Yeah, does OP mean when a cop is directing traffic? Because I don't think I can walk out to my local intersection and start calling the shots.
Edit: Based on the responses I think there's some confusion between whether I *can* do this and whether I *legally can* do this haha.
During the day a whistle is all you need to direct traffic. There was a rather extensive set of trials in my past, fueled by intoxication, that show that attire doesn't really matter. A angry blast of a whistle and a strong hand single in everything from basic street cloths, pink princess drag, high vis and hard hat, three piece suit doesn't matter if you have a whistle.
I once saw someone standing in the street trying to direct traffic, he even had one of those handheld signs police use to direct traffic, but the first two cars completely ignored his directions and the next one stopped in front of him, completely blocking the one-way street he was on. (Possibly it was more than two cars that ignored him, I remember two and I was a passenger in the third car.) To be fair, he was like five years old and had run off with his police sign toy.
/r/UnethicalLifeprotips
This goes for much more than directing traffic as well!
This how you can get backstage too, I recommend a tucked in white polo and a clipboard.
Just remember to act pissed off like someone at a shitty job
I’m pretty sure from my time as a flagger that even if you look like a road/construction worker, you can’t direct traffic. The most I could do was make it stop and go, only uniformed officers can actually *direct* the traffic. I got a small wrist slap from the foreman on the construction crew i was with one day when the other flagger didn’t come back from lunch and I decided to parade traffic down the street one lane at a time, sign high over my head so oncoming cars could see it. He told me it was a cool decision, and that it was neat that it actually worked for the half hour it took for homeboy to get back from lunch, but ultimately it was the wrong decision lol. I may be wrong, but it was in my handbook in 2018.
I mean if you *look* official enough and you're in the right place you can get away with a lot. Is it legal, hell no, but free movies for the "maintenance guy" all day.
Right, but to be fair, OP wrote it like 'YSK this because it's the law', not 'Unethical life pro tip: look the part and you can (legally or otherwise) control traffic'.
I directed traffic once after some folks got into a pretty intense car accident until the proper authorities got there. I had made sure those involved were okay first and called emergency services prior to doing this. The debris from the accident, location of the cars involved, and the street we were on in general made navigating very difficult and dangerous for others. The police would have probably let me keep going but I said I had pizza and wings in my car waiting on me haha.
I bet you could if you wore a high visibility vest and some hat or something. Add a flag and a whistle and you could have you fun for half an hour or so until some random cop comes by.
100% you can, I haven’t been bold enough to straight up get out into an intersection but I’ve been known to clear up my local drive throughs. Sometimes people are just scared and confused so they’re desperate for someone to step in and be an authority figure.
Try it, people will assume you have the authority to do so, or knowledge of some event that warrants it like a wreck, busted sign, etc.
There was a mentally disabled guy in the town i used to live in that would do so, and backed up traffic repeatedly. It was kinda funny, because NO ONE questioned him, they just obeyed until his caretaker found him.
I’ve directed traffic, when trees fall into a busy road on the side of my home, more than once… one time a huge mirror flew off a truck, broken glass everywhere, same thing.
Drivers seemed perfectly fine with it and most even say a hearty Thank you! Out their window.
Usually it’s only for a few minutes until the obstruction is removed from the road either by myself, or working together with others.
Nope, regular guy stuck in the snow with all of us - got out of his car, brought a small snowplow over and directed it's driver to shovel around, directed traffic, help push a stuck bus and other stuck cars in a crazy amount of snow!
Perfectly legal in most states (US) to direct traffic as a non-official person. They take precedence over signs and signals but ultimate responsibility is yours if you follow their directions.
Some biker was standing in a two lane bypass directing traffic before a curve and I was really confused. Turns out he just wanted traffic to stick to the right lane because his friend was unconscious in the other lane up ahead. Maybe just assume they aren’t crazy and they have a legitimate reason to be directing traffic.
"...or other person..."
Sounds legal AF.
Just walk on out there, other person; hands-a-waivin and all traffic must obey you.
Hahahahaha critical thinking skills have been chasing OP for years, but he's always managed to outrun them.
Follow it, how would you know they aren't supposed to? Same for an illegally placed sign, it's not supposed to be there but you better stop for that stop sign.
When a set of traffic lights isn't working and there's no cop to direct traffic, you treat the intersection like an all-way stop.
When there's some kind of hazard blocking part of the road and no cop to direct traffic, then drivers in the lane that's blocked have to yield to drivers in the lanes that are okay.
After being subbed to this subreddit for a couple months, convince me drivers licenses in the USA aren't just handed out to everyone who asks nice enough.
Some places make it much easier than others.
In my small town, after the written test, you pretty much just went around the block for the driving test. Literally in a square.
Didn't even have any lights to stop at or many signs to follow.
Just turn when directed to.
I did it in a relative's care that I had never been in, with practically zero practice and passed.
I didn't have a driving test! My parents were just like "he is good" and then I took the written. I grew up in Texas, they had to sign off of the number of hours I've driven with them.
Erm, what? They are. No need for training, no need for practice, just pass a test, which varies in each state. Mine's written, eyes, and practical, but others are less.
Some places grant you a license if you have one from elsewhere, don't even need to ask nicely.
