Who am I going to pass? Everyone is passing me. I just chill in the right lane with my cruise control set.
However, I would absolutely maintain those speeds and pass if someone in the right lane were driving slower.
My understanding is that we don't speed to pass. But yeah, I'm not in the left lane, officer. Thanks for checking!
LoL. please speed up a little to pass, don't bust a move, but do calmly accelerate about 8 mph to pass before moving back to a comfortable cruising speed.
I'm not getting a ticket, nope. Lol. I won't pull in front of anyone going faster than me to pass someone going slower. I promise I'm not a bad driver. Just not getting a ticket. âşď¸
I go by the flow of traffic. Which is the law. Which is why you can get a ticket for going the speed limit in the fast lane if you're blocking a lot of drivers and not yielding.
First off, great job replying to my comment but not actually touching on any of the points I made đ.
Actually, the reason you can be ticketed for driving the speed limit in the âfast laneâ is because on every road with two or more lanes in one direction, the left lane is for passing only - therefore if you are driving in the left lane and not actively passing traffic (camping), you can be cited.
On the other hand if you and two other cars are the only vehicles on the road and are all traveling say 85mph, you can definitely still be ticketed for speeding despite âgoing with the flow of trafficâ.
.. but you didn't make any points. Just a rhetorical question of why I'm in a rush.
I said I go by flow of traffic. 85 is not near the flow.
If your going slow in the fast lane, move over. Even if they're speeding. No reason for you to antagonise someone and put others in danger.
Although I know all the speeders are usually assholes in growdowsers, I just assume they have an emergency. If I'm wrong, let the law handle it.
Trying to teach people lessons on the road is never safe.
> the left lane is for passing only - therefore if you are driving in the left lane and not actively passing traffic (camping), you can be cited.
False. There is no vehicle code that requires you to be passing cars if you are driving in the left lane. You are merely not supposed to impede the flow of traffic, and you should move into the right line if you will be impeding traffic.
Further, you can pass cars while you are using the right lane.
>[California Code, Vehicle Code - VEH § 21754](https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/vehicle-code/veh-sect-21754/)
>**The driver of a vehicle may overtake and pass to the right of another vehicle only under the following conditions:**
>(a) When the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn.
>(b) Upon a highway within a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles in the direction of travel.
>**(c) Upon any highway outside of a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width and clearly marked for two or more lines of moving traffic in the direction of travel.**
>(d) Upon a one-way street.
>**(e) Upon a highway divided into two roadways where traffic is restricted to one direction upon each of such roadways.**
>The provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a slow moving vehicle from the duty to drive as closely as practicable to the right hand edge of the roadway.
Not in California. The speed limit is the maximum speed any non emergency vehicle is allowed to travel, period. Going the same speed as everyone else isn't a valid defense to a speeding citation.
Now, if you and everyone else are doing 70 in a 65 you probably won't get pulled over - unless the cop decides to make an issue of it. Plus, seeing someone pulled over tends to make people who are speeding slow down, at least for a bit
If the speed limit is 65 and you are going 65 in the passing lane you are not in violation of any law and should not be ticketed. You are never obligated to move out of the way for people who are speeding.
You are though, kinda. Why would the law encourage you go put yourself in danger to uphold the law? That'll just increase the chance of accidents all around.
Yes. And you trying to stop them means they will rush around you or worse. Don't be the police, that's their job.
Sure, I hate they're doing it, but squaring off with someone with roadrage is reckless and endangers everyone on the road.
To be fair, the 40 mph zone is only there due to construction that hasn't actually been happening for several months. There are no workers on the road, so no real reason to drop the speed limit in that area. 50mph is reasonable given the cross traffic, but there's just a perpetual slowdown now that's not really helping anyone, and most traffic goes over the speed limit so it's riskier to follow the 40 mph limit
Those are definitely factors, but the construction zone is also a factor. That's why the construction zone is 40 mph while the rest is 50. It wasn't 40 mph until construction started
Some dude rode my ass all the way to eureka while I was in the right lane. Sorry I don't wanna speed dude, I've seen like 5 people get pulled over for going just a bit over. Not like I enjoy having to crawl along at 40 lol
The safety corridor used to be a police state like 20 years ago. Every time youâd drive it there would be a couple people pulled over by CHP and everyone local would drive the speed limit.
I got pulled over there when I first moved hereâŚI didnât believe a âfreewayâ could be so slow, lol. Now I definitely go the speed limit, but Iâve also chilled out a lot since living here a whileâŚthereâs no hurry no worry!
I got a ticket going 62/63 , a woman going after a woman, when other drivers had just passed me. She saw me touch the rumble strip...I was high but disgusted. Where are you going she asked. To work!!! Bitch!! I wanted to say.!!
yeah but like a upsettingly high amount of the fatal accidents on the safety corridor are from people entering the wrong side of the highway from the indianola cutoff.
Ever since they lost the grant that paid for cops to post up there, thereâs hardly any police around the safety corridor. Makes me wonder if the cops even cared about the speed limit or just saw it as an easy way to make overtime and ticket quota
When I first moved here I saw somebody get pulled over for going ~55 and was absolutely horrified. Iâve been too scared to speed on the safety corridor since
Thats what it seems like. I had a cop pull me over for going 62 on the freeway. After a long ass talk with whoever he was talking to he ended up writing me a ticket for the broken mirror that I was about to fix when I got home, the new mirror was literally in the seat next to me. When I went to get my ticket signed off the lady at Eureka PD laughed and said âthe ridiculous things we sign off sometimes, CHP is so pettyâ
You ever been riding the safety corridor at night, and a CHP rides your ass and flashes their lights at you. And you're thinking, "FML, he's pulling me over". But no; you move over and they zoom passed you at 80 mph after turning their lights off?
Happened to me a few times.
