"HOW'S
"HOW'S TRAFFIC LATELY IN IDAHO? IN THE TREASURE VALLEY?" "OH,
HORRENDOUS."
AS OUR COMMUNITIES
GROW -- SO DOES THE
NUMBER OF CARS ON
OUR ROADS.
AND MOST OF YOU AGREE
-- TRAFFIC IS BAD.
BUT ARE WE MAKING
TRAFFIC WORSE WITH THE
WAY WE DRIVE?
THE IDAHO
THE IDAHO
TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT SAYS THERE IS A BETTER WAY TO DRIVE
IN HEAVY TRAFFIC THAT
WILL HELP KEEP CARS
MOVING.
MOVING.
AND
AND IDAHO
AND IDAHO DRIVERS, MOST OF US ARE DOING IT WRONG.
IT WRONG.
HOW
HOW MANY
HOW MANY TIMES HAS THIS HAPPENED TO YOU? YOU'RE DRIVING ... AND
FOR WHATEVER REASON...
THE NUMBER OF LANES
ARE REDUCING.
YOU SEE THE "LANE END"
SIGNS ... WHAT DO YOU
DO?
DO YOU MERGE RIGHT
AWAY AND WAIT
PATIENTLY IN THE LONGER
LINE OF CARS -- OR DO
YOU KEEP DRIVING AND
MERGE AT THE LAST
POSSIBLE MOMENT?
"I THINK THEY SHOULD
WAIT PATIENTLY WITH
EVERYBODY,"
"YES, YOU GO ALL THE
WAY TO THE POINT OF
MERGE." KIM ASKS, "YOU
DO?" HIS WIFE CHIMES IN,
"I DON'T." KIM ASKS, "YOU
DON'T?" SHE SAYS, "I
DEFINITELY DON'T."
TURNS OUT, HE'S RIGHT.
YOU MAY THINK LATE
MERGE DRIVERS ARE
RUDE, INCONSIDERATE.
BUT, THE LATE MERGE IS
THE BETTER WAY TO
MERGE ... ACCORDING TO
ITD.
I'M AN ADVOCATE OF
LATE MERGE. IT'S A GOOD
WAY TO KEEP TRAFFIC
MOVING," SAYS BILL
KOTOWSKI/ITD OFFICE OF
HIGHWAY SAFETY
IT'S ALSO CALLED THE
ZIPPER MERGE.
HERE'S HOW IT WORKS.
DRIVERS USE BOTH LANES
OF TRAVEL UNTIL
REACHING THE DEFINED
MERGED AREA -- THEN
YOU ALTERNATE INTO THE
OPEN LANE.
STATES LIKE MINNESOTA
AND INDIANA
ENCOURAGE IT, SO DOES
ITD.
"YOU JUST TAKE TURNS,
YOU
YOU KNOW
YOU KNOW ONE CAR FROM THE LEFT LANE, ONE CAR FROM THE RIGHT
LANE," SAID ITD.
"JUST LIKE YOUR JACKET
ZIPPER. THERE'S LITTLE
TEETH AND THEY COME
TOGETHER AND IT WORKS
PRETTY WELL," SAID ITD.
IT WORKS, BECAUSE IT
CREATES A CONSTANT
MOVEMENT OF TRAFFIC...
AND KEEPING TRAFFIC
MOVING MEANS LESS
DELAY...
BECAUSE IT KEEPS THE
STEADY FLOW. IT MAY BE A
SLOWER FLOW THAN
WHAT YOU'RE USED TO
WHEN BOTH LANES ARE
FULLY OPEN, BUT IT'S A
CONSTANT MOVEMENT :21
AND A CONSTANT SPEED
AND THAT'S HELPUL IN
TERMS OF GETTING CARS
THROUGH," SAID ITD.
BUT ... AND THIS IS A BIG
BUT ... IT'S GOT TO BE
DONE THE RIGHT WAY...
WE DO NEED BOTH
DRIVERS TO PARTICIPATE
TO MAKE IT WORK. IN
PLACES WHERE THEY'VE
ADOPTED IT AND IT
WORKS WELL, TRAFFIC
MOVES ALONG NICELY.
OTHER PLACES WHERE
THEY DON'T LET PEOPLE IN
AND PEOPLE MERGE YOU
KNOW THERE CAN BE
PROBLEMS, IT COULD LEAD
TO ROAD RAGE," ITD SAID.