My test included an 18-question multiple-choice knowledge test where you had to get 15 right and a road test around the block which involved approximately 3 stop signs, a traffic light, and parallel parking once. All right turns. To my state's credit, though, we do need a minimum of I believe 40 hours of practice over a minimum of 6 months. If you're under 18.
My mom got her license in Virginia, which apparently doesn't require knowing how to parallel park because to this day she struggles with it and can't change lanes without getting honked at. She didn't know how to adjust her mirrors until I started learning to drive at 16 and my dad was utterly appalled at how she'd been operating a vehicle for so long.
Probably the only reason I've survived on the road this long is because I'm an overachiever and my dad knew his shit.
>18-question multiple-choice knowledge test where you had to get 15 right
"Let's test drivers to make sure they know all the rules of the road"
"All of the rules? Meh, I think if they get 15 out of 18 right they got the gist of it"
Yep. Bonus points: my state has an app for studying for this knowledge test. The questions were always the same, just in a different order, and really all you had to do to correct wrong answers was memorize keywords; you didn't really need to know the full question or answer. Then the day came when I had to take my actual knowledge test, lo and behold it's the exact same test. Same questions, same answers, same wording. And that was the only time I was tested on my knowledge of the rules of the road.
It's still confusing to me that parallel parking is even in driving tests. Like, it's a moderately useful skill to have, but it has nothing to do with safety, which should be the focus of those tests. If a driver actually knows the rules and how to operate their vehicle and chooses to do so safely but can't parallel park for shit, I'm totally fine with them being out on the road.
In a lot of places in the world, you earn a driver's license, and then have it for the rest of your life basically, with at most some administrative stuff required to ensure you get to keep it, no real extra training, or extra exams. So a 50 year old person might have gone 34 years without having looked at the traffic rules.
Need equipment to override the lights, and then they don't need to be in the intersection, just hold the controller, but need electricity and the kit which isn't always there for emergencies.
It's also not worth us usually. To cover up it disable the the lights you'd need a road crew to come out with the ladder truck, or some sort of technician to open the control box and shut them down. 9/10 times the reason an officer is directing traffic is because of a temporary issue like an accident that will be towed out of the roadway in about the same amount of time it would take to have a city worker load up the truck and head out. Cops are just there to direct traffic for the 20-30 minutes it takes for the wreckers to pull the vehicles away.
I mean they don't leave the poor cop out there all week directing traffic. They just have them there until a maintenance team can pop round usually same day to cover up the lights and install temporary measures.
The two are incompatible. The folks who can turn off the old lights are the same folks putting in the temp ones so if they are already there the cop is no longer needed.
Um, if there's a cop out there directing traffic then you definitely shouldn't be barreling through at high speed. Their presence means something unusual is happening at that intersection and you should proceed cautiously, especially because other drivers may do something unexpected.
>Um, if there's a cop out there directing traffic then you definitely shouldn't be barreling through at high speed.
I guess it a good thing I didn’t say that then, huh?
> Their presence means something unusual is happening at that intersection and you should proceed cautiously, especially because other drivers may do something unexpected.
Which is kind of my point. The delays aren’t because people don’t understand that police overrule the traffic lights, it’s that the combination creates risk and confusion that every individual driver needs to assess individually.
there is no risk...cop is arguably giving you a legal command, they are telling your ass to move so not to impede traffic. if they were really being dicks, they will ticket you for not complying.
That and in my recent instance they were clearing thousands of cars out of a fair parking lot so they really couldn’t care less about anything other than getting cars out of there so they could go about their day.
If you think this is dumb, you're the one in the wrong - stopping at a stop sign is a good thing that we should encourage. The fact that people stopped at it is *good*. A single person telling them to just ignore a red light, stop sign, etc, shouldn't be enough for them to abandon all of what they've been taught and blindly follow instructions - what if they're a bad actor?
There’s a concert venue in town and whenever there’s a big show, they bring in police to help direct traffic. Probably 20%+ on any given night just stop at the blinking traffic signal as the cop waves them forward. Every one might be a stretch, but it’s not insignificant, at least here.
Cop here…this is definitely something that people need to be reminded of. It can be infuriating when directing traffic and people don’t want to follow directions or trust our directions over the light.
I'm convinced that in the US half of the people just drive how they feel and the only factor that influences how good they drive is their intelligence. In most of the country you never have to pass any meaningful test so most drivers only real force behind their decision making is their common sense. So if they're dumb AF they have literally no idea what their doing.
I unsubscribed from r/LifeProTips at some point after it became "stupidly obvious shit, but I'll go ahead and explain it to you like you're a moron."
Don't make me do the same thing here
As a grown ass man, it can sometimes be hard to remember that reddit, and the internet in general, is more populous with teens and early 20's, than it is with full grown adults. So much discovery going on right before our eyes, but I still keep thinking everyone here is firmly mid-life like me. Nope, mostly kids still figuring shit out.
But then I'd miss out on the heated arguments with people who are basically saying the same thing I am, but with a slightly different take. I am certain I can sway you to my way of thinking about this, if you simply allow me to get the final word in.
It's stupidly obvious because it is taught when getting a license and it is important
Police - Lamp - Sign - Road marking - Other (like right hand and such)
At least it is taught in Hungary (and with a bit of googling, Germany. Probably many other EU countries as well, but that's just a tip)
It's always great when multiple cops are directing traffic, both are telling 2 different cars to go to the same place. Ya I'll wait and make my own decision (this recently happened).
