How Do You Deal With Tailgaters?

[goeduck]

I drive the speed limit, not over, not under when out on the freeway or highway. I figure that is why they spend all that money on putting up all those signs. If someone wants to pass, be my guest, but I won't pull over if at the speed limit.

That said, the few times I was towing and could not keep up with the posted limit, I did pull over.

 

[Jstpssng]

I drive the speed limit, not over, not under when out on the freeway or highway. I figure that is why they spend all that money on putting up all those signs. If someone wants to pass, be my guest, but I won't pull over if at the speed limit.

That said, the few times I was towing and could not keep up with the posted limit, I did pull over.

How do you know that your speedometer registers exactly the speed limit? I drove my company Tundra for over a year before realizing it registers 2 mph under my actual speed.

 

[Redbug]

How do you know that your speedometer registers exactly the speed limit? I drove my company Tundra for over a year before realizing it registers 2 mph under my actual speed.

I use my NUVI (GPS unit) and compare now and again. I imagine an app of your smart phone could do the same thing.

 

[steve tym]

I drive the speed limit, not over, not under when out on the freeway or highway. I figure that is why they spend all that money on putting up all those signs. If someone wants to pass, be my guest, but I won't pull over if at the speed limit.

That said, the few times I was towing and could not keep up with the posted limit, I did pull over.

Even on a multi lane road? Seriously?

 

[Jstpssng]

I use my NUVI (GPS unit) and compare now and again. I imagine an app of your smart phone could do the same thing.

That's how I know. My point is that unless somebody has a badge, blue lights and a summonse book they have no right to enforce the speed limit by being a rolling road block or any other method.

 

[LHF2019]

The advice around here, is to NOT pull your tractor or other SMV off for people. You have the right of way once on the road, and you pull over, you have yielded that, so; if it pulling back onto the road, thats on you. They advice to maintain your position, and others can go around as they are able.

Just last week after leaving work came up on a backhoe half on half off road. Not smart. Waited until an area to pass and there was a car in the on coming lane. Not an issue for me but sure enough my tailgating co worker did not think twice and passed with me forcing on coming car off to the shoulder. The backhoe should have been completely in his lane.

 

[Renze]

That's how I know. My point is that unless somebody has a badge, blue lights and a summonse book they have no right to enforce the speed limit by being a rolling road block or any other method.

Exactly

 

[paulsharvey]

Oh, dont kniw if this applies other places; but when passing a SMV, even on multiple lanes; you Techincally are required to slow to the speed of the SMV before passing. I assume that is because the SMV might be over sized?

 

[MossRoad]

They are adding bus light running ticket cameras to some busses now too.

I'm pretty sure all of our local school buses have them now. Fantastic! We've had a few cases of people passing a bus on the RIGHT SIDE while it was stopped letting kids off or picking them up.

We had a really bad one in 2018 about an hour south of us. Woman killed three siblings that were crossing the road to get on a school bus.

Woman out of prison in school bus crash that killed 3 kids

ROCHESTER, Ind. (AP) — A woman convicted in a 2018 crash that killed three siblings who were crossing a rural northern Indiana highway to board a school bus was released from prison Wednesday, after serving just over two years.

apnews.com

That led to some changes in school bus operation so they'd only pick up kids on the right side of the road so that kids didn't have to cross roads to board buses.

 

[Renze]

We had a really bad one in 2018 about an hour south of us. Woman killed three siblings that were crossing the road to get on a school bus.

Woman out of prison in school bus crash that killed 3 kids

ROCHESTER, Ind. (AP) — A woman convicted in a 2018 crash that killed three siblings who were crossing a rural northern Indiana highway to board a school bus was released from prison Wednesday, after serving just over two years.

apnews.com

Well deserved jail time. I always slow down when i see kids, as an adult i should know they are unpredictable.

 

[lman]

I drive the speed limit, not over, not under when out on the freeway or highway. I figure that is why they spend all that money on putting up all those signs. If someone wants to pass, be my guest, but I won't pull over if at the speed limit.

That said, the few times I was towing and could not keep up with the posted limit, I did pull over.

If you're driving on a four lane highway and you're not passing anybody, you are required to move to the right in this state. If you don't you're committing a violation just as speeding.

