David777
Well-known Member
- Location
- Silicon Valley
I dislike 
the behavior of significant numbers of drivers that cannot resist RUBBERNECKING behavior. If there are any on this board, I suspect they won't admit to being one? Who else here is annoyed by those who behave driving so?
Occasionally while driving freeways and limited access highways, one will find oneself in backed-up traffic due to situations beyond where one can visually see ahead, often blocking at least some lanes. Sometimes that is caused by accidents in the lanes ahead where one is traveling. So, a valid reason for patiently enduring slow downs.
And then there are situations where there are accidents on the other side of a freeway, where looky-loo rubberneckers, unfortunately slow down to look at what is going on that causes NEEDLESS traffic back-ups. Another type of rubbernecking is when there isn't an accident or even a valid reason to slow down, say if a highway patrol car is simply giving a speeding ticket to a driver parked beside a road that results in other curious drivers slowing down to look. Experiments have shown, some rubberneck prone drivers will hilariously even slow way down well below speed limits, to look at 2 dimensional sign, fake patrol cars placed beside highways.
Yesterday I found myself in a situation where freeway traffic was stalled to barely moving in my direction for unknown reasons that was about 1.5 miles ahead on a 6 lane freeway because some drivers rubbernecked at an accident scene on the opposite side of the highway where traffic was totally stopped, backed up for maybe 4 miles when I moved through.
How to Stop Rubbernecking
How to Stop Rubbernecking
Freeway traffic comes to a halt after an accident, and if cars are getting backed up, it can take a while to get them all up and moving again at a normal speed.
After sitting in a car for 13 minutes, creeping forward inch by inch, you'd think that drivers would be deadset on getting going as soon as possible. But they aren't. More than half of drivers look over, trying to get a look at crash evidence at the side of the road. Drivers treat this experience as if they were waiting in line at Six Flags to get into the shark experience: They waited in line and now they want a show.
It reminds me of a situation which I see at the post office over my lunch hour. Two or three postal agents will attempt to service an impatient line of customers. The people in line grouse and complain about the speed of the transactions ahead. Yet, when they themselves are in front of an agent, they dawdle and yap and shoot the breeze with the agent, weighing the value of 21¢ Delivery Assurance vs. 44¢ Signed Confirmation as if time did not exist.
When something is visible
Even with the wrecked cars safely out of the traffic lane, the glut of stopped cars does not start flowing freely again. A virtual bottleneck is maintained because cars at the front edge of the jam do not accelerate as quickly as they could. The urge to accelerate out of the cluster is momentarily overridden with the urge to get a look at what caused the holdup in the first place: A Dodge Magnum with a crinkle-cut front hood.
When nothing is visible
When there is nothing visible on the side of the road, drivers jump at the chance to accelerate out of the cluster. The front edge of the traffic jam moves backward. Fewer and fewer cars are locked in the jam until it breaks up completely.
According to a 2003 study of traffic accidents conducted by the Virginia DMV and VCU, rubbernecking is responsible for 16% of all distraction-related accidents.
the behavior of significant numbers of drivers that cannot resist RUBBERNECKING behavior. If there are any on this board, I suspect they won't admit to being one? Who else here is annoyed by those who behave driving so?Occasionally while driving freeways and limited access highways, one will find oneself in backed-up traffic due to situations beyond where one can visually see ahead, often blocking at least some lanes. Sometimes that is caused by accidents in the lanes ahead where one is traveling. So, a valid reason for patiently enduring slow downs.
And then there are situations where there are accidents on the other side of a freeway, where looky-loo rubberneckers, unfortunately slow down to look at what is going on that causes NEEDLESS traffic back-ups. Another type of rubbernecking is when there isn't an accident or even a valid reason to slow down, say if a highway patrol car is simply giving a speeding ticket to a driver parked beside a road that results in other curious drivers slowing down to look. Experiments have shown, some rubberneck prone drivers will hilariously even slow way down well below speed limits, to look at 2 dimensional sign, fake patrol cars placed beside highways.
Yesterday I found myself in a situation where freeway traffic was stalled to barely moving in my direction for unknown reasons that was about 1.5 miles ahead on a 6 lane freeway because some drivers rubbernecked at an accident scene on the opposite side of the highway where traffic was totally stopped, backed up for maybe 4 miles when I moved through.
How to Stop Rubbernecking
How to Stop Rubbernecking
Freeway traffic comes to a halt after an accident, and if cars are getting backed up, it can take a while to get them all up and moving again at a normal speed.
After sitting in a car for 13 minutes, creeping forward inch by inch, you'd think that drivers would be deadset on getting going as soon as possible. But they aren't. More than half of drivers look over, trying to get a look at crash evidence at the side of the road. Drivers treat this experience as if they were waiting in line at Six Flags to get into the shark experience: They waited in line and now they want a show.
It reminds me of a situation which I see at the post office over my lunch hour. Two or three postal agents will attempt to service an impatient line of customers. The people in line grouse and complain about the speed of the transactions ahead. Yet, when they themselves are in front of an agent, they dawdle and yap and shoot the breeze with the agent, weighing the value of 21¢ Delivery Assurance vs. 44¢ Signed Confirmation as if time did not exist.
When something is visible
Even with the wrecked cars safely out of the traffic lane, the glut of stopped cars does not start flowing freely again. A virtual bottleneck is maintained because cars at the front edge of the jam do not accelerate as quickly as they could. The urge to accelerate out of the cluster is momentarily overridden with the urge to get a look at what caused the holdup in the first place: A Dodge Magnum with a crinkle-cut front hood.
When nothing is visible
When there is nothing visible on the side of the road, drivers jump at the chance to accelerate out of the cluster. The front edge of the traffic jam moves backward. Fewer and fewer cars are locked in the jam until it breaks up completely.
According to a 2003 study of traffic accidents conducted by the Virginia DMV and VCU, rubbernecking is responsible for 16% of all distraction-related accidents.
