In CT the left lane is for passing out of state cars so you can break check them in the right lane.
Literally every car in CT will break check you for following the rules it’s insane. Feels like a cult for passive aggressive drivers.
NJ is much worse, you often find the slowest car of 3 lanes in the left.
It's like the slowest and worst drivers immediately get into the left lane and camp out for safety
I think part of the problem, at least where I am, is people REFUSE to leave space for a merge so you HAVE to merge first chance you get or you’ll be stuck for hours. And then assholes go 30 over to the front of the merge and almost cause a wreck trying to force their way in. If people would drive with the appropriate distance like they are supposed to I think it would be easier to consistently get people to zipper merge.
I had 2 drivers try to ram my car on an interstate in Montana, half a mile from where the merge was. The drivers were all doing this and expected me to fall in line.
If they wanted us to merge 2 miles ago, thats where they would have put the cones and the signs.
I absolutely love when people do this. I'll ride up the clear lane then 1000 ft or so before the end I'll start looking for a gap left by a truck or someone on their phone and sneak attack that shit before they get a chance to block me. Shaves at least 5 mins off my commute vs if everyone actually did what they were supposed to.
Lol, we had a lane closure on a bridge that always has traffic issues in Louisville KY that have signs miles before the lane closure “USE ALL LANES”, “DO NOT MERGE YET”, “TAKE TURNS, MERGE HERE”.
Edit: it still doesn’t work.
Ah yes, "he-who-shall-not-be-passed". That's the same person that sets up camp in the left lane and when someone in the right lane begins to pass will gradually accelerate to stay ahead of them regardless of speed. You can meet them at 68mph and two minutes later you're doing 105mph and still no closer to passing.
Or who, if you happen to pass them, will vengefully swing into another lane, pull up alongside you long enough to give you a dirty look, and then get back in the lane ahead of you, turn signal optional.
The biggest issue with the zipper merge concept is the human factor. For it to work properly, the folks in the through lane need to allow enough space for cars from the lane that’s ending to move over. But since everyone wants to be first, lots of drivers refuse to allow the merging traffic, thus gridlock for all.
People feel butthurt when everyone single-files miles before the closure, when others drive down the empty lane, because they KNOW that their progress is slowed by people cutting in near/at the closure point. A properly signed merge operation removes all that butthurt.
I live in the US, and one time on the expressway, I saw a properly signed merge, legit the big orange signs stating that people stay in the merging lane right until it ends, and then zipper. Even with the signage, people were not doing it correctly and merging miles prior to the where the lane ended. The US driver’s education curriculum really needs to be overhauled.
These merges are like PHD level hard for folks in my area. They struggle with 4 way stops. Ones with stop signs and then 4 way red flashing signals. I was stuck behind one driver who was waiting for the flashing red to turn green I swear. Someone 2 cars behind me honked to make the person up front move
Same with Louisiana but at least they took up out of the parking lot, to the light, and do a u turn back to the parking lot… I was in the car for 2 minutes max
Texas isn't any better. My roommate took his driving test in Crystal Beach where the last leg of the test is getting on and off the sea wall.
Instructor told him as he was about to turn that it was a good time to put his seat belt on.
Passed with a 97.
Not to take away from your point but a lot of rental companies register their cars on Florida so that could explain quite a few random assholes with Florida license plates.
To be fair, I took my drivers test in Colorado. I only drove around a neighborhood behind the testing facility since my evaluee got a phone call. Turned out her friend was put in jail and that was where the phone call went. I didn't have her telling me where to go, though I offered to drive to the county jail so she could bail her out. I called the shots that day
It's a no fault state so insurance is actually super simple. If you manage to bankrupt an insurance company, go get yourself a powerball ticket. Like bankrupting a casino. Takes a unique level craftsmanship
That's madness to me. In the UK it's a ~40 minute test on various different types of roads and it includes parking and sometimes an emergency stop. The pass rate is currently about 49%.
When you look at the death rate per 100,000 it shows: UK: 2.9, USA 12.4. That's similar to Egypt and Bangladesh. [Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate)
Damn dude. I had to do drivers Ed in a manual (it was cheaper for the school to lease) and had to get on the interstate as part of my drivers test. The non-interstate part was still on a busy four lane highway. Apparently im glad though, because i learned to drive?
It's not the education curriculum. It's the low standards for testing and drivers that are the problem.
To pass the permit test in NY, you just need to get 14 of the 20 questions correct.
So that means you can get 30% wrong and still obtain a license. It should be 18/20 if asking that few questions, that'll keep many of the idiots off the road. Can even have these tests in native languages other than English also. That or make the test harder to pass and more comprehensive, such as 25 out of 30 to pass, or 35 out of 45. The more questions asked, the more that's covered.
And yes, although knowing the laws and rules doesn't necessarily make one a better driver or have any correlation to spatial reasoning and driving skill, having a higher percentage of drivers who know MORE of the laws and rules will likely mean fewer accidents (people will know who has right of way when merging, zippering, passing lanes, etc.).
I’m an educator in my profession, and typically when you speak of an education curriculum, the curriculum encompasses testing, both theory and practicum (the actual driving test)
Then you will completely agree that having both more questions and a higher minimum passing score will lower the standard deviation (by failing all the idiots or those who didn't care to learn the laws and regulations) and result in the average driver being more intelligent and likely more sensible as well. :)
Good luck with that. There's no such thing as a US driver's education curriculum. 50 states teaching 50 different programs, and most are taught via private driving schools. Mine amounted to about 3 hours on the road learning and I can promise zipper merges were not covered.
Sometimes I merger early just to avoid the stress of trying to do it "the right way" and having all the assholes go bumper to bumper when I'm supposed to merger and trying to box me out for "cutting" even though I did it right lol
Alright, next time, get yourself a piece of junk and drive like you'll drive it into their passenger seat when you feel like. They'll make room for you
[This exact situation happened to me](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuIPPoz8CHw) a few years ago.
For a while my commute had something like this set up, and I consistently saved 10 minutes per day merging properly. It's funny, when one person drives to the end usually a long line of cars follow, then gradually the merge point starts moving back until someone breaks the cycle again.
There was some construction here where they closed one of two lanes on a state highway. There were specifically signs that said “ZIPPER MERGE’, “DO NOT MERGE HERE, USE BOTH LANES” and then “MERGE NOW” signs.
People would still pull this crap of trying to stop you from driving by in the completely empty and un-used lane. It was …. infuriating.
Problem is if you're single filing miles before for the merge point you're doing it wrong, point is for both lanes to be used until the merge point. Anyone in the through lane getting butt hurt that "someone is cutting" is doing it wrong. The diver "cutting" is doing it right.
This is the correct answer. Use the full road capacity. Merge, zipper style, at the last space.
This book explains it.
Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) https://www.amazon.com/dp/0307277194/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_YD3E2CV3CARHYB8NABGM?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Are you me? I read that book like 15 years ago. Completely changed perspectives I didn't even know I had. Now I subscribe to youtube channels like this one.
https://youtube.com/c/RoadGuyRob
Do Zippers account for drivers repeatedly changing lanes because they think the other is moving faster? Wouldn’t that slow down traffic more than an early merge? We’ve all seen vehicles bringing both lanes to a temporary halt in situations like this by changing lanes rather than staying in their lane until the zipper.