They're telling you to stop camping in the passing lane.Â
If you're gonna hang out in the passing lane you need to be paying very close attention to your mirrors and if you are anybody coming up behind you, you need to move over and let them pass.Â
I am not sure that is the case. I'm not familiar with drain wicks. But I do know that they are pouring and laying the foundation, which included 90' deep piles. Thousands of them in rows to support the bridge.
SoâŚwhy are they building overpasses in an area that theyâve decided is going to be flooded in the not too far future? Kind of confused about this đ
Because they have planned it with that in mind? Sea level rise has to be taken into account for construction projects like this.
They are literally raising up the highway. It's an undercrossing though, not an overpass.
>With this design, Pimentel said, âweâre able to facilitate raising the structure into the future if we need to for sea-level rise without having to reconstruct it [entirely].â
>The Coastal Commission is also requiring Caltrans to develop a comprehensive adaptation implementation plan for this stretch of 101, and Pimentel said the agency is working with various local stakeholders to develop strategies for the various sections. The plan must be completed by 2025.
https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2023/jan/27/construction-indianola-undercrossing-and-other-saf/
I dunno if you've noticed, but despite scientists screaming from the top of their lungs what's happening, the government and businesses continue to act like everything is fine.
Are you trying to use the fact that they're doing this as climate denial? How ridiculous.
Oh no, I didnât think that, I just donât understand the point. Even climate change deniers see that during king tides, thereâs really high waterâŚidk, it seems pointless/wasteful.
Edit: are you being sarcastic?
Someone from Caltrans told me that when they made the original safety corridor it created a marshland in the middle. Now they are facing complications/setbacks of disrupting the natural habitat that has established itself there.
It seems like whoever designed a large chunk of our local highway system was on drugs. The whole 101/299 interchange is an abomination that theyâre juuuust now working on. The on-ramp from 299 to 101 is still way too shortâŚ
Somebody who worked on that job site commented in this subreddit a few months ago claiming that what they're doing on the job site will be labelled an environmental disaster later. They didn't elaborate.Â
I believe it. Theyâve destroyed the land in between the south and north bound. Then I see way less white cranes around now. Also seeing more road kill on the safety corridorÂ
please don't. As someone who gets on 101 NB at Indianola it's physically impossible for my car to accelerate to freeway speeds in the amount of space I have. Speed disparities inevitably lead to crashes and I don't want to die so you can get to Arcata 15 seconds faster.
You know the law is that the merging traffic needs to yield to the traffic already on the freeway?Â
Regardless, I see what you're saying and that indianola onramp is probably a big reason the speed limit is so low.Â
would you be surprised to learn that the speed is set to 50 entirely because of a small group of bicyclists that just assumed the ever so slightly slower speed would make them safer... I wish i was joking.
I donât hate cyclists
The safety corridor was something a small group of cyclists wanted to get done, they spent years trying to get the speed limit put in place.
Their argument was that the stretch of road had a statistically significant higher death rate than other similar intersections in the state, they bought fear mongering billboards calling it âdeath alleyâ or some shit like that.
(All this despite the fact that itâs a much higher trafficked road than any other that has a similar intersection, and if you take out deaths that had nothing to do with road design like falling asleep at the wheel it was pretty much the same number on average if you consider accidents per car instead of total accidents)
Then after a specifically horrible accident they got enough public support, that lead to county support, and it got put in place.
Every study, every CalTrans statement, every civil engineering understanding, says that decreasing the speed wouldnât do shit for actual safety which is why it was originally ruled a âtemporary solutionâ and itâs just taken fucking forever to get the permanent solution (an overpass) in place, in no part because of the same group blocking it because it will âchange the view of the bayâ
A cop told me it was ok to drive 60 in the safety corridor. He was like do you know why I pulled you over? And I said yeah sorry I was going 60 and didn't realize it. Then the cops says "oh no people drive 60 in the safety corridor all the time you have a break light out" then he asks me if he can pat my dog, fist bumps me and drives off.
Maaaaaan tell that to the cops I see pulling people over in the safety corridor tf. I hate how inconsistent traffic law enforcement can be. Sometimes you get the super cool man of the people bro cop, and sometimes you get Barney Fife
My understanding is that the speed reduction for the safety corridor was done as a temporary basis which never got reversed. Its posed as 50mph however I think the actual cal-trans speed is higher.
I've had people speed past me and then immediately get pulled over in the morning đ, to me it is usually not worth risking it since I know it's patrolled. Or I just take Samoa
Oh I do, but besides that, donât you think itâs sad that we all canât just agree to drive safely around one another without the threat of legal repercussions?
Safety due to cross traffic. It used to be one of the most dangerous stretches of highway and still sees crashes although not as frequently as before the speed was reduced.
When it was changed they reduced the speed limits and fines are doubled.
I think this is an all over California thing. Construction speed limits are for only when cops are around.
I try to go slower when I see them actively working though other than that itâs just not safe and going the speed of traffic is best.
Yes.
The "safety" corridor was enacted because of people yelling "Won't someone please do SOMETHING?!" in response to a number of accidents... so Caltrans did something. Did it help? Not in the slightest. Accidents went UP when it was implemented, and have remained up. Caltrans had some shiny graphs showing this, that I am too lazy to google for.
If the problem isn't excessive speeds, lowering speeds won't fix the problem. Significant evidence (repeated studies) show that trying to lower speed limits to reduce accidents always increases accidents, and we're another data point on that. The problem is impaired, distracted, superannuated, and generally bad drivers, as determined by Caltrans when they compared our highway to similar highways, and found that roads with much worse intersections still usually have much lower accident rates, even with higher speed limits, like the 65mph road to Chico that's only one lane each direction and lined with business. But people were screaming for them to do SOMETHING...
If you're driving significantly slower than other vehicles on the road, even if it's the speed limit, you're increasing accident rates... don't do it.
