I'd like to talk about driving, please.

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pdudgeon

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Well, I was wrong. So was hubby, and I’ll need to tell him. I looked up the state law and read it for myself, and keep right except to pass applies to all roads with two or more lanes going in the same direction. You can be fined $138 for continuous driving in the left lane.

In fact hubby just came into the room and I told him. His take is that in practice, in the suburban areas, if traffic isn’t filling all lanes, it gets backed up. And it does leave the question of left turns. If I know I’m going to be turning left, how soon can I get into that lane without being guilty of continuous driving? If I wait too long, traffic may not let me over. That’s been my experience.

What I don’t like about roundabouts is the rapid-fire turns of the wheel. I just made a right and I don’t even have time to mentally adjust to going in that direction before I have to quickly turn the wheel left and then right again. Especially if it’s a two-lane roundabout and there is another vehicle beside me. Thinking in “clock face” terms, I can’t stand to have anybody on my ten or my two. It makes me nervous. I can’t see around them.

If I were in your position, I would get out a map, and instead plot my driving so that I always make right hand turns from the slow lane.

That will mean that the places on your driving route where you would normally need to make a left hand turn, go to the next intersection, and make a right hand turn instead. and then at the next block, make another right hand turn. that should bring you back to the main street, which you can cross the intersection directly and be on the street that you originally had planned to turn left onto.

It's a bit tricky to read, but much easier to accomplish if you remember to plot your driving directions so that you are going in a clock-wise direction by always making right hand turns to get to your destinations.
 
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Rajni

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If I were in your position, I would get out a map, and instead plot my driving so that I always make right hand turns from the slow lane.

That will mean that the places on your driving route where you would normally need to make a left hand turn, go to the next intersection, and make a right hand turn instead. and then at the next block, make another right hand turn. that should bring you back to the main street, which you can cross the intersection directly and be on the street that you originally had planned to turn left onto.

It's a bit tricky to read, but much easier to accomplish if you remember to plot your driving directions so that you are going in a clock-wise direction by always making right hand turns to get to your destinations.
I like this! I almost wish I had a car again so I could do this.
Thank you; this is a great idea! :purpleheart::bluecar:


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LovebirdsFlying

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OK, after studying the map:

The suggestion to go a block past and then make three right turns rather than one left would be good in most situations, especially when the streets are laid out in a planned, predictable pattern. Unfortunately, along my route to work there are too many one way streets, dead end streets, streets that discontinue in one spot and then pick up again some other place, etc. It's not a grid. It's not a hub-and-spokes system. It's not even a spider web. More than anything else, a map of the area would resemble a child's scribble.

On my way home one day this past week, I found that the intersection I usually turn at was blocked off. I don't know if there had been an accident, or they were repairing something, but I obviously couldn't turn there and had to go a block past. The next street over is a one way going the opposite direction, and the road ends after that because there is a local college taking up quite a bit of acreage. To end up going east, I had to go west for several blocks before I could find a road that connected to one going eastbound. Complicate this with missing a turn at one point because, as previously mentioned, traffic wouldn't let me over. It was a rat's maze.

Then there is the weather. In the morning, it's frosty and not quite daylight yet. On the way home it is already dark even though I get off work at 4:30. Last night it was both rainy and foggy along with dark. I suppose other people around here are used to it, but it surprised me that I seemed to be the only driver on the road who was concerned about the weather conditions. Everybody else was driving like it was high noon on a clear, bright sunny day.

I still don't quite understand how a slow driver (defined by the internet as one who is going less than ten miles an hour over, not under, the posted speed limit) "causes" road rage. Doesn't basic psychology teach us we are responsible for our own emotional responses? Yes, tonight I was stuck for a time behind a "slowpoke" in the left lane. Yes, I felt a brief moment of irritation because I wanted to go faster. But when I realized that this person was driving at the speed limit, I couldn't get angry because he/she is correct. I'll grant you some of the speed limits around here feel ridiculously low. It doesn't make sense that a smoothly paved, straight stretch of road with wide lanes, two in each direction, should be 35 miles an hour. I myself feel like I can safely go 45 on that part of it, and sometimes I have trouble not doing that. But the speed limit is in fact 35 miles an hour, stupid as that may seem. And you know darn well, if they raised it to 45, there would be people screaming through at 60.
 
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LovebirdsFlying

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Oh, and as for the interstate, it is still my goal. I'm shaky with lane changes, and want to get better at it first, so I've been practicing that. Also, I don't want to try the interstate for the first time under the weather conditions I just described. I don't have a fast reaction time. I'm not very good at thinking on the fly, and the faster I'm traveling, the faster I would have to make decisions. That's what's hindering me at this point.
 