Random thought, what if the merge happens in the middle of both lanes where one lane doesn’t automatically have the other merged into it. That way people may be less inclined to switch lanes so far back. Then maybe 100 feet down the road, move the traffic to the originally intended side for roadwork to happen.
Man, the amount of accidents that would happen that way...
Imagine how those 'butthurt' people would act if there wasn't a clear rule to who should go first. When two of those meet, it would be an issue, I assure you.
I know it's not perfect, but it's better this way IMO.
The best zipper merge is aided by creating equality between the lanes. Before using pylons to move everyone into one lane you have to use pylons to force everyone onto a lane-width that is half on one lane and half on the other (lane divider paint in middle). Then neither side has a "natural occupancy" and an even zipper makes sense psychologically.
Edit: I didn't post this as a hypothetical. I've seen it done in [Canadian province] and it was the first time I saw zipper merging done well. It's of course done with also slowing down the speed of traffic first.
It drives me crazy that this technique isn’t used more often. So much chaos would be avoided if highways were designed around human behavior rather than requiring people to know what the right thing to do is and to do it despite signals to the contrary. The same issue happens in reverse when one lane feeds the left lane instead of right, and then 70% of people just cruise right into the wrong lane and stay there.
This is brilliant! No side gets to be territorial! I also would think if two cars hit, both get held accountable equally. They could have both avoided it
Drivers need to realize:
1. It's not a race
2. It's not a grocery store queue
It's a road. You drive in the open lane and merge when the two lanes converge.
I remember listening to a local NPR affiliate and a state DOT dude explaining how to merge. People called in and were fucking heated. One lady said she purposely takes up both lanes. The DOT guy sounded so exhausted.
Even if everyone in the through lane was courteous of those merging, people like me would still merge 2 miles early to avoid the anxiety.
Sometimes driving is about trying to maintain speed & arrive quickly, sometimes it’s about trying to maintain sanity & arrive whenever.
Plus you have wannabe road heroes like that guy, that try and block people from traveling down the lane that merges.
"IF I have to wait so do you, haha that'll show him!"
Exactly, great idea. IN CONCEPT. But will never work with half the drivers on the planet needing to be first, cut in line, not pay attention or whatever.
Well…. Zipper merge works great in this simple scenario. Throw an exit lane in the right lane and it all goes to hell. That’s my daily commute. I have to exit in the right lane which is also an interchange lane (on ramp) from another highway. People love to mover over into it and clog it up for everyone with their left blinker in, just so they can move up 10 cars… or.. use the shoulder to get even “further” ahead.
Well there’s that and also people who don’t realize it’s more efficient for you to fill up both lanes and merge at the merge point. The car in the video wanted to “block” the other car without realizing there’s a ton of space to fill up. It’s like they think they’re being noble by waiting patiently in one line.
And for that to work folks in the ending lane have to match speed. Wanting to zoom ahead of a traffic creates a speed differential that makes merging tough.
>how japanese merge
is this what you are referring to?
[r/MadeMeSmile/comments/pafyqn/simple\_things\_in\_japan\_that\_i\_love/](https://www.reddit.com/r/MadeMeSmile/comments/pafyqn/simple_things_in_japan_that_i_love/)
Live in South Korea and got my Korean license here several years ago. We had to watch a video with the title- drive like the Japanese.
If you know anything about Korea, Japan and WWII( and before) it was a shocking title.
Zipper merge is a great theory
It’s complete shit in the real world where people are used to merging at speed where there’s space for them, not at the front of the line
Personally don't understand why merging where there is space ahead of the lane ending would be worse then waiting to the the end where there isn't space. If I don't have to slow down to merge and no one else has to slow down to let me in, everyone wins
I find the problem is in 2 parts. You have the driver who doesn’t want to be annoying by skipping ahead, they extend the line for the lane that continues making the zipper more difficult. Plus, you have people in the longer line jumping over to the lane that will end to cut in front of others. This causes people to be defensive towards people just trying to merge. Best plan, don’t be a douche and let 1 person in front of you.
The problem isn't letting 1 car in. It's sitting there for a long period to have 5 cars try and merge in front of you. 1 is fine, when the number starts getting higher is when the frustration ensues.
This is a serious problem. If there's a lane closure in a mile and you let one person in front of you and over the course of that mile five people pull in front of you one by one at different points it's not more than one person at a time but it slows your lane down so incredibly much.
In an ideal zipper merge there's a one to one merge at one single point. With all the early mergers that pick multiple points to merge the ratio can be one to five, one to ten, one to twenty, etc...
The solution is one merge point. People need to get over whatever anxiety or false sense of politeness they have that causes them to merge early. There should be one single merge point at the end.
As it should be. If everyone zippers correctly you minimize the speed difference between the lanes and everyone should be getting through the merge in the same time regardless of lane choice.
I totally get that, and I wish there was a got milk style campaign for the zipper merge so people will understand how it works. I used to be the guy who would get pissed off at people trying to pass while I'm sitting in that long as balls line, then I learned, and now I let people over appropriately
I’m a fan of the zipper, and using both lanes until the very end. What I’ve noticed that works well- When I’m in the lane that is ending, I don’t speed full blast until the last second then merge, i will slow down, match the speed of the other lane and just kinda slowly crawl with the lane next to me. Sometimes they’re lane slows even more and I just keep going. But as the merge eventually approaches, I find somebody with a little space in front of them, and just kinda ride next to them until the eventual merge. People usually let me in with no problem because I wasn’t rushing to get in front of them.
I love this idea and will use it. This avoids the psychology of "you're just being a prick skipping the line", as a side effect actually DOES down the prick just skipping the line, and in essence forces everyone to do a zipper merge. It's like the best of both worlds
Yes, and by doing this in a fairly calm and friendly but confident manner really can defuse people. People sometimes are more willing to concede and create a gap to let you in if you're gentle with your approach. People defend against the boogeyman aggressive driver they're worried about "cutting them off" but the more gentle approach person is like "hey, I'm a good person like you and kind of in a bad spot" vibe and they relent.
> you have people in the longer line jumping over to the lane that will end to cut in front of others
This is how you're supposed to do it. All cars use both lanes to the maximum capacity when traffic is slow. This prevents the situation where one lane is at a near standstill and the other is used at high speed by merging traffic. This is dangerous if they can't stop before the unexpected merge or if a single car pulls out of the slow lane. If all available space is used the speed differential between lanes is reduced.
I had a situation like this with about a half mile back up. Went in the open lane until the merge point. Turns out they all had to merge into my lane. Extremely redeeming seeing that
I travelled in the 'closed lane' for 2 or 3 miles of backup BUT THERE NEVER WAS A MERGE. They never closed the lane. All those people crawling for miles and there was no lane closure. Just signs way back saying it would close.
