Month: April 2023

Q: I have a question that doesn’t seem to be either legal or illegal, but more of a right thing to do. When you face a situation in two-lane traffic where you must enter the lane of oncoming traffic, is it necessary to signal that you’re moving back into the correct lane again? For example, when a police officer has someone pulled over and they’re blocking the lane. I have had debates about this and have been told signaling is not necessary nor is it a law.

A: This question proves it’s true that sometimes things are not what they seem (at least if it seems legal to you to not signal when changing lanes). I get where you’re coming from. If you move into the oncoming lane to pass an ambulance at a roadside emergency, who are you signaling for as you return to your lane? Even so, if you think that signal isn’t required, you’re on the wrong side of the law.

Continue reading “Yes, You Have to Use Your Turn Signal”

Q: Can you use a disabled electric vehicle charge station without a disability placard if you stay in your vehicle ready to move for a disabled person? That would be in cases where all the non-disabled spaces are occupied. It makes sense; but what is the law?

A: First, the easy part. Parking for disabled motorists has been around for decades. By now anyone who has been paying attention knows that if you see a parking spot marked with a white wheelchair on a blue background, that’s reserved for folks who have a special placard or plate. It’s rare that I see anyone violate that law, so it seems we have that one mostly figured out. To the few that do illegally park in spots for people with disabilities, you probably don’t care what we think about you, but we do think it.

Continue reading “Mixing Disabled Parking with EV Charging”

Q: Why are the police focused on people on their phones, but not on other kinds of distraction? If I can get pulled over for holding my phone, shouldn’t other drivers get pulled over for holding a coffee?

A: If you were going to rank crash risk by the type of distraction involved, what would you put at the top of the list? I’m going to make this easy – researchers have already done this for us and the top of the list, by far, is “wireless device tasks.” Naturalistic driving studies provide some of the best insight into what contributes to a crash or near crash. In these studies, researchers install cameras and sensors in a bunch of cars, and over the course of a year watch what drivers do. They found that dialing a phone increases the risk of an “event” (a crash or near crash) by more than eight times for novice drivers and more than double for experienced drivers.

Continue reading “Your Phone is Probably Your Worst Distraction”

Q: My question is about speed limit signs. When I see the sign does it mean I go that speed now or when I get to the sign? I’ve driven for thirty years and often wondered about that.

A: When a speed limit changes, the new speed limit takes effect at the location of the sign. For anyone that doesn’t care how I got to that answer, all you need to know is that if the speed limit is increasing don’t speed up until you reach the sign, and if the speed limit is decreasing slow down before you reach it.

Continue reading “The Line for Changing Speed Limits”