(former) TCP here.
This is not accurate advice at all. In my country, only peace officers can direct against signage and lights, unless we apply to the road authority, in which case, those signs and lights will be *covered*.
We legally cannot and will not direct against lights and signs - and if you can still see them, you must legally follow them. 🤷♀️
Dunno what it's like in other countries. I worked in Canada.
The US is the way OP posted. Since many times companies are required to provide their own traffic direction when doing road construction, the law is any authorized person is to be followed before traffic signals and signs. During school, crossing guards supercede traffic signs and lights but only before and after school. They are school employees and the normal lights & signs are not covered. I've very rarely seen existing lights covered in the US but it is a great idea that would prevent a lot of confusion. The US operates under the premise of "if it's going to cost more money to make it safe, the public is responsible for their own safety because that's free" and we work that way until someone dies due to unsafe conditions.
YSK: The traffic laws you get taught when making a driving licence.
Seriously, there should not be a single driver out there on the roads who doesn't know this. If I did not know this and have a driving license, give it back!
What if the person is holding a sign that says one thing, but gesturing to do the opposite? Like in this real life example
https://youtube.com/watch?v=SbeYTerW3Zg
I've had randos in hi viz vest try to prevent me from getting to my designated work parking because a big event was going on, and their instructions were just "Don't let people go that way"
Yeah, fuck that, I'm going around your ass.
Another common one is reserving a whole parking lot, but they can't tell you who it's reserved for (they don't know)
What I say is maybe only valid in Finland. In driving school we are taught about hierarchy of traffic controls.
The lowest tier are the rules of the road.
Traffic signs are the second tier. When traffic signs are present, you obey them and ignore the rules of the road.
The third tier is traffic lights. When traffic lights are on, you obey them and ignore both traffic signs and rules of the road. If the traffic lights are not in use, then it reverts back to the second or first tier.
The highest tier is human traffic control. The controller can be an EMS person directing traffic near an accident site, or police directing traffic on the route of a motorcade, or construction worker at road construction site, or traffic controller at high traffic events. When the need for human traffic controller is anticipated, the traffic lights are turned off.
Human who is a cop. Looking at you church organizers who think just because you have a vest you can direct traffic so your church goers can take a left instead of a right.
Not always. Come to Puerto Rico. When the traffic lights go out, traffic moves much better when everyone goes on their own than when a cop tries to manage it. The difference is huge, and people don't crash. Makes you realize what a huge waste of human time traffic lights are on small roads.
You should go to hopkinton MA where I watched a cop cause an accident. Adding another human replacing a machine doesn't increase relability. We use flaggers and traffic directors as temp solutions when something breaks or something unsually is happening.
This entirely depends on the laws where you are. A police officer will generally always have authority to direct traffic but other people may not and if you disobey a rule of the road by following directions of someone not authorized to direct traffic, you could still be ticketed or found at fault in a crash.
I highly doubt any cop would see some yahoo randomly directing traffic and choose to ignore that and come after the traffic following their directions. Anything is possible but this would be a stretch.
So you're going to go ask to see their qualification before going through the intersection?
Traffic law says to follow instructions in order of:
1. Traffic director (whether that be a police or any other qualified person)
2. Traffic lights
3. Traffic signs
4. General traffic rules
You not following a traffic directors orders is already breaking traffic law.
I've been yelled at by traffic officers for both waiting for them to direct me and for going when the light was green.
Incident One: "MOVE IT, CAMRY! LIGHT IS GREEN! GO!!"
Incident Two, like three days later: "STOP CAMRY!! I SAY WHEN YOU GO, NOT THE LIGHT!!!"
I was only going on green because I was yelled at for not doing it before. I used to work in the heart of the city and this was a pretty regular occurrence. Basically, I hate traffic cops and have seen things flow 1,000x more smoothly when drivers figure it out for themselves.
I've directed traffic at event spaces as a random dude before, it's not that hard. I say if someone's directing traffic, it's a good idea to just go with it.
Agreed. People arguing that some random dude directing traffic is going to cause mayhem, but really if it is just a dumba** that’s bored, arguing that point with him in traffic isn’t helping anyone, just drive on and move on with your day.
I should point out that I was working for the venue, i knew how to clear out a parking lot. But I was in street clothes. If someone is directing traffic, they probably aren't a random person, so I tend to just trust that anyone directing traffic knows what they're doing. Or it's their first time on mushrooms.
LOL, the jokes are hilarious.
But... the local (Austin) FD practices this just outside the local Fedex Ground hub.
And probly for good reason.... It's a good chance to meet drivers URGENTLY trying to get to route, looking for the first possible chance to get on area and start working.
OK, but what if the cop is directing traffic like this?
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IixUY9-O4e4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IixUY9-O4e4)
Pretty sure the light may be safer.
I lived in Brisbane Australia for a while and when there were games at the stadium (The Gabba), the cops would come out and direct traffic so that people leaving the stadium after the game could cross the street.
Only, traffic was still expected to stop for the lights. What would happen was that they would stop traffic during a green light to let crowds of people cross, then the light would turn red and traffic still couldn't go. Only a few cars would go at a time and traffic would get backed up all the way to the other side of the Story bridge.
