Michigan DOT

Well that explains some of the crap we see on the roads. The Law can't watch for more than one or two bad driving behaviors at a time.

Education Aug. 7 - 11, won't be stopping in any Michigan rest areas those days.

 

There are more creators on 75 than on hwy 9 in Iraq! Maybe ticketing truckers will be used to fund a resurfacing project. Keep your figures crossed!!!

 

All the cars go 80mph in here and they can't stand trucks traveling 60mph trying to change lanes, you literally have to force them to let you change. I absolutely hate driving in this state, because of the speed limit difference

 

I'm on the fence with this one, I've seen too many 70 plus mph accidents with trucks, especially on trouble roads, like Us-23 and M14. Many of the trucks that give problems are the idiots who think they own the road, I've seen a couple run people off the road because they wouldn't move out of their way.

If things were not 75 mph in many areas for the cars, I can see eliminating the differential but I am on the side that behavior with the driver and the need to get it there at any cost by the company are bigger problems then the speed limit.

 

I suggest this for several reasons, however the biggest is that there is PLENTY of evidence to suggest that a split speed limit is dangerous.

It also doesn't help when car drivers like many I see on Michigan that would rather endanger their lives to get someplace rather than use their #### heads

 

Couldn't agree with you more! I pulled off exit near Lansing got behind a gravel train driver and watched him run a red light. There are some special kind of truckers out there!

 

That bankrupt ### State (mostly Detroit area of course) needs revenue! How else will they ever be able to catch up!?

I did 100k miles in 19 months with zero issues......and then 2k miles in Detroit and I have a herniated C6 C7.

15 years ago I vowed never to go there again....then I forgot and ran a some loads....and by the time I remembered it was too late.

I may never enter that state in a commercial truck again....

 

Firstly, it would actually be very nice if the Michigan State Police would do something about the insane tailgating & lane intrusion problem which everyone in and around their jurisdiction seems to have. I think that occasionally posting an inane slogan on overpass display while completely ignoring it until people start wrecking each other is somewhat in effectual, and that they should consider decertifying aggressive drivers and giving them free bus passes (the bus drivers are also nuts, but fewer is better).

Secondly, I know a bit about driving with a speed differential, though it is quite *annecdotal. In short, naively attempting to drive the truck limit in Michigan is quite dangerous, because people box themselves in beside you, get desperate to get at the space in front of you, then cut you off the moment half a car length of gap opens up between you and whoever is ahead of you to the left. Scale it up a bit and that's what just about every truck also does.

I drove like that through my first several months, mostly in Detroit area during the day. I ended up getting cut off several times per minute, and near-misses were fairly common (2 or 3 times per week).

But, I have found that the solution, was actually to move even slower. Watch your mirrors, figure out who is in a rush, keep a path around you wide open, and start backing off while the aggressive drivers are still behind you. Repeat for the 25+ other drivers that then decide they also need to force their way in front. Many will pass, but very few will pull insane stunts to do so, since you'll be bending over backwards to prevent that "necessity". It also tends to thin out traffic immediately in front.

Driving that way reduced the close lane intrusions and near-misses to almost nothing, mostly eliminated a constant need to hit the brakes, and evened out my speed, despite moving to routes that involve far more fast-moving heavy traffic than I had early on. (and it seems a very effective means to get rid of tailgaters).

(*)It would be nice to have a more detailed study, to figure out what exactly is causing the "speed differential collisions" - if perhaps it is abrupt braking due to trucks being cut off and forced to brake check tailgaters.