Spokesman-Review Letter to the Editor
Drivers are Selfish
We have all noticed the construction on I-90. For whatever reason, one lane or the other is closed at some point between the Cheney on-ramp and the Maple Street exit. Unfortunately, there is no way to improve roads without inconveniencing driver so we are forced to cope.
I make the annoying drive into Spokane daily and every trip forces me to lose more and more faith in humanity. There are signs warning of the lane elimination for about three miles before the merging takes place; however, regardless of the warning signs, traffic seems at a standstill until the lane is completely taken away, when traffic reaches a normal speed once all the merging is over with.
This is because of the selfish drivers who race up to the barriers with their signal on waiting for someone equally as moronic to let them in. If people just merged over when they saw their lane was going to end, we would all be able to avoid the crawling speed and whiplash-evoking stops while everyone tried to merge at the same time.
Nicole Erickson
Cheney
Ms. Erickson has a point; it’s not only annoying and causes congestion to merge at the last possible minute, but it’s also a safety issue. Only thing she didn’t say that I wish she had was that if a lot of you folks heading to or from Cheney from downtown would get on the bus, it would relieve some of that congestion. There, getting off my soapbox now.
I respectfully dissent.
By using her suggested technique, traffic backs up earlier and farther and causes significantly more hard-breaking as the queue forms at random points, far from the actual merge. The "whiplash" stops are not due to the people driving to the merge point, but rather people trying to wedge into the line of cars at random points along the way. (Where people like Ms. Erickson won't let them in anyway.)
It is MUCH more efficient — and safer — to use both lanes for as long as possible, with a zipper-like merge as a single point.
There's no reason to start lining up three miles early and then be angry about the person who slams the brake and tries to wedge into line two miles early.
Take her logic to the extreme, and maybe it would be better to travel a single lane the whole way from Cheney. No nagging merge necessary.
Mmmm… I'm torn on this one. In theory, I believe you're right that a zipper-like merge at a single point WOULD be more efficient and safer. But since no one actually does that and they DO try to jam in at random points as you suggest, it seems it would be safer to merge earlier and just wait in line, as frustrating as that is.
See, that's the problem — no one actually does that. The "merge earlier" option is precisely the unsafe one, and nothing is going to be early enough for Ms. Erickson anyway. (I bet she's the one who blocks both lanes in the backup so that nobody can "cut in line" and get in front of her.)
FWIW, I saw screeching brakes today on I-90 for this very reason.
Which section of I90 did you see the screeching brakes on? Because I was going to say that you proved me wrong in the new construction zone today between Havana and Altamont. I came around the corner at about Sprague and there was a slow down as everyone merged, but they ACTUALLY MERGED WITH NO MAJOR PROBLEMS, AND PEOPLE LET OTHERS IN ALONG THE QUEU!! After that initial slowdown, everything picked up and we moved smoothly through the construction zone. I may have just hit a smooth time though, as I heard there was at least one accident that caused some problems.