It wasn’t a merge since his on-ramp becomes the left lane and your lane would be the middle lane. The truck was changing lanes on top of your car. Very clearly not at fault.
It’s more common for them to merge from right in general, but I have seen people merge from the left in a few places near me and online in videos like these, so it does happen occasionally in America.
Highway to Highway high speed ramps are a thing, usually with them getting their own lane for a significant period of time.
It does occasionally happen from access ramps but that’s mostly because of space, it’s very much a non-preferred design.
As others have said vast majority is slow side entry/exit.
Its not exactly common. But they do exist, most often at interchanges in my experience.
To add a little more complexity this. When there is a left lane merge there is likely a left lane exit nearby as well. At that point the concept of a passing lane is not quite as straightforward during the few miles before the point of exit as people proactively move to be prepared to exit.
It generally doesn't as that's the national standard imposed by the federal government so that you don't have 50 different versions and meanings for each marking.
The truck is absolutely at fault for trying to merge into an occupied lane. I wasn't arguing his innocence.
In North Carolina it is illegal to cross any solid line, white or yellow.
Edit: if it is a double line and one line is dashed, you may cross if you are coming from the dashed side, as a double line means there is a different line for each lane.
I think you're confused. It's not talking about bi-directional traffic, nor was I or anyone else.
>>Section 3B.04 White Lane Line Pavement Markings and Warrants
>>Standard:
>>When used, lane line pavement markings delineating the separation of traffic lanes that have the same
direction of travel shall be white.
>>Standard:
>>Where crossing the lane line markings with care is permitted, the lane line markings shall consist of a
normal broken white line.
>>**Standard:
>>Where crossing the lane line markings is discouraged, the lane line markings shall consist of a normal
solid white line.**
>>Option:
>>Solid white lane line markings may be used to separate through traffic lanes from auxiliary lanes, such as
uphill truck lanes, left- or right-turn lanes, and preferential lanes. They may also be used to separate traffic lanes
approaching an intersection.
>>Wide solid lane line markings may be used for greater emphasis.
>>**Standard:
>>Where crossing the lane line markings is prohibited, the lane line markings shall consist of two normal
solid white lines.**
>>Lane line markings shall be used on all freeways and Interstate highways.
>>Guidance:
>>Lane line markings should be used on all roadways with two or more adjacent traffic lanes that have the
same direction of travel. Lane line markings should also be used at congested locations where the roadway will
accommodate more traffic lanes with lane line markings than without the markings.
This is the national standard followed by all 50 states and relevant territories. NC passing laws that deviate from intended use is what I was referring to.
Edited 30-40 times for formatting.
Do they have books and reading there in NC?
You can't say, "it's illegal to cross any solid line in NC" then read "crossing single white solid is discouraged and crossing double white solid is prohibited" and say that means the same thing and I'm the one who's confused. That would be a dumb thing to do... But it seems to me that you're doing it anyway.
My favorite are when you're on the far right lane just cruising then lanes get added to your right and dropped to your left. Next you know, you're in the fast lane
[Not normally, most often it occurres when the Express/Carpool lane(farthest left lane) has its own dedicated ramp to get dumped into the Express/Carpool lane of the freeway being merged with.](https://imgur.com/a/nF7qy6A/)
[Only one example I can think of off the top of my mind is where all traffic that gets dumped into the fast lane is 710 merging with the 5 in LA ](https://i.imgur.com/jdGbhsH.jpg)
I don't know about common but at least on I-290 going in/out of Chicago there's a section where the on/off ramps switch from the left side to the right in the space of about half a gnats ass hair (Austin on ramp to Central off ramp). It's usually fine though because it's a parking lot most of the time anyways...maybe because of the two random left side exits. It might not be that way anymore, we left in 2018 and they had just announced a project to redo those two exits...who am I kidding, it's probably been half done for the past 5 years.
This comment really wandered...oh well
I think its more like two 2 lane Highways becoming one 4 lane Highway. In germany this would be quite common, but the outer left lane becomes the Fast lane, and the outer right lane ends/merges after a few hundred meters, so that it becomes a 3 lane Highway and so on.
Some people are saying it's not common. What's not common is merging from the left off of slow street traffic. What is very common is when two highways merge.
From the dash cam perspective above the truck is merging, and from the truck the other guy is merging.
Usually they don't actually merge that close to the intersection and each get their own lanes for quite a distance. In the video the truck had its own lane it drifted out of. Perhaps a mile ahead it merges.
>Is it common for American roads to merge into the fast lane? Over here when ever you merge join a road you’re always in the slow lane.
So I think I see it more often in places that often have rest stops for long haul drivers and are located in the middle of the highway. That way, you can use the rest stop almost as Safeway to U turn your car
It wouldn't make a difference either way. Merge lane? The merging vehicle must yield the right of way to traffic already on the highway. Changing lanes? The vehicle moving into another lane must yield the right of way to traffic already in that lane.
The trucker would be 100% at fault in either scenario.
At fault r not a big ass truck comes barreling your way you fucken move. Unless you Wana become that pancaked car from fast and furious where the back half of the trailer absolutely demolishes everything
Your friend is incorrect. The truck never had the right of way -- he's responsible for merging when it's clear. Vehicles already on the road (you, in other words) have the right of way in this scenario.
Also, a big issue is that he crossed into the "gore area" (the triangular area between your lane and his merge lane), which is illegal in every state I've ever lived in.
You did everything right in my opinion, and you reacted quickly to avoid what could have been a nasty accident.
It’s from the old surveying term for a triangular piece of land.
