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Zipper Merging?

It is better, but only if everyone is doing it. If everyone else is merging early and you keep driving to the end, then you are a jerk and don't deserve to be let back in.
 
I often go to the end of the merge line. Merge in too early and you just end up letting in a bunch of more people in front of you.
 
I often go to the end of the merge line. Merge in too early and you just end up letting in a bunch of more people in front of you.

That means the caboose doesn't know his/her role. You straddle the middle line, thus preventing folks from zooming down the lane and cutting over. ;)



 
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This is like a slow left lane driver thing to me.

I can't stand when a car is in the merge lane, stopped a quarter mile before you have to merge with their blinker on tying to get over.

Just drive your ass all the way to the end of lane and merge over, there is a reason for all the extra road....use it or goodness sake!
 
This is like a slow left lane driver thing to me.

I can't stand when a car is in the merge lane, stopped a quarter mile before you have to merge with their blinker on tying to get over.

Just drive your ass all the way to the end of lane and merge over, there is a reason for all the extra road....use it or goodness sake!
I get what you're saying, but people don't want to be seen as "that guy" who zooms to the end when everyone else has to wait.
I typically go slower with my blinker on and duck in in front of a truck or slower vehicle. Any commercial vehicle will always let you in.

And PS...I thought this thread was some exciting new sex party trend sweeping the globe. Was very excited to see it was about...driving.
 
I get what you're saying, but people don't want to be seen as "that guy" who zooms to the end when everyone else has to wait.
I typically go slower with my blinker on and duck in in front of a truck or slower vehicle. Any commercial vehicle will always let you in.

And PS...I thought this thread was some exciting new sex party trend sweeping the globe. Was very excited to see it was about...driving.
Oh no...if everyone went to the front traffic would flow better and move along faster. It's real estate that is not being maximized.
As far as being that guy, I could careless. People just hate on that person for doing it, but never actually hold a grudge. It's out of their mind the second they get to their destination , which will be after me if we are going to the same the place :D
 
Oh no...if everyone went to the front traffic would flow better and move along faster. It's real estate that is not being maximized.
As far as being that guy, I could careless. People just hate on that person for doing it, but never actually hold a grudge. It's out of their mind the second they get to their destination , which will be after me if we are going to the same the place :D
Maybe. Most times I see people run up to the end the drivers in the right lane will tighten up to keep the guy from merging in.
 
It sucks that even though this is the correct and most efficient method of merging, everyone considers you the asshole.

Had this happen to me last yr on the way to the Clemson game. There was construction on 95 around the St Aug area which shutdown the hwy forcing everyone onto a backroad detour. I zipper merged at the exit, but a big ford with truck nuts inched up and refused to let me in, rolling his window down at a dead stop yelling at me. I laugh at him as his face does a 180 when a hwy patrolman walks up to him telling him to let me in. My gf smiled and waved to the cop and then the asshole, who looked like a little kid caught caught in the act. He rode my ass for the next few miles until he turned off into a strip mall. I was tempted to pull in and give him the business, but cooler heads prevailed and I had a big game to go that was more important in the long run. I just wish the public was more informed on things like this.
 
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You mean Merge and Yield, don't mean stop and wait..?? o_O

The new thing now is traffic circles. Folks won't merge into them as they are afraid of the "big circley thing"
 
Signs give you plenty of time to merge seamlessly without being an jerk and running all the way to the end of the merging lane.

You guys that run all the way to the end of the lane and expect someone to let you in are the cause for any delays that happen, it also screams I am more important then everyone behind you that you skipped. You guys are no better then the knuckleheads that use the shoulder to get ahead.

Have some courtesy and get in line before the end so you keep traffic moving.
 
Signs give you plenty of time to merge seamlessly without being an jerk and running all the way to the end of the merging lane.

You guys that run all the way to the end of the lane and expect someone to let you in are the cause for any delays that happen, it also screams I am more important then everyone behind you that you skipped. You guys are no better then the knuckleheads that use the shoulder to get ahead.

Have some courtesy and get in line before the end so you keep traffic moving.

I wholeheartedly disagree.

The Germans have this one right.
 
I wholeheartedly disagree.

The Germans have this one right.

I'm sure they do over there, but here, people can't drive worth a crap and waiting to merge at the end causes backups. I see it every single day, its terrible.
 
