[dynimagelv]

It is illegal to change lanes within 100 feet of an intersection [either side of it] she was wrong the cop COULD have let her do it and then cited her for it.

[lisdol]

So now that we have the traffic regulation, the question is simple - where was the realtor's car?

[intrepidnomad]

Originally Posted by MadManofBethesda

I'm not sure that I have a clear understanding of the situation. Are you saying that your realtor was the first car in line at a red light and motioned over to the driver in the right lane to wait so that she could turn right from the center lane? Or was your car a few cars back from the intersection and your realtor simply wanted to get in front of the car in the right lane so that she could eventually turn right from the right lane once she reached the intersection?

If it is the former, then of course it is illegal. If it is the latter, then the cop was being a jerk.

It was the latter.

Maybe it's east coast driving? You're a former Washingtonian. This was normal in our neck of the woods. And the people in the car on the right gave the thumbs up. True, the people behind them may have groaned and moaned....

[stingraynm]

If they have the courtesy to use a turn signal, I'm glad to help out a fellow driver. Those who don't use a signal and cut people off in an entitled bout of craziness are the one scenario besides parking in bad neighborhoods that makes me miss the over-sized steel clunker I used to drive.

That car also used to allow me to take it upon myself to block all the aforementioned people who zip ahead to the lane closure and force everyone else into stop-go. Funny how the stop-go situation always subsided and everything flowed nicely after that...

[dynimagelv]

very briefly I owned a CHECKER Automobile many years ago....a HUGH BARGE built using parts from the 55/56 Chebie....weighed a ton...was totally worn out from being a taxicab...I RARELY had more then 1 seconds confrontation in traffic....people did NOT try to force their way in...

[Jukesgrrl]

[quote=dynimagelv;15661027]very briefly I owned a CHECKER Automobile many years ago....a HUGH BARGE built using parts from the 55/56 Chebie....weighed a ton...was totally worn out from being a taxicab...I RARELY had more then 1 seconds confrontation in traffic....people did NOT try to force their way in...[/quote

THAT is the way to go. I never fantasize about a fast and slick sports car. I fancy driving a mean heap that people would fear to cross. Mainly because the maneuver that lyra33 describes -- people using the merge lane as a way to speed ahead and cut off drivers from the right who are already in the proper lane -- is the state religion in Tucson. That greedy little move causes more intersection traffic accidents in suburban Arizona than any other. It's supposed to be illegal but cops never ticket for it. In fact, I've seen cops DO it.

In general, I think drivers should re-think any maneuver that inconveniences other drivers, no matter what the law. Thanks to your Realtor, someone way back, who should rightfully have gotten through that light before it turns red again, will have to stop. It's not up to someone else to have given away what was rightfully his in the name of "courtesy." The person who missed his turn needs to do the right thing and correct his own mistake, and not expect others to make up for his shortsightedness.

[Basiliximab]

Originally Posted by stingraynm

That car also used to allow me to take it upon myself to block all the aforementioned people who zip ahead to the lane closure and force everyone else into stop-go. Funny how the stop-go situation always subsided and everything flowed nicely after that...

Alright! I miss that car you had too! I have a car that allows me to block the lane-closure zippers and I don't ever want to give it up! It's the least I can do for those overwhelmingly inconsiderate people. I find it the height of inconsideration while driving to go ahead to where the lane ends and then try to force your way over into the open lane; I don't know how these people who do this can live with themselves; their lives must be truly depressing. I really would like to see more people doing this--blocking the lane-zippers--perhaps they could then sit there all day and think about how the world isn't about me, me, me. (wishful thinking, I know).

Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl

In general, I think drivers should re-think any maneuver that inconveniences other drivers, no matter what the law. Thanks to your Realtor, someone way back, who should rightfully have gotten through that light before it turns red again, will have to stop. It's not up to someone else to have given away what was rightfully his in the name of "courtesy." The person who missed his turn needs to do the right thing and correct his own mistake, and not expect others to make up for his shortsightedness.

Agree wholeheartedly. Any mistake while driving (missing a turn, that kind of thing) should not be made up by the other drivers. People need to accept responsibility for their own actions--it's their fault to begin with, they should be the only ones involved in correcting the mistake.

[Kaiminani]

Two wrongs don't make a right guys.

As a driver you have a responsibility to do what you can to maximize traffic safety and that includes accommodating the idiots. "Teaching them a lesson" never works, it just frustrates them and goads them into even riskier behavior which endangers everyone on the road - not just you and them.

Here lies the body of Jonathan Ray
He died defending his right of way:
He was right, dead right, as he drove along,
But he's just as dead as if he'd been wrong.

[Spraynard Kruger]

Originally Posted by intrepidnomad

She wasn't the most attentive driver but she was answering my questions and trying to navigate toward unknown destinations at the same time.

I rest my case.

[tom_c]

Originally Posted by Kaiminani

Two wrongs don't make a right guys.

As a driver you have a responsibility to do what you can to maximize traffic safety and that includes accommodating the idiots. "Teaching them a lesson" never works, it just frustrates them and goads them into even riskier behavior which endangers everyone on the road - not just you and them.

Here lies the body of Jonathan Ray
He died defending his right of way:
He was right, dead right, as he drove along,
But he's just as dead as if he'd been wrong.

I look for real estate stickers and baby on board signs. If I see them I back way off.