Obeying traffic laws is becoming hazardous

[venomballistics]

The "zipper in" thing does not work in the US because everyone tailgates, at least by the standard I was taught. As a result drivers have to slow for the car merging in unless they like their following distance measured in angstroms.

The zipper merge is often debated.
You're right, it doesn't work here. Not only for the reason you stated but also that the entire concept is entirely contrary to defensive driving principles.
One must assume everyone around you is going to screw up, and you drive in a manner to avoid becoming subject to their decision making prowess.
Zipper merge requires that you suddenly have a change of heart and invest absolute faith in them to execute this process with absolute precision and professionalism.....
That right there may be the funniest thing I say all day.

 

[ladder13]

Around here those entering the highway bunch up as they merge forcing those already on the roadway to yield to them. Not exactly how it’s supposed to work.

 

[JcMack]

I've got a sticker on the left, top portion of my tail gate which reads "THE CLOSER YOU GET THE SLOWER I DRIVE". People pull up behind me real close to my ***, and drop about 2 car lengths back immediately. But I've slowed to a stop on a couple occasions to accommodate non believers. (Never on X Ways)

 

[NYlakesider]

Around here those entering the highway bunch up as they merge forcing those already on the roadway to yield to them. Not exactly how it’s supposed to work.

Wow, that a new one on me. Never saw that by group!

Getting on high speed roads with a loaded diesel big truck can sometimes get interesting. (Been there did it) You get your speed up as good and fast as you can do. You got two choices on your approach ramp with a big truck if things get bad, pull over to the shoulder or use your size and bully in.

Turn signals on a big truck on a road like that does not mean I would like to get in line please, its telling you I'm getting in!

 

[Greyman50]

LEO needs to Enforce All traffic laws. I know many judges will let offenders go but LEOs should be writhing more tickets. Most drivers today are driving close to what drivers in some Asian cities drive….

 

[ladder13]

Wow, that a new one on me. Never saw that by group!

Getting on high speed roads with a loaded diesel big truck can sometimes get interesting. (Been there did it) You get your speed up as good and fast as you can do. You got two choices on your approach ramp with a big truck if things get bad, pull over to the shoulder or use your size and bully in.

Turn signals on a big truck on a road like that does not mean I would like to get in line please, its telling you I'm getting in!

Yep, you can see them entering the roadway, tailgating one another, without even looking to their left to see if it’s safe.
Sort of like the next couple cars in line following closely the guy making a left turn IFO you.

I use a dash cam nowadays to protect myself from the he said he said folks.

 

[sceva]

It is the same people that go down grocery aisles in the right or center land; stop to talk in the middle of an aisle blocking everyone and go thru cross aisles without bothering to look.

Around here (Illinois) they think a merge sign means the thru lane has to back off and let them in even is they are next to or slightly behind. I don't know what they teach them here but I have actually seen a car ahead of me come up to a place where it merges to one lane , nobody ahead or next to them, me way behind and if they are in the thru lane as soon as they get to the merge sign they move over into the merging lane and stay there until it ends then merge back to the thru lane.

My wife was in a thru lane once (stopped at a light I believe) where the right lane was blocked for construction. Along came Mrs. entitled who pulled up next and a little behind her after going around several cars and started screaming at her to let her in as it says merge so my wife was supposed to back off and let her in. Then she told me wife that her car was worth a lot of money while my wife's was a cheap one so the wife would need to pay if there was an accident. She just started nosing over anyway when traffic started moving only to go back into her own lane when there wasn't a hole. The icing on the cake was when I noticed that my wife had a smear of paint from the loudmouth's car at about the gap between the front door and front fender. Wife just said Karma's a bitch.

 

[venomballistics]

LEO needs to Enforce All traffic laws. I know many judges will let offenders go but LEOs should be writhing more tickets. Most drivers today are driving close to what drivers in some Asian cities drive….

I think it's too late for that on some levels.
Laws are good if everyone follows them.
Law says do "blah" everyone does "blah" and we can all expect to see "blah" and even rely on the uniform execution of "blah"
That's no longer the world we live in.
Drive for survival first, legal compliance is secondary.

 

[grover99]

LEO needs to Enforce All traffic laws. I know many judges will let offenders go but LEOs should be writhing more tickets. Most drivers today are driving close to what drivers in some Asian cities drive….

LEOs enforcing traffic laws are becoming scarce around here. Don't blame the LEO rather his political master.

