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For example, someone could calculate shooting a .50 cal bullet just in front of and just behind your car moving at a certain speed, but if your wrong they are shooting at head level; would you play?
Consistent means that at a speed -- pick any, and get it from the GPS -- the difference between GPS and speedo is quite stable. Very slow long-term drift (speedo gets faster relative to GPS) as the tires wear. Slow.
DRIVING ETIQUETTE
1.
Dim your headlights for approaching vehicles, even if the gun is loaded, and the deer is in sight.
2.
When approaching a four-way stop, the vehicle with the largest tires always has the right of way.
3.
Never tow another car using panty hose and duct tape.
4.
When sending your wife/girlfriend down the road with a gas can, it is impolite to ask her to bring back beer.
5.
Never relieve yourself from a moving vehicle, especially when driving.
6.
Do not lay rubber while traveling in a funeral procession.
I found a list by state. Interesting reading.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
As for speedometers, they are usually set to read high and there are many things that can cause variances in their reading (like tire size) and therefor are not as accurate as GPS.
Radar needs to be routinely calibrated and stray radio signals, among other things, could give false readings.
Back to lurking mode.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
If a vehicle enters the passing lane, that vehicle should be passing a vehicle to its right, and if they are not doing that, they are a jackass. Someone (or a few vehicles) are responsible for the left lane ceasing to be the fastest lane on the freeway.
It's fine to coast up to a stop to save gas, and I do that myself all the time... when no one is behind me who might want to turn left or right! :@
On the very rare occasion, I've been known to then move to the center lane and turn in front of that right-lane camper.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
I try to do the same with regard to the lane courtesy if I receive input from drivers behind me. Most of the time, though, I'll see them flick on the signal close enough to the intersection that there's little I can do. Our lanes tend to be wide enough at the intersection that if I move far enough left and encroach a little on the crosswalk, drivers behind can slip through. Some will do it, many will not.
You can always tell the folks who have a decent handle on the dimensions of their cars by whether or not they'll accept your courtesy in this way.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '08 Charger R/T Daytona; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '08 Maser QP; '11 Mini Cooper S
Well, to be more specific, I can't find that it is strictly coded (e.g., "illegal"), but I'm sure that it is inconsiderate enough that a LEO could apply code to one or more aspects of the overall scenario in order to apply a fine!
The right of way is the key here. Stopping on right turns is pointless if it isn't required to make a safe turn; which it usually isn't.
Not sure where you got the idea that a Stop light doesn't actually mean Stop, but "Stop if y'all feel like it." Stopping at the red light would have completely taken care of this situation, because had the other driver actually slowed and stopped, I would have already made my turn. Maybe that's why the law says to STOP on a Stop light (or Stop sign), not Stop only if you agree with that law--otherwise it's optional.
Yielding to traffic solves the problem 100%. There is no need to stop if you yield to traffic that has the right of way. End of story. Period. Exclamation point!
Stopping doesn't keep people from moving forward again at inopportune moments. If an intersection has good visibility in all directions, slowing down for conditions provides plenty of time to assess the situation.
Here's one reason why stopping is a good idea: stopping gives more time for the driver to observe the intersection, looking for traffic and pedestrians. It can avoid the tragic consequences of, for example, a moving pedestrian aligning exactly in the car's blind spot as the car approaches the intersection. The driver won't see the pedestrian because they're obscured by the blind spot. If the vehicle stops, the driver will be able to observe the pedestrian moving out of the blind spot and into view. It would also allow the pedestrian to look the driver in the eyes to ensure that the driver sees the pedestrian.
No, just slowing down does NOT give plenty of time to assess all situations. Since someone's health or life may depend on it, why not take a few more seconds out of your extremely important day and STOP THE CAR?
You are arguing a moot point. Accidents caused during right turns on red lights is such an infinitesimally small number that it is obvious to anyone studying what causes accidents that it doesn't deserve any extra attention as compared to the bigger picture. It is not a real-world problem, and as you've noted, I'm not the only one ignoring the "stop" rule on red lights for right turns.
Often, a driver doesn't need more time to observe an intersection. I can see from a mile away sometimes that there are no pedestrians at the next intersection. I can see that there are no pedestrians for miles in any direction at some intersections. At intersections where sight lines are reduced, most likely you are travelling slower to being with, so it is all about looking up, looking out, looking ahead, being situationally aware before the last second so you don't need extra seconds to assess the situation.
The pedestrian can look into the eyes of a driver rolling 5 MPH or less through a right turn just as easily as a stopped vehicle by the way, and should do so!