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Bob Crowley

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Do you obey speed limits, even if they seem silly? Why or why not? How exactly do "slow" drivers (defined by that discussion as those who drive less than 10 miles an hour faster than the posted speed limit) "cause" road rage, or accidents? And does anybody have any handy hints for negotiating roundabouts?

I lifted this from the OP's post.

I'm Australian, so we have Kilometres per hour, not miles, and we drive on the wrong side of the road, like the British, and surprisingly the Japanese. Most of the left driving countries have been British colonies at some time. The reason behind the Japanese is allegedly is that the Samurai used to walk on the left side of paths so their swords scabbards were on the left and they could reach across with their right hand to take on someone walking by on the other side. And their scabbards didn't clash.

What you might call a medieval form of "walking pace rage". "Hoi! If you don't get a move on with yer shanks pony, I'll cut yer head clean orf!"

Then because they adapted their railway system from the British where trains also travel on the left, then supposedly they adapted road driving to the left as well. Had they bought their trains and railways from the US, they might now be driving on the right.

Just an historical aside.

I wouldn't worry about "road rage" if you drive sensibly and courteously. There are some stupid morons who get their knickers in a knot no matter what you do, but if you stick to the speed limit or thereabouts you should be right.

I wouldn't worry about the clowns saying you're a slow-coach if you drive less than 10 miles per hour above the speed limit. Over here a lot of people fly past about 10 kilometers above the speed limit, so it seems to be a universal phenomena, and they can get upset if you don't go faster. But ignore it.

As far as "Roundabouts" go, they can be a pest if they're not designed well. They work best if they're big, and not so busy that one of the incoming lanes can't get on. That's when you get people becoming impatient.

The other problem is when they're multi lane roundabouts people cut across other lanes when they should not do so.

The following link is from Washington State, but I'd assume the information was relevant to all US states.

How to drive a roundabout | WSDOT
 
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A_Thinker

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It doesn't make sense that a smoothly paved, straight stretch of road with wide lanes, two in each direction, should be 35 miles an hour. I myself feel like I can safely go 45 on that part of it, and sometimes I have trouble not doing that. But the speed limit is in fact 35 miles an hour, stupid as that may seem. And you know darn well, if they raised it to 45, there would be people screaming through at 60.
Speed limits are based on various reasons. Perhaps pedestrians are apt to try and cross the road in question at various points during the day.

Also, I agree with poster Bob Crowley ... that there is little worry of road rage on non-highway routes.
Oh, and as for the interstate, it is still my goal. I'm shaky with lane changes, and want to get better at it first, so I've been practicing that. Also, I don't want to try the interstate for the first time under the weather conditions I just described. I don't have a fast reaction time. I'm not very good at thinking on the fly, and the faster I'm traveling, the faster I would have to make decisions. That's what's hindering me at this point.
These are all valid reasons for avoiding the highways/interstates at this point.

I drove the interstates back and forth to work for the first 30 of 40 years of working life. About ten years ago, I decided to try a rather direct non-highway route to work (basically because it was a shorter distance, and required less gas, though it added about 5 minutes to my drive).

I was amazed at how much calmer a drive it was. Driving the highways is a much more fast-paced venture (i.e. everything happens much faster, except for when traffic is blocked or slowed significantly). I hadn't realized it ... but previously I would arrive at work (or, back home) in a heightened state of anxiety just because I had driven the interstates. The times I can remember where it was only the grace of God which saved me from potentially very catastrophic collision situations was while I was driving the highways and interstates. Fortunately, all of my vehicular collisions (I've had my share) have occurred on city streets, at much reduced rates of speed. Collisions are much more survivable ... at 20-35 mph or even slower speeds. At 60, I've yet to total a car ... or sustain an injury ... in a vehicular collision.

Driving my new non-interstate route was, almost inevitably, a much more enjoyable outing. I could enjoy the sights around me, and could meditate on prayer and life issues in a way that I couldn't on the interstates. On the interstates, I couldn't focus on much else besides my driving.

It's not that I'm afraid of driving the highways/interstates. I have done so ... and continue to do so, when appropriate. There are times when including the interstate in your travel route does add a level of efficiency into your travel ... and I, likely, continue to use them more often than not, as I think on it. But I no longer believe that interstate travel is inherently preferable. A nice drive through the country can truly be a blessing, at times.
 
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ruthiesea

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For background, I'm in my mid-50's and came into driving late in life. I never had the opportunity to learn at the age when most people do. My husband is a professional driver and was vital to my ability to finally clear that hurdle. I get a lot of good advice from him, but I'd also like to supplement it with input from the public who may not be professionals but are experienced. I've been licensed now for six years, but until recently I haven't had a lot of chances to put my newly acquired skill to use. I would drive to church or the doctor's office, both places about 5 or 6 miles from my house, and that was pretty much it.