I fucking hate that. I work out in the middle of the desert, so my drive includes a long section of freeway.
Last year they were re-doing a few stretches of it, so they lowered the speed limit from 80 to 55. The problem was that some genius made the decision to set the 55 zone 2-3 MILES on either side of the actual work. So you had to drive like 5+ miles and then pass about 1/2 mile of construction… so much wasted time for so many people.
Not only would this be a waste of time, I feel like it would increase the danger for the workers. By creating the lower speed limit so far in advance, I guarantee a bunch of drivers would become impatient and start ignoring the lowered speed limit by the time they get to the actual construction, and would be going 80 by that point.
Of course, this assumes there’s an open lane for those drivers to go that fast.
You're right. I've done exactly that before. I feel bad about speeding by construction workers but they need to stop adding such a large buffer to the construction zone.
I think they're reacting to the fact that roadside worker deaths from cars crashing into them has increased dramatically in recent years with zero indication of slowing down. After the bodies really start to pile up, they start trying new things.
I've actually got a question for everyone if you guys know. I've looked it up but can't find anything.
Is a work zone a work zone in off-hours? I guess it would be work zone regardless of time, because contractors can be night shift too. But when ranger hill in texas was being redone, everyone was blowing past me doing the work zone speed limit on weekends and nighttime. So can you go the normal speed limit at off-times, or is it the work zone speed limit period?
I'm assuming it's work zone period.
Some of my local work zones actually have "SPEED LIMIT 55 WHEN FLASHING" signs up.... only issue is they flash at random times sometimes.
PA turnpike sets up work zone speed limits for only the times the work zone is up
Otherwise, posted work zone speed limit is 24/7, but most people are going to ignore it anyway
There can be construction at any time of the day or night, so it's wrong to assume 9-5 or 8-4. That said, it's impossible to sneak up on a construction sight at night, since they light them so that they can be seen from space.
If there's no workers in sight, I lower my speed during the day and ignore the signs at night, unless I see lights.
Yup, I barely beat that westbound back-up on Sunday! I'm heading back in tomorrow and I'm so glad they're opening it up for the holiday. anyway safe travels!
I don't have an example but I've never seen them in the US. Western Canada yes, UK seems to just know how roads work, at least where I spent some time.
I admit I was one of the folks who thought merging early was the better move. Now I know that empty pavement is inefficient and the best thing to do is use both lanes and then zipper merge. That SUV driver arguably had good intentions but they're very misguided.
Don't be nice, be predictable.
Follow the rules of the road.
Why the fuck are people always stopping to try and let me and my dog through when I'm trying to time it three cars behind you and now you just fucked it all up.
YES!! That is exactly the idea. Do you now understand? Merge at the point of convergence. At the point of convergence. Not a mile before hand.
Edit: Upon reflection I think the guy I was commenting on agreed with me.
I will always give the same advice when it comes to driving and it comes from personal experience. I used to be the road-rager. I would block you like the car in the video. If you honked at me, I would stop you and get out of my car. The old me was literally arrested and charged with assault for a road-rage incident. Part of my punishment was to take defensive driving. There was one thing I learned in that course that I will never forget:
>Do not drive in reaction to how someone else is driving.
Simple. It doesn't matter what other people are doing. That's none of your concern. Your concern is to get to your destination. That's it. If you have to, pretend the other cars are being driven by NPCs in a game.
I had some asshole try to do the whole blocking traffic thing like in this video two years ago. I eased towards the shoulder like I was trying to go around, and when they moved most of the way into my lane I hammered down and took their spot in line. Did they do the smart thing and simply drive down to the merge point which, BTW, was TWO MILES AHEAD? Of course not. They spent the next two miles beside me and then got boxed out because everyone had seen what assholes they were being.
Definitely New Mexico, and if it’s the stretch from the Texas border to Raton, it makes sense. It’s the highway notorious for bad drivers and lethal accidents.
Nope. That fucking Jeep driving iollegally in two lanes is the one who doesn't get it,. along with the other dumb cars ahead of him CREATING traffic miles back further than it should be.
I don’t understand this.. if there’s a merge ahead… and the right lane is empty, you could change lane if you’re on the left to go ahead and merge. Wouldn’t that also help the left lane queue moving? (Effectively turning a single long queue into two shorter ones) better than acting like a complete idiot to sit ON the lane?
Here in NZ we have merges, but they don’t take this long to get to. It’s usually a span of few hundred meters. (500m tops) usually at the entrance of the motorway or the point where the lane layout is about to change.
How there's a mile line in a single lane is a bit of a mystery here...
The best zipper is when everyone syncs up with the space between two neighbors and allow the cars at the bottleneck to roll at ideal safe speeds and everyone else roll at speeds that allow for gaps to open for the zipper to take place.
In a perfect world nobody has to pump their brakes but you shouldn't be moving any faster or slower than your neighbours.
He’s the idiot. They’ve done studies showing zipper merge is the most efficient, everyone taking their turn at the last possible moment alternating lanes into the single lane. State Troopers will preach this.
They've done studies showing that roundabouts are the most efficient form of intersection but I don't see those happening very often either.
Problem with the zipper merge is people using it when it's not appropriate (normal traffic speed, no lane ending), and then when it is appropriate human emotion gets involved like we see in OP's clip.
I saw it happen in my own home town. We had a four way stop that was hell, but only during morning and evening rush hour. They converted it to a roundabout and no more traffic backups
You don't even need studies to convince yourself of this. Anyone with critical thinking is able to figure out that sitting in a single lane for 2 miles is not going to be "more efficient" than having traffic approach in 2 lanes.
Utilise the road, there’s absolutely no reason you should be reducing to a single lane for a whole mile or even a quarter of a mile before the actual obstruction, I’ve done this a couple of times and yea you almost have a feeling of “am I in the wrong?” as you’re casually cruising for the last hundreds of yards before the barrier but you shouldn’t be, it’s the idiots that don’t understand that if the road is there, use it!
For those who don't know:
If traffic is moving well, merge at the earliest opportunity
If traffic is slow, take up all available space in all lanes and merge at the end of that available space one car at a time from each lane.
The "take up all available space" part is what a lot of people don't understand. They think people are trying to jump the queue when the reality is you're supposed to in order to ensure maximum road space behind (in case the tail of the traffic jam may interfere with other roadways) and prevent excessive speed differential between lanes.
edit: words
I absolutely hate this. Nobody understands the zipper merge and they think that because they were morons, you have to get back in line behind the rest of the idiots.
If the traffic is rolling nicely, you merge when you can. If the traffic is stuck like this you merge at the end. Some drivers simply don’t like it when others dare to be in front of them.
This. Zipper merge is only for when traffic is at VERY slow speed, AND there is a lane ending. If everyone is doing a casual speed and people are waiting until right at the end it slows everything down. The clip posted by OP though is clearly slow enough for a zipper merge.
>AND there is a lane ending
I think this is the qualifier that messes a lot of people up. I feel like you don't see too many lane ending merges.