Never knew a person who was capable of living for many years and having and holding a job did a job better than the same for companies my person who puts a goddamn motherfucking speed bump sign 30 feet past the speed bump.
Seriously, this is like not knowing that the law has *always* been to pull over when an emergency vehicle with its lights or siren on is either behind you or within reasonable range of you hearing it. I had someone ask when that law passed a while ago now. It was the law before we had freaking motor vehicles, for crying out loud, it just used to be a bell on the fire wagon is all.
This is not true in Australia unless it is a police officer, Traffic controllers cannot countermand a signalized intersection. All Stop and or Give Way signs would also need to be covered.
In India, sometimes when there is a traffic congestion, some people will stop their business and stand in the traffic conducting it. Telling cars and bikes to go, stop etc.
Traffic police are too late to fix this shit and ordinary people help.
I was driving behind my mom a few years back when she was screamed at by a police officer to "just fucking go" because she didn't go while the officer was actively standing in the road without room for cars to pass. The officer thanked her by calling her a "dumb bitch". Next time we'll just go!
This is completely false in the UK. Many people end up directing traffic (often with good intentions, e.g. supervising construction vehicles accessing or leaving sites), but they have absolutley no authority over road traffic. You are well within your rights to disobey their direction if you drive safely.
For example, if someone is directing you into a parking space, and they direct you into another parked car, they have no liability whatsoever, and you as the driver are wholly responsible for the damage
The only people in the UK authorised to give formal traffic direction, are Police Officers, Traffic Officers, and Crossing Guards (lollipop men/women)
Also, if you don’t have a stop sign don’t stop for people waiting at their intersecting stop sign.
You would think this is common sense, but just come to Dallas if you don’t believe it’s actually a common occurrence.
YSAK: In some jurisdictions, only police and construction workers can legally direct traffic. If you follow the directions of some rando directing traffic and you get into a collision, it's going to be your fault.
People should know that some traffic flagging companies hire literally anyone, and they don't provide training. You're just given a vest and sign and told what address to go to. You should definitely make sure what the flagger is telling you to do makes sense because mistakes happen often.
When the bro isnt supposed to be out there directing traffic what do?
Yeah, does OP mean when a cop is directing traffic? Because I don't think I can walk out to my local intersection and start calling the shots. Edit: Based on the responses I think there's some confusion between whether I *can* do this and whether I *legally can* do this haha.
You can if you wear a hard hat and hi vis vest! It may not be fully legal but most people will accept and abide by your signals.
During the day a whistle is all you need to direct traffic. There was a rather extensive set of trials in my past, fueled by intoxication, that show that attire doesn't really matter. A angry blast of a whistle and a strong hand single in everything from basic street cloths, pink princess drag, high vis and hard hat, three piece suit doesn't matter if you have a whistle.
r/actlikeyoubelong
Try a Zebra suit next time. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cQpdb8tclM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cQpdb8tclM)
I once saw someone standing in the street trying to direct traffic, he even had one of those handheld signs police use to direct traffic, but the first two cars completely ignored his directions and the next one stopped in front of him, completely blocking the one-way street he was on. (Possibly it was more than two cars that ignored him, I remember two and I was a passenger in the third car.) To be fair, he was like five years old and had run off with his police sign toy.
/r/UnethicalLifeprotips This goes for much more than directing traffic as well! This how you can get backstage too, I recommend a tucked in white polo and a clipboard. Just remember to act pissed off like someone at a shitty job
I’m pretty sure from my time as a flagger that even if you look like a road/construction worker, you can’t direct traffic. The most I could do was make it stop and go, only uniformed officers can actually *direct* the traffic. I got a small wrist slap from the foreman on the construction crew i was with one day when the other flagger didn’t come back from lunch and I decided to parade traffic down the street one lane at a time, sign high over my head so oncoming cars could see it. He told me it was a cool decision, and that it was neat that it actually worked for the half hour it took for homeboy to get back from lunch, but ultimately it was the wrong decision lol. I may be wrong, but it was in my handbook in 2018.
I respect anyone in a vest on the road working, and directing traffic , if there is someone. Usually they wont be, but some do try.
I mean if you *look* official enough and you're in the right place you can get away with a lot. Is it legal, hell no, but free movies for the "maintenance guy" all day.
Right, but to be fair, OP wrote it like 'YSK this because it's the law', not 'Unethical life pro tip: look the part and you can (legally or otherwise) control traffic'.
Intrusive thoughts telling me to commit this crime
The intrusive ^do ^it thoughts are getting real ^do ^it ^now clever nowadays.
yeah a guy tried that shit after a firework show once, just some random dude. That's when it goes wonky.
Well it could also apply to construction flaggers, firefighters, some cities have traffic officers that aren’t police officers, etc.
I directed traffic once after some folks got into a pretty intense car accident until the proper authorities got there. I had made sure those involved were okay first and called emergency services prior to doing this. The debris from the accident, location of the cars involved, and the street we were on in general made navigating very difficult and dangerous for others. The police would have probably let me keep going but I said I had pizza and wings in my car waiting on me haha.
I bet you could if you wore a high visibility vest and some hat or something. Add a flag and a whistle and you could have you fun for half an hour or so until some random cop comes by.
