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Oh heck yeah! I can understand the out of area drivers (NJ, NY, CT, etc) but the locals like to drive at 55-60 at exactly the same speed or slightly faster than those in the left lane. If you dart into the right lane to try to get around no one will let you back over so those that want to go faster (65-70) line up behind the LLC as the try to wait patiently for him to pass the driver in the right lane. It just seems to have gotten worse over the past few weeks. Summer, maybe?
"These are the same ones who when stopped at a red light, wait 15-20 seconds before moving when the light turns green.
If green lights are a problem for them, why would you think those Chuckites would know what lane to be in ?"
Maybe I am expecting too much. On the other hand there has been a fair amount of commercial buildup between Waldorf and La Plata. I believe they have added at least 2 -3 new signals with at least one more about to go online. And of course the Waldorf residents rejected a bypass. It's steadily getting worse.
As to terrified drivers - haven't seen many around here(southern MD, northern neck of VA). More like oblivious to what is going on around them.
"What's synchro-whatever you said" - Charles County resident
For those of you unfamiliar with the roads, I-301 goes through Charles County, MD over a bridge and into King George County, VA. Both of the counties used to be rural, mostly farm land. Then a few strip malls and a few homes blossomed into fairly large bedroom communities. 301 is mostly divided 2 lanes each way, until heading through Waldorf toward DC where it becomes 3 lanes on each side.
In the 2 lane each side past Waldorf, through LaPlata and into VA, are some of the worst LLC's on the planet.
And I had a real inconsiderate driver yesterday. Prior to getting on US301 I exit the infamous Capitol Beltway and turn on to Ritchie-Marlboro road. R-M road is a 4 lane divided hwy which then splits (at a signal) into White House road and R-M road with R-M road branching to the right and becomes a regular 2 lane road. At the signal prior to the split I am in the right lane and have to clear the intersection before moving over to the right turn lane. Anyways a Jeep Cherokee is in the left lane beside me. As the light turns green he accelerates hard cutting across the lanes left to right while I'm accelerating into the right turn lane. And then the idiot keeps coming over. Had I not slowed his right rear qtr panel would have met my left front qrt panel. After the turn he then has the audacity to travel barely 5 mph over the limit. The way he cut me off one would have thought he was in a fired up hurry. At least there wasn't any LLC's south of La Plata yesterday.
It's on the island looking into Charles county. Take care.
Hey PEOPLE... time to become aware of your surroundings!! Not only does the world NOT revolve around you, if you keep it up, the world is going to flatten you like a pancake!
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Driving south on the Parks Hwy near the Sheep Creek Rd turn off (road is to my right), I'm going about 65-70 (in a 55, I know I know) and I see this red Echo(northbound) turn on the left turn signal. Gut feeling says "UH OH" and sure enough, 2 car lengths from me getting to her she begins her turn, crosses the center line and suddenly realizes that Yes, there is indeed a RED Ford Explorer fixing to make her a hood ornament. She slams on the brakes and I squeeze between the front of the Echo and the front of the Suburban waiting to turn off Sheep Creek. Scared me half to death, I really do like my Explorer and really do not want an Echo for a hood ornament. Some people's children!!!
They used to teach situational awareness when I took driver's ed (circa 1972, aka the covered wagon era)... maybe they don't anymore
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Paul
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Then during a stretch of relaxed traffic (driving between from the office to my construction site around 11am) I came accross some LLCs. I'm not mad at them (the flow of traffic was really fast, so they were still pretty illegal), but I could tell a couple of other drivers were impatient like me, and we were hopping past cars where we could and really understing each others' moves. That was a good feeling. And where there were hills you could see the effect that LLCs had... vast expanses of roads in front of them, and a mass of congestion immediately behind. Interesting stuff.
This was an area where there are never any accidents as far as I know. I understand that writing speeding tickets is a significant source of income and maybe I am just venting here but couldn't this officer's time (and our money) be better spent doing something that would actually protect the public? For crying out loud, patrol the highway where drivers are actually endangering the lives of others (as can be attested to by the postings on this board).
5 over, maybe; 10 over, maybe.
13 over, -- you got a ticket.
Maybe by policing the speed in the area is how they have no accidents. A two lane road with ditches is more dangerous than a 6 lane interstate.
Be happy you met a policeman, not a Black Angus or a deer.
In our area it's the policemen who keep those FOP tags on their license plates and speed and cut in dangerously because they feel exempt from the laws.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I got the ticket soon after accelerating from a stoplight. I guess I hadn't settled into my cruising speed yet and he got me at just the right time. Oh well. I will throw myself on the mercy of the court and hope for the best. I was speeding and if the citation sticks so be it.
I am also thinking that it might not hurt to mention your professional efforts in that it is a nexus showing deep awareness of the consequences of accidents which is what theoretically anyway is what the laws are designed to prevent.
I know it is such a small detail, but it is just part of the bigger picture of poor drivers.
Also, a relative of those drivers is the "creeper". You've probably seen them. The ones are stopped at the intersection, but while the light is still red, they start creeping ahead into the intersection well before the light turns green. Sometimes they literally will be in the middle of the intersection creeping when the light finally turns green. Not sure what the hell that is.
The spin off benefit is if you spot behind and take off from there it is a no brainer if you are stopped and have to go so far as to fight it in court, that you already did stop but the officer either did not see it or expected me to stop twice (which is not legally mandated)
If stationary radar, he was there to write tickets. (Unless he was sampling average speeds for a traffic study... highly unlikely). So once stopped, you are going to be cited, because that was the whole point of the exercise.
