rob@osiris.UUCP (Robert St. Amant) (05/01/85)
Thank you for your informative flames. Okay, no more net baiting. It looks like my original unqualified posting was wrong (in most states.) Here is the situation I have questions about. I'm in the center lane, which is packed. We're all moving about 50 mph. I pull out to pass at 55 mph, and someone roars up behind me. If there is no room to move over, for maybe a minute or two, what do I do? Do I speed up, or slow down to take my original spot back, if possible? This is the situation in which I take the position that I can stay in the fast lane as long as it takes ME to pass. Still wrong? Then what do I do? Rob St. Amant (oh.) ...!seismo!umcp-cs!aplvax!osiris!rob
mag@whuxlm.UUCP (Gray Michael A) (05/04/85)
> Here is the situation I have questions about. I'm in the center lane, > which is packed. We're all moving about 50 mph. I pull out to pass at > 55 mph, and someone roars up behind me. If there is no room to move over, > for maybe a minute or two, what do I do? Do I speed up, or slow down to > take my original spot back, if possible? This is the situation in which > I take the position that I can stay in the fast lane as long as it takes > ME to pass. Still wrong? Then what do I do? > > Rob St. Amant > As long as you are really passing, you are doing the right thing in my book. Mike Gray
ugzannin@sunybcs.UUCP (Adrian Zannin) (05/05/85)
Rob St. Amant writes: > Here is the situation I have questions about. I'm in the center lane, > which is packed. We're all moving about 50 mph. I pull out to pass at > 55 mph, and someone roars up behind me. If there is no room to move over, > for maybe a minute or two, what do I do? Do I speed up, or slow down to > take my original spot back, if possible? This is the situation in which > I take the position that I can stay in the fast lane as long as it takes > ME to pass. Still wrong? Then what do I do? Well, Rob (this is not a flame, so don't worry), If this happens to you, then the action I would take is to speed up. At least in New York State, you are allowed to exceed the speed limit when passing another vehicle. Once you commit yourself to passing, it would be very dangerous to slow down again in the fast lane, especially if someone roars up behind you. Just speed up until you find a hole and then pop into it. -- Adrian Zannin ..{burdvax,rocksvax,bbncca,decvax,dual,rocksanne,watmath}!sunybcs!ugzannin BITNET: CS24173@SUNYABVA
res@ihuxn.UUCP (Rich Strebendt) (05/06/85)
> Here is the situation I have questions about. I'm in the center lane, > which is packed. We're all moving about 50 mph. I pull out to pass at > 55 mph, and someone roars up behind me. If there is no room to move over, > for maybe a minute or two, what do I do? Do I speed up, or slow down to > take my original spot back, if possible? This is the situation in which > I take the position that I can stay in the fast lane as long as it takes > ME to pass. Still wrong? Then what do I do? Having been in that sort of situation occasionally I can pass on to you what I have done. First, maintain a speed that you feel is safe for the driving conditions. This might be a little under the posted, or it might be a bit over the posted. UNDER NO CONDITIONS should you let the person behind you force you to a speed higher than you feel is safe. On the other hand, police officers DO use judgement in deciding who to ticket and, under the conditions you describe, will not harass a motorist who speeds up to something a bit over the limit to avoid impeding the smooth and orderly flow of traffic. What is "a bit"? Stepping up to 60 or a little more than that would probably be reasonable, but stepping up to 75 or more would not, in my estimation, be justified. Second, I have found that most drivers who overtake me under conditions such as you describe will drop back if you indicate that you see them and will get over as soon as you can. To do this I flip my right turn signal on as I speed up a little. In only one case in memory has the overtaking driver not dropped back a little. In that case the driver blasted by with about 0.001 of an inch clearance when I was able to get over, then passed another car in the right lane ON THE RIGHT (using the shoulder). A few miles further on I passed HIM ... he was sitting on the shoulder chatting with a gentleman who had left his red flasher on while they conversed. Yes, sometimes there really is justice! Now, lest my masculinity by impugned by macho drivers who NEVER go slower than 75 (even in their driveways), I typically travel the Interstates at between about 60-65mph, though the speedometer does sometimes (in open Illinois countryside) creep a bit above that. I have also traveled the larger part of a 240 mile trip on the Interstate at about 35mph -- white knuckling it on a layer of freezing rain. (Got my best gas milage EVER on that trip! Also found every rest room on the route!) The fundamental rule I follow is to maintain the smooth and orderly flow of traffic, and always make sure that there is someone going faster than me to trip the speed traps. Just remember -- if all of the cars in this country were lined up from New York to Los Angeles ... some fool would STILL pull out and try to pass. Rich Strebendt ...!ihnp4!ihuxn!res
liang@cvl.UUCP (Eli Liang) (05/08/85)
> I have also traveled the larger part of a 240 mile trip on the Interstate > at about 35mph -- white knuckling it on a layer of freezing rain. > (Got my best gas milage EVER on that trip! Also found every rest room > on the route!) > > Rich Strebendt > ...!ihnp4!ihuxn!res I'm surprised. Most of the cars I've seen seem to run most efficiently from 50-60 mph. -eli -- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Eli Liang --- University of Maryland Computer Vision Lab, (301) 454-4526 ARPA: liang@cvl, liang@lemuria, eli@mit-mc, eli@mit-prep CSNET: liang@cvl UUCP: {seismo,allegra,brl-bmd}!umcp-cs!cvl!liang