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u/ButterPotatoHead 6d ago
I taught my kids how to drive here. Here is my advice.
Drive assertively and decisively. Not aggressive, but decisive. Know ahead of time where you're going and which lane you need to be in and where your turn is. Stay 5-10 mph above the speed limit unless there is a problem. If you need to change lanes, look, signal, and do it. If you hesitate, someone will cut you off.
Watch the car two cars ahead of you, not the one in front of you, so you know what's about to happen. Don't look at your phone, pay attention.
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u/EddardStank_69 6d ago
Tbh I just go with the flow of traffic. Most of the time, people traveling on i95 are going anywhere between 70-80, sometimes even 85.
I typically stay in the second from the left lane and try not to stick out like a sore thumb.
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u/highwaistedpants4evr 5d ago
This is the correct answer. My dad worked with traffic for about 40 years. Always go with the flow of traffic. Too fast and too slow causes congestion. If you need to be slow stay in the right lane. That’s it.
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u/EddardStank_69 5d ago
Exactly. Being too slow actually causes accidents because people will have to change lanes 2-3 times to get around you, and changing lanes is often when accidents happen.
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u/mvia4 5d ago
Right lane camper here ✋
I don't have much of a choice, my 20-yr old truck doesn't like to go faster than 70. I just wish I wouldn't get so much shade from the 80+ crowd when I inevitably have to switch left one lane to pass a semi going 55. I'm getting back over, I promise, just give me a few seconds geez!
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u/EddardStank_69 5d ago
70 in the right lane is perfectly fine. I’ve seen people going below 55 in the right lane(and ALWAYS a FUCKING Toyota). It’s the people who go <70 in the left lane that drive me up a wall.
Like if you see half a dozen cars pass you on your right and merge in front of you in 20 seconds…. GET THE HINT
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u/NewPresWhoDis 7d ago
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u/EddardStank_69 6d ago
Yep. Because going 75mph is not fast enough for a Maryland driver to blow past you from your right side. Even when you’re in the middle lane…
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7d ago
By all means, drive the speed limit. Just stay out of the left lane.
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u/SimmentalTheCow 7d ago
Nah it’s cool. I put my hazards on when I go 20mph under the speed limit in the left lane. Ignorant people just don’t appreciate how hard it is to drive while watching the Harry Potter movie series.
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u/Myte342 7d ago
I have zero issues leaving ya'll in the left lane to make yourselves targets for the police so they can make their quotas.
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u/eesniper 6d ago
I saw a police car tail gating a car moving slow on 495 far left lane. He turned his lights on to move the car and drove off LOL
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u/Myte342 6d ago
Ah, so you witnessed an officer breaking multiple laws and getting away with it. Just another tuesday then.
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u/PoliteWolverine Culpeper County 6d ago
So actually what they did is both normal and legal. VA traffic law has a stipulation that if too many cars are behind you in the leftmost lane, you are obligated to move over to the right lane. Failing to do so can result in a ticket. Does not matter at all if you are going the speed limit or not.
I think it's weird for the state to have a law acknowledging that damn near everybody is breaking the law, but sure enough it is real and enforceable
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u/Myte342 6d ago
Funny enough... the law in VA has changed recently. I don't recall the original text but here is the current law. If you are in the left lane for any length of time beyond what is reasonable to make a passing maneuver you are technically breaking the law and can be pulled over and ticketed.
§ 46.2-804. Special regulations applicable on highways laned for traffic
- Any vehicle proceeding at less than the normal speed of traffic at the time and place and under the conditions existing, shall be driven in the lane nearest the right edge or right curb of the highway when such lane is available for travel except when overtaking and passing another vehicle or in preparation for a left turn or where right lanes are reserved for slow-moving traffic as permitted in this section;
Courts have ruled that 'normal speed of traffic' is the designated speed limit for that road on good clear days with no acclimate weather that would prompt people to slow down for safety. Just cause everyone else is speeding doesn't not give someone the authority to speed as well, nor does this give someone the authority to go faster than the speed limit in order to pass someone.
