Lanes

This article is dedicated to the middle aged male driver who turned left in the intersection and completed his left turn half way into my lane as I approached him and half way into the lane that he was supposed to be turning into. Was he being inattentive, careless or did he not know any better?

One sure sign of growing up when we were young was the ability to use our crayons and colour between the lines. An important skill for a "grown up" driver is also the ability to stay between the lines. Judging by the e-mails that I continually receive from readers who state that this is their main pet peeve, there is a sizable number of drivers out there who need to do a bit more skill improvement.

Question: I am concerned about an intersection that has an acceleration lane to allow traffic turning left from a stop sign to merge with through traffic. A driver in the through lane decided that he had to be first and I had to brake to avoid a collision when we reached the merge point at the same time.

There is probably nowhere that the unofficial rules of the road are "enforced" by other drivers like that of the line up at lane closures. You know, the long line up of traffic that forms on one side of the highway immediately after drivers pass the lane closed ahead advisory signs.

I've always wondered about the driver in the far left lane as I used the acceleration lane to join traffic already on the freeway. Would they change lanes to the right while I was trying to merge with the flow of fast moving traffic by moving into the same lane from the left?

Question: I have been driving home on Rupert Street in Vancouver lately and there are some lane markings I am not clear about. Between 12th Avenue and about Kingsway there is a narrow right hand lane that has a bicycle and a white diamond, there is no other signage. Are motorcycles allowed to use this lane because they regularly do.

Question: I get a lot of dirty looks when I'm in the HOV lane with my young child in the back seat. I'm sure he counts, doesn't he?!? I've tried asking various authoritative bodies, but no one seems to know for sure.

This incident took place at the intersection of Canada Way and Rosewood Street in Burnaby. It involved three vehicles, two of which changed lanes as their drivers did not want to wait for left turning traffic ahead of them. Those lane changes resulted in a crash involving the third vehicle traveling straight through using the right lane.

Question: I was driving a Nissan Xterra (fairly large vehicle) south on Ziprick just past Costco in Kelowna. As I approached the three way intersection I observed there was a motorcycle near the center lane with his right turn indicator flashing. As he was in what appeared to me as the straight through lane I assumed he had left his turn signal on in error.

Question: Would you write an article on painted traffic islands? As I pass an island with my left turn signal on, someone behind me will often drive across the island, attempting to pass me and turn at the same intersection. I have seen professional drivers do this as well.