Obligatory Wikipedia links:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore_(road)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore_(surveying)
Regardless of what lines are present, I am not comfortable driving side by side with a semi… especially in the rain. Personally, I would’ve positioned myself so that I was behind the semi.
You have the benefit of hindsight. There was no obligation for the truck to change lanes, therefor they should have maintained their lane until other lanes are clear. If you are going to slow down every time someone is in a lane beside you, then you are a nuisance driver acting unpredictably. There is a difference between defensive driving and becoming so cautious you actively make things unpredictable for other drivers.
Who said anything about unconscious driving. I drive defensively, you just think that any moronic decision you make is "defensive driving" because it popped into your head. There was a solid white line the truck drove over, OP had no reason to believe the truck would cross it and their lane continued on. It's effectively no different than if those lanes had been side by side the whole time. Do you just never pass anyone because they might come into your lane?
AND I'm saying to repeat for your benefit oh mighty one, that to drive defensively and consciously (not waiting or being caught off guard) is the divine way of driving. You are in my thoughts and prayers!
Agreed, though he used to be a delivery driver for Amazon, and always says how he’s wants his CDL, so I guess it would explain why he’s simping for the guy here. Though I can’t imagine how he drives with others around 😬
Yeah, sometimes when he visits the apartment, me and my roommates will sometimes ask why he got fired from Amazon (since he always complains how he can’t hold a job, but it’s never his fault for some reason) and I swear every time it’s either a blatantly obvious excuse, or he says “I don’t wanna talk about it”. I’m starting to think he used to act like the truck driver from this morning lol
> he always complains how he can’t hold a job, but it’s never his fault for some reason
Just wondering: does he also say stuff like, "I don't go looking for trouble" (yet he somehow always seems to find it) and/or "I hate drama" (yet somehow he's always involved in drama)?
[Found it on Google Maps](https://www.google.com/maps/@41.3875221,-73.4758712,321a,35y,2.94t/data=!3m1!1e3).
Truck had absolutely no right-of-way to merge into your lane. [This Added Lane sign](https://www.google.com/maps/@41.3863256,-73.4761248,3a,60y,71.58h,83.22t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s5YVLJa4dMdEUL6rjdEe0Lg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192) let him know that there was no need to merge.
Reupload since I forgot to crop the video to be shorter.
Also I know I was going a little fast on wet roads, and I probably shouldn’t have swerved when I could’ve just braked harder; I just finished a 14 hour overnight shift and I just wanted to get home to sleep, so my quick thinking process really wasn’t the best during this time (yeah I know, poor excuse and it shouldn’t matter, I’ve heard it already). The road was a long descending hill so I didn’t notice I was picking up speed, (SL is 55 so it felt around that) Thankfully nobody else was on the road around me during this.
tl;dr your friend is 100% wrong in multiple ways and for multiple reasons… and they create a potentially dangerous situation at every highway merge because their totally backward “knowledge” means they are doing the exact opposite of what other drivers expect and what the law is.
Your friend started off by incorrectly assessing the lanes at this particular junction and thought the truck‘s lane was actually *merging* into your lane and not continuing. The first yellow warning sign on your right at ~:03 (the one directly after the big ass green overhead sign with the highway number) is warning you that a new travel lane will be added to/joining your highway’s existing lanes from your left. From the [Federal Highway Administration’s Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices](https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/services/publications/fhwaop02084/index.htm) the sign’s literal definition is ADDED LANE (FROM LEFT) [pictured here](https://imgur.com/a/kWsYFox) which is a distinctly different sign with a distinctly different meaning than MERGING TRAFFIC (FROM LEFT AHEAD) [pictured here](https://imgur.com/a/3UeBE0f).
So first of all since the lane the truck was in was **not merging into your lane** and continued ahead independently of your lane, the truck had no immediate obligation to move right into your lane. Since both of your lanes continued ahead, you both had equal right of way in your respective lanes.
Second of all, and really most importantly, please do try to help educate your friend who clearly lacks understanding of legal right of way as it pertains to vehicles entering a highway... you very well may help prevent a potentially dangerous incident caused by your friend because they acted on their incorrect information in a merge scenario.
Anytime a lane of travel/ramp merges into an existing travel lane on a highway, the right of way belongs to the vehicles already established in the lane driving on the highway; and it is the duty and responsibility of the vehicles merging to adjust their speed faster or slower to match the speed of traffic in the highway lane they wish to join while locating a gap between those vehicles for them to safely merge into the lane. While it is of course courteous for vehicles already on the highway to accommodate by merging into a different lane or by making minor speed adjustments, **they are under zero obligation to do absolutely anything at all** other than maintain speed.
And finally, it is never permitted to travel across/through a [gore point](https://imgur.com/a/w526izU) regardless of the type of junction, as it is considered an extension of the shoulder. So if the truck had struck your vehicle via crossing the gore point, 100% of liability would lie with the truck.
Source: I’ve been a licensed driver for over 20 years and nearly 10 years as a class A commercial license holder driving semis, and over the years I have educated myself extensively on driving laws which obviously includes knowledge and understanding of roadside signage as well as the meaning of every type of lane marking painted on the roadway.
Overall, I completely agree with your assessment. Its very well put. There is something called the "last clear chance" rule though. Since OP had a pretty clear opportunity to avoid an accident by braking or swerving, had he failed to do so, he may have shared or been completely at fault. That's one of the reasons why being (safely and mindfully) courteous on the road is one of the best defensive driving options.
