The pet peeve thread

[oblong]

36 minutes ago, John_Brian_K said:

I cannot wrap my head around the idea that people think it is fine to just speed up to the front of a closed lane and cut people off to get in.  This is normalized now?  When did this happen?

I can’t wrap my head around the idea people think it’s a good idea to put twice as many cars in one lane when two are open.   
 

the people who get over right away are the ones who cause the traffic backup.   The lane is not closed until it’s closed which is indicated by a barrier blocking the road. 

[gehringer_2]

19 minutes ago, oblong said:

I can’t wrap my head around the idea people think it’s a good idea to put twice as many cars in one lane when two are open.   
 

the people who get over right away are the ones who cause the traffic backup.   The lane is not closed until it’s closed which is indicated by a barrier blocking the road. 

The other thing you can get out on the open road is the truck that just sticks it in a walking gear and sets a slow roll. If everyone stays behind it, you don't get nearly as many cars through the congestion than if people go around him and fill-in the space he is leaving in front. He's driving in a manner that is comfortable for him, but may be inefficient for the rest of traffic.

Edited September 14, 2022 by gehringer_2

[Tigeraholic1]

1 hour ago, John_Brian_K said:

I cannot wrap my head around the idea that people think it is fine to just speed up to the front of a closed lane and cut people off to get in.  This is normalized now?  When did this happen?

Once they started handing out participation trophies I would guess.

[Screwball]

This conversation reminds me of my commute back in the 90s coming from the South to Bennett Rd. in Toledo and across the I-280 drawbridge for 10 years - 8 of which was one lane in the summer (or close). Backed up for miles at peak times - and then when you thought it couldn't be worse - the bridge wouldn't go down.  It was like Mad Max.

[gehringer_2]

8 minutes ago, Screwball said:

This conversation reminds me of my commute back in the 90s coming from the South to Bennett Rd. in Toledo and across the I-280 drawbridge for 10 years - 8 of which was one lane in the summer (or close). Backed up for miles at peak times - and then when you thought it couldn't be worse - the bridge wouldn't go down.  It was like Mad Max.

Yup. And wasn't it before they even had the high bridge completed that the shipping that used the drawbridge ceased to operate? From A^2 to Oregon you could either go through downtown and over the Wayne bridge, cross the River on I-75, or go to 280. 280 was longer but actually quicker once the new bridge was in and assuming 475 wasn't under construction.

[Screwball]

25 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

Yup. And wasn't it before they even had the high bridge completed that the shipping that used the drawbridge ceased to operate? From A^2 to Oregon you could either go through downtown and over the Wayne bridge, cross the River on I-75, or go to 280. 280 was longer but actually quicker once the new bridge was in and assuming 475 wasn't under construction.

Toledo was a parking lot many summers. Products going to the automakers in Detroit coming from the East under Lake Erie was using 280 because it was the shortest route - depending on the day and time.  I finally started taking 20 to 75 thru downtown and get off close to Bennett.  Can't remember the road.

I watched 18 wheelers intentionally run into each other.  Others liked to sit back a quarter of a mile and block both lanes so nobody could get by. They would run you off the road.

Some cheated (not trucks, but cars) and tried to get on at Summit, just off the bridge going North, but the South ramp. A guy ran into me there once - didn't stop, neither did I and I wasn't going to - hence my shit car.

I got stuck one night in the very first spot when the bridge went up and got to watch a big boat go by.  That was kind of cool.  Then it wouldn't go down.  That wasn't so cool.

[casimir]

9 hours ago, Screwball said:

Toledo was a parking lot many summers. Products going to the automakers in Detroit coming from the East under Lake Erie was using 280 because it was the shortest route - depending on the day and time.  I finally started taking 20 to 75 thru downtown and get off close to Bennett.  Can't remember the road.

Bennett?  You probably got off of 75 at Berdan or Phillips.

Damnit, now I want an Inky's pizza.

