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Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

trafficwaves.org

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Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#51

Post by ynniv »

kyro wrote: post #24

I'm a fast driver, and one thing I will never understand are those who will do anything and everything to box in a fast driver, or to prevent them from cutting into a lane and taking off. I see fast drivers as excited molecules, looking to escape. What often happens when a fast driver is being blocked is they'll switch lanes back and forth, looking for their escape, creating this wave of hesitation, causing this big…

I am a fast driver, but in traffic I switch to wave abatement. It seems only logical to help the system when there is no way to personally benefit. (Except that moving to the right-most non-merging lane will help you avoid waves and move faster.) My prioritized rules of the road are:

  1) go whatever speed you like
  2) empty lane to your right? move right
  3) no car in front of you and a car behind you? move right as soon as possible
  4) slower car in front? move left if you can
These simple rules cover most situations in a way that benefits everyone involved. They do not cover some minority cases: aggressive tailgaters and high relative lane speeds (I leave a buffer lane if > 10 mph and no cars behind me).

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#52

Post by albemuth »

RyanMcGreal wrote: post #29

I changed my driving patterns after first reading this remarkable essay some years ago. Now I follow what I affectionately call the "zen of driving", to wit: leave a huge gap in front of me, drive at a constant speed where possible [1], avoid using the brakes except in case of emergency, and so on. On long driving trips through mixed traffic, I have made several observations, some obvious and some surprising: * Drivi…

There are a lot of driver douches which will always overtake whatever is overtakeable, driving like this makes you an easy 'target' and that gets me all worked up.

edit: spelling

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#54

Post by tptacek »

simplegeek wrote: post #50

BTW, sorry if this sounds off-topic, do you know any good books/articles on Traffic? I'm very much fascinated by this too. Thanks.

Not even close to off-topic. Traffic problems (and queuing theory) have a long history in CS, and the related problems have applications all over the place.

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#55

Post by tptacek »

antdaddy wrote: post #9
mrshoe wrote: post #8

This man is a saint. For years I've wished more people understood these principles. Instead, I get drivers who are angry at me for leaving a big space in front of my car. If only I pulled up right behind the car in front of me, they'd be 60 feet closer to their destination!! I wish more people would check this site out. Traffic is a real problem that wastes billions of taxpayer dollars and hours on the road every yea…

Another problem is drivers who insist on driving in the left lane at all times and refuse to move over. IIRC, the left lane used to be referred to as the 'passing' lane...

In Indiana and Michigan, left is a passing lane.

One problem here is that people driving the maximum lawful speed are still driving too slow for the prevailing speed of traffic.

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#57

Post by RyanMcGreal »

albemuth wrote: post #52
RyanMcGreal wrote: post #29

I changed my driving patterns after first reading this remarkable essay some years ago. Now I follow what I affectionately call the "zen of driving", to wit: leave a huge gap in front of me, drive at a constant speed where possible [1], avoid using the brakes except in case of emergency, and so on. On long driving trips through mixed traffic, I have made several observations, some obvious and some surprising: * Drivi…

There are a lot of driver douches which will always overtake whatever is overtakeable, driving like this makes you an easy 'target' and that gets me all worked up. edit: spelling

Except it doesn't. Like I said, I rarely experience drivers cutting in front of me.

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#58

Post by simplegeek »

tptacek wrote: post #54
simplegeek wrote: post #50

BTW, sorry if this sounds off-topic, do you know any good books/articles on Traffic? I'm very much fascinated by this too. Thanks.

Not even close to off-topic. Traffic problems (and queuing theory) have a long history in CS, and the related problems have applications all over the place.

Can you recommend any good books related to Traffic issues for a beginner and intermediate? Thanks.

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#59

Post by BRadmin »

erlanger wrote: post #38

If you want to help traffic, stop hitting your damn brakes so much. Brakes are for strong deceleration, and most deceleration in traffic can be handled by letting off the gas. Once you get good at this, follow as closely as possible in a traffic jam without applying your brakes.* There's nothing better a skilled driver can do to alleviate a traffic jam. The jam is physically shorter and people behind you are less lik…

Driving in Los Angeles, this is exactly what I do... I'm convinced that most traffic jams are caused by people needlessly applying their brakes and slow cars clogging the fast (far left) lane.

Re: Traffic Hacks: How One Driver Can Vastly Improve Traffic

#60

Post by RyanMcGreal »

apotheon wrote: post #42
RyanMcGreal wrote: post #29

I changed my driving patterns after first reading this remarkable essay some years ago. Now I follow what I affectionately call the "zen of driving", to wit: leave a huge gap in front of me, drive at a constant speed where possible [1], avoid using the brakes except in case of emergency, and so on. On long driving trips through mixed traffic, I have made several observations, some obvious and some surprising: * Drivi…

That's not "zen" -- it's artificial regularity. Zen would be driving at what feels like a natural speed, only adjusting that when circumstances dictate, and "letting go" of your attachment to forward progress when something stands in your way. Instead, you're driving at an artificially limited speed to try to regularize your driving experience. You're tricking yourself into feeling less frustrated by consciously elim…

>That's not "zen" -- it's artificial regularity.

Please see my edit in my original post to clarify what I meant to write. In fact my speed ranges up and down based on the level of congestion, whereas the safe buffer I maintain in front of me remains constant - and by safe I mean long enough that I don't have to use my brakes when traffic slows.

As for my use of "zen", don't read too much into it. It was just a tongue-in-cheek reference to the fact that I stopped trying to fight the flow of traffic and instead simply pass through it as peacefully as possible.

>That's heavily dependent on time and place.

My observations are limited to highways in Ontario, Quebec, New York State, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts.

>I only get annoyed with such people when they try to keep other people from filling that gap

Hey, man, you're welcome to it. Blocking another driver from filling the gap would mean accelerating to close it, which kind of defeats the purpose of maintaining it.

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