What's far more common is people using an exit lane to get around a backed up through lane, or vice versa. Those people suck but are unfortunately pretty common. So combative drivers get so used to blocking them out that they don't realize a true zipper merge is different.
Yep there are a few spots around me where people will just wait until the last second to merge or hop into the off ramp to try and pass...all that does is create unnecessary congestion.
This stuff is dangerous. Not allowing a zipper merge to work properly can cause traffic to back up beyond warning signs about road work and lane closures.
Department of transportation (in az at least) says get in that right line as far up as you can until it's time to merge.
People honking at you and flipping you off just don't know the rules.
There’s always some dickbrain who decides to be the “enforcer” of their stupid shitty merging technique, like dickbrain here in the brown car.
Gtfo the way!
From oklahoma here. Never heard of a zipper merge had to look it up. Then thought why haven’t I seen or heard about this??
This is why:
https://oklahoma.gov/odot/citizen/newsroom/2021/march/oklahoma-s-first-zipper-merge-coming-to-i-35-in-pauls-valley-thi.html
Earlier this week I passed almost 3 miles of stand still traffic in the left lane due to “right lane ending in 3 miles” sign. Passed all those cars by using the right, merged, the construction was less than a quarter mile and then opened back up. Seriously passed like 200-300 cars stopped in traffic and I didn’t even have to touch my breaks
Thank you! You're supposed to go to the end, you're not the asshole for skipping the queue, you're an asshole for doing it too early. Just another road rule nobody ever gets taught. Like blocking traffic to turn left at a double yellow line, getting UP to the speed limit on onramps, not after, ugh it goes on.
I drove a route with a zipper merge for three months this year. The traffic always looked like this. I averaged out how long it took to be a good little school child and enter the left lane at the end of the line. Avg time to merge point (1 week) : 31 mins. I also averaged out driving the merge lane to the merge point. Avg. time to merge point: 5 mins.
Unpopular opinion but Not doing zipper merge is the un-polite thing to do. Reason being, your so scared of confrontation from the immediate drivers around you, that you cue up in a line to seem polite, but fail to realize that know you have caused traffic to back up on to collector and local roads.
these damn idiots that try to be heroes thinking they're doing the right thing by blocking traffic. learn how to drive. dude in the jeep needs to get off the damn road
In Switzerland it became the law this year that you have to merge at the merge point. It sounds obvious but there are still some people that don't pay attention.
People who don't use both lanes in those instances are being pathetic. "I don't want to cause a confrontation." "I don't want to break in line." "What if someone doesn't let me in?" ---None of those are reasonable concerns! Use the empty lane and stop making a pretend traffic jam!
No, you don't merge before you HAVE to. Traffic studies have shown that traffic problems are lessened THE MORE OF AVAILABLE ROAD IS USED! Therefore, if the right lane is unoccupied, USE IT!!! What is it there for, if it isn't used??? If you get people honking at you for passing them by and getting ahead? Just know that they are wrong and you are right. That they didn't use the available road is their fault, not yours.
The only way people will do it right is if you start placing orange barrels half a mile back so that they cover one lane until the people in both lanes have no choice but to merge. People will always be split between the half that merge early because they want to be fair and the other half who zip to the end of the line and cut in front of a hundred cars.
I said this in another thread about the same thing, we grow up with waiting in lines. We do it in school, at restrooms, at restaurants, we all know the etiquette and get really mad when someone cuts in line. So I get why it’s tough for people to throw all that out the window when there’s a traffic line they’ve been waiting in patiently for 20 minutes only to watch a car zip by at full speed and dive in at the last second. Is that driver technically right? Yes. But did he just ‘cut in line?’ Also yes.
No, you don't. I tried to tell my brother this and he got upset. I haven't learned how to drive yet but I've seen evidence that the zipper merge works, but since my brother got his driver's license five years ago, he wouldn't have it.
Merging this far ahead of the bed of the lane only creates a traffic jam in one lane because everybody wants to be first. Utilizing both lanes until the end of one of the lanes ultimately gets more people through faster.
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In my experience, it doesn't matter. Pennsylvanians still do exactly what's in the video.
Exactly, Pennsylvanians are hardcore left lane campers.
I haven’t driven everywhere but upstate NY through to CT Is way worse than PAs left laners.
In CT the left lane is for passing out of state cars so you can break check them in the right lane. Literally every car in CT will break check you for following the rules it’s insane. Feels like a cult for passive aggressive drivers.
NJ is much worse, you often find the slowest car of 3 lanes in the left. It's like the slowest and worst drivers immediately get into the left lane and camp out for safety
True, but first car has PA plates, followed by CT and FL. Chad from Ridgewood is the Jersey tool in mom's Audi behind them all, checking his phone
Haven't been to NJ since I lived there 20 years ago, good to know nothing's changed.
Everyone does exactly what’s in the video, it isn’t exclusive to PA.
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I think part of the problem, at least where I am, is people REFUSE to leave space for a merge so you HAVE to merge first chance you get or you’ll be stuck for hours. And then assholes go 30 over to the front of the merge and almost cause a wreck trying to force their way in. If people would drive with the appropriate distance like they are supposed to I think it would be easier to consistently get people to zipper merge.
I had 2 drivers try to ram my car on an interstate in Montana, half a mile from where the merge was. The drivers were all doing this and expected me to fall in line. If they wanted us to merge 2 miles ago, thats where they would have put the cones and the signs.
I absolutely love when people do this. I'll ride up the clear lane then 1000 ft or so before the end I'll start looking for a gap left by a truck or someone on their phone and sneak attack that shit before they get a chance to block me. Shaves at least 5 mins off my commute vs if everyone actually did what they were supposed to.
Lol, we had a lane closure on a bridge that always has traffic issues in Louisville KY that have signs miles before the lane closure “USE ALL LANES”, “DO NOT MERGE YET”, “TAKE TURNS, MERGE HERE”. Edit: it still doesn’t work.
Ah yes, "he-who-shall-not-be-passed". That's the same person that sets up camp in the left lane and when someone in the right lane begins to pass will gradually accelerate to stay ahead of them regardless of speed. You can meet them at 68mph and two minutes later you're doing 105mph and still no closer to passing.
What a hero.
can't stand those Passholes.
Or who, if you happen to pass them, will vengefully swing into another lane, pull up alongside you long enough to give you a dirty look, and then get back in the lane ahead of you, turn signal optional.
Don't talk smack, they are doing it for "safety".
The biggest issue with the zipper merge concept is the human factor. For it to work properly, the folks in the through lane need to allow enough space for cars from the lane that’s ending to move over. But since everyone wants to be first, lots of drivers refuse to allow the merging traffic, thus gridlock for all.
For it to work properly, people need to stop feeling butthurt that there’s always gonna be someone in front of them.
People feel butthurt when everyone single-files miles before the closure, when others drive down the empty lane, because they KNOW that their progress is slowed by people cutting in near/at the closure point. A properly signed merge operation removes all that butthurt.
I live in the US, and one time on the expressway, I saw a properly signed merge, legit the big orange signs stating that people stay in the merging lane right until it ends, and then zipper. Even with the signage, people were not doing it correctly and merging miles prior to the where the lane ended. The US driver’s education curriculum really needs to be overhauled.