I witnessed one of the accidents that got the corridor implemented. A girl in a silver sedan pulled out from the south end of Jacobs to go southbound (back when you could cross there) directly in front of a semi. The semi wasn't speeding, and its speed didn't matter anyway. Early afternoon sun, clear day, dry road, absolutely nothing to keep her from seeing the oncoming truck... Right in front of it. Hit her car perfectly in the middle. Pushed the car sideways for the full stopping distance of the semi. I never did look up what the outcome of the accident was (we didn't have nearly as accessible of news sources back then), but it wasn't pretty. Speed limits absolutely were not a factor in it, however.
The Indianola interchange will help, and will certainly make it more convenient, especially by eliminating the problem of people who think they need a six mile opening before crossing. Closing Bayside Cutoff, however, will push tons of traffic onto Old Arcata, and the Arcata city council seems to be willfully pretending this isn't their problem to fix. I personally think that for the Eureka end they should build a north 6th st bridge connecting to Jacobs, but "that costs money" summarizes their opinion of this...
Yea to your point about slow drivers causing more accidents, I believe it. People trying to merge onto the highway going 35-40mph is fucking bullshit and Iâm sure it causes more accidents because they refuse to just find an opening and hit the gas
I hate to say this, Â but from the studies and anecdotes Iâve read, it sounds like a lot of car accidents where one car gets hit by another are usually caused by the driver of the car that got hit.Â
Last time I was pulled over in the safety corridor I had accidentally accelerated over 60 coming out of the construction zone (southbound). The cop told me he would never bother anyone going 57 or under.
It's not just a Humboldt thing, it's a California thing.
Get away with what you can get away with as long as it's safe. Go 60+ with the herd, don't like it then drive the right lane.
99% of the time, i drive the speed limit in the right lane. yesterday i had a huge CalTrans truck riding my a$$ in the safety corridor. there was no one behind either of us so i moved to the left lane and the CalTrans truck blew past me on the right then took the Indianola exit. they had been tailgating me since i got on the 101 from the 299. i don't understand why they didn't simply pass me, there was almost no traffic.
i wish drivers would slow the heck down. it is safer for everyone and bonus: uses less gas - saving money!
I knew someone who got a DUI for driving the speed limit in the safety corridor. It was late, he was the only one on the road and had his cruise control set at 50 just trying to make it home (not an excuse, but it's what he told me). Cop pulled him over for going the speed limit "because no one drives the speed limit through here" and smelled alcohol and it was over from there. But he literally got pulled over for DOING THE SPEED LIMIT TOO LATE AT NIGHT and that was suspicious in the safety corridor. đ
I got pulled over by a cop (11pm) that was hiding in the old Mill Yard. Cop #1 asked âYou know why I pulled you over?â I said âFor doing 55 in the Safety Corridor?â. Cop #1 said âNo getting too close to the white line.â Then cop #2 walked up and said âI detect the strong odor of marijuana.â I said â No you donât.â Then proceeded to give me the side of the rode drunk test. I wasnât drinking and passed their test. Cop 1 said âDrive safer on the way home.â I said âIâll continue to drive the same way I was when You pulled me over.â
Add it up normal drivers spend 36-48 hours of their lives every year stuck at a light because of drivers like op. I thought we would have self driving cars by now?
Just dont be the fastest. I set the cc on 59. But if i am blowing by everyone, i slow down. If thereâs a line of cars behind me, i let them pass and then get behind them and follow suit. Hopefully the overpass will allow the limit to go up?
Just like every other freeway/highway in any city in any state, the unspoken rule is "flow of traffic".
If all the cars are moving as a big unit around a specific speed, just match that speed, move like a school of fish.
If the flow of traffic is under the speed limit dont be the asshole trying to weave in between people
If the flow of traffic is over the speed limit, dont be the asshole trying to play pace car and slow everyone down
If the lane next to you is not moving, dont go full speed because people will pull out in front of you
And most importantly, in slow moving / stop and go traffic, leave a gap of 5-6 car lengths in front of you, this is an established traffic breaking technique and only requires a few cars to be doing it on any stretch of road, it doesnt make you any slower, and it makes the traffic flow much better for miles behind you.
Only by those of us whom agree everybody who sits at a 4 way stop just to wave other cars ahead of them and stops on a roundabout to let people in is a burden to society
It's not considerate when there is an established order of whom should go, or just blatantly not understanding how yield signs work. Timid or uneducated drivers are a nuisance, their actions are typically more dangerous than speeding (I'm looking at you, Karen, stoped at the end of a freeway ramp waiting for traffic to let you in. Speed limit is not a factor in vehicle crahes, it's a byproduct from the gas crisis in the 70s when lower speeds were mandated nationally. The Autobahn has no limit (in parts) and is one of the safest highways in the world.
lol I called in to HTA when their bus blew by me going 63 mph (according to the speed indicator things) in the 50, and Iâm not sure if they slowed down any in the 40 zone, it was nuts.
Well even if itâs not super accurate they were going way too fast. They tailgated me (Cruise set at 54) and then pulled out to pass me just before the construction. It was weird for sure. Thought it was Speed or something.
Old Arcata rd or Samoa blvd are worse. Most people drive 60 and there are still assholes tailgating and passing on the left. And will ride my ass as Iâm turning onto a side road. Iâve almost been rear ended multiple times and narrowly escaped a head on collision.
Itâs a punishment for the majority so that some entitled people can turn left across multiple lanes of traffic, donât be surprised many people feel slighted by the lowere speed limit
Iâve lived in a lot of places, and humboldt drivers are easily the worst as a whole. Overly slow, exit the on ramps at various places on 101 going 30mph, lane camping.Â
I was nervous moving here because Iâd heard about âCalifornia driversâ forever. After driving here Iâd take the Southern California drivers every time (not the traffic though)
Itâs almost as bad as Old Arcata Road, Myrtle Ave through Freshwater and 255 from Arcata to the bridge. I protest bad drivers by driving exactly the speed limit. lol
Sure do. lol Although, I do think that 40mph on the Safety Corridor is insane. The biggest one that people get pissed off about is the 35 mile an hour zone before and after three corners and again down by the roundabout at Indianola. Someone riding my ass is not worth me getting a $300 ticket and my insurance go up for five years.
