I sold a used car through ebay and had the pleasure of towing it up to the new owner in NE PA near NJ of 30 miiles.

I thought it would be a smoother 12 hour drive round trip, at least according to my gps. TUrns out I hit a back up near Triangle and Quantco VA where alledged construction was going on and the belt way was just insanity.

From what I can see the exits have like a mile feeder lane and for the most part people took the feeder lane to cut in front of 14 or so cars and remerge with traffic. Then we had people lane hopping if just enough room existed to change lanes and causing a flurry of brake lights. It was insane how 1 seconds we are going 60, then a dead stop. One lane appears to be moving, everybody merges, then its blocked up. This was like 1 in the afternoon. Dont get me wrong about 8 am and 5 pm our roads get crowded and traffic slows to a craw at certain places.

Anyway, the return trip was smooth, however the red and blue lights of your cops are distracting. Boy, I thought VA had a lot of cops. Never saw a cop in PA.

 

Not much you can do once you drive north of Spotsylvania County on I-95.

In northern VA, if someone sees a turn signal, it causes them to speed up and block you from "getting in their way". Most people either don't signal, or signal as they're changing lanes.

They also feel the need to cut you off before making a turn. Most drivers have a "Type A personality" when it comes to driving around here.

Then you have the Sunday drivers in the left lane. A lot of times the right lane moves faster.

It also seems like most people are "social drivers". It's like they need to drive with a group of cars, blocking all lanes, in order to get where they're going. You try to pass someone, and they speed up with you. You slow down, they slow down.

There's defensive driving, then there's Northern VA driving. Most see it as aggressive, but you have to take an offensive approach.

 

Thanks, if it werent for towing nearly 3 thousand pounds I could of taken a few cars and be very offensive back to them.

I saw the cut off behavior you mentioned. I was only able to change lanes by semi trucks who let me in, everyone else ignored my signals.

On i95 in Richnmond you do get the a holes who slow down as soon as you appear in their rear view mirror, then match your speed if you try to pass them. Again if it wasnt for towing something, they are easy and in many cases fun to screw with.

In VA beach in 264, military hwy you get the guys who dart from the far left to the far right, but they do use turn signals. Just seems someone has to have a big pair to dart across 5-7 lanes of traffic moving at 70mph like that.

Never quite figure out the signs that were red and showed arrows swaying left, then right and so on. Then the solid and brooken lines here and there.

Thanks.

 

no offense, but I lived in California for a total of 12 years, and I've been pretty much all over the US. I think Virginia has the worst drivers by far.

The ones that get me the most are the guys doing 10 miles under the speed limit in the left lane.

 

Yeah.... You know. I have nothing bad to say aboiut drivers in PA or WVA. They follow the signs for slower traffic to stay right, both cars and trucks. Just makes sense if you are driving an eco car doing 20mph up a 20% grade and you got someone with a blown vehicle or a decent sized engine who can maintain or exceed the speed limit.

When I got my license 3 years ago I thoughtI was ready. Boy was I wrong, I had to watch where other people are going, not where I wanted to go. My first two shocks was people running lights, having a green light, but traffi from the other lane still passing, then had a guy switch lanes and turn into me, so I moved over a lane after looking over my shoulder. Another time I baked and he pulled in front of me almost side swiping.

Needless to say, after having my trailer take me for a ride on 81 as it pushed me sideways when I started to take an exit to deliver the car to its new owner, I dont feel much like driving any more. Just glad I was able to pull out of it and not wreck 2 vehicles at the same time.

 

I know PA has a drive right pass left law... You can be ticketed for blocking the fast lane. I wish VA would adopt the same thing.

 

That law is in effect in Virginia.
"Keep right Except to pass" is what the signs say.
But this law is not enforced.
"No Commercial Vehicles in left lane"
Also is a law but it is not enforced.

To get some tailgater off my butt, I look at my blind spot as if I were preparing to change lanes. The driver behind me sees this and changes into that lane. He is attempting to beat me to the prefered lane, but I was just faking him out, I never really wanted that lane.
Using your directional signal to fake a play for a lane is "Improper Signaling"
It is still legal to check your blind spot, even though I never saw anyone else do it - EVER.

 

It's a short asian woman in a Lexus SUV sitting on a telephone book. I can say that because she's probably my mother.

The only way to drive in the DC area is to assume that people will do the dumbest thing imaginable and be prepared in case they actually do it.

You could call everyone a d-bag, but I have a theory that one of the reasons DC traffic sucks is because you have people from different areas driving on the same roads. Maryland driving laws are different from Virginia driving laws, which are different from DC driving laws, which are also different from West Virginia or Delaware driving laws. When you have a complex mix of drivers all driving on the same highways, you can't assume that people will be doing what they're supposed to be doing.

For example, I've noticed that in Virginia, people are more likely to drive slow (i.e., 55 MPH) in the left lane of a highway. It's not as common in Maryland. I think this is because Virginia driving schools tell you that if you're going a long distance, it's safer to move to the left lane and "just stay there" until you want to get off the highway. The theory is that you're not in the way of traffic that is merging on and merging off the highway. I only know about this because of a speeding ticket where I had to take a Virginia driving class to get out of it. In Maryland, they tell you that slow traffic should stay right, so slow drivers tend to stay to the right. It doesn't always happen, but it's a general rule. There are passive aggressive drivers in every state.

Another example is that in MD, you could be going 74 MPH on I-495 and get a 2-point speeding ticket, but if you are going 74 MPH on I-495 in Virginia, you could be arrested and charged with reckless driving. Even though Beltway traffic typically moves at about 70-75 MPH, I won't speed in Virginia because I don't want the possibility of getting arrested.

Just a thought.

 

^^^ what he said. a few words to the wise. . . 495 sucks my left and right hanging things. I'm on the side that stretches from college park to where 95 meets 495. No matter where I am people suck at driving. In MD we got the idiots who have nowhere to go fast. In VA we got the idiots who just don't seem to understand that I'm not tailgating you, you're just driving insanely slow. Like the guy I was behind coming home tonight was doing 45 in the far right lane. It would have been acceptable except the other guy from VA in the lane next to him was going the same speed. People in DC need to understand that the highway is not another street in DC. You can drive faster then 55 and you don't really have to cut most people off. Sorry I've been driving in this area for years and it just keeps getting worse. I especially hate the asian drivers. . . like me. lol

 

Thanks, I will remember the faking it out. I normally try patiently to change when I see an opening, if the gap closes, I keep going with signal on. If I have the power, I will go 10 over the limit to merge infront of someone. If not, I will hit the brakes and go 10 under and merge behind someone.

I have driven 10 over with no problems, 15 if in traffic on the highways and other states. I am usually passed.

True, I do go the posted limit in the right lane and assumed slower traffic was suppose to be there. My driving instructor told me to use the center lane so I can dart left or right incase I needed to change lanes. The left lane seems the smoothest and best maintained, however you got tailgaters and cops who run up on you.

The right lane is full of people coming on or getting off or going slower than me.

Man, I was just not prepared for that when I drove with a trailer and another car behind me. It took a minute to go 0-60 and a minuted to go from 60-0.

Cant say I see another driving worse than another, I am too focused on signals, wheels, car movement to zero in on the idiot behind the wheel.