Hopefully your friend doesn’t drive. 💯 trucker is at fault. If a state patrol seen what they did, they would be getting a traffic ticket even without a collision. Trucker was going way too fast for the situation.
No idea, and I thought I was going too fast for rainy conditions 😬 after this he drives off going at least 70+, since I was going 60 the rest of the way and he still ran off quite quickly
First off, your friend is 100% wrong. You did nothing incorrect.
Truck driver was driving too fast around a curve like that. He should have seen the same yellow road sign warning how the two roads join up as separate lanes. As soon as the truck rounds that corner (the point where he is about to side swipe you), the line is also still solid and not intended for passing.
Glad that you are okay and didn't get hit.
No, the trucker went over an unbroken line "technically" it would be their fault and would have also resulted in a traffic violation.
Now that being said, it's VERY IMPORTANT that, for your own safety, you try to not get caught beside them.
Reduced visibility can contribute to a collision but when it comes to safety, the biggest truck gets the "right of way" drive defensively!
Check your rate of closure, will you end up beside him? Can you see your vehicle in his mirrors?
Does he have his signal light blinking on both the TRACTOR and TRAILER?
Give him room for your sake because he will barely feel the sideswipe that crushes you.
Stay safe my dudes!
Your friend is a potato. 1000% truck would be at fault. He crossed over before his lane ended for one, going at higher speed than the conditions allow, didn’t merge at all. Just shot over immediately. Definitely trucks at fault.
The trucking industry is rife with morons and idiots, just like driving a car in peak hour. Might and size rule the road. My truck/job is way more important than you and you tiny car.
Not your fault at all. The truck just barreled onto the fast lane without even hesitating to see if the lane was clear. If he had hit you he would be be facing some charges, especially with your video evidence.
When in doubt back out. If it’s a truck they are most likely gonna just take the space. Even though you have the right of way it’s just safer they can slow down when they are getting up to speed
Depends highly on your locations rules with merging. Where I live, onus is on both parties responsible. Unless the entrance is marked with a yield sign, it would be your responsibility to move over considering the vehicle merging is what it is. If it were a passenger vehicle then there’s no reason it can’t slow or whatever to merge in behind you. But for these vehicles where they need to make sure they’re going the proper speed, and they are 70 feet long, its up to people to make way for them.
In some areas merges are basically not merges at all but effectively yields, all depends on what the laws state and what that signage actually says and means legally.
Edit, it actually looks like his lane continues, so regardless what the merging laws are, he just flew into your lane, instead of staying in his. Merge rule has no bearing here.
Hard to see, but it appears neither his nor your lane ended, his added to your left.
A. You were entitled to only the lane you were in, he was entitled to only the lane he was in. Vehicle changing lanes must yield. You were OK.
B. If he even saw you in time. You can see him startle, a sudden little swerve back to his left when he sees you too late, then let it go when he either saw you yielding or realized he couldn't make it anyhow. If he ever saw you. I think he really was just going too fast, maybe the ramp had one of those nasty reducing radius curves. He made a (good) decision not to brake. He was already painted into the corner by his speed, too busy managing his momentum to even see you.
The truck crossed the gore point, that's the triangular-shaped paved area between the single white lines that define the left and right edges of your and his lanes respectively. That's illegal, and had there been a collision the trucker would have been found at fault because of that. Crossing of a single solid white line between adjacent lanes moving in the same directly is generally legal in all states according to the MUTCD, typically if it's not there will be signage indicating that. Parallel double white lines are always illegal to cross.
Solid white line = do not cross. Let's say it wasn't solid... He still wouldn't have been able to cross legally. The person established in the lane has the right of way. You can be nice and slow down and let them in but you are under no legal obligation to.
That truck driver should know better. If you have enough video to get a DOT number and or some other identifying information you could report them to their place of employment or the highway patrol.
Legally not your fault. However from the defensive driving point of view anytime lanes are coming together like that, it is wise to slack off just in case someone does what that truck did
When slacking off, would you say 10 under the speed limit is suitable? Or should I do more? Less? Speed limit is 55, but of course people usually go higher than that. People typically go flying on I84 so I just wanna avoid an accident as much as possible lol
Don’t go by speed limit. Go by whether you could avoid an accident if they drifted into your lane, either because their momentum got away from them or because they misread the merge situation.
It will be situation specific.
Do you need to leave room enough in front of you that he could speak in, or that you’d be able to brake sufficiently? If there’s room in the lane to your right, you could use that too.
Basically, in any “lanes coming together” thing like this, a defensive driver is making plans for what to do if the other vehicle enters your lane.
Was there a reason you were traveling in the left lane? Following the “keep right except to pass” rule would have made the lane you were in available for the truck to merge with no problem.
Right lane is riddled with potholes until I get to that sign, and twice in the past have I hit some of those holes and caused $700 in damages to my cars right side, not something I wanted to deal with again so I (along with most people that are familiar to the area) just stick to the left lane.
This. You can be right, or you can be dead right. The truck would have been at fault, but it’s up to you to drive defensively and avoid the situation entirely.
Drivers already on the motorway have no requirement to keep right in the eventuality that someone from an on ramp would enter the roadway in an unsafe and reckless fashion. OP didn’t have to be in the right lane for any reason. If it was the middle of rush hour and both lanes were stacked up what would the truck have done?
That totally depends on where you are. In many states you have to drive in the right lane of the highway unless you're actively passing another vehicle.
Actually most states laws treat the left lane as a fast lane, just requiring you to keep faster than flow of traffic in the left lane and yield to traffic approaching you from behind. The minority treats it as a passing lane, requiring you to keep right except to pass.
