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Galler posted:We need a big PSA about zipper merging or something. 
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Nov 20, 2013 02:27
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Speaking of merging, mash that pedal when coming down onramps for gods sake. It's hard for some of us to stop and not speedbump you on the interstate. And if you're already puttering along on the interstate, use your goddamned mirrors, if there is a fast moving, large object in the lane you want, please reconsider your actions. (stupid driving conversations tend to be cyclical, I know) This happened to me early monday morning outside of Atlanta. The magic happens in the left pane and pretty quickly so you might have to rewatch to get the whole thing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICGFSPVFtYE Dude merging slow scaring an already slow driver into the center lane, thank god I was already changing lanes and that left lane was clear, I couldn't have stopped even if I had used two feet on the brake.
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Nov 20, 2013 02:28
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Galler posted:What seems to happen around here is that everyone does the zipper correctly except that they do it a mile too early. Traffic still flows along perfectly fine however even if it's slightly less efficient until someone charges up the empty lane and has to come to a complete stop in front of the cones until they can force their way in which completely fucks the flow of traffic. So the person jumping the queue is a shitlord for loving up the flow of traffic and everyone else is dumb for zippering at the wrong spot. Agreed. This is one reason I really wish they'd just design roads so they don't need that kind of thing - it's USUALLY possible, but not always. For instance you can make lanes exit-only and put big fat signs and arrows telling everyone else to get the hell out and more people honor that for some reason. Probably because they know someone can simply force them off down the exit and laugh at them instead of having to let them in somehow. One that really annoys me is the entrance ramp from the northbound collector on i95 where i90 joins it in Waltham MA - it's 2 lanes right where the i90 feeder comes into the collector, then an exit ramp to some surface road branches to the right, and for some reason it's still 2 lanes. For like 75 feet, at which point it becomes one lane, but necks down so gradually (and is such an incredibly wide lane) that fuckheads just keep on wedging themselves further down it still trying to drive side by side. Then another entrance ramp comes in and suddenly it's 3 lanes worth of assholes all trying to merge into what is suddenly a single lane entrance ramp onto the highway. If they just made the exit ramp to the surface street break off and the collector end up as one lane, it'd fix 90% of the traffic snarl that happens every single morning. Or if they made the collector two lanes all the way onto i95 and only the right lane gets the merge from the other entrance ramp right at the end. Here it is, in all its hosed up glory: http://goo.gl/maps/3m5WZ Point A: I90 offramp necks down from 2 lanes to 1. Jerkoffs abound. "Right Lane Ends" signs for several hundred feet prior to disappearance of lane. Point B: 2 lane collector. Everything is fine except for everyone coming up the collector wants to go right, and everyone coming down the i90 exit ramp wants to go left, so it's more of a large moron collider (morons are like hadrons, but much more massive) than a collector. A crossover bridge would probably be more efficient/smoother, I don't think I've ever seen someone come up the collector and continue along it. Point C: exit ramp to surface street, which mysteriously does not bring the collector down to 1 lane. Point D: collector magically becomes 1 lane (dotted line stops) but takes another 2-300 feet to actually neck down to a single lane width. Jerkoffs abound. Point E: A third row of poor bastards appears! They now have to merge with the two lines of stubborn assholes who are still jamming into a (now single lane width) road like two fat men loving in a mummy bag. Point F, not shown: everyone who just made it through this shitshow now jumps the (several hundred feet long) solid white line and swerves out into i95 traffic going 20mph slower than they should be, bringing traffic to a standstill for miles.  This clusterfuck of an interchange (along with others) has made me very intolerant of assholes. And yes, people routinely swerve out of the left lane of the collector at point B, floor it, and try and shove themselves as far as they can down the collector through points C and D even though they know full well that it's one lane. Hell, probably BECAUSE they know that. I've had so many jerkoffs honk at me for daring to treat it like the single lane it is (and then floor it past me on the right, nearly into the median strip.) For some reason I am retarded and my commute goes straight through this mess every single morning. Adds 5-10 minutes to my day to go half a mile... if I was smart I'd start earlier and miss 90% of the traffic. e: goddamnit didn't realize I was breaking tables kastein fucked around with this message at 02:31 on Nov 21, 2013 |
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Nov 20, 2013 02:43
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0rganDonor posted:Speaking of merging, mash that pedal when coming down onramps for gods sake. It's hard for some of us to stop and not speedbump you on the interstate. And if you're already puttering along on the interstate, use your goddamned mirrors, if there is a fast moving, large object in the lane you want, please reconsider your actions. (stupid driving conversations tend to be cyclical, I know)  Anyone on the fence about a dashcam, watch that video. How long did it take you to get the seatcover out of your rear end?
