Preventing lane changing aggresive 4wheelers

[Winger2]

I was about to turn right onto an interstate. I was in the right lane, as the entry lane opened I started to move over. As I did, some redneck in a beat up truck tried to pass on the right by going over the shoulder riding have over it the whole way. If I had not looked I would have hit him.
Two months ago I was pulling out of a cg and you have to pull out, then make a u turn. I pulled out when it was clear. I drove the 500 feet to the u turn straddling both lanes with my signal on from the start. As I start my turn some idiot comes out of nowhere doing about 75 in a 40 and is passing me on the left riding the center median, he swerved as I did and he almost lost it. There are idiots all over and nothing we can do about it but shake out heads.

[computerguy]

I drive defensively until I need to drive offensively. If I have my turn indicator on and no one lets me in I slowly move over vehicle there or not. They get the idea I am not going to stop. I am sure I made a bunch of people angry but if just one of them would be intelligent and let someone in with a turn indicator then it would make the world go a whole lot smoother.
Something I learned 40 years ago was courtesy of the road. They clearly do not teach that anymore.

[jacwjames]

I watch my rear view mirrors almost as much as I was the road in front of me. I try to get out of peoples way but if someone is crazy to get past me I let him, I'd rather have them in front of me then behind me.

What really T's me off is when someone rides in my blind spot. They'll come up fast and furious and I think they are passing but then they just hang there. If they don't move on I'll gain speed and ultimately pull in front of them forcing them to either pass or lay back.

I had one driver do this dance for ~30 miles out in TX doing it on both sides of my coach. At one point I think they were up to no good but finally moved on.

[NXR]

First, unless you have a solid reason to not be in the curb lane, stay there. Reasons for us include lots of debris on the berm, the curb lane turns into an EXIT ONLY often, and being in an area where there is traffic entering the interstate at regular, close intervals such as through a city

Second, anticipate needed lane changes far in advance and get in that lane and plant yourself there. Two miles ahead is not unreasonable. (I prefer more.) At 60 MPH that's only two minutes away. Trust me, you'll survive driving in the curb lane for two or three minutes.

Third, don't antagonize other drivers by driving 62 MPH in a 70 MPH in the center lane or left lane unless it's needed for the aforementioned reasons. NO ONE, including me, likes to be following a large vehicle due to the restricted visibility.

Fourth, as one person noted, get a dashcam. One person cut us off and flipped us off so I waved, pointed to the dashcam and picked up my phone (I was the passenger). He sped off. Sometimes that may provoke them so be sure to save the video first so it will survive the crash. "OK GARMIN" "SAVE VIDEO" does it for us.


And if someone is asking this question it usually tells me that the person is somehow influencing the other driver's behavior so take a look at what you're doing first and stop doing that. It's far easier to change your behavior than that of random people.

Ray

[chuckbear]

There is no way to avoid these people but we seem to have reduced the number of times this happens. We have a bumper size sticker on the back of the RV up where it is very visible on the drivers side. It says "Warning (in big red letters) Front and rear cameras recording at all times." After we put it up I noticed drivers passing us being more careful. Chuck

[Marine359]

I don’t put on my turn signal unless the lane is clear and I’m immediately starting to make the lane change. It seems all to often that prematurely activating your turn signal activates some kind of neural stimulant in aggressive drivers that make them speed up and try to pass you before you can make the lane change. One time someone came up alongside on the right after I was halfway through the lane change. The driver decided to use the shoulder rather than slow down. I didn’t consider my action in any way aggressive because the lane I was leaving was now occupied by another aggressive passing driver. Seems to happen most often on interstates in suburban metro areas.

[rarebear.nm]

Some years ago I was north bound I-25 on Glorieta Pass just east of Santa Fe. That's long grade for some truckers. I was passing a slow semi and I was doing little over 75 for the pass, driving just the pickup. Then out of no where in my left mirror I see a state trooper lights on passing me on the left solder doing perhaps 100. He hits some dirt dropped into the medium and skids around some but kept it upright and went on. Could have gone very bad for many of us. Dangerous drivers come in all sorts. I was glad that troopers at least get some advanced driving lessons.


I agree with others above, always be aware of other traffic and events and don't let them get under your skin.