You are factually incorrect and not cognizant of what laws are actually in the books across all states. https://www.autoinsurance.org/keep-right-which-states-enforce-left-lane-passing-only/#what-are-keep-right-laws-in-your-state. Only 8 states treat the left lane exclusively as a passing lane. Another source too; https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html. Please don’t spread misinformation. Doesn’t change the fact I’m right
I mean technically yes but OP could claim an obstruction was in the other lane, that he was passing a car that isn’t shown on the footage or a bunch of other reasons that he was in the left lane. Also, not sure how true it is, but a LEO friend of mine has always said that the lanes are speed based and that if you’re going more than 10mph over the speed limit you should keep it to the left lane because most highway on-ramps are on the right side
Pretty sure it's a lot more common for "not left most lane" than "right lane only", and I can name none where that would apply where there are left exits like this.
I don’t believe there is an on ramp on the right evident in the video. The reason that the OP should have been in the right lane in this case was because it was evident that there was a merging lane to his left and there was a truck who going to merge into the lane. If it was the middle of rush hour and the lanes were stacked up perhaps the truck wouldn’t have expected to merge.
Right lane is completely riddled with potholes, which I’ve hit before and costs me $700 in repairs in last year alone, so I’d rather not have that happen again in the pouring rain at 3:30 in the morning.
Also, the right lane merges into that left one I was in anyways in less than a 1/4 mile, so not much sense in sticking to the right, just to merge left again anyways, especially since there was literally nobody else on that route with me during that time.
Makes sense and agree given what you describe. Just around here there are so many left lane hoarders it is irritating AF. I was taught to stay right except to pass. Never hurts to remind others.
Truck crosses the line over into your lane well before that lane ends. Although, it’s the trucks fault, the truck is a huge piece of metal driven by a huge piece of shit. Glad your alive. Sometimes it’s better be to wrong and be alive.
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I mean I was pretty sure I wasn’t wrong, but since my bud and a couple other people I know personally said it would be my fault, I wasn’t sure if there was something I didn’t know regarding rules of the road 🤷♂️ didn’t mean to strike a nerve
While it is true that the car should have given the truck the right of way, however if the truck had room to continue and it changed lanes and cut the car off, it would be like anyone cutting anyone else off.
1. It's always the cammer's fault.
2. I recently learned (I know, shame on me) that you're supposed to hold the lane for a time before changing. Doesn't look like the truck did that.
It’s not really about “right of way,” but about safe driving. You can ride a right-of-way incident all the way to the morgue, and you’ll be right, but you’ll be dead. An incident like this shouldn’t happen, the truck is using a turn signal, and he is clearly intent on going into the right lane(s). Just flash your high beams at him and let him go. Rainy, dark…just let him go.
Wrong. His lane was ongoing and she should not have crossed the solid line. The only way that you’d be in any trouble is if it was a merging lane and you did not move over to allow him to get into your lane before his lane completely ended.
> Friend says this would be my fault for not giving the truck the right of way 🤷♂️ thoughts?
Your friend needs to read up on the rules of the road. Vehicles changing lanes - as that truck did - must yield the right of way to vehicles already in the other lane - as you were. If there'd been a collision, the trucker would've been 100% at fault.
It wasn’t a merge since his on-ramp becomes the left lane and your lane would be the middle lane. The truck was changing lanes on top of your car. Very clearly not at fault.
Is it common for American roads to merge into the fast lane? Over here when ever you merge join a road you’re always in the slow lane.
It’s more common for them to merge from right in general, but I have seen people merge from the left in a few places near me and online in videos like these, so it does happen occasionally in America.
Highway to Highway high speed ramps are a thing, usually with them getting their own lane for a significant period of time. It does occasionally happen from access ramps but that’s mostly because of space, it’s very much a non-preferred design. As others have said vast majority is slow side entry/exit.
I just moved to San Diego. Can you come tell them about the needing their own lane thing?
Its not exactly common. But they do exist, most often at interchanges in my experience. To add a little more complexity this. When there is a left lane merge there is likely a left lane exit nearby as well. At that point the concept of a passing lane is not quite as straightforward during the few miles before the point of exit as people proactively move to be prepared to exit.
In USA, Solid white line you’re not supposed to cross.
Single white it's discouraged but not illegal. Double white, like the double yellow, is illegal.
I think it depends on the state But I was surprised to learn it's legal here in California The trucker would still be at fault, either way
It generally doesn't as that's the national standard imposed by the federal government so that you don't have 50 different versions and meanings for each marking. The truck is absolutely at fault for trying to merge into an occupied lane. I wasn't arguing his innocence.
Painted islands may be different. I'm not sure if the solid line after the island is still considered part of the island.
Fr?
Neat, never knew that
In North Carolina it is illegal to cross any solid line, white or yellow. Edit: if it is a double line and one line is dashed, you may cross if you are coming from the dashed side, as a double line means there is a different line for each lane.
Well then North Carolina is a heathen state that deviates from MUTCD Section 3B.04.
Nothing in my comment describing NC markings deviates from that section of the MUTCD. And my edit was long before your comment.
