Prius Etiquette

Driving back and forth from Hampton Roads to the Outer Banks every day ( 150 RT ) it's normally me.. two Sheriff's cruisers, an unmarked trooper cruiser and a speed trap or two. Ask Al Gore's son about driving on the only Hwy in and out of OBX.

65 is safe, 66 is a risk and 67 is a ticket. Oh btw did I tell you how to legally eliminate tickets..heh Heh..

#1 Don't be doing anything stupid.
- 95 in a 55;
- Mock a trooper in a V8 by blowing by him in a Prius;

#2 Contribute to your local/state FOP or PBO.... and make sure to put those sticky 'Contributor' decals on your rear window on the LEFT side.

I have them going back to 1883.. I can barely see out of the rear window
( This is a biggie, I've had 6 'Please pay closer attention to the limit's, sir.' 'I certainly will, Officer'.) I can feel good fortune slip-sliding-away already. :lol:

#3 Assuming you didn't tell the kind officer that you couldn't have been going that fast since:
- it's a Prius for God's sake; :angry:
- or ask him to get in the vehicle to verify your average mpg on the MFD proving that you couldn't have been speeding since any moron knows you can't get 54 mpg doing 70 mph; :blink:

If for no reason he still does give you a ticket;
- go to court,
- do not mail it in and admit guilt,
- throw yourself on your sword..err mercy of the DA. the last 3 tickets have been cancelled just by asking. I did pay the fines however.. what a scam.

 

I live in DC too, and I'm afraid I must disagree completely with you about that.

I hear people say the same thing wherever they are from, Boston, Houston, you name it.

Those same people generally say they have to have a car that goes 0-60 in 6 seconds or less because the traffic forces them to drive maniacally.

I've driven vehicles from the smallest to the largest, and fastest to slowest, and never have any trouble merging safely at a reasonable and legal speed, anywhere.

Come to think of it, I think everyone should be forced to spend a week driving a Semi, and they would learn some things about anticipation, looking ahead, and consideration that would be most applicable to their normal daily drive.

 

Something like that happened to a friend of mine. He was behind some lady driving like a idiot. He flipped the old lady off, honked the horn and yelled...as he drove by......it was his mom.

The next day he was like "mom why do you drive like an idiot" and she was like "Well...I got confused and didn't know what I was doing"...."Mom...dont' drive"

 

My father was a driving instructor for 30 years including many years as an AAA instructor. One thing that I remember him saying is that if someone passes you on the right, you're at fault!

To that end, since I drive AT or at most 5 miles over the speed limit I almost always drive in the right lane.

 

I've never seen a state worse than Washington for this problem. Not sure why. Wild west mentality? If they drove like that back east or in Europe, they'd be run off the road. It's just selfish, bad road etiquette.

 

I've always heard that a moron is someone driving faster than you..

An Idiot is someone driving slower than you

 

You're legally and dare I say morally right in what you say, EXCEPT remember it doesn't apply to the far left lane.... In the far left lane, etiquette, the law, and whether you live to fight another day dictate that when the driver behind you wants to go faster than you, just move over... you can jump right back in behind him/her. The left lane is the passing lane and belongs to the fastest car in it. Let the state trooper deal with the guy going 85.

Another exception, that I would ALMOST say is a function of whether you are in a kindly mood at the time, is that for the most part, trucks are banned from the left lane on most 3-lane roads, so if a truck is in the middle lane behind you and wanting to go faster than you do, you are etiquette wise and possibly morally wise required to get out of his way because he's not allowed to pass you. I don't know what the law has to say on the subject, but take it for what it's worth.

Outside of those 2 exceptions I agree with you. I usually don't allow another car driver to bully me out of the middle lane as long as I'm going at an appropriate speed.

Ira

 

Hey there's a reason people drive in the middle lane, and it's that there's a lot more "action" in the right lane like entrances and exits from highways, people turning into driveways (obviously on multi-lane non-super-highways), etc. With all that extra movement and merging and all, your chances of getting mixed up in a fender bender are greater in the right lane.

So I try to stay in the middle lane, but I make sure to go "the speed of traffic" and not make people have to "go around me" unnecessarily.

The middle lane does seem to attract more tailgaters than the right lane... I can't really figure why that is. You can be in the middle lane going the same speed as the guy in front of you, and some moron who'd like to go faster comes up 2 feet behind you and stays there for the next 3 miles, when they have an empty left lane but they won't use it to pass you.

 

I am glad to see more than a few folks with a good sense of humor!!
I was able to drive home safely without an idiot or a moron bothering me much

 

No, a moron is someone who gets impatient at the car in the left lane who's inching by the car on his right, gets in between both, pops a wheelie and passes between them at about 90mph...

...or so I've heard.. :lol:

h34r:

 

i tend to stay in the right lane at all times, unless i'm passing someone, or there is a lot of exit/enter traffic. funny thing is, when i drove my firebird at the speed limit, noone seemed to notice. but if i'm in a prius at the limit, or even 5-10 over (hardly ever over), those same people will get pissed that i'm not going fast enough. even happens when i'm behind another car doing the same speed, somone will fly up behind me, ride my bumper, then pass me, then sit behind the car in front of me for miles.