 

[WinterDeere]

If you're driving on a four lane highway and you're not passing anybody, you are required to move to the right in this state. If you don't you're committing a violation just as speeding.

Not to call @iman out, I think he's actually using the term correctly here, but I think some of the debate or confusion in past posts is that people don't realize "four lane highway" typically means 2 lanes each direction.

When you have two lanes in a direction, you are supposed to keep right when not passing, in this state and most others. If you have four lanes in a single direction, then laws seem to vary more, but I do believe most still have a reservation on the far left lane for either passing or other purposes (e.g. carpool).

 

[MossRoad]

Not to call @iman out, I think he's actually using the term correctly here, but I think some of the debate or confusion in past posts is that people don't realize "four lane highway" typically means 2 lanes each direction.

When you have two lanes in a direction, you are supposed to keep right when not passing, in this state and most others. If you have four lanes in a single direction, then laws seem to vary more, but I do believe most still have a reservation on the far left lane for either passing or other purposes (e.g. carpool).

I think the way it's describe in Indiana is the right lane is for slow traffic, the center two are for traveling, and the left is for passing. So it's those center two that get a lot of jockeying for position and a lot of right side passing.

 

[paulsharvey]

From a strictly road design point of view; every lane is rated for the same traffic; and meant to be used, not just for passing. So, if if a single lane handles 7000 vehicles per hour, and the 2nd lane is just for passing, it only bumps the capacity up to maybe 10,000; but its not; its rated at 14,000. They are just multiple travel lanes. Here, its not about passing, its about obstruction. So, you can absolutely drive in the left lane, as long as you want, as long as you are obstructing traffic

 

[paulsharvey]

On a non limited access, 4 lane road, rural or urban section, if you have a left turn a mile or so up the road, I do go ahead and get over to the left, well ahead, so your not fighting your way over at the last minute. Very few left exit ramp on limited access, but there are some in urban areas

 

[sd455dan]

I see Idaho now allows you to exceed posted speed by 15 MPH when passing a vehicle that is travelling under the posted speed limit.

 

[Torvy]

I think the way it's describe in Indiana is the right lane is for slow traffic, the center two are for traveling, and the left is for passing. So it's those center two that get a lot of jockeying for position and a lot of right side passing.

Around Dallas (and other places, I'm sure) what you get is the 2 center lanes with a mix of trucks and slow traffic with faster traffic on the left and the right as people try to avoid the mess in the middle.

 

[Torvy]

From a strictly road design point of view; every lane is rated for the same traffic; and meant to be used, not just for passing. So, if if a single lane handles 7000 vehicles per hour, and the 2nd lane is just for passing, it only bumps the capacity up to maybe 10,000; but its not; its rated at 14,000. They are just multiple travel lanes. Here, its not about passing, its about obstruction. So, you can absolutely drive in the left lane, as long as you want, as long as you are obstructing traffic

This is the exception, not the rule. In most states the left lane on multi-lane roads is for passing only. There are a few exceptions in urban areas with 4+ lanes in each direction.

Your 14000 vehicles could be moving at a crawl because passing becomes impossible when people don't yield. The total volume of cars is likely greater when people follow the law.

 

[WinterDeere]

Around Dallas (and other places, I'm sure) what you get is the 2 center lanes with a mix of trucks and slow traffic with faster traffic on the left and the right as people try to avoid the mess in the middle.

Same here, when we have the rare luxury of 4 lanes each direction. Because Philly is a much older city, and most of the routes in are cut thru a hilly river valley, we more often have only 2 lanes with enough traffic to fill 4 - 6.

Out-of-staters are almost universally shocked or terrified, the first time they experience the Schuylkill Expressway, known locally as the Sure-Kill Deathway. It was already operating beyond its design capacity when they opened the first few segments in the 1960's, and it has gotten exponentially worse, each decade since.

 

[MossRoad]

Around Dallas (and other places, I'm sure) what you get is the 2 center lanes with a mix of trucks and slow traffic with faster traffic on the left and the right as people try to avoid the mess in the middle.

Yeah, we get that in Chicago, too.

I have to say the city I don't mind drive around is the west side of Indianapolis. Traffic always seems to flow just right. South and east/west sides of St. Louis never seemed bad, either, the 4 years we went through there fairly often.