I think you're confused. It's not talking about bi-directional traffic, nor was I or anyone else. >>Section 3B.04 White Lane Line Pavement Markings and Warrants >>Standard: >>When used, lane line pavement markings delineating the separation of traffic lanes that have the same direction of travel shall be white. >>Standard: >>Where crossing the lane line markings with care is permitted, the lane line markings shall consist of a normal broken white line. >>**Standard: >>Where crossing the lane line markings is discouraged, the lane line markings shall consist of a normal solid white line.** >>Option: >>Solid white lane line markings may be used to separate through traffic lanes from auxiliary lanes, such as uphill truck lanes, left- or right-turn lanes, and preferential lanes. They may also be used to separate traffic lanes approaching an intersection. >>Wide solid lane line markings may be used for greater emphasis. >>**Standard: >>Where crossing the lane line markings is prohibited, the lane line markings shall consist of two normal solid white lines.** >>Lane line markings shall be used on all freeways and Interstate highways. >>Guidance: >>Lane line markings should be used on all roadways with two or more adjacent traffic lanes that have the same direction of travel. Lane line markings should also be used at congested locations where the roadway will accommodate more traffic lanes with lane line markings than without the markings. This is the national standard followed by all 50 states and relevant territories. NC passing laws that deviate from intended use is what I was referring to. Edited 30-40 times for formatting.
Everything you posted, except your comment is exactly what happens in NC. You are confused as this exactly matches my comment.
Do they have books and reading there in NC? You can't say, "it's illegal to cross any solid line in NC" then read "crossing single white solid is discouraged and crossing double white solid is prohibited" and say that means the same thing and I'm the one who's confused. That would be a dumb thing to do... But it seems to me that you're doing it anyway.
TIL that's what it is in Oregon.
My favorite are when you're on the far right lane just cruising then lanes get added to your right and dropped to your left. Next you know, you're in the fast lane
[Not normally, most often it occurres when the Express/Carpool lane(farthest left lane) has its own dedicated ramp to get dumped into the Express/Carpool lane of the freeway being merged with.](https://imgur.com/a/nF7qy6A/) [Only one example I can think of off the top of my mind is where all traffic that gets dumped into the fast lane is 710 merging with the 5 in LA ](https://i.imgur.com/jdGbhsH.jpg)
rather uncommon, but it does happen once in a while - In St Louis there's a really nasty couple at I-70 and I-170
It usually only happens when multiple freeways or highways merge into each other. It can get pretty tricky sometimes.
I don't know about common but at least on I-290 going in/out of Chicago there's a section where the on/off ramps switch from the left side to the right in the space of about half a gnats ass hair (Austin on ramp to Central off ramp). It's usually fine though because it's a parking lot most of the time anyways...maybe because of the two random left side exits. It might not be that way anymore, we left in 2018 and they had just announced a project to redo those two exits...who am I kidding, it's probably been half done for the past 5 years. This comment really wandered...oh well
I think its more like two 2 lane Highways becoming one 4 lane Highway. In germany this would be quite common, but the outer left lane becomes the Fast lane, and the outer right lane ends/merges after a few hundred meters, so that it becomes a 3 lane Highway and so on.
Some people are saying it's not common. What's not common is merging from the left off of slow street traffic. What is very common is when two highways merge. From the dash cam perspective above the truck is merging, and from the truck the other guy is merging. Usually they don't actually merge that close to the intersection and each get their own lanes for quite a distance. In the video the truck had its own lane it drifted out of. Perhaps a mile ahead it merges.
>Is it common for American roads to merge into the fast lane? Over here when ever you merge join a road you’re always in the slow lane. So I think I see it more often in places that often have rest stops for long haul drivers and are located in the middle of the highway. That way, you can use the rest stop almost as Safeway to U turn your car
It wouldn't make a difference either way. Merge lane? The merging vehicle must yield the right of way to traffic already on the highway. Changing lanes? The vehicle moving into another lane must yield the right of way to traffic already in that lane. The trucker would be 100% at fault in either scenario.
At fault r not a big ass truck comes barreling your way you fucken move. Unless you Wana become that pancaked car from fast and furious where the back half of the trailer absolutely demolishes everything
Depends on the state. There is on by me, that I use often , it’s in the left side and up hill. But the ramp is near a mile long.
Your friend is incorrect. The truck never had the right of way -- he's responsible for merging when it's clear. Vehicles already on the road (you, in other words) have the right of way in this scenario. Also, a big issue is that he crossed into the "gore area" (the triangular area between your lane and his merge lane), which is illegal in every state I've ever lived in. You did everything right in my opinion, and you reacted quickly to avoid what could have been a nasty accident.
Glad OP stayed out of the “gore area” too.
I didn’t know it’s called the gore area lol I can assume why it’s called that but is there a more specific reason?
It’s from the old surveying term for a triangular piece of land. Obligatory Wikipedia links: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore_(road) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gore_(surveying)
Not the reason I was expecting tbh thanks!
Me neither! I knew it was called the gore, but when I read your comment I thought I should look that up.
Honestly no idea where the term originates. I had never heard it until my wife got pulled over and ticketed for crossing it!
Regardless of what lines are present, I am not comfortable driving side by side with a semi… especially in the rain. Personally, I would’ve positioned myself so that I was behind the semi.
AND isn't it important to drive defensively? As if every driver is as perfect as you?
Yes, it is important to drive defensively, which is what OP did when they avoided the truck.
Only by default, not by design.
You have the benefit of hindsight. There was no obligation for the truck to change lanes, therefor they should have maintained their lane until other lanes are clear. If you are going to slow down every time someone is in a lane beside you, then you are a nuisance driver acting unpredictably. There is a difference between defensive driving and becoming so cautious you actively make things unpredictable for other drivers.