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Nov 20, 2013 02:51
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LloydDobler posted:The one that's getting me lately is the split drive through lines. Has that been covered in here yet? I can't tell if it's the fault of the restaurants for doing this or if it's people being assholes and not caring about common courtesy. We solved that problem here by painting two sets of lanes in the parking lots. It also helps guide people to the outside lane instead of having everyone queued up just for the inside lane.
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Nov 20, 2013 03:11
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Is it true that some places in Europe (UK maybe? I'm going off a fuzzy memory here) that failure to properly allow a zipper on a merge will get you ticketed?
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Nov 20, 2013 03:26
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Yesterday morning, as I was leaving work for home, I pulled to a stop at the entrance to the four lane. I was going left, and there is a median in the center that you can enter when turning to allow more access or to change directions, etc. I usually don't use it because traffic doesn't really jam up that bad and traffic using it to turn onto the street I was coming from tends to just keep coming. The opposing lane was clear with one car driving the direction I wanted to go in tbe right lane. No signal. I give one more glance and start pulling out. No sooner had I done that than Mr Right Hand Lane is glaring at me from in front of my Jeep, wheels scrabbing and tiny gravels pelting my hood. Fucker had decided to take the exit without signalling, at drat near highway speed, 55mph. And he had the audacity to glare at ME like it was my fault. After the adrenaline stopped pounding in my ears I realized I was sitting in the middle of the road. I swear, I could have followed him and pulled his old fart entitled Rav4 driving rear end out of his car and pissed on his face. Saw this this morning. Not a good picture at all, but I'll try to explain.  State trooper rode in the left hand lane for more than 6 miles. There wasn't any traffic until I was about to snap the pic, but I just couldn't believe it, couldn't stop giggling.
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Nov 20, 2013 03:46
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Galler posted:What seems to happen around here is that everyone does the zipper correctly except that they do it a mile too early. Traffic still flows along perfectly fine however even if it's slightly less efficient until someone charges up the empty lane and has to come to a complete stop in front of the cones until they can force their way in which completely fucks the flow of traffic. So the person jumping the queue is a shitlord for loving up the flow of traffic and everyone else is dumb for zippering at the wrong spot. I actually wrote to my representative about the possibility of adding driver's training to help alleviate or eliminate traffic, but I didn't hear back. Much traffic comes from driver's behaviors that have a cascading effect, including merging behavior. Notice how the head of traffic is often at a merge point? Also, following too closely and then having to push your brakes and the car behind does it...and it creates a kind of slinky effect where people get slower and slower. This is a great site but with HTML from the 90's.  http://www.trafficwaves.org There is also this book out there for some heavier reading: http://www.amazon.com/Traffic-drive-what-says-about-ebook/dp/B001BAGWQE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384916880
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Nov 20, 2013 04:09
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Beach Bum posted:
Not long really, things like this are a near daily occurrence so I'm pretty blase about it now. Last night/this morning I was coming north through Kentucky and a pickup was brakechecking trucks going up hills and blocking us in lanes going down. Don't know what his deal was.
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Nov 20, 2013 04:15
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gileadexile posted:
What state are you from? Is it possible your state doesn't have a 'passing lane' law?
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Nov 20, 2013 04:34
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e: Sorry, double post.