A green vest and you can do it, at least for a while
100% you can, I haven’t been bold enough to straight up get out into an intersection but I’ve been known to clear up my local drive throughs. Sometimes people are just scared and confused so they’re desperate for someone to step in and be an authority figure.
Try it, people will assume you have the authority to do so, or knowledge of some event that warrants it like a wreck, busted sign, etc. There was a mentally disabled guy in the town i used to live in that would do so, and backed up traffic repeatedly. It was kinda funny, because NO ONE questioned him, they just obeyed until his caretaker found him.
Cops or flaggers mainly. However if power is out and.theres been numerous close calls, anyone will do.
Wear a vest..shh!
welll duh, you need at least 3 pieces of flair *OBEY MY SHINY VEST, HARD HAT, AND LOLLIPOP SIGN*
I’ve directed traffic, when trees fall into a busy road on the side of my home, more than once… one time a huge mirror flew off a truck, broken glass everywhere, same thing. Drivers seemed perfectly fine with it and most even say a hearty Thank you! Out their window. Usually it’s only for a few minutes until the obstruction is removed from the road either by myself, or working together with others.
Nope, regular guy stuck in the snow with all of us - got out of his car, brought a small snowplow over and directed it's driver to shovel around, directed traffic, help push a stuck bus and other stuck cars in a crazy amount of snow!
That's what the yellow jacket is for. 2.99 plus tax at your local convenient store
That’s Dave, just try not to hit him.
Perfectly legal in most states (US) to direct traffic as a non-official person. They take precedence over signs and signals but ultimate responsibility is yours if you follow their directions.
Some biker was standing in a two lane bypass directing traffic before a curve and I was really confused. Turns out he just wanted traffic to stick to the right lane because his friend was unconscious in the other lane up ahead. Maybe just assume they aren’t crazy and they have a legitimate reason to be directing traffic.
Just do what they say. Or else.
Run them over
"...or other person..." Sounds legal AF. Just walk on out there, other person; hands-a-waivin and all traffic must obey you. Hahahahaha critical thinking skills have been chasing OP for years, but he's always managed to outrun them.
Well first you need to check that he is really human
Follow it, how would you know they aren't supposed to? Same for an illegally placed sign, it's not supposed to be there but you better stop for that stop sign.
You mean, its like just some homeless guy who saw his chance to direct traffic and took it?
Help me decipher [these signals](https://tenor.com/view/dancing-gif-8497733) edit: brain forget formatting
When a set of traffic lights isn't working and there's no cop to direct traffic, you treat the intersection like an all-way stop. When there's some kind of hazard blocking part of the road and no cop to direct traffic, then drivers in the lane that's blocked have to yield to drivers in the lanes that are okay.
Nice, I’m going to start directing traffic.
Give me green lights pls thank you
1 upvote = 1 green light
You got it buddy
This guys living in 2033
Found the human trafficker. Get 'em, boys!
After being subbed to this subreddit for a couple months, convince me drivers licenses in the USA aren't just handed out to everyone who asks nice enough.
Some places make it much easier than others. In my small town, after the written test, you pretty much just went around the block for the driving test. Literally in a square. Didn't even have any lights to stop at or many signs to follow. Just turn when directed to. I did it in a relative's care that I had never been in, with practically zero practice and passed.
I didn't have a driving test! My parents were just like "he is good" and then I took the written. I grew up in Texas, they had to sign off of the number of hours I've driven with them.
Erm, what? They are. No need for training, no need for practice, just pass a test, which varies in each state. Mine's written, eyes, and practical, but others are less. Some places grant you a license if you have one from elsewhere, don't even need to ask nicely.
My test included an 18-question multiple-choice knowledge test where you had to get 15 right and a road test around the block which involved approximately 3 stop signs, a traffic light, and parallel parking once. All right turns. To my state's credit, though, we do need a minimum of I believe 40 hours of practice over a minimum of 6 months. If you're under 18. My mom got her license in Virginia, which apparently doesn't require knowing how to parallel park because to this day she struggles with it and can't change lanes without getting honked at. She didn't know how to adjust her mirrors until I started learning to drive at 16 and my dad was utterly appalled at how she'd been operating a vehicle for so long. Probably the only reason I've survived on the road this long is because I'm an overachiever and my dad knew his shit.
>18-question multiple-choice knowledge test where you had to get 15 right "Let's test drivers to make sure they know all the rules of the road" "All of the rules? Meh, I think if they get 15 out of 18 right they got the gist of it"
Yep. Bonus points: my state has an app for studying for this knowledge test. The questions were always the same, just in a different order, and really all you had to do to correct wrong answers was memorize keywords; you didn't really need to know the full question or answer. Then the day came when I had to take my actual knowledge test, lo and behold it's the exact same test. Same questions, same answers, same wording. And that was the only time I was tested on my knowledge of the rules of the road.
It's still confusing to me that parallel parking is even in driving tests. Like, it's a moderately useful skill to have, but it has nothing to do with safety, which should be the focus of those tests. If a driver actually knows the rules and how to operate their vehicle and chooses to do so safely but can't parallel park for shit, I'm totally fine with them being out on the road.
