Yesterday I attempted to pick up my sister from the airport. Attempted being the keyword. Less than 3 miles from the airport 100s of cars suddenly came to a stop. Left over debris from a major accident the night before in addition to road work claimed to be culprits for the congestion, however I saw none of this before wasting an hour and a half of my life then turning around to go home. [Thank goodness for public transportation, my sister was able to take the light rail home instead.]
Late merge, only you can't hear the honking or see who is flipping the bird
Sitting in the long line of cars trying to exit or merge from one highway onto the stopped traffic of another highway got me thinking. So many cars line-up in the most right-hand lane 1 mile before the exit ramp, maybe more, in anticipation for exit. We are trained to get in line when we see lines forming, and most of us would agree that it is rude to ignore the line of patient drivers who have been waiting their turn and proceed to the head of the line. Social norms tell us this is impolite, cutting is cheating, and basically a douchey maneuver.
I admit to being annoyed by the driver who speeds along merrily in the left lane and then slams on his or her brakes expecting to squeeze their way into line in front of me. I thought that this type of maneuver was 1) unsafe for those drivers behind said car who were traveling at decent speeds and who just want to pass the congestion and NOT exit and 2) is disruptive and rude to those patiently waiting in the right-hand lane to exit the entire time. I begrudgingly admit maybe there is another conclusion as laid out by a study conducted by the University of Maryland. The study finds that utilizing both lanes (the open left-hand lane and the exiting right-hand lane) aids in relieving traffic congestion. Normal right-of-way traffic rules which say to let the through driver pass while you wait your turn to merge go out the window in Germany, where supposedly drivers have it right and abide by the zipper/late merge theory during periods of heavy traffic. By using both available lanes it brings more cars up closer to the exit point quicker. Then implementing the alternating you go, I go (one car from the left lane, one from the right lane, etc.) supposedly leads to quicker traffic alleviation. An article by PioneerPress of Minnesota also cites adopting these methods speed traffic by 20% and shorten the length of the back-up of waiting cars by 35%.
I’m curious to test these theories, but afraid the majority of drivers still feel like me—that cutting the line is rude, elitist behavior. And that if I make use of the left lane to head to the front of the merge line, I won’t be let back in. My solution: implement instructions to drivers during congestion times via those big digital traffic signs. You know the signs that communicate traffic wait times and amber alerts and safety buckle up reminders. If the instruction comes from traffic officials then no one can be blamed and people may give it a try to everyone’s benefit!
