply to the "default" speed limits, not posted speed limits. As in, if there's no posted speed limit on a particular road, the law sets a default speed limit -- however, it's perfectly legal to break that speed limit if it's safe to do so.

    But anyway, some places make it illegal to drive in the left lane at all, except to pass or turn left. Then, they don't have to prove that you were driving slower than the speed limit to ticket you. It doesn't matter how fast you were driving. It just matters that you were driving in the left lane. They just have to prove that you drove in the left lane for an extended length of time when you could've merged right. Oh, the car behind you was speeding? Too fucking bad. You were driving in the left lane. It's illegal. Pay the fine.

    They're "literally nowhere" though. Lorne said so.



  • @Lorne-Kates said in Traffic sins:

    @anotherusername said in Traffic sins:

    if you DON'T move over for faster traffic, you are breaking the law

    There is literally nowhere in the world where "faster traffic" is defined as "faster than the speed limit".

    Let's enshrine this in a sin:

    Thou shalt not ever think exceeding the speed limit is justified, or condoned by any law.

    Unless you're an emergency vehicle, there is absolutely nothing in any lawbook that allows you to exceed the speed limit, or requires you to yield to those who do. Nothing. Ever.

    I'm fine with this if the speed limit is increased to at least 120 (preferably, 155) on Interstates.


  • Trolleybus Mechanic

    @Groaner said in Traffic sins:

    I'm fine with this if the speed limit is increased to at least 120 (preferably, 155) on Interstates

    Then you wouldn't be exceeding the speed limit. :/


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