If mobile radar or pacing, he was probably just having a slow night and you were over his "cut-off" speeding point. Whether or not you get a ticket in this case depends on how the cop is feeling. Are his superiors pushing for more citations? Did he have a fight with his wife that morning? Do you bear a resemblance to the neighbor kid that picked on him when he was little?
Since you said that he had decided to write you up before he approached your car, my guess is that it was stationary radar and he was there to write tickets. Generally such "speed traps" are set up in places that are NOT particularly hazardous. Rather places are chosen that are "easy pickin's"... times and places where the posted limit is low relative to peoples comfort level: wide shoulders, good viability, low traffic density. The same factors that make driving safer, make writing tickets easier.
I have NEVER seen a radar trap during rush hour traffic even though it's often 15-20 over the limit at high density. There is no way the cop could identify which speeder was responsible for the high reading on the radar unit, and the very presence of the patrol car would soon have traffic slowed to a bumper to bumper crawl.
jrw
Sorry you are testy about the ticket, but like my neighbor said about his ticket in a 35 going more than 10 over (4 lane, middle spacer turn area) it'll slow him down and make him more careful. Chalk it up to experience.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Traveling on two lane highways (one lane each way
I have one speeding ticket in 38 years and it was checked for going "over 55" in a 55 mph 4 lanes each way freeway (65 mph nowa days with average traffic going 80-90 mph!
There is a flip side to that. Some, when they disagree with a law, simply practice civil disobedience by breaking it, instead of working towards getting that changed or revoked. Both are equally irresponsible.
I don't think most individuals have the means to make such changes take place. And unless the powers that be can prove their case, they shouldn't have to.
Just to make it worse, the car wasn't actually going slower than the one ahead of it; it was just keeping a larger than average distance.
When I'm cruising I watch for the oncoming cars blinking warnings, I slow for hills and curves, and I watch for panic braking ahead. I've been so successful at this I stopped using radar detectors almost 10 years ago.
Those are the ones we need to get off the road before they kill or injure someone else.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
WRONG! One individual alone does not have the means but collectively we can. There are many grassroots organizations(NMA for example) that you can join. How do you think 55MPH got repealed?
The real reason is that it is much easier to break the law, pay the fine and blame the cops.
I realize that the cop was just doing his job. I don't really blame him. I do think it is somewhat demeaning to him that this is what they have him do. Afterall he is a highly trained law enforcement officer who is willing to put his life on the line if need be. I have a lot of respect for those guys. I'm just think he could have better spent his efforts doing something else.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Oh, ALB is All Lane Blocker.
Man, was there a traffic jam of cars trying to get off in Elkton. Good thing I was going south, and just got subjected to a rubbernecking delay.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
You never know what may be running through the mind of that guy in the truck. Maybe he's a volunteer fire fighter. Maybe he just got a call that one of his loved ones has suffered a heart attack, gunshot wound, that there's some other crisis that's come up, and he now needs to get somewhere asap. I could see tailgating as the behavior of some impatient creep, but to actually honk to get another vehicle out of your way is faster is highly abnormal, even for the most impatient drivers, and indicates to me there may have been more than meets the eye. Imagine how you'd feel if you got a call that someone you love is in trouble and you want to get there as fast as possible, but you're stuck behind someone passing at an .0005 mph speed differential.
some people have no idea that the left lane is the passing lane, and should be reserved for passing only, especially on freeways of 3 lanes or more. They just cruise there in the fast lane at 55 mph, slowing all traffic down.
Some people have to get somewhere in an emergency, some are just cruising around....so let the people who need to get to their destination asap to go about their ways....
The officer had decided I was getting a ticket.
I asked
"How did you determine my speed ?" He said "How did I determine your speed ,what ? "
He implied I was supposed to add the word "sir" to the end of my question.
I re-asked the question and instead of "sir" I added a word for a cetral part of the posterior portion of his body.
I went to court.
When I asked the cop how he determined my speed, he looked at the judge and said, "He cursed at me."
I said , "Your honor, I did not curse at him, but did use vulgar language. This was after he had issued me a ticket and had nothing to do with why I got the ticket in the first place.
The judge said "How fast were you going. ? I said. "Maybe 5 over".
The judge then asked what I called the cop. After I said that word, the whole court started laughing.
I got 1 point and was fined court costs of about $15 . A 13 over ticket should have been 3 points and over $60. I did get 8 hours community service for what I had called the cop.
It was worth it.
What an idiotic situation.
It takes a long time to exit Chittenden county nowadays, and the only new road designed to bypass this misery has been cancelled for another two years. FYI, this project was concepted in the 1960's !
Typical speed trap. They had just lowered the speed limit from 35 to 30. As I exited a tunnel I saw a motorcycle cop standing there. He had just finished ticketing another driver and he waved me over. I was totally caught off guard since I drive that way every day to work and I had never seen a cop there before...or since!
Anyway, he was a cocky little sort and I didn't argue with him. Wrote me for 44 in a 30...no break or anything.
So, I decided to fight it in court. The only court date I cold get conflicted with a high school reunion in California so I was stuck.
I then was told that in Bellevue Washington, they have a program where IF you have a clean driving record, you can opt to pay 100.00 and the ticket gets deferred. This means it doesn't show on your record. BUT....if you get another ticket within a year, they BOTH show up!
It's now been over a year and I've stayed clean unlike the days of my mispent youth when I once managed to amass three tickets in the same week!
Don't ask.
Maybe your area has a similar program?
Another motorcycle cop...got me coming to school at 7:45 and after school about 3:30.
Funny now but not at the time.
I think I got nine tickets that year.