 

on california freeways, the best thing to do is to drive on the shoulder, that way i can go at any speed i want. usually, there's very little traffic there. usually.

 

You know, that guy had a good point: suppose someone does switch over into my lane without leaving enough of a gap for safe stopping distance, and then immediately slams on their brakes, causing an accident. Normally the driver would be able to claim I was at fault, because physical evidence suggests I was following too closely and I caused the accident.
Suppose I had an old handycam mounted to a headrest (something like http://www.ae92gts.com/ae92gts_video_mount.html but cobbled together out of parts from Menards), and had video evidence of the other driver's unsafe behavior. What do you suppose would happen to the other driver?

 

That other driver would probably get a ticket. Happen in my jurisdiction, except it wasn't a handy-cam, it was 2 unbiased witnesses.

 

Like a fool I’ve commuted from Fredericksburg to Springfield along I95 for nine years. I’ve seen a lot of action during those many miles that proves that folks that drive with an attitude are the dangerous ones on the road.

“I’m not gonna change lanes because he/she can’t make meâ€
“They are driving way too slow… flip ‘em off!â€
“I’m not going to move over for the truck that’s speeding down the hillâ€
“That guy passed me on the right…. I’m not going to let them get in front of meâ€

Damn! This is the kind of stuff that causes tempers to flare and accidents to happen. If more people left their egos in their garage the road would be a safer place!

I like what DaveSheremata said, “When you see me on the road, I'll be sharing it with you.†He’s right; we’re ALL sharing the road. It’s not mine nor is it yours… it’s OURS.

I carpooled with a woman who drives like an idiot. She’d tailgate just so someone couldn’t get in front of her. The other person in the car and I would tell her to ease up for safety’s sake. We dumped her and now we carpool in my wonderful Prius (in the HOV lane).

I truly believe that if people would drive like they were walking down a hallway, the road would be safer. Think about it, we’re more polite to people when they are standing next to us or walking near us. I would guess that most of us would hold a door open for someone coming in behind us – I know I do. So, ladies and gentlemen, if we brought that attitude with us in to the drivers seat, life would be so much better.

I personally like to drive “In the Zoneâ€. I’ll go just slow enough so that the “pack†gets in front of me. Then I’ll drive a respectable speed so that I can stay way behind the cars in front of me and ahead of the cars in the next “pack†of cars behind me. This way I can drive many miles without people jostling for the “ultimate†position. By the way, those people that zip in and out of traffic end up at their destination just about four minutes ahead of me. Well worth the stress and gas!!

Etiquette is a big thing to me. Those that ignore it, and are rude to others, are part of what’s wrong with our country right now. Where’s the fun in being a jerk? Turn the other cheek and see how good it feels! Don’t assume that your troubles and worries give you license to be a big ‘ol poopy head!

Wow, I’ve been typing too long about this! Stay safe and be kind, everyone!

 

Wow, she must be very proud of her son.

A guy I worked with was driving in a company truck. He was passing a line of traffic on the beltway trying to exit on to 95 south. He heard a car horn honk, so he flipped the person off. It happened to be the owner of the company. He was out of a job shortly after that. Ooops!

 

And here is the point I think a few people on this thread are missing: If the traffic conditions for speeding exist, then you shouldn't even see my car, much less demand I "get out of the way." Your "choice" is potentially putting my life at risk.

 

speed limit in my part of california is 65. when im driving i like to stay in the middle lane as well, the way i see it, i sit on cruise control right at 65, the old farts sit in the lane right to me going 40, staying out of anyones way, and the demons fly on the left of me like a bat out of hell. i am content in the middle lane, going the speed limit, enjoying the drive of my beautiful vehicle

 

Prior to moving to Lake County in Florida where the Seniors and Snowbirds alike tend to drive 5 to 10 miles an hour UNDER the posted speed limit, I was hell bent on wheels always trying to get from point A to point B in 10 seconds flat.

The law does ask but rarely enforces that slower drivers keep to the right. Riding so smugly in the center or left lane while others pass you on the right is doing no one any good and is actually creating a safety hazard for others who wish to go faster than you. Let's face it, you are not my policeman, so please just move to the right and let the law enforcement officers take care of those whom offend you.

Back to my story, sorry I digressed. After moving to the land of the snails I discovered a little before unknown fact. Driving the speed limit and oft-times even under it, made little difference in the amount of time it took me to get from point A to point B. At most, it made only 5 minutes difference in my 30 minute commute if I drove like a demon or I drove like a sensible citizen.

Now that I have my Prius, I truely enjoy driving once again and relish driving at the posted speed limit all the while noting the added dollar bills going into my wallet because of the gas savings and am once again able to enjoy the scenery along my route (from the right lane).