Why do LA drivers make such wide right turns? (law, to move)

[matt345]

You all should visit the East Coast cities if you think LA drivers are bad.

[LaoTzuMindFu]

Some things I hate about LA Drivers:

Failure to use turn signals.

Not stopping completely at stop signs.

Too busy looking a self in mirror while applying lip gloss and sending text message to BFF.

Illegals who cause accidents, run away from scene, then report their car as being stolen and say that the person who stole their car must have been responsible for accident.

People who are not handicapped who park in the Handicapped spot at Starbucks (or any handicapped parking place anywhere). My wife tore one of the Jacksons (Tito or Marlon) a new one because he always parks his Bentley in the handicapped spot in one of our 10 neighborhood Starbucks.

People who wait until the last minute to change lanes and cut you off on the 5 fwy transition from the 101 north.

People who take up two parking spaces because they do not want their BMW/Benz to get "dings".

[JackSparrow]

Some things I hate about LA Drivers:

Drivers who fail to realize how decent the drivers are in California.

Drivers who complain on local forums about other drivers when really, they're probably just as poor of drivers.

[LaoTzuMindFu]

Oh, the main thing I hate about LA drivers:

They are NOT REALLY LA DRIVERS!!! They are Mid West drivers or East Coast drivers or "other NON California" drivers who moved to Los Angeles because they know that we have the best city here.

[CLQ]

Let's set some rules of the road and hopefully all of LA reads this and drives accordingly.

I'll start.

WHEN SOMEONE HAS THEIR SIGNAL LIGHT AND NEEDS TO GET IN YOUR LANE, STOP PRETENDING LIKE YOU CAN'T SEE THE CAR AND LET THEM IN! DRIVING IN LA REQUIRES MERGING SO BE COURTEOUS ON THE ROAD WHEN SOMEONE IS POLITE ENOUGH TO USE THEIR SIGNAL INSTEAD OF CUTTING DRIVERS OFF AND FORCING DRIVERS TO SLAM ON THE BRAKES. ALSO, MERGING CARS NEED TO FOLLOW THE "ZIPPER EFFECT" --DON'T TRY TO GO ALL THE WAY TO THE FRONT AND PASS UP ALL THE CARS AND STOPPING IN THE FRONT HOPING FOR SOMEONE LET'S YOU IN. BTW, I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE DRIVERS TO NOT LET THESE CARS IN TO TEACH THESE ANNOYING DRIVERS TO MERGE EARLIER. TAKE YOUR TURN - ONE CAR AT A TIME AND MOST IMPORTANTLY DO THIS WITHOUT STEPPING ON THE BRAKE AND CAUSING UNNECESSARY TRAFFIC.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by Mathiasthegreat

Its actually Illegal....should you wish go ahead and ram into them if you reasonably believe them to have insurance (I.E. if you see a nice Mercedes or BMW make the turn into the left lane) The law is you must make your turn into the same lane you turned from... so a right turn you must turn into the right lane.

In California this is true for right turns, but for left turns, things change a bit. It is legal to turn from a single left turn lane into any lane you choose, as long as it is safe to do so. Where there are multiple left turn lanes, then you must turn into the same lane you turned from, as stated above (and as indicated by the stripes on the road). If you're making a left turn, and you don't have a turn arrow, the oncoming traffic has the right of way, even if they're turning right (or indicating so).

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by CLQ

Let's set some rules of the road and hopefully all of LA reads this and drives accordingly.

I'll start.

WHEN SOMEONE HAS THEIR SIGNAL LIGHT AND NEEDS TO GET IN YOUR LANE, STOP PRETENDING LIKE YOU CAN'T SEE THE CAR AND LET THEM IN! DRIVING IN LA REQUIRES MERGING SO BE COURTEOUS ON THE ROAD WHEN SOMEONE IS POLITE ENOUGH TO USE THEIR SIGNAL INSTEAD OF CUTTING DRIVERS OFF AND FORCING DRIVERS TO SLAM ON THE BRAKES. ALSO, MERGING CARS NEED TO FOLLOW THE "ZIPPER EFFECT" --DON'T TRY TO GO ALL THE WAY TO THE FRONT AND PASS UP ALL THE CARS AND STOPPING IN THE FRONT HOPING FOR SOMEONE LET'S YOU IN. BTW, I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE DRIVERS TO NOT LET THESE CARS IN TO TEACH THESE ANNOYING DRIVERS TO MERGE EARLIER. TAKE YOUR TURN - ONE CAR AT A TIME AND MOST IMPORTANTLY DO THIS WITHOUT STEPPING ON THE BRAKE AND CAUSING UNNECESSARY TRAFFIC.

I agree with you, but don't find it necessary to shout. The problem I have with people using their signal, is that they often wait until I'm about four feet from their rear bumper before they decide to signal, and usually, they want to move right now. Since I am going a little faster than they are, they get mad at me for not letting them in, even though they signaled much to late for me to have enough room to let them in. My point is, when you use your signal, allow enough time for other drivers to respond before making your move.

[jdavid93225]

Originally Posted by DaBeez

Some things I hate about LA Drivers:

People who wait until the last minute to change lanes and cut you off on the 5 fwy transition from the 101 north.

I'll bet you meant the 110 north to 5 north transition. People are notorious for this, and the only thing they accomplish is slowing down two lanes of traffic, instead of allowing both lanes to flow freely. Like most decent folks, I really wish there were some way to issue citations to the stupid people that do this. How about using a camera system like they do for red light violations?

[jdavid93225]

This thread was started to ask why people make such wide right turns in the L.A. area. The basic response was that these people are inconsiderate and selfish, and don't care about other drivers on the road.

One of my pet peeves has to do with a similar attitude from these same people on the freeways. They are the ones that get in the left lane and stay there, period. In most states, the law states that you must keep right, except to pass. California should do the same. These inconsiderate people occupy the #1 lane, while driving next to someone in the #2 lane at the same speed. They don't care that there are ten cars behind them. They probably can't even see them, because they are too busy talking on the phone to pay attention to what's going on around them.

The bottom line is, if you're not passing people to your right, get over! People speed in L.A. any time they can. It's a fact of life. People don't need to drive slowly in the "fast" lane to keep these people from speeding. It's the Highway Patrol's job to catch and cite them. Traffic will move more smoothly, and people will be able to drive at their preferred speed if the slower traffic moves to the right. Period.

I know that doing so will not stop the congestion on the freeways, but it will allow traffic to flow more smoothly, easing some of the congestion.

[OutOfSoCal]

we pay so much in taxes we actually feel like we own the whole damn road, thus some fell like they do as they please, afterall it is their road.