PSA: Why You Shouldn't Drive Slow In the Left Lane

[11Charlie]

Seattle SUCKS and is getting worse every day. We have family up there and go there on a fairly regular basis. They are the worst drivers I have ever seen in my life.

 

[BBQ Guy]

I used to spend a lot of time on the road due to my job. Big truck towing a full trailer.
People are stupid to put it mildly.
I recently went to Eugene, i spent 80% of my trip from Portland to Eugene in the right hand lane doing 80 or faster. Why?
Left lane morons is why.
Then, the following day, on our way to Klamath Falls and back we had several jack wagons that would tie up the passing lane on 97 making a rolling road block. Like its some sort of game behind the wheel of a vehicle.

 

[jbett98]

I wouldn't say that.
I think that most in this thread understand what the inside lane is for.

What gets me is when someone comes into a thread like this and declares...
"I'm running the inside lane because the outside lane is too rough."
Now this person has made a conscious decision to loiter in the passing lane and deserves a nice, fat ticket.

Since you're referencing me, I will explain my thinking on this.
Let's say you're cruising down I-5 from Portland to Eugene.
The heavy haul trucks are in the right lane and in the middle lane there's always someone traveling slower then the trucks in the right lane.
They're never keeping up with traffic, just traveling the posted speed limit on cruise control because they can't figure out how to match the heavy trucks speed when behind them in the slow lane.
I'm not loitering in the fast lane, I'm moving right along, but not speeding excessively and I'm also checking my rear so I can move over when a faster vehicle shows up.
Otherwise, I would be constantly switching lanes as you overtake the middle lane drivers who are loitering and never seem to get the idea that heavy haul trucks need to access the middle lane to pass slower trucks that are either gearing down for an upcoming steep grade or turning off the freeway.

 

[Caveman Jim]

Seattle SUCKS and is getting worse every day. We have family up there and go there on a fairly regular basis. They are the worst drivers I have ever seen in my life.

We decided to boycott Sea-Tac and take the extra 30 minutes to drive to PIA when flying.
Looking into a shuttle from Olympia because it's such a PITA to drive 1.5-2 hours after getting off a crowded plane.....

That being said, I also am a left laner because I am going faster than the flow of traffic (normally 5 over) and once I pass I move over like I was taught in drivers ed many years ago.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

As a person who spends a LOT of time on the road for work, This is great and all.. But some people who are in too much of a hurry dont consider how difficult it is to switch lanes if an exit is coming up.

People also think a two lane "highway" is the same as an interstate freeway.. Its not.. I understand that yes, on the Interstate folks should remain in the right hand lane.. But you types expect every two lane road to adopt this methodology.. And it simply does not compute.

Left turn exit lanes come up frequently on highways.. And again, you arent paying my bills nor or your in charge of my time or convenience.. So Im going to maintain the flow of traffic speed (often +5-10 miles over the limit.. and ride that left lane until my exit comes up. Thats more than fast enough.

For example: Here in Oregon HWY26 splits off to three different routes (coming into portland)
After Sylvan, traffic is heavy and idiots dont know how to merge properly.. and the merging is so bad that your little "hurry" to play ricky bobby in the far left lane can bubbleguming wait.. My schedual doesnt revolve around yours and if thats whats easiest for me then Im going to maintain the flow of traffic speed in the far left lane because Im headed to Vancouver or need to take that exit.

Many of you lead foot guys get people killed. I often laugh at your accidents as I cruse on by...in the left lane... where my exit is coming up.. Feeling zero pity for any of you.

None of you are entitled to the left lane, but when I see you zip by at 10-15+ over the limt Im thankful you'll trigger the speed trap for the rest of us.. And again, I laugh out loud as I cruse on by thanking you for taking the hit you could have easily avoided by being less of a tool.

 

[DirectDrive]

Since you're referencing me, I will explain my thinking on this.

I actually wasn't referencing anyone in this thread.
I'v seen the above described "declaration" in other threads on this same topic on other forums.

 

[DirectDrive]

But some people who are in too much of a hurry dont consider how difficult it is to switch lanes if an exit is coming up.