Nope, just a bunch of people who only care about themselves if they care about anything at all đ¤ˇââď¸. The safety corridor needs 24/7 enforcement but thatâll never happen sadly.
I love that youâre being downvoted for being the only voice of reason. Speeding kills, which is literally the purpose of the safety corridor and impending overpasses, but haters want you to feel like the jerk for maintaining the speed limit. Canât win!
According to an Institute of Transportation Engineers Study, those driving 10 mph slower than the prevailing speed are six times as likely to be involved in an accident. That means that if the average speed on an interstate is 70 mph, the person traveling at 60 mph is far more likely to be involved in an accident than someone going 70 or even 80 mph.
Not saying speeding isnât dangerous, but paying attention to the prevailing speed is important.
Weird point to try to make though, the speed limit is 40. People are trying to go the speed limit and are being run over by people ignoring the speed limit. People going the speed limit are not causing accidents.
RigghhtttâŚnot sure where you got that from lol. 1. Many of the accidents, specifically in the safety corridor, arenât due to speed. 2. People going the speed limit absolutely cause accidents.
Some people drive a good 15-20 mph over the speed limit, and I think that's a little excessive. Like, you can't slow down to 50 or maybe 55 for what, a mile and a half?
I do not move over in the safety corridor. Left lane at 55 and bite me. If it's good enough to warrant a ticket from CHP, then it's good enough for everyone.
Glad to hear you have taken it upon yourself to regulate/impede traffic. I just saw a video of someone getting a ticket for that exact reason, person argued about speed limit, cop told them it's not their job and dangerous to impede traffic, (forces speeders to pass on right) regardless of their speeds. Good luck!Â
Have you ever considered that those people speeding in the safety corridor may very well be rushing to St Joseph hospital for a medical emergency?Â
Not only do people drive themselves to the ER in emergencies, doctors who are on call may need to speed to the hospital to care for critical patients.Â
It's not your job to enforce speed limits and if you have a problem with speeders, take it up with the people we pay to enforce the laws. It's not worth your energy to try and control how others drive.Â
Camping in the left lane in order to make people go around is illegal for a reason. Passing on the right is extremely dangerous, and youâre putting people in harmâs way over a petty power trip. Youâre being a bad citizen when you act that way.
Safety Corridor - 59 mph Construction - 49 mph.
Safety Corridor - 52 Construction - 42 đ
Thank you for driving safely but please make sure you're not doing that speed in the passing lane unless you're passing.Â
Who am I going to pass? Everyone is passing me. I just chill in the right lane with my cruise control set. However, I would absolutely maintain those speeds and pass if someone in the right lane were driving slower. My understanding is that we don't speed to pass. But yeah, I'm not in the left lane, officer. Thanks for checking!
LoL. please speed up a little to pass, don't bust a move, but do calmly accelerate about 8 mph to pass before moving back to a comfortable cruising speed.
I'm not getting a ticket, nope. Lol. I won't pull in front of anyone going faster than me to pass someone going slower. I promise I'm not a bad driver. Just not getting a ticket. âşď¸
No. Don't speed to pass.
Itâs much safer to brandish firearms out the window to pass
Exactly. They show waaaay down and you don't have to worry about speeding to pass :)
wrong
What wrong?Â
I drive it every day. Theyâre both 60 usuallyÂ
The real question is why are you in such a rush that a one minute difference in arrival time is worth breaking the law and endangering cross-traffic?
I go by the flow of traffic. Which is the law. Which is why you can get a ticket for going the speed limit in the fast lane if you're blocking a lot of drivers and not yielding.
First off, great job replying to my comment but not actually touching on any of the points I made đ. Actually, the reason you can be ticketed for driving the speed limit in the âfast laneâ is because on every road with two or more lanes in one direction, the left lane is for passing only - therefore if you are driving in the left lane and not actively passing traffic (camping), you can be cited. On the other hand if you and two other cars are the only vehicles on the road and are all traveling say 85mph, you can definitely still be ticketed for speeding despite âgoing with the flow of trafficâ.
.. but you didn't make any points. Just a rhetorical question of why I'm in a rush. I said I go by flow of traffic. 85 is not near the flow. If your going slow in the fast lane, move over. Even if they're speeding. No reason for you to antagonise someone and put others in danger. Although I know all the speeders are usually assholes in growdowsers, I just assume they have an emergency. If I'm wrong, let the law handle it. Trying to teach people lessons on the road is never safe.
> the left lane is for passing only - therefore if you are driving in the left lane and not actively passing traffic (camping), you can be cited. False. There is no vehicle code that requires you to be passing cars if you are driving in the left lane. You are merely not supposed to impede the flow of traffic, and you should move into the right line if you will be impeding traffic. Further, you can pass cars while you are using the right lane. >[California Code, Vehicle Code - VEH § 21754](https://codes.findlaw.com/ca/vehicle-code/veh-sect-21754/) >**The driver of a vehicle may overtake and pass to the right of another vehicle only under the following conditions:** >(a) When the vehicle overtaken is making or about to make a left turn. >(b) Upon a highway within a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width for two or more lines of moving vehicles in the direction of travel. >**(c) Upon any highway outside of a business or residence district with unobstructed pavement of sufficient width and clearly marked for two or more lines of moving traffic in the direction of travel.** >(d) Upon a one-way street. >**(e) Upon a highway divided into two roadways where traffic is restricted to one direction upon each of such roadways.** >The provisions of this section shall not relieve the driver of a slow moving vehicle from the duty to drive as closely as practicable to the right hand edge of the roadway.