[1stimerveer]

I always try to just stay out of the way, and allow myself some wiggle room, if you know what I mean. I adjust my speed to move with traffic if I can and favor the right two lanes. I've never been comfortable with someone riding along side of me, in the next lane, and always adjust my speed to have a gap to my left or right, for times when I need to change lanes.

So far I've managed to control my temper. most of the time. But then there are just those times when my adrenalin kicks in.

My number 1 pet peeve is the clown entering the freeway from the right who never looks to see if someone is in the right lane. All they have to do is adjust their speed to merge with traffic.. Most of the time I move over to the center lane to be courteous.

So one day I decided to maintain my speed and stay in the right lane. There was a car to my left. We played chicken and he ended up having to stop at the end of the ramp as I went by.. He then proceeded to harass me for the next 10 miles or so, by getting in front of me and randomly jamming on his brakes. I put an end to it with an abrupt exit into a rest area!!

Lesson learned I'll try never do that again, especially while pulling my TT ...

Safe travels and all the best.

[RVwinos]

Originally Posted by cyqk

So.....what tactic do you use to prevent this from happening??

I bought my first motorhome from an experienced truck driver. Before my test drive, he told me that I should assume that everyone will do whatever they can to get around me. So I should get over it.

While I know that I have a right to be on the road, to merge lanes, and to exit the freeway, I also know that some turkey may try to squeeze by, putting us both at risk. I simply slow down and back off.

[GypsyR]

I always use my signal but what it means varies according to what I'm driving and where. Sometimes it's just an FYI on what is about to happen. Usually in more urban areas.
But in my RV I'm basically letting people know I need/want to get over when in traffic rather than "Here I come!". I drive my RV with a more relaxed attitude than my other vehicles.

[Rob_M]

You have to assertively change lanes. Not aggressively and not passively. If this makes sense. If there’s plenty of room to make the change, signal and do it without slowing down (unless you have to slow down to match the other lane’s speed of course). If you slow at all, the aggressive driver riding your bumper may very well try to cut you off. Of course watch your mirror and stop the lane change if they actually do attempt to cut you off. The key is not giving them time to decide to cut you off.

As others have said, you have to adjust your driving habits to the area you’re in. Many drivers in our part or TX will let you in if you need to make a lane change. Like when there’s construction and one lane has to merge. Or there’s a highway split coming up.

[DRM901]

Originally Posted by jacwjames

I watch my rear view mirrors almost as much as I was the road in front of me. I try to get out of peoples way but if someone is crazy to get past me I let him, I'd rather have them in front of me then behind me.

What really T's me off is when someone rides in my blind spot. They'll come up fast and furious and I think they are passing but then they just hang there. If they don't move on I'll gain speed and ultimately pull in front of them forcing them to either pass or lay back.

I had one driver do this dance for ~30 miles out in TX doing it on both sides of my coach. At one point I think they were up to no good but finally moved on.

Get some side cameras. I love having a camera on each mirror, plus the rear one. With the mirrors & the cameras, we don't have any blind spots. Makes the drive more enjoyable. There are some really good wireless ones now at a reasonable price.

[bigb56]

I found that on some vehicles other drivers simply don't notice your signal. The signals on a MH that are high up, especially the amber ones, are more noticeable and signals in the mirrors help a lot too.
How do I know this? When I was in business we had pickups and high top utility vans. When driving the pickups lots more people didn't let you in. At first I thought everyone was a jerk till we got the first high top van with the big signal lights mounted high up and suddenly people started letting me in, they could see the signal easily. After switching the mirrors on one of the older pickups to mirrors with signals the same thing happened. So they're not always a jerk, many are just not paying attention.

[Executive]

Like most of the replies, Drive Defensively. That said, it's always a good time to sit back a moment and look at the way WE drive. Do you anticipate lane reductions and act accordingly? or do you continue in your lane until it ends and then attempt to move over. Do you travel in the slow lane or are you one of those, I need to go 75 mph on the Interstate? Watch the truckers, what do they do? Remember they put many more mile in than we do. I'm not critiquing anyone's driving habits, just musing about how some RVrs drive their motorhomes like they do their cars. Be courteous when out driving. Ya can't fix stupid but you can avoid being caught up in their stupidity....Dennis