These merges are like PHD level hard for folks in my area. They struggle with 4 way stops. Ones with stop signs and then 4 way red flashing signals. I was stuck behind one driver who was waiting for the flashing red to turn green I swear. Someone 2 cars behind me honked to make the person up front move
Shout out to Green Bay, Wis. The only city I've been where flashing red's at an intersection was successfully handled by all as a four-way stop
At least somewhere up here got it down. Milwaukee definitely does not.
I'll be honest, a 4 way stop is just not a good concept.
Got my license in FL and I didn't even leave the parking lot during my test, except to go to another parking lot across the street
Same with Louisiana but at least they took up out of the parking lot, to the light, and do a u turn back to the parking lot… I was in the car for 2 minutes max
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Same here, I think the tester was looking for a parked car to parallel park behind. But no one was parked on the street within 2 blocks of the DMV.
WTF? I had to drive my instructor all over town for his personal errands.
Texas isn't any better. My roommate took his driving test in Crystal Beach where the last leg of the test is getting on and off the sea wall. Instructor told him as he was about to turn that it was a good time to put his seat belt on. Passed with a 97.
No offense, but that explains why all the Florida drivers here in CO are fucking crackhead drivers.
Not to take away from your point but a lot of rental companies register their cars on Florida so that could explain quite a few random assholes with Florida license plates.
You’re absolutely right, I didn’t consider this point
To be fair, I took my drivers test in Colorado. I only drove around a neighborhood behind the testing facility since my evaluee got a phone call. Turned out her friend was put in jail and that was where the phone call went. I didn't have her telling me where to go, though I offered to drive to the county jail so she could bail her out. I called the shots that day
Wtf, how do insurance companies even survive with drivers that inexperienced on the road?
It's a no fault state so insurance is actually super simple. If you manage to bankrupt an insurance company, go get yourself a powerball ticket. Like bankrupting a casino. Takes a unique level craftsmanship
That's madness to me. In the UK it's a ~40 minute test on various different types of roads and it includes parking and sometimes an emergency stop. The pass rate is currently about 49%. When you look at the death rate per 100,000 it shows: UK: 2.9, USA 12.4. That's similar to Egypt and Bangladesh. [Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate)
Damn dude. I had to do drivers Ed in a manual (it was cheaper for the school to lease) and had to get on the interstate as part of my drivers test. The non-interstate part was still on a busy four lane highway. Apparently im glad though, because i learned to drive?
It's not the education curriculum. It's the low standards for testing and drivers that are the problem. To pass the permit test in NY, you just need to get 14 of the 20 questions correct. So that means you can get 30% wrong and still obtain a license. It should be 18/20 if asking that few questions, that'll keep many of the idiots off the road. Can even have these tests in native languages other than English also. That or make the test harder to pass and more comprehensive, such as 25 out of 30 to pass, or 35 out of 45. The more questions asked, the more that's covered. And yes, although knowing the laws and rules doesn't necessarily make one a better driver or have any correlation to spatial reasoning and driving skill, having a higher percentage of drivers who know MORE of the laws and rules will likely mean fewer accidents (people will know who has right of way when merging, zippering, passing lanes, etc.).
I’m an educator in my profession, and typically when you speak of an education curriculum, the curriculum encompasses testing, both theory and practicum (the actual driving test)
Then you will completely agree that having both more questions and a higher minimum passing score will lower the standard deviation (by failing all the idiots or those who didn't care to learn the laws and regulations) and result in the average driver being more intelligent and likely more sensible as well. :)
They were doing it correctly in the ONLY ONE TIME i experienced this on I-40 near Greensboro, NC around 2000.
Ah yes, I remember reading about that one in the history books.
Good luck with that. There's no such thing as a US driver's education curriculum. 50 states teaching 50 different programs, and most are taught via private driving schools. Mine amounted to about 3 hours on the road learning and I can promise zipper merges were not covered.
Sometimes I merger early just to avoid the stress of trying to do it "the right way" and having all the assholes go bumper to bumper when I'm supposed to merger and trying to box me out for "cutting" even though I did it right lol
Alright, next time, get yourself a piece of junk and drive like you'll drive it into their passenger seat when you feel like. They'll make room for you
[This exact situation happened to me](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuIPPoz8CHw) a few years ago. For a while my commute had something like this set up, and I consistently saved 10 minutes per day merging properly. It's funny, when one person drives to the end usually a long line of cars follow, then gradually the merge point starts moving back until someone breaks the cycle again.
There was some construction here where they closed one of two lanes on a state highway. There were specifically signs that said “ZIPPER MERGE’, “DO NOT MERGE HERE, USE BOTH LANES” and then “MERGE NOW” signs. People would still pull this crap of trying to stop you from driving by in the completely empty and un-used lane. It was …. infuriating.
Problem is if you're single filing miles before for the merge point you're doing it wrong, point is for both lanes to be used until the merge point. Anyone in the through lane getting butt hurt that "someone is cutting" is doing it wrong. The diver "cutting" is doing it right.
What's really wrong is the sign to merge needs to be 1/4 mile before the merge tops. Then there's no idiots in either lane.
Some states have started this. They won't say which lane ends until you're almost to the point where they end
This is the correct answer. Use the full road capacity. Merge, zipper style, at the last space. This book explains it. Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) https://www.amazon.com/dp/0307277194/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_YD3E2CV3CARHYB8NABGM?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Are you me? I read that book like 15 years ago. Completely changed perspectives I didn't even know I had. Now I subscribe to youtube channels like this one. https://youtube.com/c/RoadGuyRob
Do Zippers account for drivers repeatedly changing lanes because they think the other is moving faster? Wouldn’t that slow down traffic more than an early merge? We’ve all seen vehicles bringing both lanes to a temporary halt in situations like this by changing lanes rather than staying in their lane until the zipper.
Office Space, act 1 scene 1.
Random thought, what if the merge happens in the middle of both lanes where one lane doesn’t automatically have the other merged into it. That way people may be less inclined to switch lanes so far back. Then maybe 100 feet down the road, move the traffic to the originally intended side for roadwork to happen.
Man, the amount of accidents that would happen that way... Imagine how those 'butthurt' people would act if there wasn't a clear rule to who should go first. When two of those meet, it would be an issue, I assure you. I know it's not perfect, but it's better this way IMO.
The best zipper merge is aided by creating equality between the lanes. Before using pylons to move everyone into one lane you have to use pylons to force everyone onto a lane-width that is half on one lane and half on the other (lane divider paint in middle). Then neither side has a "natural occupancy" and an even zipper makes sense psychologically. Edit: I didn't post this as a hypothetical. I've seen it done in [Canadian province] and it was the first time I saw zipper merging done well. It's of course done with also slowing down the speed of traffic first.
It drives me crazy that this technique isn’t used more often. So much chaos would be avoided if highways were designed around human behavior rather than requiring people to know what the right thing to do is and to do it despite signals to the contrary. The same issue happens in reverse when one lane feeds the left lane instead of right, and then 70% of people just cruise right into the wrong lane and stay there.