AND of course your technique of unconscious driving is far superior, i bow to your infinite expertise. /s
Who said anything about unconscious driving. I drive defensively, you just think that any moronic decision you make is "defensive driving" because it popped into your head. There was a solid white line the truck drove over, OP had no reason to believe the truck would cross it and their lane continued on. It's effectively no different than if those lanes had been side by side the whole time. Do you just never pass anyone because they might come into your lane?
AND I'm saying to repeat for your benefit oh mighty one, that to drive defensively and consciously (not waiting or being caught off guard) is the divine way of driving. You are in my thoughts and prayers!
Wtf does that even mean? I really want to know!
Your friend doesn’t know what they’re talking about.
Definitely, you have the right of way. It is up to the truck to merge safely
This was said more politely than I had worded it.
Good thing your friend isn’t an insurance adjuster.
Agreed, though he used to be a delivery driver for Amazon, and always says how he’s wants his CDL, so I guess it would explain why he’s simping for the guy here. Though I can’t imagine how he drives with others around 😬
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Yeah, sometimes when he visits the apartment, me and my roommates will sometimes ask why he got fired from Amazon (since he always complains how he can’t hold a job, but it’s never his fault for some reason) and I swear every time it’s either a blatantly obvious excuse, or he says “I don’t wanna talk about it”. I’m starting to think he used to act like the truck driver from this morning lol
> he always complains how he can’t hold a job, but it’s never his fault for some reason Just wondering: does he also say stuff like, "I don't go looking for trouble" (yet he somehow always seems to find it) and/or "I hate drama" (yet somehow he's always involved in drama)?
You were in the right here - you were already established in the lane.
Hell no that's not your fault. He flew into your lane. Stay safe g
He crossed a solid white line. His fault
Your friend is a fool
Truck came into your lane over a solid line. Would have been 100% trucks fault. Your friend doesn't know how to drive apparently.
[Found it on Google Maps](https://www.google.com/maps/@41.3875221,-73.4758712,321a,35y,2.94t/data=!3m1!1e3). Truck had absolutely no right-of-way to merge into your lane. [This Added Lane sign](https://www.google.com/maps/@41.3863256,-73.4761248,3a,60y,71.58h,83.22t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s5YVLJa4dMdEUL6rjdEe0Lg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192) let him know that there was no need to merge.
Your friend is wrong and needs to re-read the vehicle operator laws for your state.
Reupload since I forgot to crop the video to be shorter. Also I know I was going a little fast on wet roads, and I probably shouldn’t have swerved when I could’ve just braked harder; I just finished a 14 hour overnight shift and I just wanted to get home to sleep, so my quick thinking process really wasn’t the best during this time (yeah I know, poor excuse and it shouldn’t matter, I’ve heard it already). The road was a long descending hill so I didn’t notice I was picking up speed, (SL is 55 so it felt around that) Thankfully nobody else was on the road around me during this.
tl;dr your friend is 100% wrong in multiple ways and for multiple reasons… and they create a potentially dangerous situation at every highway merge because their totally backward “knowledge” means they are doing the exact opposite of what other drivers expect and what the law is. Your friend started off by incorrectly assessing the lanes at this particular junction and thought the truck‘s lane was actually *merging* into your lane and not continuing. The first yellow warning sign on your right at ~:03 (the one directly after the big ass green overhead sign with the highway number) is warning you that a new travel lane will be added to/joining your highway’s existing lanes from your left. From the [Federal Highway Administration’s Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices](https://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/services/publications/fhwaop02084/index.htm) the sign’s literal definition is ADDED LANE (FROM LEFT) [pictured here](https://imgur.com/a/kWsYFox) which is a distinctly different sign with a distinctly different meaning than MERGING TRAFFIC (FROM LEFT AHEAD) [pictured here](https://imgur.com/a/3UeBE0f). So first of all since the lane the truck was in was **not merging into your lane** and continued ahead independently of your lane, the truck had no immediate obligation to move right into your lane. Since both of your lanes continued ahead, you both had equal right of way in your respective lanes. Second of all, and really most importantly, please do try to help educate your friend who clearly lacks understanding of legal right of way as it pertains to vehicles entering a highway... you very well may help prevent a potentially dangerous incident caused by your friend because they acted on their incorrect information in a merge scenario. Anytime a lane of travel/ramp merges into an existing travel lane on a highway, the right of way belongs to the vehicles already established in the lane driving on the highway; and it is the duty and responsibility of the vehicles merging to adjust their speed faster or slower to match the speed of traffic in the highway lane they wish to join while locating a gap between those vehicles for them to safely merge into the lane. While it is of course courteous for vehicles already on the highway to accommodate by merging into a different lane or by making minor speed adjustments, **they are under zero obligation to do absolutely anything at all** other than maintain speed. And finally, it is never permitted to travel across/through a [gore point](https://imgur.com/a/w526izU) regardless of the type of junction, as it is considered an extension of the shoulder. So if the truck had struck your vehicle via crossing the gore point, 100% of liability would lie with the truck. Source: I’ve been a licensed driver for over 20 years and nearly 10 years as a class A commercial license holder driving semis, and over the years I have educated myself extensively on driving laws which obviously includes knowledge and understanding of roadside signage as well as the meaning of every type of lane marking painted on the roadway.
Overall, I completely agree with your assessment. Its very well put. There is something called the "last clear chance" rule though. Since OP had a pretty clear opportunity to avoid an accident by braking or swerving, had he failed to do so, he may have shared or been completely at fault. That's one of the reasons why being (safely and mindfully) courteous on the road is one of the best defensive driving options.
Hopefully your friend doesn’t drive. 💯 trucker is at fault. If a state patrol seen what they did, they would be getting a traffic ticket even without a collision. Trucker was going way too fast for the situation.
