• ReplicantBatty@lemmy.one
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    3 months ago

    If I leave any kind of gap between me and the car in front, it is an inevitability that some jackass will swoop in to cut me off. Happened 7 or 8 times just yesterday. Texas drivers are a menace

    • JaggedRobotPubes@lemmy.world
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      3 months ago

      That’s what it’s for, for people to use. Let them, create new buffer. Let somebody else, create new buffer. There is exactly zero wrong with any of this.

      • ReplicantBatty@lemmy.one
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        3 months ago

        Yeah when I do that then every time there’s a gap another person comes to cut me off, so it ends up with me pretty much at a dead stop while people go in front of me over and over. People underestimate just how many asshole drivers there are around here lol

        • brbposting
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          3 months ago

          It’s okayy, we do the best we can. Congratulate yourself on each person who merges in - you’re the change (instead of “the anti-socials are winning”).

          Hopefully saving some $ on brakes & calipers too!

          • Fosheze@lemmy.world
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            3 months ago

            And burning money in gas as you sit there all day going nowhere and shutting down your entire lane. That’s like saying you should congratulate yourself for throwing yourself in a puddle and letting people walk on you.

            • brbposting
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              3 months ago

              If you ever wanna spend seven minutes (no gas needed) on YouTube, I’d be very curious to know of any timecodes where you think this driver/philosopher has shortcomings:

              Traffic Waves from 16yr ago

              • Fosheze@lemmy.world
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                3 months ago

                I’m not arguing the philosophy. It’s a wonderful idea. As someone who regularly drives a stick shift I very much wish that it would work. But like many wonderful ideas it doesn’t survive contact with actual humans. In any large city if there is a car length open in front of your vehicle then someone will be zipping into it. I’ve had people do that while we’re traveling at 65mph let alone in slow moving traffic. If you keep sitting there and letting people go in front of you until there is room then you will not move and you will probably get shot by one of the people stuck behind you. It’s like if you were at the grocery store durring a busy time and you kept telling people to go in front of you then you wouldn’t be able to check out until everyone was gone.

                • brbposting
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                  3 months ago

                  Somehow that driver managed to exit! Not suggesting one stops…

                  This is something I do and I’ve made it out of California and back - perhaps I’m leaving less space than it sounds? 6 figures of miles and it’s worked on the West Coast! The other commenters who have chimed in, at least half, seem to be able to pull it off as well.

                  I’d linked to the video because I do see your point. There must be a disconnect if this is a filmable, anecdotally reproducible practice. (…uh-oh, that’s how a homeopathic astrology witch would defend their Ouija board! 😬😉)

    • FarFarAway@startrek.website
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      3 months ago

      I concur. I used to be able to leave a huge gap and nobody would care. I drove a manual and didn’t want the hassle of stopping. But, I tried this recently, and I ended up making the fast lane the slow lane and I had the guy behind me honking and yelling out his window to stop letting everyone in.

      Piss off the wrong guy in Texas and see where that gets you. I was lucky all he did was honk and yell.