If someone is trying to change lanes from the inside lane, at the last possible instant in order to make their exit, then they should plan a little better.
If you miss an exit, do the safe thing and go to the next exit.

 

[pigiron]

Out in the gorge at 6:00am-ish and I come up on some lady in the fast lane going 55 and there is literally no one else in sight as far as the eye can see, so she doesn't move out of the fast lane for a mile or so. I flash my lights and nothing. Flash again...nothing. After a couple miles I move past her in the right lane and she looks over at me with deer in the headlight eyes. Not sure what that was all about.

It is now illegal to flash your lights in Oregon.

 

[pigiron]

So, let me get this straight - I'm traveling the speed limit plus 4 and likely on cruise control but I'm somehow responsible for the accident caused by an impatient a-hole that's weaving in and out of traffic? Frankly I do keep to the right as much as possible, but if my driving legal pisses you off then IDGAF.

BTW the posted speed limit is an UPPER speed limit and not a lower one.

I hate speed limits and violate them whenever I think I can get away with it.

 

[DirectDrive]

It is now illegal to flash your lights in Oregon.

Flashing high beams as some sort of signal is an amateur driver thing anyway.
A professional driver will momentarily turn off normal beams and then back on to signal.
No flashing of high beams.
Leave the off/on thing to the professionals if you are an amateur driver.

 

[BBQ Guy]

As a person who spends a LOT of time on the road for work, This is great and all.. But some people who are in too much of a hurry dont consider how difficult it is to switch lanes if an exit is coming up.

People also think a two lane "highway" is the same as an interstate freeway.. Its not.. I understand that yes, on the Interstate folks should remain in the right hand lane.. But you types expect every two lane road to adopt this methodology.. And it simply does not compute.

Left turn exit lanes come up frequently on highways.. And again, you arent paying my bills nor or your in charge of my time or convenience.. So Im going to maintain the flow of traffic speed (often +5-10 miles over the limit.. and ride that left lane until my exit comes up. Thats more than fast enough.

For example: Here in Oregon HWY26 splits off to three different routes (coming into portland)
After Sylvan, traffic is heavy and idiots dont know how to merge properly.. and the merging is so bad that your little "hurry" to play ricky bobby in the far left lane can bubbleguming wait.. My schedual doesnt revolve around yours and if thats whats easiest for me then Im going to maintain the flow of traffic speed in the far left lane because Im headed to Vancouver or need to take that exit.

Many of you lead foot guys get people killed. I often laugh at your accidents as I cruse on by...in the left lane... where my exit is coming up.. Feeling zero pity for any of you.

None of you are entitled to the left lane, but when I see you zip by at 10-15+ over the limt Im thankful you'll trigger the speed trap for the rest of us.. And again, I laugh out loud as I cruse on by thanking you for taking the hit you could have easily avoided by being less of a tool.

If it is difficult for you to switch lanes, maybe driving isnt for you.

 

[3MTA3]

Flashing high beams as some sort of signal is an amateur driver thing anyway.
A professional driver will momentarily turn off normal beams and then back on to signal.
No flashing of high beams.
Leave the off/on thing to the professionals if you are an amateur driver.

I use my headlights to let a truck driver know it's clear to change into the lane in front of me.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

If someone is trying to change lanes from the inside lane, at the last possible instant in order to make their exit, then they should plan a little better.
If you miss an exit, do the safe thing and go to the next exit.

Nope, thats not what I meant at all. Thats your assumption. Have you driven 26 into portland during rush hour? Hell, even at bubbleguming 1pm!
Have you witnessed the ego drivers that dont want to let anyone in their lane?

For HIGHWAYS.. Thats what Im talking about. Again, work wise I put more miles on my truck than many of the folks (aside from actual truckers) on this forum ever will.
Ive witnessed ALL types of drivers out there. Commonly, people switch lanes 2-4 miles for their ahead when traffic is bad. But if an entire lane is clear, many wait until 1-2 miles to merge, thats human nature and NO ONE on here isnt guilty of last minute merging. Everyone has done it, considering the flow of traffic in each case.