 

[NYlakesider]

LEOs enforcing traffic laws are becoming scarce around here. Don't blame the LEO rather his political master.

My BIL was a deputy sheriff in the hills of rural Albany County in the 70s-88. He disliked writing tickets!

He did give lots of warnings and unless some one was being a idiot most times that was where it ended. Give him a hard time and he would write. The local judges kind of got to know him and his ticket philosophy and that affected their fine or sentence.

One judge even said you had to work hard to get a ticket out of Deputy ######. Only a couple times in his career did he use the underline your badge number code on the ticket. That was a unofficial note to the judge/DA that this person needed the full power of the law to come down on them.

 

[Super Trucker]

LEOs enforcing traffic laws are becoming scarce around here. Don't blame the LEO rather his political master.

Not in Michigan.
There is too much money involved to stop doing it.

Fun fact, Michigan State Police stopped their motorcycle division at the end of 2022 after a couple troopers died, this year they are bringing it back, and we all know what a motorcycle unit is for.

Another reason to dispute what you are saying is all the 4x4 Tahoe's on traffic duty in this area. We all know those are not the most economical option for traffic duty, nor is paying cops automatic overtime to go to court for ticket disputes.
The local departments here keep most of the money from traffic fines, especially on the tickets lowered to impending traffic, double parking, etc.

Here the officers have financial incentives to write as many tickets as possible.

 

[Doug M.]

Another reason to dispute what you are saying is all the 4x4 Tahoe's on traffic duty in this area. We all know those are not the most economical option for traffic duty, nor is paying cops automatic overtime to go to court for ticket disputes.

I paid for my first small town cop job by writing tickets, not for the financial incentive, but because the scofflaws were utterly out of control and never slowed down. Small towns are often full of little kids, old folks, and others who are placed at risk by the folks who stay at rural speeds in the 30 MPH zone. I did not write anything less than 10 over, and I think the record was 68 in a 30. I had done my own testing in the squad car and my own, and one had to consciously try to be speeding given the RR overpass at the edge of town. Not long after I left, a little kid was killed by a speeder.

Here in WA, everyone in the process loses money on enforcement, even with the court costs imposed.

 

[Super Trucker]

I paid for my first small town cop job by writing tickets, not for the financial incentive, but because the scofflaws were utterly out of control and never slowed down. Small towns are often full of little kids, old folks, and others who are placed at risk by the folks who stay at rural speeds in the 30 MPH zone. I did not write anything less than 10 over, and I think the record was 68 in a 30. I had done my own testing in the squad car and my own, and one had to consciously try to be speeding given the RR overpass at the edge of town. Not long after I left, a little kid was killed by a speeder.



Here in WA, everyone in the process loses money on enforcement, even with the court costs imposed.

Maybe Michigan figured out something different. I have several family members that are cops and none make less than $100k per year (with the cost of living here that is good money), mostly due to overtime pay even if they only work 1 day a week they get overtine for court.
I am in the largest population county in the state, but those I know in areas of the state see the same.
Here it's a money thing.

Ask yourself, what us a cheaper vehicle to operate, a Tahoe or Impala?
If it's about safety and money the impala wins both, but yet we see Tahoe's all over.
The more tickets written the more money the city, court, department and individual officers makes.

ETA: I'm in the same county as Detroit, maybe other states do different but here its been this way as long as I can remember.

 

[austintexas]

Texas freeways

When I was stationed at Carswell AFB Texas the speed limit was nation wide 55 mph. Everyone drove around 60-65. IH-35 was a 4 lane highway. Now days Texas 2 lane side roads are generally around 70 except for towns and if you get on the interstates or toll roads expect to put the pedal down. IH-10 is usually 80 mph, toll road 130 is 80 to 85 and if you drive the speed limit you WILL get passed or tailgated. Since the defund the Police it seems Police are nonexistent on the highways. After the defund the Police, Austin disbanded the Motorcycle patrol and the thru town speed limit seemed to jump from 65 to 85mph.
SWCA 892

 

[LVSteve]

When I was stationed at Carswell AFB Texas the speed limit was nation wide 55 mph. Everyone drove around 60-65. IH-35 was a 4 lane highway. Now days Texas 2 lane side roads are generally around 70 except for towns and if you get on the interstates or toll roads expect to put the pedal down. IH-10 is usually 80 mph, toll road 130 is 80 to 85 and if you drive the speed limit you WILL get passed or tailgated. Since the defund the Police it seems Police are nonexistent on the highways. After the defund the Police, Austin disbanded the Motorcycle patrol and the thru town speed limit seemed to jump from 65 to 85mph.
SWCA 892

Some argue that it's not really speeding as the cars of today are in another capability league compared to even just 20 years ago. On that narrow definition, I might agree. However, we still have joke driving tests in most states, so the drivers' competence is as low as it's ever been.

