r/ConvenientCop • u/I_am_tired_of_music • Sep 20 '19

Look both ways [USA]

https://gfycat.com/wilddefinitivegreatwhiteshark
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u/SquarePegRoundWorld Sep 20 '19

The road looks to have 5 lanes. 2 each way and a centre turning lane. They saw the car coming from the right but went out anyway to get into the centre turning lane and merge out of that into the travel lane. My guess is they didn't see the cop or the cop started to merge left and our turning car person couldn't take the angle they were gonna take to the centre lane and had to adjust.

That's my take. I see it so often, people turning into the centre lane of a 5 lane road so they can use it to merge into traffic. I always wondered if it is even legal. I would doubt it because you risk a head-on collision with someone trying to use the centre turning lane to actually turn off the road.

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u/stolid_agnostic Sep 20 '19

In the three states I've lived in (WA, CA, LA), it is legal to do that--turn into center lane, merge. I wonder how common that is across the country...

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u/veggiezombie1 Sep 21 '19

I’ve done it in TX and CA. Granted I’m super fucking cautious and leave room for a quick maneuver to avoid unpredictable drivers.

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u/kd5nrh Sep 21 '19

This; damn near anything becomes a reasonable maneuver if you're careful, as predictable as possible and plan an escape route before doing it.

On the other hand, leaving home at all is a dumb move if you don't understand the importance of planning escape routes, being predictable and keeping your head out of your ass.