I don't know who needs to hear this (that's a lie: ~80% of drivers) but when you're in a turn lane or an exit only lane, you should still signal to confirm to those around you that you are aware of the lane you're in and where it's about to go.
If a new lane appears which you have to enter in order to exit, once there I consider that "on the ramp" - your choice to move into it is clear enough.
I'm mainly talking about lanes which become exit-only up ahead.
To describe this more generally, if there's a situation where an inattentive driver could find themselves on a path they don't mean to take, then if you, the attentive driver, intend to take that path - signal to confirm this.
@TechConnectify I tend to feel this about forced turns in city centres — you can see the sign saying you can't go straight on unless you're a bus or a cyclist, but there's no reason to assume everyone else knows about it. A cyclist coming down that road shouldn't have to infer that you're about to turn in front of them.
@TechConnectify even for the new lane thing...occasionally I'll see people using those as passing lanes, so it's nice to have the clarification of a signal regardless...
I'd also like to add that if you're already slowing down by the time you activate the signal it kinda defeats the purpose because I've already guessed that you're probably turning...
@wonka@TechConnectify@admin Varies by US state, but e.g. in Washington passing on the right is advised against, but not technically illegal. What IS illegal is loitering in the left lanes. Which means that if you CAN pass on the right, the other person is breaking the law!
This law is almost universally unknown, and never enforced. Which drives me nuts.
@TomF I was on a road trip through Washington about a year ago, and there were some signs on two-lane country roads explaining this but with the most confusing verbiage I could imagine. It took reading three of them for me to parse!
(edit: well, not specifically this but something about slow vehicles must use pull-offs if they're causing a blockage)
@wonka@TechConnectify It's illegal in the US too, but AIUI the decision of who is at fault in that situation varies. Where I live, the person being passed is the one breaking the law. The law does not say that you cannot pass on the right; it says that you are required to keep to the right unless you are passing someone. Which makes more sense to me...you shouldn't be allowed to sit in the inside lane driving slow and making it illegal for anyone to get around you!
@admin Now imagine you (driving 120km/h) are passing two semis (80km/h) that are keeping the distance of 50m between them that's required by law and someone recklessly comes from behind, passes the semi you just passed, changes into the right lane without regard for safe distances, passes you, changes back to your lane (much too close to you) and then has to emergency brake because of whatever. You crash into them. Who is at fault?
@admin You are required to keep a distance of about two seconds to the vehicle in front of you. I often don't see more than one second. But two times "one second at 80km/h" is still way more than 50m, so you clearly were not even allowed to switch to the right there, and neither was the reckless driver passing you on the right. They are clearly at fault.
@wonka@TechConnectify You obviously don't have to move right if there isn't room to do so safely. You can keep left while passing multiple people. And even if there is a valid argument that both people broke the law, that is not some unique situation. Courts have tools to assign liability proportionately to multiple parties.
What if one person goes through a red light and gets hit by someone driving drunk? What if one person merges without a signal and gets hit by someone driving too fast? This stuff happens and the law can deal with it.
(And to be fair, I don't think "you must keep right" is ever actively enforced outside of fairly extreme circumstances...you're far more likely to get stopped for passing recklessly on the right than for driving slowly on the left. But you won't get stopped for passing safely on the right either.)
@admin There is no argument that the person not squeezing into the 50m slot broke the law. It's forbidden to go into that slot because there won't be a safe distance left to the vehicle in front of them.
@wonka@TechConnectify And when I talk about an exit lane opening up and being used to pass, I'm not talking about a distance of meters; I'm talking about distances of kilometers.
@wonka@TechConnectify So if someone is driving a tractor down the left lane at 10km/h, you just have to sit there and wait behind them even if there's an entire lane free to pass?
(This was a pretty common situation where I grew up...a rural area with low traffic highways, lots of farm tractors and slow moving coal trucks on the roads, so they'll add a temporary second lane every few miles to give space to pass -- especially on hills -- but the slow moving vehicles often don't move over into the new lane, they just sit there hugging the center line)
I'm also damned tired of those who won't LOOK TO THEIR LEFT when in a right turn lane at an intersection facing a red light to make sure there isn't a pedestrian crossing the street. I'm tired of flipping them off when they just roll on through. (Or LOOK TO THEIR RIGHT when turning left at an intersection without a green left turn signal, but hey, do it anyway even if the light's green ok?)
@TechConnectify Americans also don’t know how to use the turn indicator in a traffic circle. Or so I assume because I have never seen anyone here indicate anything on circles. Ever.
I’m always afraid they’re going to misinterpret me when I signal left when entering the circle…
@CrisLuengo In fairness, I simply do not understand how signaling that you're entering a traffic circle is helpful. Any car at the entry points WILL enter, they have no choice.
@TechConnectify in some european countries - as long there are signs on the part of the road you are on pointing a direction - you have to turn on the signals on. But most people don't know/care etc. :)
@qgustavor Whether it's a law depends on your jurisdiction, but I don't care about that. It's just the right thing to do and I want to help people understand why.
@TechConnectify this is the sort of stuff cops should write tickets for, but I guess they're too busy arresting students for existing at their own university
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