Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Sometimes the cars you are going to merge with doesn't seem to slow down.

Then you need to speed up. They don’t call it the “acceleration lane” for nothing.

The merge ramp is where you begin to adjust your speed to merge with traffic (either speed up or down to merge). Very simple concept, unless there is a moron stopped in the merge lane.

PP, you have no control over how other people drive. That's just a fact. They're going to drive the way they drive. Take a deep breath, slow down, and concentrate on driving safely so everybody can get where they're going. Aggressive, road-raging drivers are dangerous drivers.

Anonymous wrote:

Sometimes the cars you are going to merge with doesn't seem to slow down.

Then you need to speed up. They don’t call it the “acceleration lane” for nothing.

The merge ramp is where you begin to adjust your speed to merge with traffic (either speed up or down to merge). Very simple concept, unless there is a moron stopped in the merge lane.

OP are you the one that honked at me for not merging at a yield sign this morning?

Its called "merge anxiety"! Stay back there until I'm good and ready to go.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree it’s dangerous.

People in the right lane should slow down...

No, no, no! If you are on the main road, please don't slow down to let someone in. You have the right of way; take it. If I am merging in, I want you moving at the highway speed so that I can time my own entrance. slowing down to let me in is a major hazard to everyone in the road.

This only works if speeding up gets you safely past the car merging and leaves some room behind you for the merging car. If speeding up just gets you closer to the guy in front of you and makes the person behind you speed up, too, then you haven’t shared the responsibility for a safe merge. This is 90% of what I see around NoVa / DC.

Slowing down a bit—while the merger speeds up—leaves space in front of you for the merger to come in safely. In 90% of situations in the rest of VA—except maybe Hampton Roads, this is what people do to safely share merging responsibilities.

Or better yet, if you’re nowhere close to needing to exit / turn, stay in the middle lane!

Sometimes the cars you are going to merge with doesn't seem to slow down.

Then you need to speed up. They don’t call it the “acceleration lane” for nothing.

Sometimes the cars you are going to merge with doesn't seem to slow down. Too risky especially if there is no long merge area.
What annoys me are the ones that merge too early. The cars are flowing fine and entering merge lanes but someone always merge perpendicular to the traffic-that's ridiculous. Blocking the lane and people have to go around them because there's a lot of the merge lane left. It has to keep flowing or traffic backs up fast.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

Even when there is a merge lane, sometimes it's still not safe to go. I'm going to go when I think it's safe for me to go, not when the person in the car behind me thinks it's safe for me to go. If I don't think it's safe to go, I won't go.

OP, how much were you delayed by the person who came to a complete stop in front of you? Is it worth getting upset about it enough to post on DCUM?

If there is space to merge (which there is almost everywhere) then you don't stop, you accelerate.

You are going to cause an accident. Please seek out a driving school to deal with your anxieties.

I've been driving for 35 years without a wreck, thanks, and I'll trust my judgment (as the person behind the wheel, actually on the scene) over the judgment of an anonymous person on the Internet. I'm not anxious about driving, except insofar as I'm sharing the road with impatient people who drive like an extra three seconds will make the difference between world peace and nuclear armageddon.

Again, you keep harping on this off-topic situation. Given how obsessed you are about it (and unable to stay on topic) I do think you're anxious about it.

If there is space, merge. If not, wait until you can. And if that many people are honking at you it might be time for some self-reflection...

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

Even when there is a merge lane, sometimes it's still not safe to go. I'm going to go when I think it's safe for me to go, not when the person in the car behind me thinks it's safe for me to go. If I don't think it's safe to go, I won't go.

OP, how much were you delayed by the person who came to a complete stop in front of you? Is it worth getting upset about it enough to post on DCUM?

If there is space to merge (which there is almost everywhere) then you don't stop, you accelerate.

You are going to cause an accident. Please seek out a driving school to deal with your anxieties.