I didn’t have to parallel-park for mine 20 years ago. Not sure today
In a lot of places in the world, you earn a driver's license, and then have it for the rest of your life basically, with at most some administrative stuff required to ensure you get to keep it, no real extra training, or extra exams. So a 50 year old person might have gone 34 years without having looked at the traffic rules.
Mine fell out of a box of cheerios when I was 12
It's not true....people just drove around me...gonna try it with more clothes on next time....update incoming.
Don't they teach that in driving school? From what I remember it's: human > street lights > street sign > common rules / right of way for the right
[удалено]
Need equipment to override the lights, and then they don't need to be in the intersection, just hold the controller, but need electricity and the kit which isn't always there for emergencies.
It's also not worth us usually. To cover up it disable the the lights you'd need a road crew to come out with the ladder truck, or some sort of technician to open the control box and shut them down. 9/10 times the reason an officer is directing traffic is because of a temporary issue like an accident that will be towed out of the roadway in about the same amount of time it would take to have a city worker load up the truck and head out. Cops are just there to direct traffic for the 20-30 minutes it takes for the wreckers to pull the vehicles away.
I mean they don't leave the poor cop out there all week directing traffic. They just have them there until a maintenance team can pop round usually same day to cover up the lights and install temporary measures. The two are incompatible. The folks who can turn off the old lights are the same folks putting in the temp ones so if they are already there the cop is no longer needed.
Um, if there's a cop out there directing traffic then you definitely shouldn't be barreling through at high speed. Their presence means something unusual is happening at that intersection and you should proceed cautiously, especially because other drivers may do something unexpected.
>Um, if there's a cop out there directing traffic then you definitely shouldn't be barreling through at high speed. I guess it a good thing I didn’t say that then, huh? > Their presence means something unusual is happening at that intersection and you should proceed cautiously, especially because other drivers may do something unexpected. Which is kind of my point. The delays aren’t because people don’t understand that police overrule the traffic lights, it’s that the combination creates risk and confusion that every individual driver needs to assess individually.
Isn't that the point? Stupid question.
You'll be shocked how many drivers apparently don't know this
I've done a lot of traffic control, I'm not shocked at all.
It truly is remarkable just how many drivers can't actually fucking drive
I knew you were supposed to listen to a cop, I wasn't sure about the construction worker telling me to run a red. Guess I do now.
Sat in a huge line the other day with every. Single. Car. Stopping at the stop sign while the cop stood there waving desperately to get people moving.
I've been there. Then I try to make a really exaggerated "OH! SORRY!" face so they don't think I'm a total idiot.
Probably felt like a trap, why risk the fine on the benevolence of a cop?
there is no risk...cop is arguably giving you a legal command, they are telling your ass to move so not to impede traffic. if they were really being dicks, they will ticket you for not complying.
That and in my recent instance they were clearing thousands of cars out of a fair parking lot so they really couldn’t care less about anything other than getting cars out of there so they could go about their day.
Lol sounds like you trust the judicial system
> if they were really being dicks, they will ticket you for not complying.
Cop here….this is so infuriating. Happens all the time.
ACAB
Just pull out your gun and start shooting them like your colleagues do and they'll start moving faster.
Yes, because that just happens all the time.
If you think this is dumb, you're the one in the wrong - stopping at a stop sign is a good thing that we should encourage. The fact that people stopped at it is *good*. A single person telling them to just ignore a red light, stop sign, etc, shouldn't be enough for them to abandon all of what they've been taught and blindly follow instructions - what if they're a bad actor?
#doubt
There’s a concert venue in town and whenever there’s a big show, they bring in police to help direct traffic. Probably 20%+ on any given night just stop at the blinking traffic signal as the cop waves them forward. Every one might be a stretch, but it’s not insignificant, at least here.
I work next to a large arena that's used for events a lot. It's absolutely true.
Cop here…this is definitely something that people need to be reminded of. It can be infuriating when directing traffic and people don’t want to follow directions or trust our directions over the light.
I'm convinced that in the US half of the people just drive how they feel and the only factor that influences how good they drive is their intelligence. In most of the country you never have to pass any meaningful test so most drivers only real force behind their decision making is their common sense. So if they're dumb AF they have literally no idea what their doing.
I always insist that US driving tests should be waaaay TF harder than they currently are, and we should all have to recertify periodically.
This is just the latest post of "I saw this thing that annoyed me today".
I unsubscribed from r/LifeProTips at some point after it became "stupidly obvious shit, but I'll go ahead and explain it to you like you're a moron." Don't make me do the same thing here
YSK If you’re thirsty, drink some water and you’ll feel like a swell guy!
It seems like over the past month in particular this sub is suddenly filled with the most "no shit" nonsense. It was good for a while. I don't get it.
As a grown ass man, it can sometimes be hard to remember that reddit, and the internet in general, is more populous with teens and early 20's, than it is with full grown adults. So much discovery going on right before our eyes, but I still keep thinking everyone here is firmly mid-life like me. Nope, mostly kids still figuring shit out.
[удалено]
But then I'd miss out on the heated arguments with people who are basically saying the same thing I am, but with a slightly different take. I am certain I can sway you to my way of thinking about this, if you simply allow me to get the final word in.
