[Branth]

Alright, I'm way too young to be talking about the "good old days," but it seemed to me that I was taught to give folks who let you in their lane when you were driving a friendly little wave to show your appreciation. You know, when you're trying to merge and traffic is bad, some nice guy slows himself down so you can squeeze in. I was taught to just give them a little wave to say thanks. Has this gone out of fashion? I mean, I'm not asking for them to bow at my feet for generosity or anything, I just think it's a nice gesture (no pun intended) to show appreciation...

So how many of you wave to the folks who let you in?

 

[Strangerous]

I wave.

 

[NDS]

I wave; if appropriate I flash lights. Road courtesy has virtually disappeared, I'm glad you noticed it could be better.

 

[Loopster]

I wave. And you're right. Road courtesy has just about disappeared. Most folks seem to drive as though they think the roads are paved just for them.

 

[Anon626]

I flash and wave,......I'm suprised I havent gotten any tickets yet, but the lil old ladies seem to like it :grinwink:

 

[orion]

i wave and when i am paying it forward i flash my lights

 

[2TN Mules]

I wave. And while were at it, Detroit could save money by eliminating blinkers and dimmers as so few use them now days.

 

[weav199]

As a professional driver/instructor, I couldn't agree more. there are a few courteous drivers still out there. I just wish merging would be part of the driving test.

 

[bomber101581]

i wave.....though personally i hate that. if i let someone in, usually i just want them to take the oppurtunity and then move on....but thats just me.


speaking of etiquitte, what do you do when someone tailgates you? if i am alone in my old honda and the person behind me is being a real a$$, i speed up a little then without hitting the brakes, i downshift. unfortunately, no one has actually hit me yet ( i could use the money), but its more of a wakeup call then brake lights, and yet, it is so much more subtle.... :devilsidesmile:

 

[Maaso]

What I hate is when people just expect you to get out of their way because they want in. I don't let those people in, and will barrel into them with my truck if they pull out in front of me(I've done it before.)

But at the same time, if somebody is using the blinker, waiting for a spot to open, and isn't trying to kill people by cutting them off or run them off the road. I will slow down my lane of traffic to let them in.

I give them a nod, and a quick wave, just to show that I appreciate them. I've never heard of, nor seen anyone flash their lights before. Don't matter because everything I drive these days have day-time running lights.

 

[Strangerous]

I've done this in my truck before:
I've been on the on ramp to I-85 only to have a dumbarse parked in the middle of it (It's a merge lane, not a 'stop and wait for traffic to quit coming' lane) I go around the offending driver sideways, horn blowing, middle finger in the air, and sometimes I yell if my window is down.

But if i'm at a light or something, and someone is trying to get in line, I let them.
If I'm in traffic and someone needs over, and makes the "can i get in your lane" gesture, I wave 'em on in.
If I'm driving down the road and some arsehole pulls out in front of me, and no traffic is behind me, they get all 55 watts of the Sylvania. (high beams)

 

[HiPoint45]

I pretty much follow the I'll let one guy in rule the rest is up to those behind me I will NOT with all of my ability let an arsehole who blows by a line of cars in a "lane closed ahead" construction zone back in..no way no how sit and spin pal you got eyes and can read like the rest of us (pet traffic peeve)

 

[bomber101581]

I pretty much follow the I'll let one guy in rule the rest is up to those behind me I will NOT with all of my ability let an arsehole who blows by a line of cars in a "lane closed ahead" construction zone back in..no way no how sit and spin pal you got eyes and can read like the rest of us (pet traffic peeve)

i understand that logic, but think of it this way.....let's say there is a three lane road going down to 2 lanes. well until that third lane actually disappears, there really are 3 lanes of traffic. its actually a hinderance to traffic that people don't use that third lane until the bitter end. when people get over early, they are artificially limiting the number of lanes available for traffic, and end up slowing themselves and everyone else down. and then, while all the people who get over are complaining about how bad traffic is, some guy rips by, utilizing the open lane left to him and then everyone gets pissed. well i gotta admit, i am that guy.

