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OK. This morning I was a jerk. I blocked a major intersection. Why did I do it? Anyone who knows me, knows I don't block intersections...heck I don't block major driveways if I can avoid it. I like to let people in when I get the chance & want the traffic flow as a whole to process as best it can. So why did I do it? "the other guy"

Here's the story. Driving into work, this was the 2nd day I came on this intersection and it was very backed up. I'm driving east, and just east of this intersection and just before the next is a railroad crossing. Either we has a couple of metra trains come through close together or, more likely, a few minutes of freight train. Anyway, the car in front of me start to move through the intersection & I can see that there is enough room for two cars, so I proceed too, however at the last moment, the real jerk...the guy in front of me hits his brakes early and lets someone in. I never understood letting people in at a major intersection. They will have their own green light shortly, so just let them use that. Anyway that left me stuck out in the intersection & of corse the light changed so I'm left blocking traffic so this jerk could feel good about himself. Had he proceeded, the car he let in, would have entered 2 car lenths further back & the cross traffic could have moved, now instead they loose most of their light. So one car benefits and about a dozen get penalized. The first guy blocked honks & waves his arms like its entirely my fault.

Proof that not every good action should go unpunished....especially when it wasn't that good.

Hi Jonathan:

___If only human nature would not have prevailed from the guy in front as he mistakenly let that other guy in for no apparent reason other than to ball the things up later :( You tried and you cannot do better than that.

___Good Luck

___Wayne

Yeah, don't beat yourself up bro. You did what any decent driver would do, the knucklehead in front caused the jam not you!

I try to anticipate that and only cross an intersection if there's
*ample* room that if necessary, one could squeeze two cars into.
Yes, I've had people beep at me from behind when I'm sizing it up.
Maybe I need another little sign I can hold up, saying "don't
block the box" ...
.
_H*

Hi All,

Not exactly the same thing, red light racer, short blond Escalade driver did something just as stupid around here. She is in the left lane, stops at an intersection and waves a left turner from the opposite driect, while it turns green to pass in front of her. Unfortunately, the right lane is flowing. So, here I come gliding on down the road, catching up with traffic that is just starting to flow, timing the light perfectly and almost get T-Boned by the beneficiary of the Escalade driver, who luckily developed some driving sense half way through the intersetion. No way I could see that car behind the Escalade. To me, it just looked like yet another red light racer, asleep at the wheel when the light goes green. The left turner had no sense to take up the Escalade driver's offer without seeing the outside lane, in the first place. Which of course the size of the Escalade blocked.

Welp, guess what. She gets stuck there while this guy is now stuck perpendicular to her at the intersection, while the 30 or 40 cars gliding along with me block the completion of this maneuver.

Some people should not be allowed to drive, let alone drive vehicles which require allot more common sense than a car. Escalades should require commercial truck driver training, before somebody is permitted to wheel one of these things on the public roads.

There needs to be a button you press in the car that puts a big orange flag up on top of the car to symbolize to everyone else "Oops, I messed up, my bad"