Merging from center lane illegal? News to me.

[RgrF]

Michael wrote:
In GA, it's illegal to use the center lane for anything other than a left turn.

Without that center lane, you'd never get an Amazon or UPS delivery.

[N-OS X-tasy!]

macphanatic wrote:
This is where a picture or diagram is necessary as the terminology or intent can be confusing.

You mean like the one I linked above?

[Yoyodyne ArtWorks]

Pat wrote:
Everyone I know has always referred to it as the "suicide lane."

+1, I was thinking the same thing,

[Mike Johnson]

I told my son if he gets into UCLA I’m buying him a panel truck that says Fresh Produce on the side, and he can just park it in the center lane of some busy street in the heart of Westwood and live in the damn thing rent free. I don’t think he’d be the first.

[mrbigstuff]

RgrF wrote:
300 feet is the length of a football field, if you can't merge in that distance you should either be stock still waiting for a traffic break or even more preferable not driving.

Yeah, this is what I was going to write.

Also, this traffic planning is when the municipality cedes their engineering, and more or less tells the public to "figure it out."

[RgrF]

Also, this traffic planning is when the municipality cedes their engineering, and more or less tells the public to "figure it out."

We did that back in the day - they were called rotaries.

[DeusxMac]

Yoyodyne ArtWorks wrote:
[quote=Pat]
Everyone I know has always referred to it as the "suicide lane."

+1, I was thinking the same thing,
"Historically, the term "suicide lane" has... referred to a lane in the center of a highway meant for passing in both directions. Neither direction has the right-of-way, and both directions are permitted to use the lane for passing. In a similar layout, three lanes are striped with two in one direction and one in the other, but traffic in the direction with one lane is allowed to cross the centerline to pass."

"Another type of center two-way lane is a "two-way left turn lane" (TWLT) or "center left-turn lane", or (for countries that drive on the right) "center turn lane" or "median turn lane", a single lane in the center of the road into which traffic from both directions pulls to make a left turn. While this is sometimes also called a "suicide lane", it is actually far safer, as traffic collisions occur at far lower speeds."

[NewtonMP2100]

....what about......Penny Lane......??

[norse]

Lux Interior wrote:
By "merging" I take that to mean you pull in to the center turn lane, then accelerate to the speed of the traffic and, well, merge.

That is dangerous, because you are looking at the traffic that you are trying to merge with and not the oncoming traffic.

Saw an accident where two cars had a head on collision trying to do this in opposite directions.

But pulling into the lane and stopping, then waiting for the traffic to clear and pulling into the travel lanes is done all the time.

From a driveway, I get into the center lane, STOP, and wait for traffic to clear, then I move out of the center lane.

I've seen drivers get into the center lane, drive slowly in the center lane up to a quarter block, and merge into traffic. BAD. I've even seen a driver speed up in the center lane to pass a slower car and move out of the center lane in front of the slower car...REAL BAD!!

[RAMd®d]

I've seen drivers get into the center lane, drive slowly in the center lane up to a quarter block, and merge into traffic. BAD. I've even seen a driver speed up in the center lane to pass a slower car and move out of the center lane in front of the slower car...REAL BAD!!


I've seen drivers that and the same with islands designated by double yellow lines, unbroken on either side, as well as using them as two-way left-turn lanes.

Line 20, press hard, three copies.