Converting the shoulder dwellers
Every day on my way to work I come up to a three-way intersection where I have to turn right. As you approach this intersection from the north, there are three lanes from which to choose: left, center and right.
I choose the right lane. Why? Because it’s reserved exclusively for those intent on turning right, and I have to turn right to reach my destination without taking a substantially more scenic route.
There are signs indicating that the lane is for right turns only. The fact that the lane no longer exists on the other side of the intersection is kind of a giveaway also. But for some mystical reason, a good half of the people who make that right turn feel the need to occupy the shoulder instead of the right lane specifically marked for making that right turn. I’ve come to think that there must be a cult where people learn to drive this way.
All that aside, people using the shoulder isn’t a problem in itself, except when someone like me is already preparing to make that right turn from the actual turning lane. If I stop for even an instant when turning on red, some people will attempt to overtake me from their position on the shoulder. I remain wary of this possibility, ever since the day I saw one of these geniuses get the front left corner of his SUV crushed by a tractor trailer that was making a right turn from the proper lane.
When they almost hit me while I’m turning, it always scares me just a little. It often leads to a sort of sigh-of-relief moment. But when that Nissan Murano offered itself a living sacrifice to the rear wheel set of an 18 wheeler, I found it much more amusing. And the fact that nobody got injured in the process was a bonus.
And maybe, just maybe, the driver of that Murano learned the importance of not following false lanes.
(I always heard that the driving test down there is just ridiculous)
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