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Old 03-11-2014, 11:02 AM
 
4,059 posts, read 5,597,377 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ThreeSides View Post

Traffic would move so much more efficient if people would close the gaps. How many times have I weaved my way through cars only to find that there is up to a football length gap between the vehicles that I'd negotiated and the cars ahead.
This seems to be a common perception, but the research I've seen suggests it's precisely backwards.

Closing the gaps increases the likelihood of rear-ending (increasing the overall risk of shock delays to the system) and limits cross-lane merging where needed to improve efficiency. Now, you as an indvidual may move ahead by filling gaps, but the system as a whole doesn't move any faster and can in fact move slower.
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Old 03-12-2014, 02:45 AM
 
Location: Eastwatch by the sea
1,280 posts, read 1,849,701 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bler144 View Post
This seems to be a common perception, but the research I've seen suggests it's precisely backwards.

Closing the gaps increases the likelihood of rear-ending (increasing the overall risk of shock delays to the system) and limits cross-lane merging where needed to improve efficiency. Now, you as an indvidual may move ahead by filling gaps, but the system as a whole doesn't move any faster and can in fact move slower.
How common can the perception be when I continually observe the opposite? Closing gaps, filling gaps, etc., doesn't mean bumper to bumper. I am referring to mammoth sized gaps. My exact wording was up to a football length gap. That's unforgivable, IMO. Whether we think favorably of said gaps or not, we've all seen them here. Maintain a car length, at most. That is practical. For the love of the old gods and the new, signal!

For the record, I'm referring to the section of 285 that I traverse on my way to work.
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Old 03-12-2014, 10:18 AM
 
Location: Decatur, GA
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Or better yet, once you're clear of something, go ahead and accelerate. If there's open road in front of you, no reason to derp around at 20mph for another 5 miles!
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Old 03-12-2014, 03:22 PM
 
Location: Marietta, GA
7,887 posts, read 17,149,140 times
Reputation: 3701
Quote:
Originally Posted by ThreeSides View Post
Traffic would move so much more efficient if people would close the gaps. How many times have I weaved my way through cars only to find that there is up to a football length gap between the vehicles that I'd negotiated and the cars ahead.
I totally disagree. One of the biggest issues is people NOT leaving enough room between them and the car in front and tailgating. That tailgating often leads to crashes when traffic suddenly stops.

Leaving more room is safer and if you space properly, then the flow of traffic can actually move more quickly without people slamming on brakes because they're 2 inches off the bumper ahead.

Less fender benders or chain reaction crashes means fewer delays.
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Old 05-12-2014, 11:41 PM
 
592 posts, read 825,758 times
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Having lived in Atlanta for a few months for work, there is definitely some bad traffic. It was actually worse than I expected, but then again, I didn't really expect much at all. Having read so many threads about traffic in Atlanta, I think its basically just been hyped up by people from Atlanta, who have seen their population grow(in the metro area) and city begin to recover. Coming from California(Bay Area), I always viewed LA as the Poster Boy for terrible traffic, never Atlanta. But even the Bay Area is world's worse when it comes to traffic. I think Honolulu is a bit misplaced. Yes, there is plenty of traffic, but that is basically because of the lack of freeways around the city. Very few roads in and very few roads out. Saying Honolulu has the 2nd worst traffic is like saying Laguna Beach has the worst traffic in California- it would be do to the fact there is basically one road in and out of the town. Its not a realistic ranking for Honolulu.

Although #21 seems a bit low on the list for Atlanta, a spot between 10-15 could be more realistic.
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