I've been driving for 35 years without a wreck, thanks, and I'll trust my judgment (as the person behind the wheel, actually on the scene) over the judgment of an anonymous person on the Internet. I'm not anxious about driving, except insofar as I'm sharing the road with impatient people who drive like an extra three seconds will make the difference between world peace and nuclear armageddon.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

My reading comprehension is just fine, thanks though. My issue is many people around here think there are merge zones when there aren't so OPs narrative that this was a situation with a merge zone is, to me, unreliable at best. And no driving school is going to tell me to gun it into traffic with no merge zone just because the dingleberry behind me is honking.

You can sit there and stay mad.

The vast majority of merge lanes in this area DO have space to merge.

The driving school could minimize your anxiety and help you realize there actually IS room to merge at most junctions.

Duke Street at Van Dorn and many of the on ramps to GW Parkway are on ramps with no merge zones which is why they were specifically called out. And those are areas specifically where people get all up in their feelings and lay on their horn because they don't pay attention to all the "no merge zone" signs and think "of course there must be a merge zone, every one ramp has a merge zone".

Driving school for a person who actually reads the signs and obeys the traffic laws safely at those junctions isn't going to help. People like you and OP paying more attention and noticing/obeying the no merge zones will.

This thread is about people who stop in a merge lane where there is space to merge. Go back and read the OP.

You are off topic. Go start a new thread if you want to rant about that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

Even when there is a merge lane, sometimes it's still not safe to go. I'm going to go when I think it's safe for me to go, not when the person in the car behind me thinks it's safe for me to go. If I don't think it's safe to go, I won't go.

OP, how much were you delayed by the person who came to a complete stop in front of you? Is it worth getting upset about it enough to post on DCUM?

If there is space to merge (which there is almost everywhere) then you don't stop, you accelerate.

You are going to cause an accident. Please seek out a driving school to deal with your anxieties.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

My reading comprehension is just fine, thanks though. My issue is many people around here think there are merge zones when there aren't so OPs narrative that this was a situation with a merge zone is, to me, unreliable at best. And no driving school is going to tell me to gun it into traffic with no merge zone just because the dingleberry behind me is honking.

You can sit there and stay mad.

The vast majority of merge lanes in this area DO have space to merge.

The driving school could minimize your anxiety and help you realize there actually IS room to merge at most junctions.

Duke Street at Van Dorn and many of the on ramps to GW Parkway are on ramps with no merge zones which is why they were specifically called out. And those are areas specifically where people get all up in their feelings and lay on their horn because they don't pay attention to all the "no merge zone" signs and think "of course there must be a merge zone, every one ramp has a merge zone".

Driving school for a person who actually reads the signs and obeys the traffic laws safely at those junctions isn't going to help. People like you and OP paying more attention and noticing/obeying the no merge zones will.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

Even when there is a merge lane, sometimes it's still not safe to go. I'm going to go when I think it's safe for me to go, not when the person in the car behind me thinks it's safe for me to go. If I don't think it's safe to go, I won't go.

OP, how much were you delayed by the person who came to a complete stop in front of you? Is it worth getting upset about it enough to post on DCUM?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do you do this? It makes me hate you. I don’t want to hate you.

Why? Because, for whatever reason, I can't continue moving forward safely.

+1

Also so many people around here seem to think every "yield" sign must have a merge zone even when there isn't any merge zone. The number of times I've had people lay on the horn when I was at a no merge zone on ramp to GW Parkway or the on ramp to Duke Street at Van Dorn is enough to make me crack a molar. You think I'm sitting here waiting for a break in traffic for funsies?

I guess your reading comprehension is as good as your driving. OP said aside from no merge zones.

You should try driving school if you have so much trouble dealing with traffic and get that stressed over it. If you improve your skills you will improve your confidence and have a better experience.

My reading comprehension is just fine, thanks though. My issue is many people around here think there are merge zones when there aren't so OPs narrative that this was a situation with a merge zone is, to me, unreliable at best. And no driving school is going to tell me to gun it into traffic with no merge zone just because the dingleberry behind me is honking.

You can sit there and stay mad.

The vast majority of merge lanes in this area DO have space to merge.

The driving school could minimize your anxiety and help you realize there actually IS room to merge at most junctions.

Anonymous wrote:Their engine may not be strong enough to merge with oncoming traffic. And the merge land is too short. Just be patient.

Or they are old and morphed into a Nervous Nelly driver like my mother.