Edited September 15, 2022 by casimir

[casimir]

9 hours ago, Screwball said:

This conversation reminds me of my commute back in the 90s coming from the South to Bennett Rd. in Toledo and across the I-280 drawbridge for 10 years - 8 of which was one lane in the summer (or close). Backed up for miles at peak times - and then when you thought it couldn't be worse - the bridge wouldn't go down.  It was like Mad Max.

The drawbridge is still in use.  I think it was stuck in the up position earlier this year.

[Screwball]

3 hours ago, casimir said:

Bennett?  You probably got off of 75 at Berdan or Phillips.

Damnit, now I want an Inky's pizza.

Yep, Phillips. Thanks. I used to eat at Inky's quite a bit. Not bad. Ate at Rudy's quite often too.  But the best was Ideal Hot dog Chili Mac.  I have to go up there at least once a summer and get one of those, and take one home as well. 

[Screwball]

3 hours ago, casimir said:

The drawbridge is still in use.  I think it was stuck in the up position earlier this year.

That thing was a POS.  It seemed every year they were replacing the grating on the road.  It got stuck and would not close many times.  What was usually a 1 hour commute turned into 2 1/2 - 3 when that happened.

[chasfh]

On 9/14/2022 at 10:58 AM, Tigeraholic1 said:

I see the advantage with that. Good luck getting everyone in traffic to buy into the zipper merge. Sounds like the perfect fuel for road rage situations.

Seems to me the car driving to the end of the lane is playing by the rules of the road, and the guy who jumps into the lane with the explicit purpose of blocking or stopping the car already has road rage.

[chasfh]

20 hours ago, John_Brian_K said:

I cannot wrap my head around the idea that people think it is fine to just speed up to the front of a closed lane and cut people off to get in.  This is normalized now?  When did this happen?

It is fine to drive in a lane as long as it is open to drive in.

[oblong]

8 minutes ago, chasfh said:

It is fine to drive in a lane as long as it is open to drive in.

You have to be a mind reader I guess.  Groupthink.  Everyone's over there so I guess I need to go over there. It's like walking up to a stadium's security area and seeing a long line at one and a shorter line on another so are you cutting by going into the shorter line to get through security and then the ticket scanner person? 

For some reason this happens a lot at Comerica.   People just walk up and pick the first line they see without realizing there's 7 other stations, several with nobody.  And it's not special "no bag" lines. 

 

[chasfh]

There's no other way to put it: early merging culture is fascist, practically by definition, because it encourages people to take what's not even a law, but is merely a more, into their own hands and enforce it against other drivers simply because they don't like them doing what the actual law allows them to do.

[oblong]

4 minutes ago, chasfh said:

There's no other way to put it: early merging culture is fascist, practically by definition, because it encourages people to take what's not even a law, but is merely a more, into their own hands and enforce it against other drivers simply because they don't like them doing what the actual law allows them to do.

"I don't want you to do what you want to do, I want you to do what I want you to do"

[djhutch]

1 hour ago, chasfh said:

There's no other way to put it: early merging culture is fascist, practically by definition, because it encourages people to take what's not even a law, but is merely a more, into their own hands and enforce it against other drivers simply because they don't like them doing what the actual law allows them to do.

 

1 hour ago, oblong said:

"I don't want you to do what you want to do, I want you to do what I want you to do"

I just came back from Ohio last weekend pulling a pop-up trailer.  Because of this, when I saw a lane closure coming, I got into the right lane right away.  But I watched as more than 1 vehicle tried that whole block both lanes thing. Very close to causing a huge pileup because he would wait until a car was coming behind him to get over. Morons.

[chasfh]

On 9/14/2022 at 11:04 AM, gehringer_2 said:

What would make it a lot more likely to succeed would be if MDOT put "Use Zipper Merge" signs up at the sites, but if they ever do I can't remember the last time I saw one.

Yes, I like this. I also think what could help is if they have a sign that says, "Stay in your lane until lane closure" or "closure point", or "merge point", something along those lines. I think that might be a good way to train drivers over time to get comfortable with zipper-merging.