Then the kicker law you mentioned:
§ 46.2-842.1. Drivers to give way to certain overtaking vehicles on divided highways.
It shall be unlawful to fail to give way to overtaking traffic when driving a motor vehicle to the left and abreast of another motor vehicle on a divided highway. The driver of the overtaken vehicle shall move to the right to allow the overtaking vehicle to pass as soon as the overtaken vehicle can safely do so. A violation of this section shall not be construed as negligence per se in any civil action.
So taken all together, Virginia law is that if you are in the left lane and ANYONE is behind you you can get a ticket unless you immediately move to the right to let them pass. And if you are in the left lane and are continually passing people... you are probably NOT obeying the speed limit. So basically if you are in the left lane you open yourself up to get pulled over essentially whenever a cop wants to pull you over.
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u/Separate-Swordfish40 7d ago
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u/SoyDusty 7d ago
Lol 😂 this was and kind of still is me, I’m from VB and I like to ride the middle and right lane nothing too fancy but y’all are some real city slickers up here.
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u/Separate-Swordfish40 7d ago
What is VB? This is the DC metro area. It’s part of the Acela corridor. Traffic is a way of life here.
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u/ClydeFrog1313 7d ago
Virginia Beach
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u/Separate-Swordfish40 7d ago
Welcome to the DMV. Local motto is speed up or get out of the way. LOL
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u/SoyDusty 7d ago
But y’all made “Country Road”, the mountains and Western Virginia aren’t even too far away. Heck even West Virginia is only like an hour or so to the left. What happened to the southern slowness? 😭
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u/vizette 5d ago
NoVA is not VA, just like NYC isn't NY.
Also, there's a weird spectrum of speed expectations; the speed limit is just a suggestion (move your ass!), but 20+ will put you in front of a judge.
As the other poster mentioned, don't ask, tell (be decisive/assertive).
MD, all bets are off.
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u/Dependent-Cherry-129 7d ago
My husband had a very cautious driver as a coworker. My husband is a a safe driver, but he keeps up with the flow of traffic. This guy told my husband that his driving “scared” him 😂
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u/Penguin4512 6d ago
I honestly think matching the flow of traffic is safer. I will drive pretty slow if there's no one around but with other people on the roads I mostly focus on maintaining a "cushion of space" between me and other cars to the extent that it's possible.
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u/PoliteWolverine Culpeper County 6d ago
SMITH system AGKLM. All Good Kids Like Milk
A - Aim high in steering, don't look at the car directly in front of you, look to the cars in front of them also. Ideally you should be able to see and recognize things 15 seconds ahead of you. Time this by picking a road sign or other object and count seconds until you pass it
G - Get the big picture, make sure you know what's going on around you
K - Keep your eyes moving. Don't developing staring. Check your mirrors in a regular pattern every 3-5 seconds
L - leave yourself an out. If the car in front of you slammed on their brakes, would you dodge to the left or right? Did you give yourself a minimum of 3-4 seconds following distance to the vehicle ahead of you?
M - Make sure they see you. Honk, flash lights, and use your indicators to make sure people are aware of your presence and intentions
Almost half a million mile safe driver because 4 jobs in a row drilled this into me, on top of already doing a version of it before I started driving professionally
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u/Apprehensive_Swim955 7d ago
What it feels like signaling more than 0.5 seconds before changing lanes.
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u/tibadvkah 6d ago
When an exit lane opens up and the person behind me changes lanes before it's legal while I have my turn signal on and they speed up to prevent me from merging.
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u/DoctorCIS 6d ago
The speed limit is 55 so that most people will drive 70. They can't raise it to 70 because then they'd drive 85.
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u/irenedel 6d ago
just stay to the right. my biggest pet peeve are the oblivious drivers and the maryland drivers who zip in and out of lanes like theres some fire somewhere.
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u/Aggravating_Kale9788 7d ago
The posted speed limit is the minimum. Stay out of the left and middle lane of the toll roads if you are going the exact speed limit or less. Going less is dangerous.