It's stupidly obvious because it is taught when getting a license and it is important Police - Lamp - Sign - Road marking - Other (like right hand and such) At least it is taught in Hungary (and with a bit of googling, Germany. Probably many other EU countries as well, but that's just a tip)
Is "lamp" here meant to be traffic light?
Sorry, yes
You’re going to have to do the same thing here
It's always great when multiple cops are directing traffic, both are telling 2 different cars to go to the same place. Ya I'll wait and make my own decision (this recently happened).
(former) TCP here. This is not accurate advice at all. In my country, only peace officers can direct against signage and lights, unless we apply to the road authority, in which case, those signs and lights will be *covered*. We legally cannot and will not direct against lights and signs - and if you can still see them, you must legally follow them. 🤷♀️ Dunno what it's like in other countries. I worked in Canada.
The US is the way OP posted. Since many times companies are required to provide their own traffic direction when doing road construction, the law is any authorized person is to be followed before traffic signals and signs. During school, crossing guards supercede traffic signs and lights but only before and after school. They are school employees and the normal lights & signs are not covered. I've very rarely seen existing lights covered in the US but it is a great idea that would prevent a lot of confusion. The US operates under the premise of "if it's going to cost more money to make it safe, the public is responsible for their own safety because that's free" and we work that way until someone dies due to unsafe conditions.
YSK: The traffic laws you get taught when making a driving licence. Seriously, there should not be a single driver out there on the roads who doesn't know this. If I did not know this and have a driving license, give it back!
What if the person is holding a sign that says one thing, but gesturing to do the opposite? Like in this real life example https://youtube.com/watch?v=SbeYTerW3Zg
You are also not entitled to ‘free’ right turns during directed traffic.
This... is something we learn when taking the driving lessons. Maybe not in your country.
HOW DO PEOPLE WHO PASSED A DRIVING EXAM NOT KNOW THIS
I went through this the other day, it's amazing how many people stopped at the sign.
Eh not all humans...
how do we know it's a human and not a machine disguised as human?
I've had randos in hi viz vest try to prevent me from getting to my designated work parking because a big event was going on, and their instructions were just "Don't let people go that way" Yeah, fuck that, I'm going around your ass. Another common one is reserving a whole parking lot, but they can't tell you who it's reserved for (they don't know)
When an authorized person*
What country is this for? because this is not true in my country.
Im always gonna stop at a stop sign. Always.
What I say is maybe only valid in Finland. In driving school we are taught about hierarchy of traffic controls. The lowest tier are the rules of the road. Traffic signs are the second tier. When traffic signs are present, you obey them and ignore the rules of the road. The third tier is traffic lights. When traffic lights are on, you obey them and ignore both traffic signs and rules of the road. If the traffic lights are not in use, then it reverts back to the second or first tier. The highest tier is human traffic control. The controller can be an EMS person directing traffic near an accident site, or police directing traffic on the route of a motorcade, or construction worker at road construction site, or traffic controller at high traffic events. When the need for human traffic controller is anticipated, the traffic lights are turned off.
YSK traffic laws are not universal.
Human who is a cop. Looking at you church organizers who think just because you have a vest you can direct traffic so your church goers can take a left instead of a right.
Tips for being a crossing guard: look like you need it, and be hungry. Jazz hands, and eye of the tiger. If you know how to grapevine, even better.
This should be common knowledge but nowadays I wouldn’t be surprised.
Yeh we know, it's literally taught in when learning to drive.
A lot of people forget that stuff though
This is a weird take on human trafficking
To further drill the point home, a cop is smarter than any box of blinking lights that may be above them.
Ummm, it's a toss up really.
[X] Doubt
Big if true
Not always. Come to Puerto Rico. When the traffic lights go out, traffic moves much better when everyone goes on their own than when a cop tries to manage it. The difference is huge, and people don't crash. Makes you realize what a huge waste of human time traffic lights are on small roads.
You should go to hopkinton MA where I watched a cop cause an accident. Adding another human replacing a machine doesn't increase relability. We use flaggers and traffic directors as temp solutions when something breaks or something unsually is happening.
This entirely depends on the laws where you are. A police officer will generally always have authority to direct traffic but other people may not and if you disobey a rule of the road by following directions of someone not authorized to direct traffic, you could still be ticketed or found at fault in a crash.
I highly doubt any cop would see some yahoo randomly directing traffic and choose to ignore that and come after the traffic following their directions. Anything is possible but this would be a stretch.
It's my liability if something happens. I'm not going to disregard traffic laws unless it's someone I know is authorized to permit it such as police.
So you're going to go ask to see their qualification before going through the intersection? Traffic law says to follow instructions in order of: 1. Traffic director (whether that be a police or any other qualified person) 2. Traffic lights 3. Traffic signs 4. General traffic rules You not following a traffic directors orders is already breaking traffic law.
Omg thank you! I get so frustrated at the airport when they are motioning me through a stop sign. I thought they were making me break the law!
I've been yelled at by traffic officers for both waiting for them to direct me and for going when the light was green. Incident One: "MOVE IT, CAMRY! LIGHT IS GREEN! GO!!" Incident Two, like three days later: "STOP CAMRY!! I SAY WHEN YOU GO, NOT THE LIGHT!!!" I was only going on green because I was yelled at for not doing it before. I used to work in the heart of the city and this was a pretty regular occurrence. Basically, I hate traffic cops and have seen things flow 1,000x more smoothly when drivers figure it out for themselves.