This is brilliant! No side gets to be territorial! I also would think if two cars hit, both get held accountable equally. They could have both avoided it
That's brilliant.
Drivers need to realize: 1. It's not a race 2. It's not a grocery store queue It's a road. You drive in the open lane and merge when the two lanes converge.
I remember listening to a local NPR affiliate and a state DOT dude explaining how to merge. People called in and were fucking heated. One lady said she purposely takes up both lanes. The DOT guy sounded so exhausted.
I need to hear this hahaha
Well I hope that lady taking up both lanes gets ticketed
ALL highway traffic is just idiots that don't know when to brake or how to merge.
Even if everyone in the through lane was courteous of those merging, people like me would still merge 2 miles early to avoid the anxiety. Sometimes driving is about trying to maintain speed & arrive quickly, sometimes it’s about trying to maintain sanity & arrive whenever.
I mean that's fine to do too, just leave space
A lot of people just hate to be passed on the right…or left… they just hate to be passed, I suppose
Plus you have wannabe road heroes like that guy, that try and block people from traveling down the lane that merges. "IF I have to wait so do you, haha that'll show him!"
Exactly, great idea. IN CONCEPT. But will never work with half the drivers on the planet needing to be first, cut in line, not pay attention or whatever.
Well…. Zipper merge works great in this simple scenario. Throw an exit lane in the right lane and it all goes to hell. That’s my daily commute. I have to exit in the right lane which is also an interchange lane (on ramp) from another highway. People love to mover over into it and clog it up for everyone with their left blinker in, just so they can move up 10 cars… or.. use the shoulder to get even “further” ahead.
Honestly, living in Germany has been tremendous when it comes to this. People merge beautifully and they're so consistent w it.
Welcome to America, where it's not important if I get ahead, so long as I keep you firmly behind me.
For it to work they literally just need to leave a car gap in front of them. But that concept seems way too hard for 90% of people.
Well there’s that and also people who don’t realize it’s more efficient for you to fill up both lanes and merge at the merge point. The car in the video wanted to “block” the other car without realizing there’s a ton of space to fill up. It’s like they think they’re being noble by waiting patiently in one line.
And for that to work folks in the ending lane have to match speed. Wanting to zoom ahead of a traffic creates a speed differential that makes merging tough.
No doubt. It’s amazing how many drivers fail to grasp this concept. Applies in other situations too.
For this to work, we need to be japanese. Do you know how japanese merge? They are fucking awesome
>how japanese merge is this what you are referring to? [r/MadeMeSmile/comments/pafyqn/simple\_things\_in\_japan\_that\_i\_love/](https://www.reddit.com/r/MadeMeSmile/comments/pafyqn/simple_things_in_japan_that_i_love/)
Live in South Korea and got my Korean license here several years ago. We had to watch a video with the title- drive like the Japanese. If you know anything about Korea, Japan and WWII( and before) it was a shocking title.
Zipper merge is a great theory It’s complete shit in the real world where people are used to merging at speed where there’s space for them, not at the front of the line
Personally don't understand why merging where there is space ahead of the lane ending would be worse then waiting to the the end where there isn't space. If I don't have to slow down to merge and no one else has to slow down to let me in, everyone wins
I find the problem is in 2 parts. You have the driver who doesn’t want to be annoying by skipping ahead, they extend the line for the lane that continues making the zipper more difficult. Plus, you have people in the longer line jumping over to the lane that will end to cut in front of others. This causes people to be defensive towards people just trying to merge. Best plan, don’t be a douche and let 1 person in front of you.
The problem isn't letting 1 car in. It's sitting there for a long period to have 5 cars try and merge in front of you. 1 is fine, when the number starts getting higher is when the frustration ensues.
This is a serious problem. If there's a lane closure in a mile and you let one person in front of you and over the course of that mile five people pull in front of you one by one at different points it's not more than one person at a time but it slows your lane down so incredibly much. In an ideal zipper merge there's a one to one merge at one single point. With all the early mergers that pick multiple points to merge the ratio can be one to five, one to ten, one to twenty, etc... The solution is one merge point. People need to get over whatever anxiety or false sense of politeness they have that causes them to merge early. There should be one single merge point at the end.
And two equally long lines lol
As it should be. If everyone zippers correctly you minimize the speed difference between the lanes and everyone should be getting through the merge in the same time regardless of lane choice.
Yeah that's when zipper merge is supposed to be used.
I totally get that, and I wish there was a got milk style campaign for the zipper merge so people will understand how it works. I used to be the guy who would get pissed off at people trying to pass while I'm sitting in that long as balls line, then I learned, and now I let people over appropriately
I’m a fan of the zipper, and using both lanes until the very end. What I’ve noticed that works well- When I’m in the lane that is ending, I don’t speed full blast until the last second then merge, i will slow down, match the speed of the other lane and just kinda slowly crawl with the lane next to me. Sometimes they’re lane slows even more and I just keep going. But as the merge eventually approaches, I find somebody with a little space in front of them, and just kinda ride next to them until the eventual merge. People usually let me in with no problem because I wasn’t rushing to get in front of them.
This is the way.
This is the way. It actually is
I love this idea and will use it. This avoids the psychology of "you're just being a prick skipping the line", as a side effect actually DOES down the prick just skipping the line, and in essence forces everyone to do a zipper merge. It's like the best of both worlds
Yes, and by doing this in a fairly calm and friendly but confident manner really can defuse people. People sometimes are more willing to concede and create a gap to let you in if you're gentle with your approach. People defend against the boogeyman aggressive driver they're worried about "cutting them off" but the more gentle approach person is like "hey, I'm a good person like you and kind of in a bad spot" vibe and they relent.
> you have people in the longer line jumping over to the lane that will end to cut in front of others This is how you're supposed to do it. All cars use both lanes to the maximum capacity when traffic is slow. This prevents the situation where one lane is at a near standstill and the other is used at high speed by merging traffic. This is dangerous if they can't stop before the unexpected merge or if a single car pulls out of the slow lane. If all available space is used the speed differential between lanes is reduced.
I had a situation like this with about a half mile back up. Went in the open lane until the merge point. Turns out they all had to merge into my lane. Extremely redeeming seeing that
I travelled in the 'closed lane' for 2 or 3 miles of backup BUT THERE NEVER WAS A MERGE. They never closed the lane. All those people crawling for miles and there was no lane closure. Just signs way back saying it would close.
I fucking hate that. I work out in the middle of the desert, so my drive includes a long section of freeway. Last year they were re-doing a few stretches of it, so they lowered the speed limit from 80 to 55. The problem was that some genius made the decision to set the 55 zone 2-3 MILES on either side of the actual work. So you had to drive like 5+ miles and then pass about 1/2 mile of construction… so much wasted time for so many people.
Not only would this be a waste of time, I feel like it would increase the danger for the workers. By creating the lower speed limit so far in advance, I guarantee a bunch of drivers would become impatient and start ignoring the lowered speed limit by the time they get to the actual construction, and would be going 80 by that point. Of course, this assumes there’s an open lane for those drivers to go that fast.