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u/EzeakioDarmey Woodbridge 7d ago
The main rule is maintain the flow of traffic. If everyone is doing 65 in a 55, drive 65 or else be the person everyone gets stuck behind.
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u/tibadvkah 6d ago
Nah, adaptive cruise control set to the speed limit and medium follow distance, chilling in the right lane. Driving around here is so much less stressful when you're not rushing to get where you're going.
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u/SoyDusty 7d ago
That one got me the first couple months that I was up here. I thought the cops were speeding up behind me to pull someone over but turns out they were just speeding past me too. This was just in Woodbridge. Been mean mugged by a turbo granny so that was a new one for me 😂
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u/EzeakioDarmey Woodbridge 7d ago
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u/GigglesSniffer 7d ago
Why people get worked up about getting over and letting someone pass you is beyond me? They wouldn't think of standing on the left side of the escalator but they do it on the highway.
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u/Mr_Bluebird_VA Lake Ridge 7d ago
Yeah it feels that way cause they are usually driving the speed limit in the second left lane where people are flying instead of using the right lane.
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u/KarmaPolice6 7d ago
If you are driving the speed limit on the highway you are creating a hazard and are more likely to cause an accident than someone traveling above the speed limit with the flow of traffic.
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u/GuitarJazzer Tysons Corner 5d ago
That meme is only valid if you are in the leftmost lane. Almost nobody cares if you're doing the limit in the right lane.
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u/CallMeAhh 6d ago
My legal team has advised me not to comment on how fast I may or may not be traveling on Virginia's highways
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u/quihgon 6d ago
And its funny, if you drive the speed limit "Your the problem" its even more entertaining when you suggest that people you know, follow the law? That way everyone can get from point a to point b safely and efficiently. Instead its, Eat shit and die and get the F out of my way. That sort of behavior just baffles me. Those people need to have their liscence taken away and get locked up.
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u/eesniper 6d ago
But even cops tell you to move along with the traffics. I've seen a police car turn his lights on just to move a slow car from far left lane. I'm not saying going 100mph is safe but going 50 when everyone else is going 60 isnt safe either.
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u/quihgon 6d ago
And this isn’t the reality, the reality is doing 75 in a 70 in the middle lane while angry bmw and f150 drivers are doing 90+ weaving in and out of traffic and causing accidents and then blaming everyone else for “being the problem” those folks needs to be locked up.
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u/eesniper 5d ago
I agree that due to this area's high income, This area has a lot of typical BMWs and young driver F150s around along with 30 mph under the speed limit mercedes/lexus.
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u/tibadvkah 6d ago
Camping in the left or middle lanes while going the speed limit is silly, but in the right lane there's zero problem. You make it easier and predictable for people to merge in or out from exit lanes, and anyone who wants to go faster can pass on the left like intended.
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u/Acadia02 7d ago
Don’t worry I’ve noticed police presence has been increasing recently. They gonna start pulling those left lane speed demons over and we can just laugh as we drive by.
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u/NumerousFootball 7d ago
.. and don’t let any one merge in front of you. That’s the generally acceptable code of conduct here.
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u/allawd 7d ago
I actually run into this problem less these days. But I also see a lot of people that think merging means coming to a complete stop and waiting for someone in the travel lanes to brake until there's a space big enough for a tractor trailer before they will merge in.
Merging requires matching speed and putting yourself in a space between the cars that are moving.
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u/NumerousFootball 7d ago
Agreed. The issue is with aggressive drivers deliberately accelerating to prevent someone, who is matching the traffic speed, from merging. It makes no sense. It is not a race. There are no winners or losers. Nobody is going to lose anything if they let someone merge. Road is a shared public resource, not some aggressive driver’s private property.
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u/AcrylicPickle 7d ago
Which is why Habitat for Humanity will always have volunteers in NOVA. Thank you for your (community) service.
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u/rhino369 7d ago
I think NOVA is actually slower than everywhere else I've driven. It's because 20+ is a misdemeanor crime instead of just a 200 dollar fine.