Maybe adding a sign near the lane closure that says "Start merging here" would also help.

Edited September 16, 2022 by chasfh

[Tigeraholic1]

19 hours ago, chasfh said:

There's no other way to put it: early merging culture is fascist, practically by definition, because it encourages people to take what's not even a law, but is merely a more, into their own hands and enforce it against other drivers simply because they don't like them doing what the actual law allows them to do.

Leave it to ol' Chucky to spin lane mergers into partisan politics. 🙄

[casimir]

My work commute is primarily one lane (each direction) county roads at off peak hours.  This discussion reminds me that that ain't necessarily a bad thing.

[casimir]

On 9/14/2022 at 9:38 PM, gehringer_2 said:

Yup. And wasn't it before they even had the high bridge completed that the shipping that used the drawbridge ceased to operate? From A^2 to Oregon you could either go through downtown and over the Wayne bridge, cross the River on I-75, or go to 280. 280 was longer but actually quicker once the new bridge was in and assuming 475 wasn't under construction.

Bad assumption.  They're adding another interchange (which is probably needed) and finally expanding the 3rd lane in each direction between the current 3rd lane (which was just recently added with another badly needed interchange west of Toledo proper) and the Maumee River.  The current two lanes are clogged, clogged, clogged during afternoon rush hour.

[chasfh]

33 minutes ago, Tigeraholic1 said:

Leave it to ol' Chucky to spin lane mergers into partisan politics. 🙄

Leave it to you to make the conversation all about me the person when you can’t refute a good point on its own terms.

[Tigeraholic1]

20 hours ago, oblong said:

You have to be a mind reader I guess.  Groupthink.  Everyone's over there so I guess I need to go over there. It's like walking up to a stadium's security area and seeing a long line at one and a shorter line on another so are you cutting by going into the shorter line to get through security and then the ticket scanner person? 

For some reason this happens a lot at Comerica.   People just walk up and pick the first line they see without realizing there's 7 other stations, several with nobody.  And it's not special "no bag" lines. 

 

Good point but bad analogy. Those lines don't merge, if they did you would then have people jockying to stay ahead in line and getting pissy with each other no?

[oblong]

5 minutes ago, Tigeraholic1 said:

Good point but bad analogy. Those lines don't merge, if they did you would then have people jockying to stay ahead in line and getting pissy with each other no?

They do merge into the ticket agents.  Often there's more security stations than ticket scanners.  It's not 1:1.   At least at comerica park's entrances that I use.  One stop is security then you walk up to the ticket person with the device.

 

[oblong]

and thinking about this some more.... so you are in the long line and a few cars go up and get near the front of the line you are in..... "cutting" as some call it.

so what?  What's the problem with that?  What harm are they causing you?  How is your life impacted in a negative way by that?  Are they moving in to take up a better seat?  To grab the last item off a shelf that you want?  Getting a better parking spot?  Grabbing the last slice of pizza from the salad bar?   

 

 

[Tigeraholic1]

26 minutes ago, oblong said:

and thinking about this some more.... so you are in the long line and a few cars go up and get near the front of the line you are in..... "cutting" as some call it.

so what?  What's the problem with that?  What harm are they causing you?  How is your life impacted in a negative way by that?  Are they moving in to take up a better seat?  To grab the last item off a shelf that you want?  Getting a better parking spot?  Grabbing the last slice of pizza from the salad bar?   

 

 

My last thought on this, since I have already been called a Facist wacko..... That scenario you use is my issue not the zipper or rhythm method (I kid 🤣). Everyone is patiently waiting in line then a drivers gets impatient and whips out of line and hammer down to the front. Why is it ok for them to do this? I equate THAT to waiting in line at the bank or a fast food joint and somone feels their time is more important than everyone elses in line so they elbow their way to the front of the line because they just can't wait any longer.

Now if the closing lane is full of vehicles and everyone is moving and merging or zippering that is fine but the scenario above to me is different as the line is orderly and moving at some kind of pase.....