All of that changed about a month and a half ago, when I got a job. Full time. In a neighboring city, not the one I live in. Given traffic conditions, the commute takes me about half an hour each way. It would be less if I were brave enough for the interstate, but I'm not.

Also, I used to be constrained to daylight driving, but no longer. God has healed my night vision, praise His name. I don't know if He did it through weight loss (nearly 75 pounds!) and my diabetes being under much better control now, or if He just plain worked a miracle, but the details don't matter. John 9:25, all the way. I'm glad He did it, because we're getting into the time of year where it gets dark earlier in the evening and stays dark later in the morning. Either going to or from work, one or the other, or maybe both, it's going to be dark. It also gets pretty rainy and/or foggy around here. I'd never had much occasion to need headlights or windshield wipers, since I wasn't driving in the kind of conditions that would require them. I am now.

Since I'm avoiding the interstate, I face curvy roads and roundabouts and school zones and road construction. What are they constructing? More roundabouts. They seem to be in love with them around here. Supposedly they're safer than intersections with traffic lights, but my own experience is that I've had more close calls at roundabouts than I have at traffic lights.

The speed limit along my route never goes above 40. (For those outside the USA, I mean miles, not kilometers. It would be about 64k.) Along most of the route, it's 35 (56k). But I'm sure you know better than to think people actually observe the speed limit. I try to. Flow of traffic may force me to do 5 or 10 over, but not if I can help it.

So I recently stumbled on an online discussion where people are talking about how much they hate slow drivers, and how people who drive slowly "cause" road rage and accidents. It soon turned out that their definition of "slow" was not going less than the speed limit (which would frustrate me too). By "slow" they meant driving less than 10 miles an hour above it.

During that online discussion, I was derisively called "granny" and ordered to stay in the right lane. I brought up the subject of making a left turn. If I know I'm going to be turning left soon, I'm going to be in the left lane. I'm not going to wait until the last minute and take a chance on missing my turn because nobody would let me over. What do they expect me to do? Stay in the right lane until I get to where I'm turning, and then cut across traffic? Silence. No answer. Not even a mocking one. I guess I won that round. By the way, I don't know about other states, but here, the rule about keeping right except to pass applies only to the highways. Not to the kind of streets that have traffic lights. I'll grant you that the speed limits feel ridiculously low on my route to and from work, but it is the law.

Do you obey speed limits, even if they seem silly? Why or why not? How exactly do "slow" drivers (defined by that discussion as those who drive less than 10 miles an hour faster than the posted speed limit) "cause" road rage, or accidents? And does anybody have any handy hints for negotiating roundabouts?

Thank you.
I’m afraid I’ve not yet learned how to divide posts into sections, so bear with me.

I drive a 500 horsepower Cobra SVT. When asked how fast it will go my answer is, “The speed limit”, although I sometimes go a blistering four MPH above the limit. I was a traffic homicide investigator for almost 30 years, and the most horrible sound I remember is the when the zipper is closed on a body bag.

Speed not only causes accidents, but the higher the impact speed the more likely there will be a fatality.

In my personal opinion the is nothing that can be done about roundabouts except to hit them with a small, but tasteful, nuclear device. If I believed in such a thing I would say that they are designed by people under the influence of the devil.
 
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Didn't read all responses so others may have said it, but I'd encourage you to consider the interstate. Statistically and realistically, while they have higher speed limits they are safer in pretty much every way than other highways and roads. Exits are generally to the right, so your issue of when to get in the left lane to make a left turn goes away. Without stop lights causing traffic to clump together it's easier to find space. No traffic crossing in front of you, stopping to turn right, etc. Merging can be a bit concerning for people learning to use them, but use the acceleration lane to speed up to match traffic in the right (slowest generally) lane and merge in.
 
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Ada Lovelace

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For background, I'm in my mid-50's and came into driving late in life. I never had the opportunity to learn at the age when most people do. My husband is a professional driver and was vital to my ability to finally clear that hurdle. I get a lot of good advice from him, but I'd also like to supplement it with input from the public who may not be professionals but are experienced. I've been licensed now for six years, but until recently I haven't had a lot of chances to put my newly acquired skill to use. I would drive to church or the doctor's office, both places about 5 or 6 miles from my house, and that was pretty much it.

All of that changed about a month and a half ago, when I got a job. Full time. In a neighboring city, not the one I live in. Given traffic conditions, the commute takes me about half an hour each way. It would be less if I were brave enough for the interstate, but I'm not.