Now let's throw in the fact that many of America's roads are simply incompatible with high speed driving. My trip to Texas at Christmas reinforced that for US-93 and I-40, and most towns still have narrow roads with lots of people about. Speed ain't the thing for those conditions.

 

[Doug M.]

Ask yourself, what us a cheaper vehicle to operate, a Tahoe or Impala?
If it's about safety and money the impala wins both, but yet we see Tahoe's all over.

*
FWIW, this is the most expensive county east of the Cascades, and our deputies can't buy homes here and are being allowed to live out of County, but have to leave their take home cars at the SO. $100K is pretty low for here ...

And car size matters. With all their gear on, most cops have a hard time with getting in or out of most vehicles. A Crown Vic was barely big enough for me, and I was not that big. The impalas are fast, but that is of limited utility here.

 

[NYlakesider]

*
FWIW, this is the most expensive county east of the Cascades, and our deputies can't buy homes here and are being allowed to live out of County, but have to leave their take home cars at the SO. $100K is pretty low for here ...

And car size matters. With all their gear on, most cops have a hard time with getting in or out of most vehicles. A Crown Vic was barely big enough for me, and I was not that big. The impalas are fast, but that is of limited utility here.

In my general area we see mostly Tahoe's. Come in real handy in our nasty winters, and rural back roads. Also one of our x governors like the Tahoe's as they sit higher and made it easier to see in a a vehicle if a seat belt was being worn. Seat belts in this state are in the class of law that thats the only reason needed to stop a vechicle and issue a ticket!

 

[Super Trucker]

*

FWIW, this is the most expensive county east of the Cascades, and our deputies can't buy homes here and are being allowed to live out of County, but have to leave their take home cars at the SO. $100K is pretty low for here ...



And car size matters. With all their gear on, most cops have a hard time with getting in or out of most vehicles. A Crown Vic was barely big enough for me, and I was not that big. The impalas are fast, but that is of limited utility here.

I know the west coast cost of living is very different from here.
Here $100k is good money.

This is from the census web site.

Median household income (in 2022 dollars), 2018-2022
$68,505

City employees pay is public info (at least in this state), city council posts it on the web site every year. Keep in mind the $100k figure was about 6 years ago, so with raises they are north of that now. I stopped looking back then because all it did was make me mad.

I've lived in this area the majority of my life, they never used 4x4 vehicles until about a decade ago, it was Crown Vic's or Impala's. There are zero hills, dirt roads, etc in the area, so I'm not seeing the need to have that type of vehicle.
If they can't fit in a car, simply move the seat rails back an inch or two and make the cage thinner. Today's materials are better than years past, the multi inch think cage is no longer needed.

The department in the next city over from me where we own a couple rental properties, has an MRAP. That is laughable, they got it from the military but have to maintain it, care to guess what tires, oil changes, fuel, etc cost to operate one of those?


The above figures came from the following page.

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/MI/PST045222

 

[CalifEd]

The Pasadena Freeway, AKA Interstate 110, or “Arroyo Seco Parkway” is on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places as the first freeway in the Western United States.
As a result, there are no acceleration areas. People in the know do not drive in the 'slow' lane but move over into the 60-90mph lane (that is the one just to the left), leaving the on comers the opportunity to test their nerves in their attempts to merge.
The fun really starts when some tourist, or some other lost soul, is driving in this almost open lane when the 'merger' decides it is time to merge from a complete stop onto this lane.
The LA traffic reports almost always have some slowdown on the 110 due to an accident.
Only education, blind luck and the Good Lord keep many from being killed or injured on this stretch of road.

 

[pawngal]

In my general area we see mostly Tahoe's. Come in real handy in our nasty winters, and rural back roads. Also one of our x governors like the Tahoe's as they sit higher and made it easier to see in a a vehicle if a seat belt was being worn. Seat belts in this state are in the class of law that thats the only reason needed to stop a vechicle and issue a ticket!

Local LE here in northern Iowa have mostly SUVs (Tahoe's or Explorers) for same reasons. Iowa Highway Patrol has a fondness for Dodge Chargers with the 5.7 Hemi.