SO WE ALL HAVE TO
WORK TOGETHER AND
TAKE TURNS MERGING
FOR THE ZIPPER MERGE TO
BE EFFECTIVE.
ADMIT IT. HOW MANY
TIMES HAVE YOU REFUSED
TO LET SOMEONE IN?
ITD CALLS YOU "THE HALL
MONITOR."
I THINK THAT'S ANOTHER
AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR WE
DON'T TALK ENOUGH
ABOUT, THE HALL
MONITOR," SAID ITD
YOU KNOW A LOT OF
TIMES WHEN WE THINK OF
AGGRESSIVE DRIVING WE
THINK OF TAILGATING
AND SPEEDING, BUT
SOMETIMES WHEN YOU
DON'T LET SOMEBODY IN,
THAT'S AGGRESSIVE
BEHAVIOR TOO. YOU
DON'T OWN THE LANE,"
ITD SAID.
MOS SOUND "JUST MAKE
SURE YOU PUT ON YOUR
BLINKER AND WAVE IF
SOMEBODY LETS YOU IN
BECAUSE THAT'S ALWAYS
COURTESY AT LEAST,
RIGHT."
YES! THANK YOU WAVES
ARE ALWAYS
APPRECIATED!
APPRECIATED!
OK,
OK, WHAT
OK, WHAT ABOUT MERGING ONTO THE INTERSTATE OR THE
CONNECTOR?
EVERYBODY'S GOT AN
OPINION ON THAT, TOO...
MOS SOUND "PEOPLE
DON'T KNOW HOW TO
MERGE HERE.
MOS SOUND "I GREW UP,
IN MY DAY, YOU WAIT FOR
A SPOT TO OPEN UP. YOU
DON'T JUST PLOW RIGHT
IN AND EXPECT
SOMEBODY TO MOVE OUT
OF YOUR WAY,"
HE'S RIGHT!
YOU CAN'T JUST BUTT
RIGHT IN...
IDAHO'S DRIVER'S
MANUAL SAYS
ONCOMING DRIVERS
MUST YIELD TO TRAFFIC
ALREADY ON THE
HIGHWAY.
THAT MEANS -- IF THERE'S
NO OPENING, YOU MAY
HAVE TO SLOW DOWN OR
EVEN STOP.
"ADJUST YOUR SPEED.
YOU'RE THE ONE GOING
INTO THEIR LANE. THEY'RE
ESTABLISHED IN THAT
LANE, YOU'RE NOT," ITD
SAID.
BUT... THERE'S ANOTHER
BUT...
"HOPEFULLY THE OTHER
DRIVERS ARE AWARE THAT
YOU'RE MERGING AND IF
THEY'RE ABLE TO GET
OVER THAT'S ALWAYS A
GOOD IDEA IN TERMS OF
SHARING THE ROAD," ITD
SAYS.
...IF YOU CAN'T MOVE
OVER
OVER TO
OVER TO THE LEFT, THEN SLOW DOWN TO LET THE ONCOMING TRAFFIC IN.
REMEMBER. THE ROADS
BELONG TO ALL OF US ...
SO BE NICE!
"I THINK IT ALL BOILS
DOWN TO WHAT KIND OF
COMMUNITY DO YOU
WANT TO LIVE IN. OUR
ROADS ARE AN EXTENSIVE
OF OUR COMMUNITIES .
AND HOW WE INTERACT
ON OUR ROADS IS REALLY
A REFLECTION OF PEOPLE
HERE IN THE TREASURE
VALLEY OR IDAHO AS A
WHOLE, ITD SAID
HERE'S
HERE'S ANOTHER ONE. DRIVERS CRUISING IN THE PASSING LANE ON THE
INTERSTATE.
ITD SAYS IT'S YOUR
RESPONSIBILITY TO BE
AWARE OF OTHER TRAFFIC
AND YIELD THE LEFT LANE
TO PEOPLE WHO ARE
TRYING TO PASS.
THE LEFT LANE IS FOR
PASSING!
SO WHAT ARE YOUR
THOUGHTS
THOUGHTS ON ALL THIS? OUR KTVBFACEBOOK PAGE IS FULL OF COMMENTS
RIGHT NOW -- SO LET US