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The problem with leaving a gap is that, as soon as it's a few car-lengths long, people in the adjacent lane(s) notice that there's a gap and quickly cut into yo
by notmarkus 13y ago
The problem with leaving a gap is that, as soon as it's a few car-lengths long, people in the adjacent lane(s) notice that there's a gap and quickly cut into your lane to fill it, because it moves them a car-length or two forward. In order to do this, they have to cut in front of you, speed up quickly, and brake quickly. And you're left in the same position that you were in before you made the gap -- plus one extra car.
I try to do this all the time and it's frustrating because it's completely impossible. As soon as a vacuum exists, drivers rush to fill it.
- ChuckMcM 13y agoSo its interesting to watch the traffic around when this happens. It actually smooths out the flow "behind" you because the folks who cut in front eased up pressure behind them. The tail gater issue is real though so if you're going to do this it is best to do it in the right lane rather than one of the inner lanes.
- timthorn 13y agoMy experience has been that the "slow lane" is usually significantly faster through a jam, probably because of the number of lorries practicing smooth driving.
- timthorn 13y agoMy experience has been that the "slow lane" is usually significantly faster through a jam, probably because of the number of lorries practicing smooth driving.