Michael Scott fucked around with this message at 05:13 on Nov 20, 2013 |
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Nov 20, 2013 04:38
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I was cruising in the right lane on a four-lane highway yesterday, at the end of a line of traffic, in a spot where another two-lane merges in and has about 1/3 mile or more of a lane for merging. Since my exit was coming up within only 1/4 mile of where the merge lane ends, and there was only one car merging from that highway, I figured I would be okay, he would slow down and merge in behind me, so it didn't bother me when he disappeared into my blindspot. Well I assumed wrong. Suddenly, at the VERY LAST instant where the lane ends, he decides to floor it and pass me to merge in ahead of me into the <1 car length between me and the guy ahead of me. There was nobody behind me! I'm damned lucky I didn't smash into his ignorant Jetta rear end. I mashed the brakes as hard and after the shock wore off I leaned on that horn the rest of the way to the exit, because gently caress that guy. What the heck was he trying to prove with something so stupid?
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Nov 20, 2013 05:12
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xzzy posted:Is it true that some places in Europe (UK maybe? I'm going off a fuzzy memory here) that failure to properly allow a zipper on a merge will get you ticketed? I haven't been to the UK, but the few times I've been in heavy enough Euro traffic to make merging interesting it's been abject chaos. No one in the world queues up in the orderly manner Americans do, not on the roads, not in stores, nowhere. Maybe the Canadians, but I doubt it. Even the Germans gently mock us for how easily we form and fall into lines.
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Nov 20, 2013 05:20
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The Germans really shouldn't be criticizing other people for having queues.xzzy posted:Is it true that some places in Europe (UK maybe? I'm going off a fuzzy memory here) that failure to properly allow a zipper on a merge will get you ticketed? We don't have it as a law but several of our worst-designed collectors have signs that say ALTERNATE RIGHT OF WAY DURING CONGESTION.
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Nov 20, 2013 05:21
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Michael Scott posted:What state are you from? Is it possible your state doesn't have a 'passing lane' law? It was in West Virginia and yeah, we even have signs saying it. I was gonna try to keep pace and take a pic with him after he passed it, but either the sign would be illegible or he'd look like he was just passing me. And somehow holding a phone and taking a pic while pacing a statie didn't feel like a good idea. 
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Nov 20, 2013 05:24
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gileadexile posted:It was in West Virginia and yeah, we even have signs saying it. I was gonna try to keep pace and take a pic with him after he passed it, but either the sign would be illegible or he'd look like he was just passing me. And somehow holding a phone and taking a pic while pacing a statie didn't feel like a good idea. We have a law against driving while on the phone and I see cops doing it all the time. The GiP cops recently mentioned how they're basically told the situations they're supposed to get to ASAP and the situations they can use lights and siren, and the Venn for the latter certainly doesn't cover the former. Not sure how much that applies to state troopers. I rode from San Antonio to Austin one time, doing 90 in a 70 in a rented Mustang convertible with the top down, following a state trooper who didn't seem to have anywhere he needed to be but didn't want that slowing him down any. Made me wish more places could be like that.
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Nov 20, 2013 05:29
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kastein posted:90/95 Interchange You forgot the best part of that interchange: trying to get onto 95 South from 90 in either direction. You can see it if you got a little to the left on that google maps link, but you have a merge area about 400 feet long in which all traffic coming from 90 Eastbound that wants to go to 95 South has to merge into or through all traffic from 90 Westbound that wants to get onto 95 at all. 90 Westbound traffic going to 95 North has to merge out of that onto the overpass and then go through the rest of that mess. I'm absolutely amazed I've never seen an accident there in person.
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Nov 20, 2013 05:45
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Let's be practical about this. No one is going to pull over the trooper and write them a ticket and no one is going to pass the trooper on that road regardless of lane positioning. Well, I guess, someone might pass the trooper but they are dumb as hell and are probably going to get a ticket for their trouble. Not saying it's right but it's how things work.
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Nov 20, 2013 05:45
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Snowdens Secret posted:We have a law against driving while on the phone and I see cops doing it all the time. There is an exception for 'emergency use' and that is how cops get away with it while on-duty.
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Nov 20, 2013 06:00
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MrChips posted:Dear Motorists, I'm a minivan driver and if it's less than a couple inches, I don't bother with the roof. I live in Airdrie though so it's all off my car by the time I hit Calgary. Also got the joy of some dumbass in an Escalade going on and off her brakes because she was tailgating some poor sucker in the slickest conditions we've had all year. I fell back a couple extra car lengths because I was sure she was going to make me have to emergency stop.
