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What to do when a crazy driver is coming from the back at very high speed?

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#23
Raffy.Roma said:
Well said. As I said in my previous post #9 these left-lane bandits are dangerous because they could cause high speed accidents.

(Of course also people blocking the left lane below the speed limit are to be considered bandits but this is not my case)
Click to expand...
Sorry, I should clarify (especially since you are the OP and not in the US) - "Left lane bandit" is US slang for a driver who parks in the left lane and drives at or below the speed limit, and (consciously or not) blocks other drivers who wish to go faster.

I don't think that describes your behavior here. I don't think you were doing anything wrong - it sounded like a legitimate passing maneuver.

And besides, US drivers have no right to lecture EU drivers on proper left lane protocol. As a rule, when it comes to left lane use, you guys know what you are doing. We in the US generally don't.
 
#24
yobigd20 said:
I wonder how many times people calls the cops for me doing the same thing to them HAHA

seriously though, the left lane is a passing lane only. if you see somebody (like me) approaching at very high speed, be prepared to get high beamed and tailgated if you don't move over quickly. and yes, it will look like i'm about to smash into you because i won't slow down until i'm right on top of you. it just gives it that extra effect of GTFOOMW.
Click to expand...

I know your answer will be "get off my road" but here goes...

I respect the law, and speed limits are the law. I'll go a few mph over if conditions warrant, but in general I don't. I don't cheat on my taxes, I don't slip candy bars in my pocket in a store -- the whole "it isn't against the law if you don't get caught" philosophy is lost on me.

But I understand and respect that others can safely exceed the speed limit without endangering others, and who feel that speeding laws are not as important as other laws, so they drive fast. Maybe they are poor planners and cant leave a few minutes early. Maybe they consider driving on public roadways a sport. Whatever the reason, I'm ok with it, and understand it is the norm.

I drive on the right on a multi-lane highway unless there is a slower-moving vehicle ahead of me. Cars exceeding the speed limit, approaching from behind, are, theoretically, doing the same thing. However, depending on traffic, there might be 20 or 50 or 100 cars behind me that are going to pass me. If I see a car in front of me going slower than I am, and cars approaching from a distance behind me going faster, sorry, but I'm changing lanes to pass the car in front of me. And I'm not going to speed up out of concern for the possibility that you might have to slow down. My alternative, which I have done many times, is to slow down to sit behind the slow vehicle for 10 minutes while the string of cars pass both of us.

I'm not saying I'm right or you're right, just that there might be situations where the other driver deserves some consideration.

Besides, us slow drivers are just chicanes in the racecourse of life. If you didn't have to change lanes for us pylons, you might as well drive a train.
 
#26
Danal said:
I realize the original post is from a person in Italy, and the law and the etiquette may be different there. Most people in the USA don't seem to realize that most state motor vehicle codes REQUIRE you to move right if you are slower than other vehicles regardless of the speed limit. The Texas "Transportation Code" spells this out in very obscure legalese as follows:

Sec. 545.051. DRIVING ON RIGHT SIDE OF ROADWAY.
...big long section (a) skipped...
(b) An operator of a vehicle on a roadway moving more slowly than the normal speed of other vehicles at the time and place under the existing conditions shall drive in the right-hand lane available for vehicles, or as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway, unless the operator is:
(1) passing another vehicle; or
(2) preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

The phrasing here is very awkward, because paragraph (b) is a sub-section of the whole "driving on the right" part of the code. Take note that it does NOT say anything at all about speed limits. Instead, it goes to great pains to state "[if you are]...moving more slowly..." than the "...normal speed of other vehicles at the time and place...". This has been tested in court many times and it can be stated another way quite simply: If approached from the rear, move right. No matter how fast/slow you are going, the car behind you is the "other vehicle" at that "time and place".

Most states have similar laws.

In my entire driving life, I've noticed a broad section of people who seem to feel that if they are doing the exact speed limit, they can stay in the left lane and 'block' cars that want to go faster. (Clearly, the OP was not doing this.) I've always found it fascinating to watch these people creating a traffic hazard by being slower than the general pace of traffic and insisting on staying in the left lane. I imagine the mental state of these blockers to be: "I'm doing the right thing, I'm doing the speed limit, these other jerks can just piss off" or similar. Fascinating to know, for a fact, that these blockers are actually the ones breaking the law.



Anyway, the answer to the OP's question: MOVE OVER!! It is the safe thing to do, and it is probably the law as well.
Click to expand...

The answer to the OP is indeed to move over, but the law you cite does not apply because he was forced to accelerate by a vehicle moving at unusually high speed. Move right laws only require that you move over when it is safe to do so, which in some traffic situations it never is.

States, though not necessarily all, may also require people to avoid accidents, meaning that you could be charged if you do nothing in the face of obvious danger.

As irritating as it is, the OP did the right thing, You just have to hope there's a cop around to get them when they do something dangerous. (Which I've had happen once.) Another option, if spotted early enough might be to put your flashers on, which might give them pause and encourage them to slow down. Again this would depend on the law for flasher use.
 