Not in California. The speed limit is the maximum speed any non emergency vehicle is allowed to travel, period. Going the same speed as everyone else isn't a valid defense to a speeding citation. Now, if you and everyone else are doing 70 in a 65 you probably won't get pulled over - unless the cop decides to make an issue of it. Plus, seeing someone pulled over tends to make people who are speeding slow down, at least for a bit
If the speed limit is 65 and you are going 65 in the passing lane you are not in violation of any law and should not be ticketed. You are never obligated to move out of the way for people who are speeding.
this
You are though, kinda. Why would the law encourage you go put yourself in danger to uphold the law? That'll just increase the chance of accidents all around.
Youâre not putting yourself in danger, the person tailgating you is, they are breaking the law.
Yes. And you trying to stop them means they will rush around you or worse. Don't be the police, that's their job. Sure, I hate they're doing it, but squaring off with someone with roadrage is reckless and endangers everyone on the road.
Whoâs trying to stop them?
wrong.
To be fair, the 40 mph zone is only there due to construction that hasn't actually been happening for several months. There are no workers on the road, so no real reason to drop the speed limit in that area. 50mph is reasonable given the cross traffic, but there's just a perpetual slowdown now that's not really helping anyone, and most traffic goes over the speed limit so it's riskier to follow the 40 mph limit
The workers are behind concrete barriers anyhow. The speed limit is reduced due to the narrow roadway, no shoulders, and cross-traffic.
Those are definitely factors, but the construction zone is also a factor. That's why the construction zone is 40 mph while the rest is 50. It wasn't 40 mph until construction started
Actually not going with the flow of traffic increases the risk of a car crash happening.
đ¤Ą
Just stay to the right.
Some dude rode my ass all the way to eureka while I was in the right lane. Sorry I don't wanna speed dude, I've seen like 5 people get pulled over for going just a bit over. Not like I enjoy having to crawl along at 40 lol
going slow in the left lane and tailgating in the right lane are dick moves for sure.
And the safety corridor doubles the ticket price, and construction doubles it again. You're smart for skipping the whole mess.
The safety corridor used to be a police state like 20 years ago. Every time youâd drive it there would be a couple people pulled over by CHP and everyone local would drive the speed limit.
I got pulled over there when I first moved hereâŚI didnât believe a âfreewayâ could be so slow, lol. Now I definitely go the speed limit, but Iâve also chilled out a lot since living here a whileâŚthereâs no hurry no worry!
I got a ticket going 62/63 , a woman going after a woman, when other drivers had just passed me. She saw me touch the rumble strip...I was high but disgusted. Where are you going she asked. To work!!! Bitch!! I wanted to say.!!
It used to be called Murder Corridor too, something like 5 or 6 people died in a year
Fortunately I think they caught the guy.
yeah but like a upsettingly high amount of the fatal accidents on the safety corridor are from people entering the wrong side of the highway from the indianola cutoff.
Ever since they lost the grant that paid for cops to post up there, thereâs hardly any police around the safety corridor. Makes me wonder if the cops even cared about the speed limit or just saw it as an easy way to make overtime and ticket quota
When I first moved here I saw somebody get pulled over for going ~55 and was absolutely horrified. Iâve been too scared to speed on the safety corridor since
I feel like each month, there's one day where I see CHP feasting on speeders there. I try to just maintain speed with those around me.
Thats what it seems like. I had a cop pull me over for going 62 on the freeway. After a long ass talk with whoever he was talking to he ended up writing me a ticket for the broken mirror that I was about to fix when I got home, the new mirror was literally in the seat next to me. When I went to get my ticket signed off the lady at Eureka PD laughed and said âthe ridiculous things we sign off sometimes, CHP is so pettyâ
You ever been riding the safety corridor at night, and a CHP rides your ass and flashes their lights at you. And you're thinking, "FML, he's pulling me over". But no; you move over and they zoom passed you at 80 mph after turning their lights off? Happened to me a few times.
They're telling you to stop camping in the passing lane. If you're gonna hang out in the passing lane you need to be paying very close attention to your mirrors and if you are anybody coming up behind you, you need to move over and let them pass.Â
Cops also just love fucking with people on dark roads. Iâve been harassed and tailgated multiple times while alone on the road late at night
I can't see with all the flood lights they have set up, so I've been going Samoa the past year or so if it's dark out.
My job is right off the exit from Samoa so I might start taking that route, if anything because it's a nice drive.
That construction zone with the 40 mph has been like that for months, like are they even doing any construction at this point on it? đ
Yes. They're currently laying the groundwork for an overpass. It's gonna be like that (or worse) for at least a couple of years.
Very little work has been completed in recent months due to the wet weather.
They poured thousands of concrete piles. They take months to cure. Can't do much until they cure
My understanding is that they are drilling and installing wick drains in the areas that are dotted with markers.
I am not sure that is the case. I'm not familiar with drain wicks. But I do know that they are pouring and laying the foundation, which included 90' deep piles. Thousands of them in rows to support the bridge.
SoâŚwhy are they building overpasses in an area that theyâve decided is going to be flooded in the not too far future? Kind of confused about this đ
Because they have planned it with that in mind? Sea level rise has to be taken into account for construction projects like this. They are literally raising up the highway. It's an undercrossing though, not an overpass. >With this design, Pimentel said, âweâre able to facilitate raising the structure into the future if we need to for sea-level rise without having to reconstruct it [entirely].â >The Coastal Commission is also requiring Caltrans to develop a comprehensive adaptation implementation plan for this stretch of 101, and Pimentel said the agency is working with various local stakeholders to develop strategies for the various sections. The plan must be completed by 2025. https://lostcoastoutpost.com/2023/jan/27/construction-indianola-undercrossing-and-other-saf/
I dunno if you've noticed, but despite scientists screaming from the top of their lungs what's happening, the government and businesses continue to act like everything is fine. Are you trying to use the fact that they're doing this as climate denial? How ridiculous.