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Nov 20, 2013 06:26
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xzzy posted:Solution? Don't eat at McDonald's. gently caress that, the McRib is back, for a limited time only! It's like Louis CK says: It's up to you whether or not we're on the news tonight, but that thing's going in my face. Two painted lanes would be nice, but the fire lane rules prohibit that in all but the widest of parking lots. I did get a chance to yell at a lady doing it a few months ago during the summer, as she drove by the line I just yelled "what are you doing?". She rolled her window up until she got to the ordering screen. I felt like a vigilante. I still had to wait 45 extra seconds for my Big Mac. gently caress you all now I want a Big Mac.
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Nov 20, 2013 06:54
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LloydDobler posted:gently caress that, the McRib is back, for a limited time only! It's like Louis CK says: It's up to you whether or not we're on the news tonight, but that thing's going in my face. 
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Nov 20, 2013 07:17
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Is this how they mold tracks for Caterpillars?
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Nov 20, 2013 07:20
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West SAAB Story posted:Is this how they mold tracks for Caterpillars? Delicious frozen pork waiting to be covered in sweet, sweet bbq sauce and stain your shirt.
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Nov 20, 2013 07:32
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th vwls hv scpd posted:Delicious frozen pork waiting to be covered in sweet, sweet bbq sauce and stain your shirt. What part of a pig looks like that?
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Nov 20, 2013 07:34
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West SAAB Story posted:What part of a pig looks like that? Whatever parts can't be made into something pretty.
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Nov 20, 2013 07:41
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fralbjabar posted:You forgot the best part of that interchange: trying to get onto 95 South from 90 in either direction. You can see it if you got a little to the left on that google maps link, but you have a merge area about 400 feet long in which all traffic coming from 90 Eastbound that wants to go to 95 South has to merge into or through all traffic from 90 Westbound that wants to get onto 95 at all. 90 Westbound traffic going to 95 North has to merge out of that onto the overpass and then go through the rest of that mess. I'm absolutely amazed I've never seen an accident there in person. Fortunately I never have to go that way. I know the section you're talking about and used to drive it once in a while, gently caress everything about that. I quickly learned to simply get as far left as I could immediately after the toll booths and stay that way until I end up on 95 north. I have actually seen accidents there before, what's truly sad and rather telling is that traffic wasn't any worse that morning. It was completely hosed as usual and a few smashed up cars sitting in the middle of the merge section you mentioned really didn't cause a slowdown because, well, it's a giant SNAFU no matter what. That interchange is a massive shitshow and it really makes me hate everyone in it, but most of all the sadists who designed it.
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Nov 20, 2013 07:53
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Snowdens Secret posted:I rode from San Antonio to Austin one time, doing 90 in a 70 in a rented Mustang convertible with the top down, following a state trooper who didn't seem to have anywhere he needed to be but didn't want that slowing him down any. Made me wish more places could be like that. The last time I drove back from Austin, I had the cruise set at 90 most of the way back to DFW, except through Waco. Three goddamn times, I looked in my mirror and saw a statie hauling rear end behind me and catching up really fast. Thought for sure I was getting a ticket, so I moved to the right lane and was ready to pull over. Every time, the trooper blew past me like I was standing still. Different people each time, so it's not like I blew past them again once they'd stopped. No lights or siren, they just had to be somewhere I guess. 
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Nov 20, 2013 08:57
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West SAAB Story posted:What part of a pig looks like that? Every part.
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Nov 20, 2013 10:56
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xzzy posted:Is it true that some places in Europe (UK maybe? I'm going off a fuzzy memory here) that failure to properly allow a zipper on a merge will get you ticketed? In Belgium they're currently working on doing just that, basically ticket everyone who's zippering improperly. Which will be quite a relief, since it'll hopefully finally teach people how it's done. Currently, people tend to zip in all the wrong places, and a road I take to work daily suffered from just that issue until they moved the zipper part to after a set of lights. It's still a godawful mess to drive to and from work though, since 80% of my route is two-lane road, except for one bit which is one-lane. It's responsible for quite a lot of traffic obstruction since everyone who needs to go south pretty much has to take it. The two-lane parts are also filled with people speeding despite traffic cams(That everyone knows are there so they just slow down around it, then speed back up again) It's fun when there's actual mobile checks by the police though, lots of camera flashes. I tend to stick to the speed limit myself, and this has resulted in other drivers tailgating me quite a bit. I even had one guy tailgate me for about two traffic lights, then (illegally, using a turn lane to get next to me)pulling in front of me at the third one, cutting me off, and slamming on his brakes "to teach me a lesson about driving at the correct speed". Ended up rearending him at a fairly low speed due to his rear end in a top hat behavior. Guy turned out to be DUI, now has a court date and I'm still waiting for the insurance payout. Hell, he almost ran off after it happened but thankfully decided to stay around so he could yell at me and threaten me. Kind of helps that the cops I called to the scene were fully on my side and the guy had been drinking. The bad part is that stuff like this takes forever to get handled here.