No one is saying a stop light or stop sign doesn't mean stop here. It just should mean "yield" for right turns, that's all. Also, it is safe to make a left turn onto a one way going left; no need to stop in that situation either.
You said, "Often, a driver doesn't need more time to observe an intersection." That's true. Usually, the person turning right on red without stopping won't cause an accident. It's the times they cause an accident - the exceptions - that are the problem.
I'd like to know how you can tell a mile away that there's no pedestrians when driving in the city, as I was in the incident I talked about. You'd be doing well to see pedestrians 100 feet from that intersection. You'd be doing even better to see a runner or biker that far away.
A pedestrian can not look into the eyes of a driver when the pedestrian is in the driver's blind spot, i.e. A pillar. I've seen it happen when a moving car's blind spot exactly lines up with the moving pedestrian, and the only way the driver will see the pedestrian is when they clear the blind spot--right before you hit them, if you're still moving.
It's hilarious that you say "No one is saying a stop light or stop sign doesn't mean stop here", because that is exactly what you're saying. How many people must be injured or killed before ignoring a stop sign/light becomes a problem for you?
And could you please answer my question: what is so important about a few seconds of your time that you can't stop on red before turning right (or left)?
Andres is saying that blind adherence to law (e.g., "the letter of the law") does not de facto enhance safety. Backy saying that adhering to the intent of law does enhance safety. How are these incompatible statements? Let's take a look:
Does one always need to stop to safely navigate an intersection (Andres' argument)? No. If one *does* stop, does this guarantee safe navigation? No. If one *does* stop *and* observes intersection conditions, is there a higher likelihood of safe navigation than if that same driver did not stop (Backy's argument)? Yes.
Trying to argue your points by saying that you can judge an intersection a mile away or that camping a left lane does not reduce roadway safety is just dilution of the points you're actually trying to make.
Thank you for reminding me how incompetent so many drivers are, and encouraging them to drive in a manner that clogs the roads.
Does that mean stops at all Stop signs and Stop signals should be "at driver's discretion"? Oh, what a wonderful world THAT would be. NOT. :@
Do you drive in urban traffic very often? Not the suburban roads of outer San Diego, but real urban-style roads? I doubt it, based on your disregard for basic traffic laws.
I'll agree that the more "offensive" Stop signs occur in suburban areas. I'm less bothered by them in urban areas.
And going back to why driving slow in the left lane is dangerous, it is because people will drive a speed comfortable to them regardless of what the speed limit is. If they are impeded in the left/passing lanes then they will be forced to pass on the right, creating even larger speed discrepancies and differences in traffic far more than necessary if people would just observe proper lane driving techniques.
I've done real-world experiments and this holds true for most left lane campers as well. If you out left lane camp a camper by slowing down below their particular already slow "comfortable speed," more often than not they will execute a pass on the right; just natural human nature. They particularly don't like swallowing their own medicine; I've observed.
It takes more than a split second to properly assess the speed of traffic, your brain is going to take longer to register a motorcycle than a car and even longer to register a bicycle. Not to mention what pedestrians are doing around that intersection. Or say you approach the intersection, look for cross traffic and just roll through not realizing that oncoming traffic now has a green light?
it's just that at the majority of intersections with traffic lights there is just to much going on to make those judgements quickly.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
This is also a reason why roads in residential areas twist and turn and sometimes en with no reason and why you have no right turn between certain hours signs on heavily traveled roads.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
The discussion here centered around the safety aspect of stopping vs. not stopping and, by extension, the level of acceptable risk associated therein.
Reducing traffic might be the intent, but the results show these dumb ideas from ill-informed so-called "traffic city planners" often backfire, resulting in additional congestion, traffic, and hazards. The aim of traffic measures shouldn't be to slow people down and cause congestion, it should be for maximum safety and minimum travel times.
Whenever I've pulled a traffic & engineering survey on a highly overly enforced section of road (hence why I had to pull a survey because I had a ticket), it turns out that the road is 6 to 8 times safer than a typical roadway. Sure doesn't give the Police Officer's much credibility when they say they've had "issues and accidents" by people doing what your doing yet the statistics don't back it.
those you call ill informed so called "traffic city planners" are not ill informed, but I do strongly suspect you might be. This does greatly increase safety in residential areas and adds very little in the way of congestion on the main thoroughfares that are designed to handle the large volumes of traffic.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
No one wants an endless line of cars in front of there house OR on the freeways. My suggestion is don't buy that house in the first place!