#27
BerTX said:
I drive on the right on a multi-lane highway unless there is a slower-moving vehicle ahead of me. Cars exceeding the speed limit, approaching from behind, are, theoretically, doing the same thing. However, depending on traffic, there might be 20 or 50 or 100 cars behind me that are going to pass me. If I see a car in front of me going slower than I am, and cars approaching from a distance behind me going faster, sorry, but I'm changing lanes to pass the car in front of me. And I'm not going to speed up out of concern for the possibility that you might have to slow down. My alternative, which I have done many times, is to slow down to sit behind the slow vehicle for 10 minutes while the string of cars pass both of us.
Click to expand...
I try to drive in a manner that prevents nearby drivers from having to suddenly brake (or speed up) - don't cut people off, don't park my butt in the left lane, wait for an appropriately sized gap before pulling into traffic, adjust my speed when merging into a highway to adjust to existing gaps in traffic, etc.

I feel it makes me a safer driver and avoids inciting road rage.
 
#28
tga said:
More detail since the thread has evolved into a discussion of left-lane bandits:

I was driving around 11pm on a 3 lane highway with the cruise set around 72. I was in the center lane, slowly gaining on a bus in front of me. We were (slowing) passing a few cars in the right lane. Said Buick was parked in the left lane ~500 feet ahead, with no traffic in the other lanes (driver could easily move right).

I moved left to pass the bus. In the mirror I saw the headlights of a Ford Crown Victoria approaching at >80 in the distance, center lane. I cancelled the cruise, put on my signal, and moved right behind the bus to let the Trooper pass. He pulled into the left lane, passed us, and sat on the bumper of the Buick for a mile or so.

I was waiting to see if the Trooper hit the lights to get the driver to move over, or just passed on the right. After a mile or two, the Buick decided it would be fun to break-check the tailgater (obviously this driver never learned to recognize police car headlights).

At that point, the Trooper had enough, hit his lights, and pulled over the Buick. To top it off, the Buick stopped in the median, on a bridge, where there wasn't enough room for both cars to get out of the left lane. I'm sure that (rightly) turned into an expensive evening for the Buick driver.
Click to expand...

Maybe the Buick did recognize the Crown Vic and that's why it hit the brakes.
Whenever there's an Oh$#!+ moment while driving, a common reaction is to get the right foot onto the brake pedal. and suddenly seeing a Trooper on your bumper is an Oh$#!+ moment where you generally want to be driving slower than you currently are. I'm not saying that hitting the brakes was the correct choice, I'm just saying that it seems like a pretty natural reaction to seeing a state trooper.

It's likely that the trooper was going to pull the Buick over anyway. I think they like to drive along behind someone to see how long it takes for the driver to notice that they're there. Maybe they're waiting for the driver to do something extra stupid.

I've only gotten one ticket while driving fast (went around broad turn and got painted by LIDAR from half a mile out). When driving fast, I'm paying attention. It's generally the times when I'm just going with the flow that I've gotten pulled over. My friend calls those "attention deficit tickets". I suspect that's what happened to the Buick.
 
#30
tga said:
I try to drive in a manner that prevents nearby drivers from having to suddenly brake (or speed up) - don't cut people off, don't park my butt in the left lane, wait for an appropriately sized gap before pulling into traffic, adjust my speed when merging into a highway to adjust to existing gaps in traffic, etc.

I feel it makes me a safer driver and avoids inciting road rage.
Click to expand...

I agree, and if the text you quoted does not agree with you, my point was poorly expressed. I do not mean to say that I cut anyone off or make sudden lane changes. I change lanes to pass, at or above the posted speed, well before the speeding vehicles arrive.

I also agree about avoiding not causing road rage, but I also have to avoid enraging myself by getting trapped behind a slow-moving vehicle in the right lane while a seemingly endless string of cars pass me, many of which I pass later because my desired speed was actually higher than theirs.
 
#32
I try to go with the flow and not exceed the limit by more than 2-3 MPH. I generally stick to the right lane unless passing a truck or a string of slower-moving vehicles. Yes, I will get a demon racing up behind me in the #1 lane while I am passing. I try to signal my intent as soon as I can spot a safe space to merge back into the slow lane. I will even speed up slightly to be able to change lanes safely before resuming my "slower" speed. So, maybe he tailgates me for a quarter mile, but I will merge back into the slow lane even though I may be stuck between two trucks for a couple of miles.

It just isn't worth it to change one's driving habits because one or more people want to drive 10+ MPH over the speed limit. I also do not glare at the offending motorist while he passes me, either. I just keep my eyes on the road, and my speed where I want.
 
#33
It's funny that everyone seems to be either going faster or slower than I am.

It amused me when got the epiphany that I never see most of the one's going the same speed I am.

“Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac?” -- George Carlin

 
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