 

[HiPoint45]

I pretty much follow the I'll let one guy in rule the rest is up to those behind me I will NOT with all of my ability let an arsehole who blows by a line of cars in a "lane closed ahead" construction zone back in..no way no how sit and spin pal you got eyes and can read like the rest of us (pet traffic peeve)

i understand that logic, but think of it this way.....let's say there is a three lane road going down to 2 lanes. well until that third lane actually disappears, there really are 3 lanes of traffic. its actually a hinderance to traffic that people don't use that third lane until the bitter end. when people get over early, they are artificially limiting the number of lanes available for traffic, and end up slowing themselves and everyone else down. and then, while all the people who get over are complaining about how bad traffic is, some guy rips by, utilizing the open lane left to him and then everyone gets pissed. well i gotta admit, i am that guy.

I'll wave at you when i go by as you sit there because at that point you bring the controlled traffic to a dead stop to let you in, had you merged earlier in the moving traffic you would be rolling like the rest of us. The reason you could rip by is because some other jackass did too a few minutes before you did. :devilsidesmile:

 

[bomber101581]

I'll wave at you when i go by as you sit there because at that point you bring the controlled traffic to a dead stop to let you in, had you merged earlier in the moving traffic you would be rolling like the rest of us. The reason you could rip by is because some other jackass did too a few minutes before you did. :devilsidesmile:

i would be interested to know which model works better for keeping all the traffic moving as quickly as possible. its true that someone needs to stop to let the guy in when he gets to the end of the line, but wouldn't people have to stop and let him in no matter where he decided to get in? whether it be very early or way down the line?

 

[HiPoint45]

I'll wave at you when i go by as you sit there because at that point you bring the controlled traffic to a dead stop to let you in, had you merged earlier in the moving traffic you would be rolling like the rest of us. The reason you could rip by is because some other jackass did too a few minutes before you did. :devilsidesmile:

i would be interested to know which model works better for keeping all the traffic moving as quickly as possible. its true that someone needs to stop to let the guy in when he gets to the end of the line, but wouldn't people have to stop and let him in no matter where he decided to get in? whether it be very early or way down the line?

I don't know but as a truck driver who's been through most major metro areas in this country I can tell you the zoom up to the end is ineffective . Heres an idea the first ...very first sign you see that says "whichever lane closed ahead" GET OVER..right then. You'll notice in most cases unless rush hour in a city traffic isn't thick at that point.

 

[bomber101581]

I'll wave at you when i go by as you sit there because at that point you bring the controlled traffic to a dead stop to let you in, had you merged earlier in the moving traffic you would be rolling like the rest of us. The reason you could rip by is because some other jackass did too a few minutes before you did. :devilsidesmile:

i would be interested to know which model works better for keeping all the traffic moving as quickly as possible. its true that someone needs to stop to let the guy in when he gets to the end of the line, but wouldn't people have to stop and let him in no matter where he decided to get in? whether it be very early or way down the line?

I don't know but as a truck driver who's been through most major metro areas in this country I can tell you the zoom up to the end is ineffective . Heres an idea the first ...very first sign you see that says "whichever lane closed ahead" GET OVER..right then. You'll notice in most cases unless rush hour in a city traffic isn't thick at that point.

this is starting to resemble a math problem.....and i am not good at math problems.... :cantlook:

 

[HiPoint45]

LOL

 

[stonebridge]

My dad once told me that in engineering school, one of their projects was to calculate the optimal speed to get two lanes of traffic into one lane around a bottleneck. Assuming that all cars could maintain an equal speed, kept the same two car lengths of space between each other, and were of basically similar size, it's possible for every driver to let one car in ahead of them and keep the whole line moving at 35-36 mph. And yet, every time you see a construction zone it's a friggin' parking lot.

I think etiquette should be part of the driver's exam.

The most fun in the world is being in the south during an ice storm. A significant portion of Southerners have no clue how to drive in bad weather. We saw miles and miles of ditched cars, punctuated by the occasional vehicle in flames due to its occupants revving the engine in traffic to keep warm. I could've sold a can of windshield de-icer for $30 and a snow-broom for $50, no questions asked. I could've sworn I was on a different planet when I saw a guy trying to scrape the ice off his (nice, late-model) car with a round-pointed shovel.

-'bridge

 

[bomber101581]

lol.....i love seeing nOObs in the snow

your experiment is flawed however. it fails to take into account human nature, specifically, human nature behind the wheel. people are inherently selfish, especially behind the wheel.