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From: mangoe@umcp-cs.UUCP (Charley Wingate)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: California Stops & Center Lane Meshers
Message-ID: <192@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 1-Oct-84 23:46:28 EDT
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.192
Posted: Mon Oct  1 23:46:28 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 3-Oct-84 05:38:00 EDT
References: <525@ihu1g.UUCP> <687@osu-dbs.UUCP>
Organization: U of Maryland, Computer Science Dept., College Park, MD
Lines: 27

Unfortunately, since so many Washingtonians come from way out of town, we
see almost all of these.  Commonly.  Daily.  There does in fact seem to
be certain geographical patterns:

  1) Pennsylvanians drive FAST, all the time (as do rural marylanders).
  2) The typical maryland reaction to ANYTHING is to slam on the brakes.
  3) The five most insane things I have ever seen were all done by cars
     bearing New York plates.

Around here, a lot of people STOP at the end of the exit ramp.  People
switch lanes constantly, generally without signalling (a D.C. ism).
Driving in the wrong lane on the beltway (a four lane road to nowhere) 
is the local pastime.  There are lots of accidents, especially at a couple
of key points that cause tremendous backups wherein people just park their
cars for several hours.  Northern Virginia seems to have more problems
than Maryland, probably because the road system is so strange and
incomprehensible.

I must contest one point.  The whole idea of the center turn lane is to 
provide sort of an exit ramp (to get people out of the way).  There are
roads around here where turning into the center lane (and generally stopping)
is the only way to get on the road.  What really bugs me are the people who
ignore those lanes entirely [arrrgghh!].

Charley Wingate

"My wings are like a shield of steel."