Thread: Passenger Car Safety Cells

I realise that, (and I agree the law in that situation lacks common sense) but she was nowhere near me when I first indicated but was going to force her right of way by speeding (which I was already doing) and being there anyway.

Just plain dumb.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Unfortunately that's the stupidity of the law, if there were broken lines running across the LH lane to the verge, then when she's at your 3/4 she has the right of way.

If there is no broken line across the ending lane, the car in front has right of way.

I used to merge smoothly across an ending lane running along the line of the edge of the pavement, but after having an incident where I merged and a car hit the tail corner of my car trailer 30 feet behind me only to find out they were in the right.

I now merge as soon as I see the lane ending and there is a space. Buggar being courteous to the car behind, lest you get run off the road.

???? That has to be the dumbest thing ive heard. Haven't seen this two different merge things as we only have one type of lame ( miss spelled lane then but it's kind of fitting ) merge in WA and still you can only get past on the left, but essentially you give way to your right and once the lane separator runs out its zipper format, again something that's too hard for 90% of the dead****s that inhabit the roads over here to understand.
Mind you, Mainroads over here are splitting a couple of brain cells between all the Grade 1 art class students they employ. Dual lanes merging down into one and then, let's tack on a roundabout with one lane thats big enough to drift the queen Mary thru sideways.... What, you couldn't just finish off the last ****ing 20 metres of lane????? Youve made the roundabout big enough, why not finish it with the much needed extra lane????? And not just one, nooooooooo, there's like 50 of them all in areas where they "plan" to make dual lanes in 20 years when it's just as easy to do it now and do it once.
I swear everyone at Mainroads uses public transport or are just plain thick.



Using Capitals, the difference between helping your Uncle Jack off a horse or helping your uncle jack off a horse...

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

...........I now merge as soon as I see the lane ending and there is a space. Buggar being courteous to the car behind, lest you get run off the road.

probably the most sensible option I think - but it has the downside of potentially annoying the people who speed up to pass everything in the left lane

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Unfortunately that's the stupidity of the law, if there were broken lines running across the LH lane to the verge, then when she's at your 3/4 she has the right of way.

Really? That's a pretty silly rule TBH.

Over here, the car behind gives way and if they connect, it is the rear most car that is at fault. The simple reasoning is that they can see more of what is happening than the front one, and at 3/4 they are possibly in the front car's blind spot.

Also, there is another rule here that simply says that if car 1 is changing lanes and car 2 speeds up to block out car 1, then if they connect car 2 is at fault for unsafe driving. Also, if Mr Plod spots car 2 driving unsafely/discourteously, then the driver of car 2 can expect a ticket for the same.

I had a somewhat similar situation when towing my long boat trailer up a motorway onramp. It was one of those that has two lanes that merge into one just before it enters onto the motorway and traffic lights to restrict the number of cars entering the motorway. On the green I accelerated with the long load (10.5m plus the Disco), letting the car two cars beside me get ahead (as you do). Seeing that there were no other cars beside me I accelerate harder to get up to motorway speed - all good. Then I glance in my drivers-side side mirror only to see a small late model Merc heaving off into the grass. The male Asian driver seemed to think that this long trailer with boat and Disco should be giving way to him, as he seemed to be trying to pass me at the time. He was back beside the trailer wheels when his spoiler hit the grass. That would make it a 3/4 position, and I would seem to be in the wrong with your rules

Alan

Today's ABC Online is reporting another fatal accident, this time in Western Sydney where two cars failed to merge correctly, and one running into the back of a street sweeper. ( Woman, child dead after truck collision - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) )



One wonders if it is once again a lack of understanding of a confusing road rule?

( http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au - Road Rules 2008 + rule.148 and http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au - Road Rules 2008 + rule.149 )

Originally Posted by 87County

On the original topic...

Passenger Car Safety Cells

another sad instance here In NSW....

interestingly - the police were keen to breath test the driver of the stationary sweeper

Of course they were...as they were to test the Toyota driver, and any other driver that may have been involved. - Two reasons, Standard Proceedure, and to look like The Police Are Doing Something (to blame an individual and to close the case successfully...)

Yes 87 County, no amount of Safely Cells or 17 airbags will save in extreme situations...

PS, Did you observe how the story was written, and how you 'noticed' the truck driver was to be tested ?- You were supposed to see that (only) and so be distracted from the rest of the boring, non-newsworthy, Facts...

Hmm, Have I missed something, or are the merging rules in WA a bit clearer? - see p16 of this link:- http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/media...eSafePart3.pdf

Or to put it simply, 'First in - Best Dressed.' Sensible and easy. Its also Common sense.

If one lane is blocked or terminated by a broken line, then thats to taken as a 'Give Way'.

Again nice and clear.... but if placed foolishly, can cause conflict because 'Nose in front wins the race' works better.

Would'nt it be interesting if 'Lack of Courtesy' became an over-riding offence ?

Originally Posted by superquag

Hmm, Have I missed something, or are the merging rules in WA a bit clearer? - see p16 of this link:- http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/media...eSafePart3.pdf

Or to put it simply, 'First in - Best Dressed.' Sensible and easy. Its also Common sense.

If one lane is blocked or terminated by a broken line, then thats to taken as a 'Give Way'.

Again nice and clear.... but if placed foolishly, can cause conflict because 'Nose in front wins the race' works better.

Would'nt it be interesting if 'Lack of Courtesy' became an over-riding offence ?

Couldn't find that in the link you are talking about, but then again that is merely a brochure on the rules. To compare it you need to go to the WA Traffic Code 2000 http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/ - WA Traffic Code 2000 and look at Rule 126 and Rule 128.

The obscenity of it all even if the discontinuous line crosses the LH lane and you have to give way (Your comment: If one lane is blocked or terminated by a broken line, then thats to taken as a 'Give Way'.) it doesn't happen in practice every time, and hence enters the confusion.

Can you imagine a road train with 3 dogs behind the prime mover, stopping because a Morris Minor has tootled up alongside the 3rd dog. The Morris Minor has the right of way after all.

There should be one rule and the discontinuous line across an ending lane, should only be used for on ramps etc.