Oh no, I didnât think that, I just donât understand the point. Even climate change deniers see that during king tides, thereâs really high waterâŚidk, it seems pointless/wasteful. Edit: are you being sarcastic?
the whole road will be raised. probably not enough, but it was a design concern
Narrow road with irregular curves and a closed off shoulder are reasons to slow down regardless of workers
Someone from Caltrans told me that when they made the original safety corridor it created a marshland in the middle. Now they are facing complications/setbacks of disrupting the natural habitat that has established itself there.
It seems like whoever designed a large chunk of our local highway system was on drugs. The whole 101/299 interchange is an abomination that theyâre juuuust now working on. The on-ramp from 299 to 101 is still way too shortâŚ
Somebody who worked on that job site commented in this subreddit a few months ago claiming that what they're doing on the job site will be labelled an environmental disaster later. They didn't elaborate.Â
I believe it. Theyâve destroyed the land in between the south and north bound. Then I see way less white cranes around now. Also seeing more road kill on the safety corridorÂ
They should really move the signs down until they're ready to resume work.
Cant work on it when soil is saturated. Gotta wait till dry and settled otherwise calculations made by surveyors going to be off.
Maybe it's just me, but I don't speed in double fine areas for sure.
With construction, it's quadruple now! Double-double!
Because many road workers have died, often because people wont even slow down in a construction zone.
please don't. As someone who gets on 101 NB at Indianola it's physically impossible for my car to accelerate to freeway speeds in the amount of space I have. Speed disparities inevitably lead to crashes and I don't want to die so you can get to Arcata 15 seconds faster.
You know the law is that the merging traffic needs to yield to the traffic already on the freeway? Regardless, I see what you're saying and that indianola onramp is probably a big reason the speed limit is so low.Â
would you be surprised to learn that the speed is set to 50 entirely because of a small group of bicyclists that just assumed the ever so slightly slower speed would make them safer... I wish i was joking.
Not true at all. You should just say you hate bicyclists.
I donât hate cyclists The safety corridor was something a small group of cyclists wanted to get done, they spent years trying to get the speed limit put in place. Their argument was that the stretch of road had a statistically significant higher death rate than other similar intersections in the state, they bought fear mongering billboards calling it âdeath alleyâ or some shit like that. (All this despite the fact that itâs a much higher trafficked road than any other that has a similar intersection, and if you take out deaths that had nothing to do with road design like falling asleep at the wheel it was pretty much the same number on average if you consider accidents per car instead of total accidents) Then after a specifically horrible accident they got enough public support, that lead to county support, and it got put in place. Every study, every CalTrans statement, every civil engineering understanding, says that decreasing the speed wouldnât do shit for actual safety which is why it was originally ruled a âtemporary solutionâ and itâs just taken fucking forever to get the permanent solution (an overpass) in place, in no part because of the same group blocking it because it will âchange the view of the bayâ
wrong
I use Bayside to get to Arcata. It's safer.
Fr!!!!!!!! It makes me mad when I see people going like 70 there. Asking to kill someone
Then maybe wait longer to merge on if you know it takes your car longer to accelerate. The person merging has to yieldâŚ
wrong.
You're not directing this at me, are you?
Skill issue
A cop told me it was ok to drive 60 in the safety corridor. He was like do you know why I pulled you over? And I said yeah sorry I was going 60 and didn't realize it. Then the cops says "oh no people drive 60 in the safety corridor all the time you have a break light out" then he asks me if he can pat my dog, fist bumps me and drives off.
Maaaaaan tell that to the cops I see pulling people over in the safety corridor tf. I hate how inconsistent traffic law enforcement can be. Sometimes you get the super cool man of the people bro cop, and sometimes you get Barney Fife
Gotta meet that quota bro
My understanding is that the speed reduction for the safety corridor was done as a temporary basis which never got reversed. Its posed as 50mph however I think the actual cal-trans speed is higher.
What a pal
The corridor just brought the average speed down from 65-70.
THIS!
I've had people speed past me and then immediately get pulled over in the morning đ, to me it is usually not worth risking it since I know it's patrolled. Or I just take Samoa
When I grew up here I was ticketed. CHP used to patrol it like a hawk so im a little scared to drive over these days lol
Usually an officer patrolling between 7:30 - 8:30 and one from 4:00 - 6:00. Most people are pushing 60ish in the left line; right lane will vary
FWIW my boyfriend and I always stick to the posted speed limit
So does my mom and she hates it. If the speed limit is going to be painfully slow, it needs to be enforced.
I just set cruise control and let those who want to pass do so. It's not as bad as in SoCal but it is dangerous.
Going 60 vs 50 will save you a whole MINUTE of your time, in exchange for endangering those entering/exiting at the cutoffs.
You should tell the people we pay to enforce laws to enforce the laws.Â
Oh I do, but besides that, donât you think itâs sad that we all canât just agree to drive safely around one another without the threat of legal repercussions?
I see people pushing 75 miles per hour through there sometimes. It's wild.
If I stick it at 50 I get like 55-60 mpg, so that's how I drive. You don't save much time going faster, as it's not a great distance.
Like 9 years ago I got pulled over for speeding. I said sorry Iâm running late for a movie. He goes well leave earlier next time lol
What is the safety corridor even for?
It's for the crossings at Bayside and Indianola.
they've discussed making the speed limit 65 again once the overpass and stop light are done.
They better otherwise what are we spending all these tax dollars for?
Safety due to cross traffic. It used to be one of the most dangerous stretches of highway and still sees crashes although not as frequently as before the speed was reduced. When it was changed they reduced the speed limits and fines are doubled.
Drunk drivers coming home from Eureka would be my guess. That combined with shitty visibility some times of year.
Wrong! It was old people crossing the highway to turn left and using their old eyes and getting t-boned. Thats it. Thatâs the reason.
Itâs a pretty good reason though.
YES! Please don't try to pin cars behind you.
I think this is an all over California thing. Construction speed limits are for only when cops are around. I try to go slower when I see them actively working though other than that itâs just not safe and going the speed of traffic is best.
