People Can't Drive, A Continuing Series

I find it fascinating that this:

...appears the same day that this article does:

Executing the "zipper" merge. Road work often reduces two lanes of traffic down to one. In these situations, American drivers typically merge into the right lane as soon as possible and form one long line. The main reason they do this is because people think it's bad behavior to stay in the left lane and merge late.

In fact, says Vanderbilt, traffic would be much better off if cars stayed in both lanes then merged at the very end, one by one, like a zipper. It's safer (fewer lane changes), it reduces back-ups (often up to 40 percent), and it quenches road rage (still on the rise).

The zipper merge is used in Germany but can't overcome its bad reputation in the United States. A trial in Minnesota failed because drivers wouldn't stay to the left. They were too nice.

Personally, I usually stay in the vanishing lane and drive right up to where it ends, then sit there and wait for someone to let me in.  Someone always does.  Besides, what other purpose would having that lane open to that point serve?  If one was only supposed to drive in a lane that wasn't going to end/exit, the entire highway would be one lane.

Learn to drive, people.