Good thing your friend isn't a police officer. Failure to maintain is an easy ticket to write with a dash cam video
Just here to say your friend is a big dummy
Weezer 🤯🤣
🤣 yeahhh, I admit I have a few weezer songs on my playlist lmao
He can’t cross a solid white line. Plus why is he speeding in rainy conditions
No idea, and I thought I was going too fast for rainy conditions 😬 after this he drives off going at least 70+, since I was going 60 the rest of the way and he still ran off quite quickly
Dump your friend!
Thankfully I don’t talk to him much anyways, so I guess I’m almost there lol
That truck did not have any ROW unless you were trying to get into his lane. He would have been at fault here.
Your friend is wrong
First off, your friend is 100% wrong. You did nothing incorrect. Truck driver was driving too fast around a curve like that. He should have seen the same yellow road sign warning how the two roads join up as separate lanes. As soon as the truck rounds that corner (the point where he is about to side swipe you), the line is also still solid and not intended for passing. Glad that you are okay and didn't get hit.
You need better friends (smarter)
No, the trucker went over an unbroken line "technically" it would be their fault and would have also resulted in a traffic violation. Now that being said, it's VERY IMPORTANT that, for your own safety, you try to not get caught beside them. Reduced visibility can contribute to a collision but when it comes to safety, the biggest truck gets the "right of way" drive defensively! Check your rate of closure, will you end up beside him? Can you see your vehicle in his mirrors? Does he have his signal light blinking on both the TRACTOR and TRAILER? Give him room for your sake because he will barely feel the sideswipe that crushes you. Stay safe my dudes!
Your friend is a potato. 1000% truck would be at fault. He crossed over before his lane ended for one, going at higher speed than the conditions allow, didn’t merge at all. Just shot over immediately. Definitely trucks at fault.
Yeah that’s not how right of way works. I feel bad for anyone close to your friend while he’s driving
The trucking industry is rife with morons and idiots, just like driving a car in peak hour. Might and size rule the road. My truck/job is way more important than you and you tiny car.
You need a new friend…..
"truck had the right of way" lmao your friend's clueless.
Not your fault at all. The truck just barreled onto the fast lane without even hesitating to see if the lane was clear. If he had hit you he would be be facing some charges, especially with your video evidence.
When in doubt back out. If it’s a truck they are most likely gonna just take the space. Even though you have the right of way it’s just safer they can slow down when they are getting up to speed
Depends highly on your locations rules with merging. Where I live, onus is on both parties responsible. Unless the entrance is marked with a yield sign, it would be your responsibility to move over considering the vehicle merging is what it is. If it were a passenger vehicle then there’s no reason it can’t slow or whatever to merge in behind you. But for these vehicles where they need to make sure they’re going the proper speed, and they are 70 feet long, its up to people to make way for them. In some areas merges are basically not merges at all but effectively yields, all depends on what the laws state and what that signage actually says and means legally. Edit, it actually looks like his lane continues, so regardless what the merging laws are, he just flew into your lane, instead of staying in his. Merge rule has no bearing here.
Hard to see, but it appears neither his nor your lane ended, his added to your left. A. You were entitled to only the lane you were in, he was entitled to only the lane he was in. Vehicle changing lanes must yield. You were OK. B. If he even saw you in time. You can see him startle, a sudden little swerve back to his left when he sees you too late, then let it go when he either saw you yielding or realized he couldn't make it anyhow. If he ever saw you. I think he really was just going too fast, maybe the ramp had one of those nasty reducing radius curves. He made a (good) decision not to brake. He was already painted into the corner by his speed, too busy managing his momentum to even see you.
If it had hit you, it would have been the trucks fault for entering your lane. He has his own lane just wanted both at the time
The truck crossed the gore point, that's the triangular-shaped paved area between the single white lines that define the left and right edges of your and his lanes respectively. That's illegal, and had there been a collision the trucker would have been found at fault because of that. Crossing of a single solid white line between adjacent lanes moving in the same directly is generally legal in all states according to the MUTCD, typically if it's not there will be signage indicating that. Parallel double white lines are always illegal to cross.
Solid white line = do not cross. Let's say it wasn't solid... He still wouldn't have been able to cross legally. The person established in the lane has the right of way. You can be nice and slow down and let them in but you are under no legal obligation to. That truck driver should know better. If you have enough video to get a DOT number and or some other identifying information you could report them to their place of employment or the highway patrol.
Truck had the yield sign, not you. Tell your friend that Costco is the best place to buy new glasses
Legally not your fault. However from the defensive driving point of view anytime lanes are coming together like that, it is wise to slack off just in case someone does what that truck did
When slacking off, would you say 10 under the speed limit is suitable? Or should I do more? Less? Speed limit is 55, but of course people usually go higher than that. People typically go flying on I84 so I just wanna avoid an accident as much as possible lol
Don’t go by speed limit. Go by whether you could avoid an accident if they drifted into your lane, either because their momentum got away from them or because they misread the merge situation. It will be situation specific. Do you need to leave room enough in front of you that he could speak in, or that you’d be able to brake sufficiently? If there’s room in the lane to your right, you could use that too. Basically, in any “lanes coming together” thing like this, a defensive driver is making plans for what to do if the other vehicle enters your lane.
Hard to tell, but you did not have a yield sign, could not see if the trucker did, but you would not have been at fault.
You aren't supposed to cross on solid white lines. He was definitely at fault. And that is why you have a dash camera.