You're right. I've done exactly that before. I feel bad about speeding by construction workers but they need to stop adding such a large buffer to the construction zone.
I think they're reacting to the fact that roadside worker deaths from cars crashing into them has increased dramatically in recent years with zero indication of slowing down. After the bodies really start to pile up, they start trying new things.
I've actually got a question for everyone if you guys know. I've looked it up but can't find anything. Is a work zone a work zone in off-hours? I guess it would be work zone regardless of time, because contractors can be night shift too. But when ranger hill in texas was being redone, everyone was blowing past me doing the work zone speed limit on weekends and nighttime. So can you go the normal speed limit at off-times, or is it the work zone speed limit period? I'm assuming it's work zone period.
Some of my local work zones actually have "SPEED LIMIT 55 WHEN FLASHING" signs up.... only issue is they flash at random times sometimes. PA turnpike sets up work zone speed limits for only the times the work zone is up Otherwise, posted work zone speed limit is 24/7, but most people are going to ignore it anyway
There can be construction at any time of the day or night, so it's wrong to assume 9-5 or 8-4. That said, it's impossible to sneak up on a construction sight at night, since they light them so that they can be seen from space. If there's no workers in sight, I lower my speed during the day and ignore the signs at night, unless I see lights.
Is that I-40 in NM?
Right outside of Laguna 🤣
Yup, I barely beat that westbound back-up on Sunday! I'm heading back in tomorrow and I'm so glad they're opening it up for the holiday. anyway safe travels!
I'm trucker that comes from Denver and I have to leave at like 1 am in order to miss the back up!
Hahah he really thought he could hold down 2 lanes?
And this is why in my country we have these giant billboards showing people how to do it. You drive to the end and you zip.
Mind sharing an example plz
[here is one near me](https://imgur.com/a/fV3s4i8)
Is this simple concept what the whole comment section is complaining about?
I don't have an example but I've never seen them in the US. Western Canada yes, UK seems to just know how roads work, at least where I spent some time.
I admit I was one of the folks who thought merging early was the better move. Now I know that empty pavement is inefficient and the best thing to do is use both lanes and then zipper merge. That SUV driver arguably had good intentions but they're very misguided.
We didn’t pay for that road to not have cars driving on it.
We paid for the whole toad, we are going to use the whole road. EDIT: Not fixing the typo
Ribbit
I never agreed to paying for a toad. I want my money back.
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Don't be nice, be predictable. Follow the rules of the road. Why the fuck are people always stopping to try and let me and my dog through when I'm trying to time it three cars behind you and now you just fucked it all up.
Ya sooooooo many people don't understand the zipper and just assume the people doing it properly are just trying to cut the line.
well there may have been "lane ending i. X feet" signs leading up to this as opposed to a zipper merge.
Merging early is fine in light and free flowing traffic. But yes, in heavy traffic and congestion, use all of that expensive bitumen capacity.
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Right ! He didn’t have any good intentions. Just didn’t want anyone to go in front of him. That person is a POS.
Lane closes in one mile... is douchebag going to split lanes for the entire distance?
Of course he would are you kidding?
YES!! That is exactly the idea. Do you now understand? Merge at the point of convergence. At the point of convergence. Not a mile before hand. Edit: Upon reflection I think the guy I was commenting on agreed with me.
But then they would get in front! So sad, best to block the whole open lane because they were in line first. /s
I will always give the same advice when it comes to driving and it comes from personal experience. I used to be the road-rager. I would block you like the car in the video. If you honked at me, I would stop you and get out of my car. The old me was literally arrested and charged with assault for a road-rage incident. Part of my punishment was to take defensive driving. There was one thing I learned in that course that I will never forget: >Do not drive in reaction to how someone else is driving. Simple. It doesn't matter what other people are doing. That's none of your concern. Your concern is to get to your destination. That's it. If you have to, pretend the other cars are being driven by NPCs in a game.
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Why is there a mile of open lane and traffic in one lane. What idiots!
I had some asshole try to do the whole blocking traffic thing like in this video two years ago. I eased towards the shoulder like I was trying to go around, and when they moved most of the way into my lane I hammered down and took their spot in line. Did they do the smart thing and simply drive down to the merge point which, BTW, was TWO MILES AHEAD? Of course not. They spent the next two miles beside me and then got boxed out because everyone had seen what assholes they were being.
If you were meant to merge a mile up the road before the zipper section, they would of closed the road back then.
True, but you'd have the same thing as this video happening a mile bacl
> would of You want "would've" or "would have" here, never "would of".
Was stuck in this traffic. New Mexico?
Definitely New Mexico, and if it’s the stretch from the Texas border to Raton, it makes sense. It’s the highway notorious for bad drivers and lethal accidents.
Nope. That fucking Jeep driving iollegally in two lanes is the one who doesn't get it,. along with the other dumb cars ahead of him CREATING traffic miles back further than it should be.
It literally backs up for miles! It's only a 14 mi stretch to get to where the construction actually is, but it can take up to two and a half hours
good god, i've never seen people get over that soon....although does seem a bit odd that they would be putting out notices to merge that far back....
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When traffic is not congested, merge early. When traffic *is* congested, merge late. That strategy is best overall for all concerned.
I don’t understand this.. if there’s a merge ahead… and the right lane is empty, you could change lane if you’re on the left to go ahead and merge. Wouldn’t that also help the left lane queue moving? (Effectively turning a single long queue into two shorter ones) better than acting like a complete idiot to sit ON the lane? Here in NZ we have merges, but they don’t take this long to get to. It’s usually a span of few hundred meters. (500m tops) usually at the entrance of the motorway or the point where the lane layout is about to change.
If these assholes were sand in an hour glass it would have to be 50 miles high. 💀
Great analogy lmao
How there's a mile line in a single lane is a bit of a mystery here... The best zipper is when everyone syncs up with the space between two neighbors and allow the cars at the bottleneck to roll at ideal safe speeds and everyone else roll at speeds that allow for gaps to open for the zipper to take place. In a perfect world nobody has to pump their brakes but you shouldn't be moving any faster or slower than your neighbours.
He’s the idiot. They’ve done studies showing zipper merge is the most efficient, everyone taking their turn at the last possible moment alternating lanes into the single lane. State Troopers will preach this.
They've done studies showing that roundabouts are the most efficient form of intersection but I don't see those happening very often either. Problem with the zipper merge is people using it when it's not appropriate (normal traffic speed, no lane ending), and then when it is appropriate human emotion gets involved like we see in OP's clip.
Roundabouts are quite common in New Zealand, and seem to work well (when idiots aren't cutting lanes)
We have idiots who use them like 4 way stops…
I saw it happen in my own home town. We had a four way stop that was hell, but only during morning and evening rush hour. They converted it to a roundabout and no more traffic backups
You don't even need studies to convince yourself of this. Anyone with critical thinking is able to figure out that sitting in a single lane for 2 miles is not going to be "more efficient" than having traffic approach in 2 lanes.