An example for hwy26 would be near the zoo off ramp.. Or even near the Sylvan off ramp.. people wont let anyone over.. Not to mention there are two merging lanes that jam things up.. Many ego drivers speed up or maintain close bumper distance right after the zoo so no one can get over, even 2-4 miles out.. You then have your lanes traffic and the far right.. Often boxing one in..

So in anticipation and to better avoid those issues many just remain in the far left lane..

Oh but then you have the frogger types as they hop back and forth from one lane to another just to get ahead one car length.. They slow everyone down.

Unfortunately if you get boxed out and can't move over due to the lead foots or heavy traffic you're forced thru the tunnel altogether it can tack on 20+ minutes of drive time just to "turn around"..

You're literally taking a big government, "one size fits all" approach to this.. Driving is not black and white, there are many variables on the road that alter ones abilities to simply "merge" at times.

Not to mention Oregon, in its infinite wisdom decided to allow construction of multiple home/apartment developments as well as road maintenance projects all at the same time, making driving conditions even worse and far more dense during even normal times of the day. Oregon has done little to expand infrastructure to handle all the new residents and traffic.. so again, the "one size fits all" mentality when it comes to driving simply does not work at this point in time. Not until there is road expansion to handle the extra traffic. So remaining in the far right lane in some instances truly doesnt work, but I mean this for Highways.. Not the interstate. The sad thing is, people dont know the difference.. They assume any two lane road must function like an interstate.

The fact of the matter is, people complaining about this trivial bubblegum are the same punks that think they own the road, that everyone must cater to their schedule.. Its all just laughable.

 

[ZA_Survivalist]

If it is difficult for you to switch lanes, maybe driving isnt for you.

*Slow clap*
Bravo, an edgy comment.. Impressive babe.

 

[DirectDrive]

I use my headlights to let a truck driver know it's clear to change into the lane in front of me.

Well, that's non-committal.
You a flasher ?

 

[DirectDrive]

If it is difficult for you to switch lanes, maybe driving isnt for you.

That is pretty funny, right there.

 

[pigiron]

I blame the horror of the 55mph national speed limit era for all this slow driver righteousness. (And here in Oregon to that criminal John "I'm an emergency room doctor" Kitzhaber.) Prior to the energy crisis in the 1970's and our period of Kitzhaber terror one regularly saw signs on the interstate saying "Keep right except to pass", "Slower traffic keep right", and my absolute favorite MINIMUM SPEED 40 MPH.

 

[IronMonster]

 

[Hybrid Slave]

As a concrete finisher living in so. Cal., I put miles from here to the moon on the freeways, from the coast to the Arizona border, as far up as Santa Barbara, and sometimes even to Frisco from as far down as San Diego. These are not highways, but major arterial runs of four, five and even six lane super freeways that at their best, and even with dense traffic, can flow harmoniously at speeds up to 90 MPH (at limited hours) and can bog down to 10 to 15 MPH for as many as 12 hours throughout the day.

As an "LA dog" I'm already disliked here on this forum. But keep in mind that I do like my guns and am not as easily "Californian liberal" profiled as you may think.

That being said, and my unpopularity being established, I'll say that if you have not driven the the years, hours, distances, and destinations that I and others like myself have, in any cities other than Los Angeles, Frisco, Chicago, or any other monster size metropolitan city (a REAL Sh***y... oops, I meant city) then you truly do not know just how bad it is, and how bad it will eventually become once "progress" catches up with the likes of Portland, Seattle, Denver etc. etc.

Some of you who have read my posts know that I often refer to perspective. Well, allow me to present an example. My cousins from the Denver area would come visit and would always ask how "many miles..." to get here or there. Without thinking about it, my responses were always time increments, rather than distances; 45 minutes, 15 minutes, one hour give or take...

This always puzzled them. I eventually figured out that the reasons I put it in these terms were one; because the only concerns I had about speed limits were being able to spot the highway dog before he spotted me, and slowing down just enough to not totally buzz the guy who I was passing (either on the left or right side). And two; because the amount of time that I would spend in traffic each day broke down to key factors being; what time of the day I got on the freeway and could reach certain interchanges...but above all else, speed.

