The Person Who Cut You Off In Traffic Is Right - Cheddar Explains

Merging is every driver's nightmare. Numerous studies have shown that the zipper merge is the most efficient way for drivers to merge and ensure less traffic. But is it possible in practice? Cheddar explains...

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[the]

Zipper merge works but what happens is that some assholes do a double zipper.

[Kibaoftheleaves]

Zipper merging and cutting people off are not the same thing.

[STubes]

That's not the same thing as cutting off.

[nkls]

Zipper merge is totally normal here in Germany.

[jordan_beard]

One important part this video fails to mention is that zipper merging only applies when traffic is moving slowly. If highway traffic is moving at full speed then you should merge early when you see the sign for a lane ending, and keep traffic flowing. If you merge late causing someone to slam on their brakes, then you are actually creating traffic. I think this may be why some people resist the idea of zipper merging, because it’s not fully explained properly, and therefore not always implemented properly in North America.

[GreenAppelPie]

Zipper merge is fine, it IS the assholes who cut in ahead of their turn.

[ConstantlyKenny]

I'm from the bay area in California. I have no problem with the zipper merge but the problem here is that it's never done right and causes more problems than it solves.

[calvinclark]

As a traffic engineer, this is not true most of the time. When the left lane is backing up and the right lane is still moving these late mergers are further slowing down the left lane and forcing mass breaking. Acceleration and braking destroy highway capacity. The key to a zipper merge is that both lanes need to be moving at the SAME SPEED. That’s why I stay in the right lane, but keep moving at the same speed as traffic in the left lane even if it’s clear in front of me. It helps reset the lanes so they can move at the same rate again.

[Akinto]

This is only an issue in America. Everyone else got this figured out a long long time ago. If you "merge" early, you aren't merging, you're changing lanes. Pretty easy.

[collin]

please make a video on "keep right except for passing"!! it needs to go viral. change the world!!

[rendtheheavensallthetimele]

It's common courtesy to allow one to merge into ongoing traffic but you have those that are untamed and refuse to be courted therefore everyone on there own in this crazy world of non defensive drivers.

[Ohhelmno]

My problem with this is that if every zipper merger just merged early as well it would be essentially the same, just closer. The problem is obviously human nature where if we're waiting for any significant time (Many would argue any time is significant) then we don't want people taking our rightful spots and being through traffic earlier than us.

I also have some thoughts about police, they should have a hiatus in high traffic areas where they cannot pull people over for simple traffic violations during rush hour. How often are you driving home after work and there is a mile or more backup because they decided a speeder HAD to be pulled over during the busiest commute time of the day. It's absolutely asinine. Also, at fault drivers who wreck during rush hour should have their licenses suspended for a period of time, until they complete a class or lecture on how much fucking time they're wasting the rest of us.

[chunkyazian]

It is not about people who merge at the last minute, but the merge then BRAKE that causes other drivers behind them to slow down to restore a safe following distance. And this braking action propagates down the line of traffic.

[rohit.iyengar]

Zipper merging is perfectly fine and I try to pre-arrange a gap for the car towards the end of the merge point. What is blasphemous is when people cut into an exit lane at the last minute when there's a long queue. I will do whatever it takes to ensure you don't get to cut in line!!

[CPWindsorsub]

I always tell people "the lane isn't closed 3KM from the construction zone. It's closed at the construction zone. Use it until you can't use it anymore

[MacMashPotato]

This is america, most drivers here are too stupid to understand how to back their car out of a parking spot, let alone understand a zipper merge and be able to do it, and the ones that can do it, wont, because they think they own the road and have right of way everywhere they go.

[dhoult]

Everyone talks about "letting" someone in at a merge. You should never have to "let" someone into your lane; there should already be enough space between you and the car in front of you to allow this to happen. Then everyone just lines up and the merge happens like clockwork at the merge point.
As a corollary, if you are the one switching lanes (in any scenario), you should not drive slower than the person behind you in the new lane and force them to brake.

[NetAndyCz]

The thing about the zipper merging is that you really should find your "gap" well before actual merging and both lanes should move at about the same speed.

[bdeemter]

We are mad at the folks who speed ahead of all the sitting cars and get in at the last second in order to avoid the line.

[jztouch]

It’s never made sense to me that people would merge early and leave empty road space in front of them when there’s a traffic jam behind them. Glad this is getting explained. Zipper merging is the way to go!