I'm sure they do over there, but here, people can't drive worth a crap and waiting to merge at the end causes backups. I see it every single day, its terrible.

That makes no sense whatsoever. How does waiting to merge at the end cause a back up, but merging before the end doesn't. You just get over when you can, but there in no need to merge .25 miles before the end of the merge lane. Why waste the road that people worked so hard to put down and taxes payers paid for. If the engineers wanted us to merge sooner, they wouldn't have made the roads as long as they are.

Try doing it tomorrow....you'll feel GREAT about your decision and will be thanking me later. :)
 
http://lifehacker.com/the-right-way-to-merge-lanes-to-avoid-traffic-jams-and-1501148503

http://arstechnica.com/cars/2014/07/the-beauty-of-zipper-merging-or-why-you-should-drive-ruder/

early_merge.gif


early-merging-meme.jpg
 
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We probably need to decide what we're arguing about.

If traffic is flowing along then Poop and Dan are correct. Don't block traffic to merge when you have 1/2 mile to get over.
However, if traffic is inching along then Poop's and Dan's method of hauling ass up to the end of the merge lane and then ducking in is a douchy move.
 
Dan is this you in the red circle?

dmv-driver-post-lane-shift.jpg

If there isn't an opening you still need to drive all the way up and merge when one becomes open. Stopping 200 yards back and doing this is dumb. They are in no way making traffic worse by doing this. common sense
 
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We probably need to decide what we're arguing about.

If traffic is flowing along then Poop and Dan are correct. Don't block traffic to merge when you have 1/2 mile to get over.
However, if traffic is inching along then Poop's and Dan's method of hauling ass up to the end of the merge lane and then ducking in is a douchy move.

not true at all...if traffic is inching along, they would still need to drive to the end and get over when available.

The only thing questionable to me is if one pulled out of the inching along lane and used the merge lane to get in front of others. That would be dick, but in the long run would still help the flow of traffic.
 
I'm sure they do over there, but here, people can't drive worth a crap and waiting to merge at the end causes backups. I see it every single day, its terrible.
Ah I see, so because some people can't drive, the rest of us should adopt inefficient driving techniques?

Perhaps we should teach people to stop tailing other cars and driving w/ their brakes. I don't get the American fascination with always having your foot on the brake or accelerator - do people not understand that sometimes letting the car coast does the trick (and saves you gas as a bonus)?
 
not true at all...if traffic is inching along, they would still need to drive to the end and get over when available.

The only thing questionable to me is if one pulled out of the inching along lane and used the merge lane to get in front of others. That would be dick, but in the long run would still help the flow of traffic.

How in the world would moving into the merge lane then re-merging 1/4 mile later help the flow of traffic?
 
No matter what unless extreme circumstances, you should leave a car length or 2 open in front and merge one at a time. From my story from above, there was ample room in between cars as we were merging, but the jerk sped up to close the gap and thought he was teaching me a lesson. If he would've just slowed down a bit and let me over, (I would've gladly merged behind him as well, but another asshole sped up also) than neither one of us had to stop and we could've kept on down the road.

These are the same type of people as left lane drivers that think they are teaching people a lesson. When in fact they are actually creating the problem they are "trying to enforce".
 
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Can't wait for self-driving cars so all of our mental imperfections and inadequacies that manifest themselves through aggressive or inattentive driving will be void.

Can't happen soon enough. Imagine a world where you don't even need to own a car, one comes to pick you up, drives you, essentially free of traffic to where you want to go and returns when it is summoned -- all silently and on electric power.

Twill be amazing.
 
How in the world would moving into the merge lane then re-merging 1/4 mile later help the flow of traffic?

Utilizing space...zipper method. If they used the extra road, the back of the line would then be able to move up...at least some.
 
Dan - Your theory would work if people would work together and be more courteous. The theory is sound and would work, I agree with you on that.

Having said that, in a real world situation, signs tell you that a merge is coming. Its best to merge as soon as you can when there are spaces in the traffic flow and everyone is moving along at speed.

What happens to cause the backups is people waiting until the last minute to merge (using all the lane) and the traffic in the thru lane doesn't want to let them in, they stop or merge anyway and the person in the travel lane then has to brake to let them in or brakes to avoid a collision. Once people start braking then its the accordion affect and slows traffic and causes a backup.

