traffic jam question

A point well made that more Drivers should be aware of!

 

yeah, we only do it after weve been unloaded, and are out from under a load

 

Back to the question posed by the OP. The reason I don't come to a full stop right behind the vehicle in front of me is to leave me room to maneuver if I need to switch lanes. If for any reason the lane in front of me comes to a dead stop that is the result of a fender bender, then having a gap in front of me gives some option for turning on the turn signal and initiating a lane change without having to make a hard turn with the tractor across more than one lane in order to get the tandems to clear the vehicle in front of me. Having room to maneuver is always a good idea in heavy traffic.

 

I'm one of those truckers that leaves a lot of space in front of me in traffic. Like someone else said, what's the point of riding ###? Cut me off, that's one reason I leave space. You're not going to get to your destination any faster. Even when traffic is flowing I leave space in front. I understand a lot of drivers like to "draft" one another but personally I think they tailgate cause they wanna get some ###! Last thing I want to be staring at is the back of a trailer for 200-300 miles!

 

I leave a lot of space unless a ton of cars keep swooping in nonstop. If I have been stuck in traffic for a long time I just keep the same slow speed until it finally clears up. Luckily I have only been stuck in traffic three times since when I see it is really bad I detour.

 

Exactly, and if you leave no space some idiot is going to try to push his car into the safe distance you have to leave and slam the breaks you go, causing the driver behind you, who is more likely right on your %$# to hit your truck. Trust me, there is always that one idiot out there who thinks he can fit right in without once considering you or the time it takes your truck to stop. It's also considerate for the other tuckers around you in the other lanes that may be needing to get into your lane for an exit ramp.

 

The best thing - planning. Unless you have a tight schedule stop somewhere before entering a big city during the times when such things are likely to occur. At the beginning or end of the work day for the 9 to 5er. Best plan - save yourself from that headache to start with. You are going to save a lot more feul (and time) taking a nap than stop and go, stop and go, stop and go......

 

I have a theory to remedy traffic jams. You're driving along, and traffic stops. The Backup radios come on (you know, the radios that only work when there's a backup) and some driver asks what's going on and what lane is blocked. All the trucks pile in to the open lane and all the cars pile into the lane with no trucks. Then some driver gets a wild hair, and does a rolling road block to prevent the 4s from passing.

What I want to know is who was the dummy that taught you guys to do this? Why are all of you cramming into 1 lane?

Ride both lanes down and follow the vehicle in front of you 100 ft behind. Traffic will flow.

"But Six, the 4s would never play along!"

They don't have to. If only the trucks did it, it would work. The 4s wouldn't be able to go from the back of the line to the front and cut over, there wouldn't be a need to stop and go in a truck, and no truck would have to jump out to do a rolling road block. The 4s would take the path of least resistance.

If you're in a jam. Right lane blocked and you're in the left, following at 100 ft. Truck to your right is following at 100ft. At best, 1 truck and 1 or 2 cars would get over in front of you. The rest would fall in to the slots in front of the trucks behind you.

Be a part of the solution, not the problem.