Driving on the so.Cal freeway system, there are literally 10 to 15 minute windows throughout the day that determine whether one will be home with the kids at a descent hour and be able to see Jr's ball game, or end up sitting in bumper to bumper traffic for two and a half hours.

One of the more extreme examples of this is the Friday commute northbound from San Diego to Los Angeles. Under perfect traffic conditions, at 65 mph, it is a drive of 1 hour and 45 to 50 minutes. However, if one is not on the freeway before 1415 hours and not clear of Camp Pendleton by 1500 hours, I guarantee that you will sit in bumper to bumper traffic for four hours all the way to LA county.

It is absolutely impossible to accomplish the aforementioned travelling at the posted speed limit (which is 75mph through Oceanside and Pendleton), but within the window, it is not uncommon, when the "I'm going the speed limit in the left lane" a** wipes are not around, for the general flow of dense traffic to move at 85/90 mph and even approach three digits in the far left and carpool lanes during this window. And it is because these people are among those "who know" and stay the hell out of the passing lane when they are not passing.

And sorry but "passing" does not mean taking ten "f"ing minutes to do it (sorry all you RVers and boat towers and truckers, it's rough, I know). But if your going to pass, then pass, preferably in a timely manner before you create a build up in the passing lane.

Occasionally, a driver runs into this "state of grace" where all the other drivers on the road actually understand, and get it. And for a brief time, it is beautiful, and you have conditions like what I described down in Oceanside. And then for some reason, all the people who are living in oblivion seem to get off of work at the same time, and that stretch becomes a parking lot all the way through Orange county.

The crazy thing is that even at slow speeds, people still get into collisions, thereby stalling traffic even more.

An old cop mentor of mine used to always advocate for Autobahn rules. As a kid I thought that he was crazy, but he explained that at 55 to 70 mph people are BSing with their significant other or shotgun partner; people are putting on make up, shaving, eating food, etc.etc.

And he was right. I've seen it all on those freeways; people fumbling for cigarettes, rolling joints with one hand, people sniffing lines, being groped (among other things), reading maps, yelling at their kids, and of course, moving into the modern era...texting and talking on their phones.

BUT... a slight increase in speed to 80mph to 90mph becomes a game changer. Suddenly, people are more focused on their damn driving, as they should be.

You've all heard it in drivers ed, or from the highway dogs in their PR safety films... "speed kills". It surprises me that on a forum that advocates 2nd Amendment rights and personal responsibility, many here would agree without debate. Well I say that it is negligence that kills. And like weapons in unskilled untrained hands, so it is with vehicles, drivers, and speed.

It has been said that if one speeds, they increase their odds of being involved in a serious collision. But consider this; what happens to those odds in the case of a well trained and seasoned driver; and I'm not talking about truckers who make their living on the road, but rather people who simply commute from one place to another. I could be wrong, but I got it in my head that I was in more danger not so much because of the speed at which I was travelling, but rather the more time, in minutes and hours, that I physically spent on the road.

Do I really want to be exposed for an hour and a half, waiting to be rear ended, or do I want to get gone and off those crazy streets and into my driveway as soon as possible? For me, there is no question about it. And I'm going to do whatever I can, as safely as possible to get off the streets as expediently and as conscientiously as my driving skills will allow. It's crazy out there, and I say P*** on anyone who gets in someone else's way. What can I say; a few CV West PACs when I was younger made me forever hate waiting in lines of any form.

No, I'm not, on the right hand side, going to blow past anyone at 90mph who is travelling the speed limit. Though I am going to pass them at a reasonable speed and then get as far away from their stupidity as I can. And many of you know that that stupidity seems to travel in packs.

One thing I will say though; don't assume that you are AJ Foyt just because you've gotten away with speeding unscathed. If you have the means, I highly suggest investing in some kind of training in a high speed defensive and evasive driving course. I thought that I was hot sh** until I was fortunate enough to have my command put me through one when I was in the service (don't ask, it was a lucky fluke). But I learned more than I ever thought I knew. And so it goes that I have no problem with speeders as long as they do it skillfully and conscientiously. I'll take these people to oblivious or self righteous left lane cruisers any day.

 

[Sstrand]

Yep, He's from California . . .

Sheldon