Like I said earlier, we have a spot on our interstate here Newport News where the interstate goes from four lanes to three, it happens everyday and causes a backup for at least a mile....everyday, all because of the "merge effect".

While I am on my soap box, I have come to the conclusion that when people put on their turn signal to change lanes, instead of it being a request to let me in, its a notification to "slow your ass down I am coming over". Peoples driving habits these days are ridiculous.....
 
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While I am on my soap box, I have come to the conclusion that when people put on their turn signal to change lanes, instead of it being a request to let me in, its a notification to "slow your ass down I am coming over". Peoples driving habits these days are ridiculous.....

Of course it is, because NO ONE will let you in...see the opposite of zipper merging. Our society (as a whole, not individuals) is rude.
 
I think this zipper merge thing makes sense, but there will always be that little old lady or nervous driver who doesn't get it. By the way, I see drivers block the lane that has a pretty good distance to go before the merge is necessary to keep other drivers from merging in ahead of them. I would be perfectly ok with these people receiving very expensive tickets....or worse.
 
While I am on my soap box, I have come to the conclusion that when people put on their turn signal to change lanes, instead of it being a request to let me in, its a notification to "slow your ass down I am coming over". Peoples driving habits these days are ridiculous.....

It's a turn signal. Not a turn request.

sig·nal1
ˈsiɡnəl/
noun
noun: signal; plural noun: signals
1
.
a gesture, action, or sound that is used to convey information or instructions,

I routinely leave a good gap between the car in front of me, not because my car won't stop on a dime, but because I know the cars behind me can't stop as fast and I drive accordingly. People are constantly sliding into that gap, so I just let it increase again. I still always get where I'm going.
But when I see an appropriate gap to change lanes, signal that intent to change lanes, and see the joker in the other lane speed up to block me I always let them get within about 3 feet before I make the lane change - because screw them. I'm not worried about getting hit by a car that sees me as they obviously do. I didn't signal so you'd have a chance to block me.

By the way, I see drivers block the lane that has a pretty good distance to go before the merge is necessary to keep other drivers from merging in ahead of them. I would be perfectly ok with these people receiving very expensive tickets....or worse.

I think they should get participation trophies, acknowledging they are the 58,423,564th car to beat me to the next mile marker.
 
I have completely changed sides of the fence on this issue in the last year or so.

Because of all the construction caused by the "overland bridge project" Jacksonville's downtown area roads have a lot of lanes closed and we're having to use 1 where we used to have 2. It just works better if you stay in separate lanes until you merge. At the end you overlap your front fender with the car in front of yours' rear fender and when the lanes squeeze together the guy behind you is overlapping your back fender as well and everyone slows a little until they are all single file.

Think about it this way... If I'm stubbornly staying in the lane that doesn't end, then people start coming by me, even if they don't go all the way to the end, they'll cut over in front of me SOMEWHERE. And you know someone will let them in. You wind up getting passed more than once. If everyone went to the end, you just let one car in instead of a dozen.

I noticed on my own interstate onramp, they recently widened the merge lane (two lanes go to the interstate, narrowing to one) and then they PAINTED A SOLID WHITE LINE up to the merge point. The road designers KNOW this is a better system and are trying to modify our behavior to follow it.
 
I have completely changed sides of the fence on this issue in the last year or so.

Because of all the construction caused by the "overland bridge project" Jacksonville's downtown area roads have a lot of lanes closed and we're having to use 1 where we used to have 2. It just works better if you stay in separate lanes until you merge. At the end you overlap your front fender with the car in front of yours' rear fender and when the lanes squeeze together the guy behind you is overlapping your back fender as well and everyone slows a little until they are all single file.

Think about it this way... If I'm stubbornly staying in the lane that doesn't end, then people start coming by me, even if they don't go all the way to the end, they'll cut over in front of me SOMEWHERE. And you know someone will let them in. You wind up getting passed more than once. If everyone went to the end, you just let one car in instead of a dozen.

I noticed on my own interstate onramp, they recently widened the merge lane (two lanes go to the interstate, narrowing to one) and then they PAINTED A SOLID WHITE LINE up to the merge point. The road designers KNOW this is a better system and are trying to modify our behavior to follow it.

Just to make sure I'm understanding you completely....you are saying "yes" to zipper merging?
 
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