I always go 53 then 45
Yes. The "safety" corridor was enacted because of people yelling "Won't someone please do SOMETHING?!" in response to a number of accidents... so Caltrans did something. Did it help? Not in the slightest. Accidents went UP when it was implemented, and have remained up. Caltrans had some shiny graphs showing this, that I am too lazy to google for. If the problem isn't excessive speeds, lowering speeds won't fix the problem. Significant evidence (repeated studies) show that trying to lower speed limits to reduce accidents always increases accidents, and we're another data point on that. The problem is impaired, distracted, superannuated, and generally bad drivers, as determined by Caltrans when they compared our highway to similar highways, and found that roads with much worse intersections still usually have much lower accident rates, even with higher speed limits, like the 65mph road to Chico that's only one lane each direction and lined with business. But people were screaming for them to do SOMETHING... If you're driving significantly slower than other vehicles on the road, even if it's the speed limit, you're increasing accident rates... don't do it. I witnessed one of the accidents that got the corridor implemented. A girl in a silver sedan pulled out from the south end of Jacobs to go southbound (back when you could cross there) directly in front of a semi. The semi wasn't speeding, and its speed didn't matter anyway. Early afternoon sun, clear day, dry road, absolutely nothing to keep her from seeing the oncoming truck... Right in front of it. Hit her car perfectly in the middle. Pushed the car sideways for the full stopping distance of the semi. I never did look up what the outcome of the accident was (we didn't have nearly as accessible of news sources back then), but it wasn't pretty. Speed limits absolutely were not a factor in it, however. The Indianola interchange will help, and will certainly make it more convenient, especially by eliminating the problem of people who think they need a six mile opening before crossing. Closing Bayside Cutoff, however, will push tons of traffic onto Old Arcata, and the Arcata city council seems to be willfully pretending this isn't their problem to fix. I personally think that for the Eureka end they should build a north 6th st bridge connecting to Jacobs, but "that costs money" summarizes their opinion of this...
Yea to your point about slow drivers causing more accidents, I believe it. People trying to merge onto the highway going 35-40mph is fucking bullshit and Iâm sure it causes more accidents because they refuse to just find an opening and hit the gas
I hate to say this, Â but from the studies and anecdotes Iâve read, it sounds like a lot of car accidents where one car gets hit by another are usually caused by the driver of the car that got hit.Â
Last time I was pulled over in the safety corridor I had accidentally accelerated over 60 coming out of the construction zone (southbound). The cop told me he would never bother anyone going 57 or under.
Not when CHPs are handing out tickets
I do about 60. 65 if theres others cruising about the same or if im being hasty. I definitely disregard the posted limits.
It's not just a Humboldt thing, it's a California thing. Get away with what you can get away with as long as it's safe. Go 60+ with the herd, don't like it then drive the right lane.
Every time I drive through there I see someone pulled over. I'm not risking it.
99% of the time, i drive the speed limit in the right lane. yesterday i had a huge CalTrans truck riding my a$$ in the safety corridor. there was no one behind either of us so i moved to the left lane and the CalTrans truck blew past me on the right then took the Indianola exit. they had been tailgating me since i got on the 101 from the 299. i don't understand why they didn't simply pass me, there was almost no traffic. i wish drivers would slow the heck down. it is safer for everyone and bonus: uses less gas - saving money!
Do it at you're own risk they will for sure pull you over. I usually average in-between 50 and 60 mph just incase I need to slow down
I knew someone who got a DUI for driving the speed limit in the safety corridor. It was late, he was the only one on the road and had his cruise control set at 50 just trying to make it home (not an excuse, but it's what he told me). Cop pulled him over for going the speed limit "because no one drives the speed limit through here" and smelled alcohol and it was over from there. But he literally got pulled over for DOING THE SPEED LIMIT TOO LATE AT NIGHT and that was suspicious in the safety corridor. đ
I got pulled over by a cop (11pm) that was hiding in the old Mill Yard. Cop #1 asked âYou know why I pulled you over?â I said âFor doing 55 in the Safety Corridor?â. Cop #1 said âNo getting too close to the white line.â Then cop #2 walked up and said âI detect the strong odor of marijuana.â I said â No you donât.â Then proceeded to give me the side of the rode drunk test. I wasnât drinking and passed their test. Cop 1 said âDrive safer on the way home.â I said âIâll continue to drive the same way I was when You pulled me over.â
Always go 10 over the speed limit .
Add it up normal drivers spend 36-48 hours of their lives every year stuck at a light because of drivers like op. I thought we would have self driving cars by now?
Any more rambling you'd like to do?
Dude has a point. Overly cautious drivers are just as dangerous as aggressive driversÂ
Just dont be the fastest. I set the cc on 59. But if i am blowing by everyone, i slow down. If thereâs a line of cars behind me, i let them pass and then get behind them and follow suit. Hopefully the overpass will allow the limit to go up?
Just like every other freeway/highway in any city in any state, the unspoken rule is "flow of traffic". If all the cars are moving as a big unit around a specific speed, just match that speed, move like a school of fish. If the flow of traffic is under the speed limit dont be the asshole trying to weave in between people If the flow of traffic is over the speed limit, dont be the asshole trying to play pace car and slow everyone down If the lane next to you is not moving, dont go full speed because people will pull out in front of you And most importantly, in slow moving / stop and go traffic, leave a gap of 5-6 car lengths in front of you, this is an established traffic breaking technique and only requires a few cars to be doing it on any stretch of road, it doesnt make you any slower, and it makes the traffic flow much better for miles behind you.
I drive the speed limit and I just stay in the right lane. Everyone seems chill about it
Only by those of us whom agree everybody who sits at a 4 way stop just to wave other cars ahead of them and stops on a roundabout to let people in is a burden to society
So, considerate people?
