🚀 go-pugleaf

In <366DC383.632F@xix.netcom.com> Mike Smith <m-smith@xix.netcom.com> writes:

>Having read some of your other replies, I don't think you are as greatly
>at odds with everyone else as you at first appear....

I don't think I am greatly at odds with you, but I am at odds with
a number of other people.  There are two different philosphies being
espoused by people:

G. Stay right except to pass.  Everybody who is not actively passing
anybody squeezes into the right-most lane.  The rightmost lane will thus
have lots of vehicles packed in it with very little following distance.
The remaining lanes should be idle except for the occasional "passing'
motorist.  Highway traffic capacity is reduced to the capacity of a
single lane plus a few per cent.  A 4-lane highway might carry as much
traffic as 1.2 lanes, for example.  It's a violation of protocol if
there are two lanes of traffic moving at the same speed:  everybody in
the left of the two lanes must immediately merge right, even if this
results in the right lane having vehicles spaced only a fraction of a
second apart.

H. Move with the speed of traffic in your lane.  The rightmost lane is
slowest, and the leftmost lane is fastest.  However depending on traffic
conditions adjacent lanes can be moving at the same speed -- thus you
are not required to be always passing vehicles on your right.  Highway
capacity is the total capacity of all lanes.  Change lanes when you wish
to go noticeably slower or faster than the average speed of traffic in
your lane.  Maintain a 2-3 second following distance.  No lane is left
idle.  Instead, we use all available highway capacity, and thus keep
following distances as large as possible.  Final effect:  few lane
changes, large following distances, no accidents, but both slow and fast
vehicles are easily accomodated.

>However, when you are the lead car in the left lane, ie. the slowest,
>you should make an effort to be courteous and allow following traffic
>to pass you by pulling over as soon as is practicable. You might even
>consider accelerating to make this easier. Obviously, in a situation
>where you ARE lead car, traffic cannot be congested so you have no
>excuse to block the lane.

It would be short-sighted to only look at the one vehicle ahead of you
and one vehicle behind you.  What I do is look as far ahead as I can
see, and as far behind as I can see, and estimate the average speed of
all those vehicles in my lane.  Then I either drive at that speed or
consider changing lanes.
-- 
Rahul Dhesi <dhesi@spams.r.us.com>
a2i communications, a quality ISP
    "Any idiot can avoid automobile accidents that are his own fault.  It
     takes skill to avoid accidents that are the *other* person's fault."