Also, I used to be constrained to daylight driving, but no longer. God has healed my night vision, praise His name. I don't know if He did it through weight loss (nearly 75 pounds!) and my diabetes being under much better control now, or if He just plain worked a miracle, but the details don't matter. John 9:25, all the way. I'm glad He did it, because we're getting into the time of year where it gets dark earlier in the evening and stays dark later in the morning. Either going to or from work, one or the other, or maybe both, it's going to be dark. It also gets pretty rainy and/or foggy around here. I'd never had much occasion to need headlights or windshield wipers, since I wasn't driving in the kind of conditions that would require them. I am now.

Since I'm avoiding the interstate, I face curvy roads and roundabouts and school zones and road construction. What are they constructing? More roundabouts. They seem to be in love with them around here. Supposedly they're safer than intersections with traffic lights, but my own experience is that I've had more close calls at roundabouts than I have at traffic lights.

The speed limit along my route never goes above 40. (For those outside the USA, I mean miles, not kilometers. It would be about 64k.) Along most of the route, it's 35 (56k). But I'm sure you know better than to think people actually observe the speed limit. I try to. Flow of traffic may force me to do 5 or 10 over, but not if I can help it.

So I recently stumbled on an online discussion where people are talking about how much they hate slow drivers, and how people who drive slowly "cause" road rage and accidents. It soon turned out that their definition of "slow" was not going less than the speed limit (which would frustrate me too). By "slow" they meant driving less than 10 miles an hour above it.

During that online discussion, I was derisively called "granny" and ordered to stay in the right lane. I brought up the subject of making a left turn. If I know I'm going to be turning left soon, I'm going to be in the left lane. I'm not going to wait until the last minute and take a chance on missing my turn because nobody would let me over. What do they expect me to do? Stay in the right lane until I get to where I'm turning, and then cut across traffic? Silence. No answer. Not even a mocking one. I guess I won that round. By the way, I don't know about other states, but here, the rule about keeping right except to pass applies only to the highways. Not to the kind of streets that have traffic lights. I'll grant you that the speed limits feel ridiculously low on my route to and from work, but it is the law.

Do you obey speed limits, even if they seem silly? Why or why not? How exactly do "slow" drivers (defined by that discussion as those who drive less than 10 miles an hour faster than the posted speed limit) "cause" road rage, or accidents? And does anybody have any handy hints for negotiating roundabouts?

Thank you.

I don't drive, so I spend a lot of time being driven and have learned from a variety of drivers. I take Uber and Lyft frequently, and when I complimented the skills of one especially great driver he told me YouTube videos had been helpful to him. He hadn't known how to drive until he came to the U.S. a few years ago, and he studied videos to learn the customs of driving here. He was incredible, like a road ninja just moving through a major traffic jam, but with care and strategy. He told me what a "zipper merge" is and how it's the proper thing to do even though it may seem counterintuitive and rude, like you're "cutting the line." Maybe you could watch videos too.

When I was riding with another driver there was sort of a "road rage" incident where a driver got really belligerent with her for not turning right on red, but there was a sign that said you couldn't turn right on red. Her attitude was that she'd be the one to pay the ticket, not him, so let him just have a tantrum.

A friend was called a "granny" when she was 16 because she was so nervous she was driving slow. It's not an age-specific thing.

It sounds like what you need is confidence and experience, and the former will probably grow naturally when you get the latter. :)
 
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Rajni

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I don't drive, so I spend a lot of time being driven and have learned from a variety of drivers. I take Uber and Lyft frequently, and when I complimented the skills of one especially great driver he told me YouTube videos had been helpful to him. He hadn't known how to drive until he came to the U.S. a few years ago, and he studied videos to learn the customs of driving here. He was incredible, like a road ninja just moving through a major traffic jam, but with care and strategy. He told me what a "zipper merge" is and how it's the proper thing to do even though it may seem counterintuitive and rude, like you're "cutting the line." Maybe you could watch videos too.

When I was riding with another driver there was sort of a "road rage" incident where a driver got really belligerent with her for not turning right on red, but there was a sign that said you couldn't turn right on red. Her attitude was that she'd be the one to pay the ticket, not him, so let him just have a tantrum.

A friend was called a "granny" when she was 16 because she was so nervous she was driving slow. It's not an age-specific thing.

It sounds like what you need is confidence and experience, and the former will probably grow naturally when you get the latter. :)
Watching YouTube videos to learn these things is a great
idea, too. I had never considered that before getting rid of my
car and opting for a car-free lifestyle.

I have to admit, though, that letting Lyft (I haven't tried Uber
yet but have the app just in case) do the driving has taken a
load of worry off my mind. I like cars, and sometimes I miss
the convenience (and the ability to sing along with the
radio/CD at the top of my lungs behind closed windows), but I
don't miss the stress of driving.


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LovebirdsFlying

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I'm getting better at lane changes. I've been practicing looking over my shoulder at the blind spot without subconsciously inching toward the line while I do so.
 
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