Probably irritated that they’re in the middle lane instead of keeping right expect to pass. (or left except to pass in countries that drive on the left).
Unless you drive in Sweden. On 3 lane highways you will regularly see people hog the middle lane for long long times. And while Swedish drivers are generally on average just terrible drivers (fight me on this if you have to, it is true), it is not because they don’t pay attention but because Swedish highways are chaoticly designed.
Does the right lane merge into an exit in a kilometer or not? No one knows, it just randomly happens. Or if you have 3 or more lanes in a city that will go differrent directions at the end, you’d think giving clear signs where each will go at the end very early would be helpful. Not here, lets place those as far back as possible. So people stay middle lane just in case they need to make a switch far right or far left.
It is stupid but won’t ever change because the highways are just set up that way.
It could be, but I just think they think it’s OK to chill in the center lane. Everyone else is doing it, after all, never mind that everyone else is also causing traffic to be worse.
The California DMV handbook literally tells you to do that. If there’s three lanes, cruise in the middle lane. If there’s two lanes, cruise in the right lane. I don’t think it’s a requirement, but it is the official recommendation in California.
Interesting, that seems to me like it would encourage people to pass on the right. In my experience driving with 3 lanes the right lane is often bare and clear while the left lane is clogged and the middle lane is moderately busy which is, of course, the opposite of what it should be, generally. In cities, obviously, cruising in the middle lane can make more sense, as there’s much more merging on/off of the freeway.
I looked it up to see if they provide reasoning for it, and discovered that they’ve removed the language about where to cruise (at least I couldn’t easily find it) since I took the test years ago, but they’re kind of saying it between the lines:
Here are some tips for choosing a lane:
Use the left lane to pass or turn left.
Use the right lane to enter or exit traffic or when you enter the road from a curb or shoulder.
Sidenote: In my experience, on/off ramps in California are ridiculously short, often with low visibility until you’re on it, so they’re kind of relying on the right lane not being all that crowded.
Yeah, if I come up on someone in the middle lane when there’s clearly space in the right lane, I get pissed. I don’t even drive fast, so if I catch up to you, you really have no business being anywhere but the right lane.
This is the 4th time you’ve commented this, something isn’t going right on your instance (or my instance), I though I left this bug behind when I left reddit haha.
If I merged onto the highway on the left, I have to eventually get right. I’ll move to the middle lane when it’s safe, but then 1-2 miles before my exit, I’ll move to the right lane (for right exits). But it’s unreasonable to expect drivers to crowd the far right lane all the time, making merging/exiting the highway more congested and dangerous just because I only drive 0-9 mph over the speed limit at the speed of traffic flow…
But it’s unreasonable to expect drivers to crowd the far right lane all the time, making merging/exiting the highway more congested and dangerous just because I only drive 0-9 mph over the speed limit at the speed of traffic flow…
So what do you do when there are two lanes? Ride the left lane? No? But then how do people possibly merge? Huh, somehow it works. Shockingly, you can move to the other lane when someone needs to merge because, whoa you guessed it, the lane isn’t full of people going slower.
It’s not unreasonable, and there’s a reason why it’s the (sadly often unenforced) rule almost everywhere to keep right/left. Somehow it works in Germany where it is more heavily enforced. Oh, and guess what, it’s safer for everyone.
This is totally psychological (thinking it’s crowding the right lane and causing merge issues). You may not realize it, but you’re doing this just because you unconsciously feel more comfortable with more space (for yourself) on both sides. It’s called the “space cushion”. You might even tell yourself you are safer because you have more directions to escape to if a situation arises. Or you might just be lazy, as it’s a lot easier to sit in your cushy middle lane and not have to think about what you’re doing.
But you’re actually creating more problems by riding the middle lane, leading to people passing on both sides, doing more dangerous weaving maneuvers, reducing the optimal flow of traffic overall, and making the road less safe for everyone. And did you know you’re probably making merging worse? Yeah, the fact that you think you don’t have to change lanes to assist with people merging just because you’re in the middle lane means that you’re part of the problem. You still have to pay attention and be ready to move over, in case there is already someone in the right lane who needs to move over.
It’s pretty selfish to be honest. Stop being a lane hog.
