Someone may have gotten a picture of my plates... should I worry?

[O2HeN2]

I don't let people in when they're too dense to see the "lane merges" sign or drive all the way to the end of the merge lane...

What you disagree with here is exactly the way to do it. You are not supposed to merge early, you're supposed to drive all the way to when the lane starts to go away and then do a "zipper" merge for maximum safety.

But don't take my word for it, go to just about any DOT site and you can read it for yourself. Minnesota's DOT page comes up first on google (though in this case it's construction specific) so here's their description of a zipper merge:

http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/

Of course if you have road ragers not letting you in when you get to the lane going away, that's when problems arise.

O2

[mcantar18c]

The only reason I stopped is because she pulled up a camera. Otherwise I would have gone about my business.
As far as being emotionally involved... hardly. I'm not out for revenge or anything ridiculous like that. My point about the bike is that driving like she does can be extremely dangerous. Had I started accelerating a second sooner, that guy would have hit me.

[Monky]

I'm with 02 on this. Your actions escalated. Ps - it is relatively easy to get info from the dmv


Sent by a free-range electronic weasel, with no sense of personal space.

[Dave_L]

What you disagree with here is exactly the way to do it. You are not supposed to merge early, you're supposed to drive all the way to when the lane starts to go away and then do a "zipper" merge for maximum safety.

But don't take my word for it, go to just about any DOT site and you can read it for yourself. Minnesota's DOT page comes up first on google (though in this case it's construction specific) so here's their description of a zipper merge:

http://www.dot.state.mn.us/zippermerge/

Of course if you have road ragers not letting you in when you get to the lane going away, that's when problems arise.

O2

I meant more for stop and go traffic and when construction forces lane closures. Maybe I mis-read the OP. Im speaking more for the obvious "i want to get ahead of everyone" person. I make space for people coming on the highway, whether that's moving over a lane or creating a gap. Like you said, it needs to be a zipper. I think the merger needs to use their brain a little too and look for where a gap is to merge in seamlessly instead of assuming one will magically appear in dense traffic at the end of their merge lane.

[HoneyBadger]

Sounds like she was the victim of road rage. I hope the photo helps her. I'm sure your post above where you admit cutting her off, stopping, backing up to her bumper (threatening her with a one-ton weapon), etc. will help her case.

Yhea, yhea, you were "justified". No, you weren't.

Just calling it as I see it. Modifying and/or deleting your post would be further admission of guilt on your part.

O2

Lol wut?

I would definitely not consider his actions to be "road rage". Clearly you've never driven in Los Angeles...
He stopped until traffic in front of him cleared (makes sense to me and seems perfectly reasonable and lawful).
Backed up so that she wouldn't take a picture of his plates, which seems to have been an unfounded concern.
He drove away (probably recklessly, judging by his telling of the story) to escape the perceived threat when she followed him.

Edited: it seems we're not all on the same page about the merging scenario, (I read the OP as stating that the OP was on the highway and didn't make room for entering traffic) so I'll just leave with this:

De-escalating is usually a good thing, but encouraging unsafe behavior is always a bad thing.

[Great-Kazoo]

So should the OP be working on being Mr. Right, or wait for the perfect woman for a relationship.

[HoneyBadger]

So should the OP be working on being Mr. Right, or wait for the perfect woman for a relationship.

None of that would matter if he drove a real truck and did crossfit every day!

[O2HeN2]

I meant more for stop and go traffic and when construction forces lane closures. Maybe I mis-read the OP. Im speaking more for the obvious "i want to get ahead of everyone" person. I make space for people coming on the highway, whether that's moving over a lane or creating a gap. Like you said, it needs to be a zipper.

Yhea, I was unclear/ambiguous. If traffic is moving, as you mention you should merge at your convenience. Stomping on it to get ahead in the lane that's going away is bad form (that MNDOT page does mention the "merge early" exception if traffic is moving at speed).

I think the merger needs to use their brain a little too and look for where a gap is to merge in seamlessly instead of assuming one will magically appear in dense traffic at the end of their merge lane.

I know according to Bloomberg we don't have any paved roads down here, but I see the lack of brain use every day here in Colorado Springs when I get on the I25 southbound on-ramp at Woodmen. It narrows to one lane a concrete wall and a guard rail just before the freeway. About 50% of the time when it's at 1.5 lanes wide someone will shoot past me, get their nose a half an inch in front of me and expect me to yield. Which I typically do. It may be encouraging bad behavior, but it's better than a trip to the body shop and finger pointing when the police arrive.

O2

[Ridge]

So should the OP be working on being Mr. Right, or wait for the perfect woman for a relationship.

They say opposites attract, so maybe he should get with the woman of the other car.

[mcantar18c]

This wasn't a merge lane. In that instance, yes, you zipper in. This person was speeding down a clearly marked exit only lane to get around traffic and crossed over a zone you're not supposed to drive in to cut back into traffic. I didn't stop to fuck with her or retaliate or anything like that, which would be road rage. I was trying to prevent her from getting a shot at my plates, as I didn't know why she was trying to get that info.