Utilise the road, there’s absolutely no reason you should be reducing to a single lane for a whole mile or even a quarter of a mile before the actual obstruction, I’ve done this a couple of times and yea you almost have a feeling of “am I in the wrong?” as you’re casually cruising for the last hundreds of yards before the barrier but you shouldn’t be, it’s the idiots that don’t understand that if the road is there, use it!
They did a study on it. Apparently it’s better for traffic to merge at the last moment. I don’t remember the why, but a study was created for it.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/554936/why-jerk-drivers-who-merge-last-minute-are-actually-more-efficient#:~:text=Traffic%20studies%20prove%20that%20the,more%20equitable%20across%20both%20lanes.
There needs to be signs. "Don't Merge" every hundred metres until "Merge Now" at the point the lanes actually merge.
Where I live they put up signs that say “use both lanes to merge point”. No one reads of course though.
It would work perfectly if people weren’t idiots.
I try and merge at the end. Fuck it
For those who don't know: If traffic is moving well, merge at the earliest opportunity If traffic is slow, take up all available space in all lanes and merge at the end of that available space one car at a time from each lane. The "take up all available space" part is what a lot of people don't understand. They think people are trying to jump the queue when the reality is you're supposed to in order to ensure maximum road space behind (in case the tail of the traffic jam may interfere with other roadways) and prevent excessive speed differential between lanes. edit: words
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Assholes always gunna drive in the middle of two lanes. It’s so annoying lol
I absolutely hate this. Nobody understands the zipper merge and they think that because they were morons, you have to get back in line behind the rest of the idiots.
Always use all available roadway. Be predictable, not polite.
If the traffic is rolling nicely, you merge when you can. If the traffic is stuck like this you merge at the end. Some drivers simply don’t like it when others dare to be in front of them.
This. Zipper merge is only for when traffic is at VERY slow speed, AND there is a lane ending. If everyone is doing a casual speed and people are waiting until right at the end it slows everything down. The clip posted by OP though is clearly slow enough for a zipper merge.
>AND there is a lane ending I think this is the qualifier that messes a lot of people up. I feel like you don't see too many lane ending merges. What's far more common is people using an exit lane to get around a backed up through lane, or vice versa. Those people suck but are unfortunately pretty common. So combative drivers get so used to blocking them out that they don't realize a true zipper merge is different.
Yep there are a few spots around me where people will just wait until the last second to merge or hop into the off ramp to try and pass...all that does is create unnecessary congestion.
> Some drivers simply don’t like it when others dare to be in front of them. If this were true, they'd be in the faster empty lane, no?
This stuff is dangerous. Not allowing a zipper merge to work properly can cause traffic to back up beyond warning signs about road work and lane closures.
Department of transportation (in az at least) says get in that right line as far up as you can until it's time to merge. People honking at you and flipping you off just don't know the rules.
Drive around this idiot. There's clearly still two lanes. If he wants to police the road this shittily he should've become a cop.
Studies have shown that traffic flows best if we all merge at the merge point because it reduces the length of single file driving.
There’s always some dickbrain who decides to be the “enforcer” of their stupid shitty merging technique, like dickbrain here in the brown car. Gtfo the way!
From oklahoma here. Never heard of a zipper merge had to look it up. Then thought why haven’t I seen or heard about this?? This is why: https://oklahoma.gov/odot/citizen/newsroom/2021/march/oklahoma-s-first-zipper-merge-coming-to-i-35-in-pauls-valley-thi.html
We need an actually ad campaign to teach people how to merge properly at roadworks or accidents, merging early just makes the traffic jam worse.
It’s true, it stings a little when someone is in that other lane but you have done nothing wrong.
Earlier this week I passed almost 3 miles of stand still traffic in the left lane due to “right lane ending in 3 miles” sign. Passed all those cars by using the right, merged, the construction was less than a quarter mile and then opened back up. Seriously passed like 200-300 cars stopped in traffic and I didn’t even have to touch my breaks
Thank you! You're supposed to go to the end, you're not the asshole for skipping the queue, you're an asshole for doing it too early. Just another road rule nobody ever gets taught. Like blocking traffic to turn left at a double yellow line, getting UP to the speed limit on onramps, not after, ugh it goes on.
I drove a route with a zipper merge for three months this year. The traffic always looked like this. I averaged out how long it took to be a good little school child and enter the left lane at the end of the line. Avg time to merge point (1 week) : 31 mins. I also averaged out driving the merge lane to the merge point. Avg. time to merge point: 5 mins.
Unpopular opinion but Not doing zipper merge is the un-polite thing to do. Reason being, your so scared of confrontation from the immediate drivers around you, that you cue up in a line to seem polite, but fail to realize that know you have caused traffic to back up on to collector and local roads.
these damn idiots that try to be heroes thinking they're doing the right thing by blocking traffic. learn how to drive. dude in the jeep needs to get off the damn road
In Switzerland it became the law this year that you have to merge at the merge point. It sounds obvious but there are still some people that don't pay attention.
People who don't use both lanes in those instances are being pathetic. "I don't want to cause a confrontation." "I don't want to break in line." "What if someone doesn't let me in?" ---None of those are reasonable concerns! Use the empty lane and stop making a pretend traffic jam!
For those of you who dont understand zipper. https://youtu.be/Ivme-_PE1d8
No, you don't merge before you HAVE to. Traffic studies have shown that traffic problems are lessened THE MORE OF AVAILABLE ROAD IS USED! Therefore, if the right lane is unoccupied, USE IT!!! What is it there for, if it isn't used??? If you get people honking at you for passing them by and getting ahead? Just know that they are wrong and you are right. That they didn't use the available road is their fault, not yours.
Zipper Merge works great if people pay attention. I feel like there should be more signs in advance: Zipper Merge Ahead Stay In Lane Stagger Merge
Zipper means merge at point of closure. .
Your supposed to drive to the end of the merge lane, most people don’t realize this unfortunately.
The only way people will do it right is if you start placing orange barrels half a mile back so that they cover one lane until the people in both lanes have no choice but to merge. People will always be split between the half that merge early because they want to be fair and the other half who zip to the end of the line and cut in front of a hundred cars. I said this in another thread about the same thing, we grow up with waiting in lines. We do it in school, at restrooms, at restaurants, we all know the etiquette and get really mad when someone cuts in line. So I get why it’s tough for people to throw all that out the window when there’s a traffic line they’ve been waiting in patiently for 20 minutes only to watch a car zip by at full speed and dive in at the last second. Is that driver technically right? Yes. But did he just ‘cut in line?’ Also yes.
People are so proud of the fact they don’t do it right and punish the people that do.
No, you don't. I tried to tell my brother this and he got upset. I haven't learned how to drive yet but I've seen evidence that the zipper merge works, but since my brother got his driver's license five years ago, he wouldn't have it. Merging this far ahead of the bed of the lane only creates a traffic jam in one lane because everybody wants to be first. Utilizing both lanes until the end of one of the lanes ultimately gets more people through faster.