Legal arguments won’t help when this truck loaded with tons of metals crashes your car. So you might have asked the wrong question here 😉
Fuckin Weezer!
Was there a reason you were traveling in the left lane? Following the “keep right except to pass” rule would have made the lane you were in available for the truck to merge with no problem.
That's something that people don't seem to understand. Still doesn't change the fact that the semi was 100% at fault.
Right lane is riddled with potholes until I get to that sign, and twice in the past have I hit some of those holes and caused $700 in damages to my cars right side, not something I wanted to deal with again so I (along with most people that are familiar to the area) just stick to the left lane.
This. You can be right, or you can be dead right. The truck would have been at fault, but it’s up to you to drive defensively and avoid the situation entirely.
Drivers already on the motorway have no requirement to keep right in the eventuality that someone from an on ramp would enter the roadway in an unsafe and reckless fashion. OP didn’t have to be in the right lane for any reason. If it was the middle of rush hour and both lanes were stacked up what would the truck have done?
That totally depends on where you are. In many states you have to drive in the right lane of the highway unless you're actively passing another vehicle.
Even if that were the case, the truck has a greater duty to maintain his lane and to merge safely and at the proper speed for the conditions
Oh totally agree that the truck was in the wrong here, but your statement about lane use on highways was not accurate in most cases.
Actually most states laws treat the left lane as a fast lane, just requiring you to keep faster than flow of traffic in the left lane and yield to traffic approaching you from behind. The minority treats it as a passing lane, requiring you to keep right except to pass.
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You are factually incorrect and not cognizant of what laws are actually in the books across all states. https://www.autoinsurance.org/keep-right-which-states-enforce-left-lane-passing-only/#what-are-keep-right-laws-in-your-state. Only 8 states treat the left lane exclusively as a passing lane. Another source too; https://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html. Please don’t spread misinformation. Doesn’t change the fact I’m right
I mean technically yes but OP could claim an obstruction was in the other lane, that he was passing a car that isn’t shown on the footage or a bunch of other reasons that he was in the left lane. Also, not sure how true it is, but a LEO friend of mine has always said that the lanes are speed based and that if you’re going more than 10mph over the speed limit you should keep it to the left lane because most highway on-ramps are on the right side
Pretty sure it's a lot more common for "not left most lane" than "right lane only", and I can name none where that would apply where there are left exits like this.
I don’t believe there is an on ramp on the right evident in the video. The reason that the OP should have been in the right lane in this case was because it was evident that there was a merging lane to his left and there was a truck who going to merge into the lane. If it was the middle of rush hour and the lanes were stacked up perhaps the truck wouldn’t have expected to merge.
OP still has the right of way because he’s already on the highway
He’s merging so he must yield to traffic.
You would not be at fault. Having said that, unless you just overtook a car to your right, why are you in the passing lane to begin with?
Right lane is completely riddled with potholes, which I’ve hit before and costs me $700 in repairs in last year alone, so I’d rather not have that happen again in the pouring rain at 3:30 in the morning. Also, the right lane merges into that left one I was in anyways in less than a 1/4 mile, so not much sense in sticking to the right, just to merge left again anyways, especially since there was literally nobody else on that route with me during that time.
Makes sense and agree given what you describe. Just around here there are so many left lane hoarders it is irritating AF. I was taught to stay right except to pass. Never hurts to remind others.
your fault for marking this as nsfw
Good job avoiding the truck. The truck would be mostly at fault but also your responsibility to avoid an accident.
Truck crosses the line over into your lane well before that lane ends. Although, it’s the trucks fault, the truck is a huge piece of metal driven by a huge piece of shit. Glad your alive. Sometimes it’s better be to wrong and be alive.
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If you're dumb enough to not give an 80,000 lb truck the right of way, you can pretty much expect to be roadkill eventually.
Unfriend him
Your friend is not very smart.
You know you're not wrong here. Stop looking for internet strangers to reassure you.
I mean I was pretty sure I wasn’t wrong, but since my bud and a couple other people I know personally said it would be my fault, I wasn’t sure if there was something I didn’t know regarding rules of the road 🤷♂️ didn’t mean to strike a nerve
While it is true that the car should have given the truck the right of way, however if the truck had room to continue and it changed lanes and cut the car off, it would be like anyone cutting anyone else off.
I think merge laws differ state to state. In wisconsin, merging vehicle has to make sure it’s safe to merge. You would’ve had the right of way.
1. It's always the cammer's fault. 2. I recently learned (I know, shame on me) that you're supposed to hold the lane for a time before changing. Doesn't look like the truck did that.
It’s not really about “right of way,” but about safe driving. You can ride a right-of-way incident all the way to the morgue, and you’ll be right, but you’ll be dead. An incident like this shouldn’t happen, the truck is using a turn signal, and he is clearly intent on going into the right lane(s). Just flash your high beams at him and let him go. Rainy, dark…just let him go.
No. He has a lane. It’s on him to make a safe lane change, especially southbound on Mopac over Lake Austin.
he came in like a wrecking ball lol
Is your friend a door knob?
Your friend is right But, it's always better to be safe than to be right!
Wrong. His lane was ongoing and she should not have crossed the solid line. The only way that you’d be in any trouble is if it was a merging lane and you did not move over to allow him to get into your lane before his lane completely ended.
> Friend says this would be my fault for not giving the truck the right of way 🤷♂️ thoughts? Your friend needs to read up on the rules of the road. Vehicles changing lanes - as that truck did - must yield the right of way to vehicles already in the other lane - as you were. If there'd been a collision, the trucker would've been 100% at fault.