Automotive Social → Highway merging

On-ramps are intentionally designed for people to be at or near highway speed when entering.

I feel your pain.....I really do.

I drive local in straight trucks as well as tractor-trailer and I typically log about 1200 miles a week....I see all kinds of stupid stuff. Merging at less than highway speeds is pretty common as is the whole "haul ass to go around the big truck then cut in front of it and stomp on your brakes" thing.

When I got my CDL many years ago...my instructor imparted a small bit of wisdom on me when he said: "It's their job to merge, not your job to let them in." If I'm in the right lane and I have traffic to my left and someone is merging into my lane at 20 miles under what traffic is doing I don't stomp on my brakes to let them in....I just keep cruising. I ran one guy off the road once because he got next to my cab and just stayed there the entire length of the on-ramp....didn't try to speed up or slow down...ended up in the dirt on the end of the ramp.

As far as people slamming on their brakes after getting in front of you.....a quick downshift with the jake brake engaged and a couple taps on the air horn while a Kenworth T800 grill takes up their entire rear view is usually enough to get them to speed up or move over another lane.

In California the bottom of the on ramp is frequently treated by drivers of cars with decent power as the start line and white flag for the start of the race. You see a lot of cars that hit the freeway going faster than the traffic they are merging with.

Highways are so crowded in rush hour (and other times) that it can determine when there are gaps in traffic and let people go and merge. When I have had to use it in Columbus - it does work well. People need to accelerate but should not be a need to floor it.

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramp_meter

quote:

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Why are they effective?

Without ramp meters, multiple cars try to merge simultaneously. Drivers on the freeway slow down to allow the cars enter and these slower speeds quickly cause backups. If cars enter the highway in controlled intervals, they are less likely to cause a disruption to the traffic on the freeway. A short wait on the ramp allows drivers to increase their average freeway speed and shorten overall freeway travel times. Ramp meters also reduce the number of accidents that often occur when multiple vehicles merge onto the highway at the same time.
How do ramp meters work?

Ramp meters are part of a large computer-operated system that is managed in WSDOT's Traffic Management Centers (TMCs). Magnetic "loops" are embedded in the pavement that provide the TMCs with information about traffic flow, such as the volume and speed of vehicles on freeways and ramps. This traffic data is continually fed to the ramp meters, which automatically alter their cycles to maximize traffic flow on both the ramps and the freeways.

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684 is what I call the New York International Speedway. I have been tailgated on 684, while in the right lane and going 80.

the traffic circle in Danbury(that loop at exit 8) is just complete chaos.

And what state or state freeway are you driving on?

684 is in Brewster NY. rt 7 starts at Danbury and ends at 95 in Norwalk. However if you come over the Tappen Zee on 287 it is faster to take 684 to 84 if you need to reach the Danbury area.

The fact that a guy in the left lane that is traveling at a slower speed even if it’s the speed limit than a car overtaking it that is the overtaking car’s driver’s problem not the “slower” moving cars problem. Passing on the right is inherently dangerous and the further to the right and the greater the speed of the passing vehicle the greater the exhibition of poor judgment and dangerous driving by the person on the right.

On top of that you have the uniquely Texas attitude that "as long as I am going the speed limit I can drive in whichever lane I please.... All those signs that say 'stay right except to pass' be dammed."

So the left lane is full of inconsiderate asses who are doing exactly the speed limit.