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Nov 20, 2013 11:47
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West SAAB Story posted:What part of a pig looks like that? Think smaller, and with more legs.
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Nov 20, 2013 13:10
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People who use freeway ramps to get ahead of traffic. Exiting and reentering is just causing more traffic.
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Nov 20, 2013 13:19
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Seat Safety Switch posted:The Germans really shouldn't be criticizing other people for having queues. They won't even cross against a red signal on foot when there are no cars in sight. Let me assure the UK & Europe contingent here that while your cyclists can be slightly rude at times, a large proportion of American cyclists are sociopathic, suicidal, and their behavior has set everyone against them.
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Nov 20, 2013 15:43
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some texas redneck posted:The last time I drove back from Austin, I had the cruise set at 90 most of the way back to DFW, except through Waco. Funny thing is I bet Texas doesn't have GPS on their cars because of 'big scary government,' but I've lived in large metro areas my whole life and most of those cars are equipped with GPS that no doubt have a speedo function. The signal is routed back to police headquarters. I bet that keeps cops from speeding too much, otherwise they would do it all of the time.
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Nov 20, 2013 16:11
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Michael Scott posted:Funny thing is I bet Texas doesn't have GPS on their cars because of 'big scary government,' but I've lived in large metro areas my whole life and most of those cars are equipped with GPS that no doubt have a speedo function. The signal is routed back to police headquarters. I bet that keeps cops from speeding too much, otherwise they would do it all of the time. Actually there was a story in the news earlier this week about the Boston police having GPS' installed in their cars in the near future. Lots of funny quotes about policemen worrying about their privacy. I would have thought GPS had become standard equipment ten years ago but apparently not! Makes me wonder how many police departments have implemented it.
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Nov 20, 2013 16:47
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KozmoNaut posted:Think smaller, and with more legs. G-G-G-Grandma!?
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Nov 20, 2013 20:35
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FogHelmut posted:People who use freeway ramps to get ahead of traffic. Exiting and reentering is just causing more traffic. Unless it's like many places in Texas where the exit/enter lane is a separate lane meaning no merging into/out of freeway traffic needs to happen. Then you can treat that poo poo like your own personal bypass lane or an extra lane of freeway.
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Nov 20, 2013 20:41
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Smoke posted:Kind of helps that the cops I called to the scene were fully on my side and the guy had been drinking. The bad part is that stuff like this takes forever to get handled here. Sucks that you have to wait so long for the check but at least the police weren't total dicks and actually sobriety tested him. And he was dumb enough to stick around. Get a dash cam! Drunken Lullabies fucked around with this message at 21:44 on Nov 20, 2013 |
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Nov 20, 2013 21:27
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Kill-9 posted:Unless it's like many places in Texas where the exit/enter lane is a separate lane meaning no merging into/out of freeway traffic needs to happen. Then you can treat that poo poo like your own personal bypass lane or an extra lane of freeway. I mean like this 
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Nov 20, 2013 21:46
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Drunken Lullabies posted:Sucks that you have to wait so long for the check but at least the police weren't total dicks and actually sobriety tested him. And he was dumb enough to stick around. Get a dash cam! Sobriety tests are standard fare here in case of accidents that require police on-scene(I had to take one too) Dash cam purchase is planned for sometime in the near future so I can share the true horror that is driving in Belgium on a daily basis, along with the wonderful quality of the roads.
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Nov 20, 2013 22:14
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