As long as you’re not impeding the flow of traffic that’s fine. Some people stay left or center and impede traffic because they want to make everyone go slower. My brother is one of those people.
I tell him he’s not the police and is actually being more dangerous than just getting the fuck out of the way.
Just like someone wants to go slower. Let others live and they can live or die with the consequences. Don’t inject yourself into a dangerous situation to prove a point.
Yeah. If I stayed in the right lane, every couple miles I’d need to change lanes to avoid an exit only, or free up space for entering traffic to merge. But that leaves one of not two open lanes to my left.
Also changing lanes is stressful for me: the situation changes quickly, and even after checking blind spots I’ve almost sideswiped someone a couple times. (Also honked to keep a pair of cars in front of me from picking the same moment to shift into each other.)
So, I get the principle, and I also am annoyed with slow traffic in the left lane. But if there’s room to pass on the left, that’s what I see as necessary.
It is the job of the person merging onto the freeway to find a safe place to merge. The person on the freeway is also able to move out of the right lane if they so desire, but they aren’t required to from what I understand.
All of that said, I see people being center lane campers all the time whether it be in the middle of a city, where it’s arguably fine, to rural but populated areas where it causes traffic, to the middle of nowhere, where it isn’t inconveniencing me, but is just weird.
People often forget, this is only on highways/motorways. On surface streets (recognizable by their lack of entry/exit ramps/infrastructure and same level intersections) left lanes are for those expecting to turn left next, right lanes are for those expecting to turn right next, and middle lanes are for those who will be going straight past the next intersection, with some variance expected on occasion.
Based on the overall frequency of people from Southeast Asia vs. the US on Lemmy, my guess is still going to be “US” when people tell me about 3+ lanes on municipal roads, even though I am of course aware that such roads exist in other countries (including my own).
Its sadly not only an America problem. Its not uncommon here in China to see 3 lanes each way, a seperated motorbike lane that’s like 10 feet wide, a seperated bus/bicycle/car parking lane, 5 feet of bike parking, and then 15 feet of sidewalk.
Probably irritated that they’re in the middle lane instead of keeping right expect to pass. (or left except to pass in countries that drive on the left).
It’s an indicator that the center lane driver is not paying attention. I want to be far away from drivers that are not paying attention.
Unless you drive in Sweden. On 3 lane highways you will regularly see people hog the middle lane for long long times. And while Swedish drivers are generally on average just terrible drivers (fight me on this if you have to, it is true), it is not because they don’t pay attention but because Swedish highways are chaoticly designed.
Does the right lane merge into an exit in a kilometer or not? No one knows, it just randomly happens. Or if you have 3 or more lanes in a city that will go differrent directions at the end, you’d think giving clear signs where each will go at the end very early would be helpful. Not here, lets place those as far back as possible. So people stay middle lane just in case they need to make a switch far right or far left.
It is stupid but won’t ever change because the highways are just set up that way.
It could be, but I just think they think it’s OK to chill in the center lane. Everyone else is doing it, after all, never mind that everyone else is also causing traffic to be worse.
Another class of driver I want to be far away from
Absolutely
The California DMV handbook literally tells you to do that. If there’s three lanes, cruise in the middle lane. If there’s two lanes, cruise in the right lane. I don’t think it’s a requirement, but it is the official recommendation in California.
Interesting, that seems to me like it would encourage people to pass on the right. In my experience driving with 3 lanes the right lane is often bare and clear while the left lane is clogged and the middle lane is moderately busy which is, of course, the opposite of what it should be, generally. In cities, obviously, cruising in the middle lane can make more sense, as there’s much more merging on/off of the freeway.
I looked it up to see if they provide reasoning for it, and discovered that they’ve removed the language about where to cruise (at least I couldn’t easily find it) since I took the test years ago, but they’re kind of saying it between the lines:
Sidenote: In my experience, on/off ramps in California are ridiculously short, often with low visibility until you’re on it, so they’re kind of relying on the right lane not being all that crowded.
Yea, in cities it can make sense to cruise in the middle lane. Where there’s an exist every few miles, nah, keep to the right.
Yeah, if I come up on someone in the middle lane when there’s clearly space in the right lane, I get pissed. I don’t even drive fast, so if I catch up to you, you really have no business being anywhere but the right lane.