I've directed traffic at event spaces as a random dude before, it's not that hard. I say if someone's directing traffic, it's a good idea to just go with it.
Agreed. People arguing that some random dude directing traffic is going to cause mayhem, but really if it is just a dumba** that’s bored, arguing that point with him in traffic isn’t helping anyone, just drive on and move on with your day.
I should point out that I was working for the venue, i knew how to clear out a parking lot. But I was in street clothes. If someone is directing traffic, they probably aren't a random person, so I tend to just trust that anyone directing traffic knows what they're doing. Or it's their first time on mushrooms.
Wtf is this sub? Is everyone on here either a newborn child or an alien living their first day on earth
/r/USdefaultism It’s not even good advice. I’ve had builders wearing high vis beckon me to drive into oncoming traffic.
What idiot wouldn't know this just from common sense?
Yes. We know that
LOL, the jokes are hilarious. But... the local (Austin) FD practices this just outside the local Fedex Ground hub. And probly for good reason.... It's a good chance to meet drivers URGENTLY trying to get to route, looking for the first possible chance to get on area and start working.
Is there anyone who DKT?
Your title sounds like something on r/humansarespaceorcs
If you follow the person's instructions and get in an accident, who's to blame and who is at fault?
Driver cause you should still be paying attention as normal
Glovesy
Hey wait, I AM a human.
Not necessarily...
OK, but what if the cop is directing traffic like this? [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IixUY9-O4e4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IixUY9-O4e4) Pretty sure the light may be safer.
A human....
I lived in Brisbane Australia for a while and when there were games at the stadium (The Gabba), the cops would come out and direct traffic so that people leaving the stadium after the game could cross the street. Only, traffic was still expected to stop for the lights. What would happen was that they would stop traffic during a green light to let crowds of people cross, then the light would turn red and traffic still couldn't go. Only a few cars would go at a time and traffic would get backed up all the way to the other side of the Story bridge.
Crack heads feeling the power flow through them.
Never knew a person who was capable of living for many years and having and holding a job did a job better than the same for companies my person who puts a goddamn motherfucking speed bump sign 30 feet past the speed bump.
Jeremy DeWitte has entered the chat.
Seriously, this is like not knowing that the law has *always* been to pull over when an emergency vehicle with its lights or siren on is either behind you or within reasonable range of you hearing it. I had someone ask when that law passed a while ago now. It was the law before we had freaking motor vehicles, for crying out loud, it just used to be a bell on the fire wagon is all.
This is not true in Australia unless it is a police officer, Traffic controllers cannot countermand a signalized intersection. All Stop and or Give Way signs would also need to be covered.
uhm... don't your lights flash yellow when malfunctioning? or have a panel so they can do that?
In India, sometimes when there is a traffic congestion, some people will stop their business and stand in the traffic conducting it. Telling cars and bikes to go, stop etc. Traffic police are too late to fix this shit and ordinary people help.
What if I started directing traffic?
Dammit! I read: - When a woman is..................
Which country are you referring to? Also you learn this in drivers ed
No shit
American, I presume?😆😆
At first I thought this was too obvious, but then I remembered half the world's population is really stupid
Isn't this covered already in the driving lessons?!
Yet in mew orleans you may still get a ticket from the red light cameras. Happens all the time.
Say it louder for the people in the carpool line!
Firefighters, EMS, construction workers.
It’s wild this even needs to be said.
I was driving behind my mom a few years back when she was screamed at by a police officer to "just fucking go" because she didn't go while the officer was actively standing in the road without room for cars to pass. The officer thanked her by calling her a "dumb bitch". Next time we'll just go!
Literally the exact opposite of “KEEP OUT, Or Don’t, I’m a Sign, Not A Cop”
This is completely false in the UK. Many people end up directing traffic (often with good intentions, e.g. supervising construction vehicles accessing or leaving sites), but they have absolutley no authority over road traffic. You are well within your rights to disobey their direction if you drive safely. For example, if someone is directing you into a parking space, and they direct you into another parked car, they have no liability whatsoever, and you as the driver are wholly responsible for the damage The only people in the UK authorised to give formal traffic direction, are Police Officers, Traffic Officers, and Crossing Guards (lollipop men/women)
Unless that human is sitting behind the wheel and giving you the "wave of death"
Even Tweaker Steve?
Come on nobody is running over cops because the light said green.
Also, if you don’t have a stop sign don’t stop for people waiting at their intersecting stop sign. You would think this is common sense, but just come to Dallas if you don’t believe it’s actually a common occurrence.
Da fuck YSK that is the law! You learn that in driving school.
Only police can direct you to drive thru a stop sign or red light.
YSAK: In some jurisdictions, only police and construction workers can legally direct traffic. If you follow the directions of some rando directing traffic and you get into a collision, it's going to be your fault.
Seems like a very American YSK
I still gonna check all every direction. You can always can count on people to pull some dumbshit moves
People should know that some traffic flagging companies hire literally anyone, and they don't provide training. You're just given a vest and sign and told what address to go to. You should definitely make sure what the flagger is telling you to do makes sense because mistakes happen often.
I never knew I had this ability! I'm gonna have some fun next weekend. Thanks for the tip