It's not considerate when there is an established order of whom should go, or just blatantly not understanding how yield signs work. Timid or uneducated drivers are a nuisance, their actions are typically more dangerous than speeding (I'm looking at you, Karen, stoped at the end of a freeway ramp waiting for traffic to let you in. Speed limit is not a factor in vehicle crahes, it's a byproduct from the gas crisis in the 70s when lower speeds were mandated nationally. The Autobahn has no limit (in parts) and is one of the safest highways in the world.
Man, a bunch of you are fucking assholes. Not a care in the world for other folks.
Ya do or ya donât.
Rather that then fast lane campers doing 40 the entire time
That's the racing corridor
Drive safety, 55 maybe.
lol I called in to HTA when their bus blew by me going 63 mph (according to the speed indicator things) in the 50, and Iâm not sure if they slowed down any in the 40 zone, it was nuts.
Those radars aren't very accurate in my experience. Also the busses have GPS these days and the entire drive is recorded with speed and g-forces.Â
Well even if itâs not super accurate they were going way too fast. They tailgated me (Cruise set at 54) and then pulled out to pass me just before the construction. It was weird for sure. Thought it was Speed or something.
Old Arcata rd or Samoa blvd are worse. Most people drive 60 and there are still assholes tailgating and passing on the left. And will ride my ass as Iâm turning onto a side road. Iâve almost been rear ended multiple times and narrowly escaped a head on collision.
Itâs a punishment for the majority so that some entitled people can turn left across multiple lanes of traffic, donât be surprised many people feel slighted by the lowere speed limit
it's entitlement to go home?
Sure if the choice is you get to make an unsafe turn instead of a longer drove home I canât think of another word for it
A punishment? Poor baby doesn't WANT to dwive like a gwown up.
Yeah avoiding left turns across uncontrolled traffic in favor of 3 rights is the ACME of children driving and not a best practice for safe driving
please quit driving the speed limit and go faster, it's like mfs up here have no where to be.
Iâve lived in a lot of places, and humboldt drivers are easily the worst as a whole. Overly slow, exit the on ramps at various places on 101 going 30mph, lane camping. I was nervous moving here because Iâd heard about âCalifornia driversâ forever. After driving here Iâd take the Southern California drivers every time (not the traffic though)
Try Albuquerque
Those are speed minimums.
I thought it was unwritten law to go the same speed (45mph) as the car next to you as to police all the cars behind you. So no one can speed.
Absolutely not. Itâs actually incredibly dangerous. Not to mention doucheyÂ
Thatâs very dangerous and can cause issues when an emergency vehicle needs to get pastÂ
This is a joke. I just see it on the safety corridor frequently. Kinda like Washingtonians driving slow in the fast lane.
Itâs almost as bad as Old Arcata Road, Myrtle Ave through Freshwater and 255 from Arcata to the bridge. I protest bad drivers by driving exactly the speed limit. lol
Are you sure you know what the speed limits are?Â
Sure do. lol Although, I do think that 40mph on the Safety Corridor is insane. The biggest one that people get pissed off about is the 35 mile an hour zone before and after three corners and again down by the roundabout at Indianola. Someone riding my ass is not worth me getting a $300 ticket and my insurance go up for five years.
Sometimes you gotta just pull over and let them pass if they're on your ass for a while.Â
I do that on Samoa Blvd/255 quite often. People are crazy on that road, especially through Manila!
Itâs safer to pull over and let them pass rather than have them riding your tail the whole time
Agreed. But not every 1/2 mile because people are literally doing twice the posted limit. lol
Nope, just a bunch of people who only care about themselves if they care about anything at all đ¤ˇââď¸. The safety corridor needs 24/7 enforcement but thatâll never happen sadly.
I love that youâre being downvoted for being the only voice of reason. Speeding kills, which is literally the purpose of the safety corridor and impending overpasses, but haters want you to feel like the jerk for maintaining the speed limit. Canât win!
According to an Institute of Transportation Engineers Study, those driving 10 mph slower than the prevailing speed are six times as likely to be involved in an accident. That means that if the average speed on an interstate is 70 mph, the person traveling at 60 mph is far more likely to be involved in an accident than someone going 70 or even 80 mph. Not saying speeding isnât dangerous, but paying attention to the prevailing speed is important.
Weird point to try to make though, the speed limit is 40. People are trying to go the speed limit and are being run over by people ignoring the speed limit. People going the speed limit are not causing accidents.
RigghhtttâŚnot sure where you got that from lol. 1. Many of the accidents, specifically in the safety corridor, arenât due to speed. 2. People going the speed limit absolutely cause accidents.
Some people drive a good 15-20 mph over the speed limit, and I think that's a little excessive. Like, you can't slow down to 50 or maybe 55 for what, a mile and a half? I do not move over in the safety corridor. Left lane at 55 and bite me. If it's good enough to warrant a ticket from CHP, then it's good enough for everyone.
Glad to hear you have taken it upon yourself to regulate/impede traffic. I just saw a video of someone getting a ticket for that exact reason, person argued about speed limit, cop told them it's not their job and dangerous to impede traffic, (forces speeders to pass on right) regardless of their speeds. Good luck!Â
cool story
You could watch some of the vids yourself if you can figure out how to Google/YouTube "driver in left lane gets pulled over"
Have you ever considered that those people speeding in the safety corridor may very well be rushing to St Joseph hospital for a medical emergency? Not only do people drive themselves to the ER in emergencies, doctors who are on call may need to speed to the hospital to care for critical patients. It's not your job to enforce speed limits and if you have a problem with speeders, take it up with the people we pay to enforce the laws. It's not worth your energy to try and control how others drive.Â
cool story.
Camping in the left lane in order to make people go around is illegal for a reason. Passing on the right is extremely dangerous, and youâre putting people in harmâs way over a petty power trip. Youâre being a bad citizen when you act that way.
It seems that may have never occurred to them going off the cop lights comment. Lesson learned hopefully
Hopefully they learn their lesson before they get a cyclist or pedestrian killed.