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This is the 4th time you’ve commented this, something isn’t going right on your instance (or my instance), I though I left this bug behind when I left reddit haha.
On my connection or app, I think.
Somethin’ like that
This is extremely dangerous to our democracy.
If I merged onto the highway on the left, I have to eventually get right. I’ll move to the middle lane when it’s safe, but then 1-2 miles before my exit, I’ll move to the right lane (for right exits). But it’s unreasonable to expect drivers to crowd the far right lane all the time, making merging/exiting the highway more congested and dangerous just because I only drive 0-9 mph over the speed limit at the speed of traffic flow…
So what do you do when there are two lanes? Ride the left lane? No? But then how do people possibly merge? Huh, somehow it works. Shockingly, you can move to the other lane when someone needs to merge because, whoa you guessed it, the lane isn’t full of people going slower.
It’s not unreasonable, and there’s a reason why it’s the (sadly often unenforced) rule almost everywhere to keep right/left. Somehow it works in Germany where it is more heavily enforced. Oh, and guess what, it’s safer for everyone.
This is totally psychological (thinking it’s crowding the right lane and causing merge issues). You may not realize it, but you’re doing this just because you unconsciously feel more comfortable with more space (for yourself) on both sides. It’s called the “space cushion”. You might even tell yourself you are safer because you have more directions to escape to if a situation arises. Or you might just be lazy, as it’s a lot easier to sit in your cushy middle lane and not have to think about what you’re doing.
But you’re actually creating more problems by riding the middle lane, leading to people passing on both sides, doing more dangerous weaving maneuvers, reducing the optimal flow of traffic overall, and making the road less safe for everyone. And did you know you’re probably making merging worse? Yeah, the fact that you think you don’t have to change lanes to assist with people merging just because you’re in the middle lane means that you’re part of the problem. You still have to pay attention and be ready to move over, in case there is already someone in the right lane who needs to move over.
It’s pretty selfish to be honest. Stop being a lane hog.
As long as you’re not impeding the flow of traffic that’s fine. Some people stay left or center and impede traffic because they want to make everyone go slower. My brother is one of those people.
I tell him he’s not the police and is actually being more dangerous than just getting the fuck out of the way.
Just like someone wants to go slower. Let others live and they can live or die with the consequences. Don’t inject yourself into a dangerous situation to prove a point.
Yeah. If I stayed in the right lane, every couple miles I’d need to change lanes to avoid an exit only, or free up space for entering traffic to merge. But that leaves one of not two open lanes to my left.
Also changing lanes is stressful for me: the situation changes quickly, and even after checking blind spots I’ve almost sideswiped someone a couple times. (Also honked to keep a pair of cars in front of me from picking the same moment to shift into each other.)
So, I get the principle, and I also am annoyed with slow traffic in the left lane. But if there’s room to pass on the left, that’s what I see as necessary.
It is the job of the person merging onto the freeway to find a safe place to merge. The person on the freeway is also able to move out of the right lane if they so desire, but they aren’t required to from what I understand.
All of that said, I see people being center lane campers all the time whether it be in the middle of a city, where it’s arguably fine, to rural but populated areas where it causes traffic, to the middle of nowhere, where it isn’t inconveniencing me, but is just weird.
People often forget, this is only on highways/motorways. On surface streets (recognizable by their lack of entry/exit ramps/infrastructure and same level intersections) left lanes are for those expecting to turn left next, right lanes are for those expecting to turn right next, and middle lanes are for those who will be going straight past the next intersection, with some variance expected on occasion.
You don’t need to tell me where you live.
Which country do you think this picture got taken in? Hint: It’s not America, China or Dubai
Probably some parade street in North Korea.
It’s Myanmar
Based on the overall frequency of people from Southeast Asia vs. the US on Lemmy, my guess is still going to be “US” when people tell me about 3+ lanes on municipal roads, even though I am of course aware that such roads exist in other countries (including my own).
Its sadly not only an America problem. Its not uncommon here in China to see 3 lanes each way, a seperated motorbike lane that’s like 10 feet wide, a seperated bus/bicycle/car parking lane, 5 feet of bike parking, and then 15 feet of sidewalk.
And somehow cars still drive on the sidewalks.
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That’s a lot of lane.
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