man, they love to tailgate a prius

My DMV book only refers to the last part, about slowing down an encouraging them to pass. It says nothing about moving to the right (which I'd only do if I was actually going way too slow).

 

I personally always travel the speed limit +5, but here in Florida that is still not good enough for them! Even when I had my SRT-8 I still had the limit+5 rule, but occassionally that would go out the window (it happens with over 500hp). That was the exception though. Sometimes with the Prius I do +10. That is not good enough either though. I swear these people are doing 65+ in the 45 sections. They do tail gate me though bad. I am just used to it anymore. Eventually they will go around. The Volt does not seem to get tail gated though even though I drive it exactly the same (minus the max acceleration from lights), but people keep their distance from it. No one really even looks at it like they do when I am in the Prius so I guess they just figure it is a normal car. Maybe the key will be debadging the Prius?

I really think there are no laws in Florida for driving.. I cannot wait to go to Virginia on the 3rd.. My car insurance will be nearly cut in half, and I will know most other people on the road have it. Unlike here where everyone that has ever hit me never had it.

 

The law recognizes the difference between the rules as posted and the facts on the ground. If you are going the limit and delaying traffic, you are breaking one law while obeying another. I'm with you; I wish the range of acceptable speeds was posted, know, and enforced. Then I would know how fast to drive, without having to wonder. However, it isn't that easy.

If the police did like you say, there would be no difference between the law as posted and the facts on the ground. Alas...

 

I will recount an incident from recently which I guess both illustrates the tailgating a Prius and the lousy behavior of some of our law enforcement officers.

I have a job that has me in close contact with people who listen to local law enforcement testify and I have been dismayed at the hostility that a lot of the public have toward the police in general. I do not share that hostility for the most part.

About two months ago I was driving on I-95 from Miami to Palm Beach with my wife in the car. I was in the restricted car pool lane during the hours of restriction (about 8:30- 8:45 am still in heavy rush hour traffic). I was authorized to be in it for two reasons: I have a hybrid car pool sticker which permits me to use it AND my wife was with me and the minimum number of riders is two. I was going the speed limit + about 4-5 mph. At some point an older Camry with two people in it came up on me and started tailgating me. I decided that as soon as the heavy traffic in the regular lanes let me I would pull over and let them pass, but it wasn't happening for a few minutes. In about 90 seconds or so a large, black SUV with one person in it came up behind the Camry and started flashing it's high beams furiously. I still intended to move over and I could obviously see his flashing high beams. In about 20-30 seconds the black SUV activated blue and red flashing lights in the grille and windshield, which I assumed would authorize me to speed up and find an opening, which I did.

The SUV pulled up next to me and a young man (presumably a police officer) lowered his right window and screamed at me that the law required a car to move over for faster traffic at all times. While I know that is not the law on most highways in Florida, (because there was a bill in the last legislature that made that the law and it did not get through), I also wondered how a person who was not authorized to be in the car pool lane could force two cars who were authorized to be in that lane to move over just because he came up at them at a high rate of speed. I simply looked back at him and he then pulled to the right, across several lanes of traffic to exit at the next exit. I took down his license plate number and while it was a restricted plate, I was able to reach his department, at which time I spoke to the head of internal security, who assured me that this was not acceptable behavior, that he did not know of any law that required me to move over and get out of a car pool lane for someone who was speeding and not entitled to be in that lane and that he would handle it. He asked if I wanted a follow up and I declined.

We did discuss that several members of the public had mentioned to me that they were particularly annoyed at police officers who sped by in their official vehicles only to pull to a stop at a lunch counter (or worse, a donut shop!). He concurred.

Incidentally, a Highway Patrol friend of mine, when I discussed this with him said a colleague had arrested a local policeman who was going 106 mph on the Florida Turnpike outside the county of his jurisdiction because he was late for roll call. He was fired.

 

The DMV book is a quick overview. Try the actual CVC

 

Tampa was really bad, especially with high instances of road rage in the news. I never want to live there again. I loathed FL when we lived there.
When we lived in Brevard county, we noticed driving habits were MUCH better. We never drove 5 over because it was known you'd probably get pulled over. I think there was a higher % of retired military cops working the force so the speed laws were more strictly upheld.

 

Rear window LED panel the ideal way to scold tailgating drivers!

Rear window LED panel the ideal way to scold tailgating drivers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=a-3vr8xrB9M#!

 

^Install that if you wish to further agitate the angry rednecks and gaurantee your car be shot at, or at least run off the road into a retention pond.

 

Most redneck tailgaters only wish to pass you up with maybe raising their arms and cursing as they drive by. As long as you don't try and box them in or speed up when they try and pass it's usually no big deal. I agree with above that fabricating a light up display of flipping someone off is only asking for trouble.

 

Regarding speed limits: California's are in many cases "prima facie" that is, subject to rebuttal if conditions are suitable for the speed, and a new study is required every 5 years for continued enforcement. Maine's are absolute, and are posted as supported by a traffic engineering study using the 85th percentile and other factors cited above. The Maine DOT website includes a u-shaped curve indicating the lowest involvement in accidents is just below the 85th percentile (it is about as safe to go 5 mph above the 85th as to go 5 mph below, each case somewhat less safe than at the 85th). This curve was developed from an extensive study of rural roads for the Bureau of Public Roads by David Solomon published 1964. The curve is sometimes referred to as the Solomon curve. The results have generally been supported by subsequent studies, although with some criticism as to details.

(Traffic Engineer per California license)

 

fulltank: maybe in Arkansas, but have you ever driven in Florida?

 

To xs650:

AHHHH that makse no sense! So vague and ridiculous. So if all of traffic is going 100 MPH I basically have to move over onto planet Mars in order to be far enough "to the right-hand edge."

If someone is going 10 MPH over the speed limit and most traffic is going 5 MPH over the speed limit... that person shouldn't have to move over for anyone.

Not that I'm attacking you or meaning any offense, it's more to the idea that there is no clear cut way to behave.

 

I have to confirm this is true, not just tailgating but cutting off and basically outright bullying.

I just drove a Chevy Malibu for 2 weeks. I drove it exactly like I drive the Prius, maybe even slower (trying to get over 20mpg) and never had anyone tailgate me, cut me off or do anything more annoying than normal traffic situations.

I have had my car back 1.5 days, drove her over 100mi today and had no less than 6 "incidents".

I did not and do not change my driving habits between cars. People are just tools.

Oh well, MFD reads 51, never got over 25 in the Maliboat...suck it gas guzzlers.

 

I always thought when I had the smart car that everyone on the road was being a jerk because of what I drove.

Then we got the Prius, and I realized "Everyone just drives like a jerk."

BTW, if you're not in the right-most lane that you can possibly be in (no matter what speed you're driving), you're driving in the wrong lane.

-Iain

 

Gee.....they aught to make that a law or something.

 

Just brake.

 

Most people are FW's. NRA sticker reduces tailgating an confuses most people when applied to Prius.

 

Before I bought a Prius I used to hate prius drivers. I drive in southern Cali and often times when there was a big hold up I would speed up to the front and low and behold... a prius putt, putting along without a care in the world... I vowed that if i were to ever get one, I would change the stereotype...

Two weeks ago I bought one... I turned into a 'Prius Driver' no longer passing people on the freeways getting places faster then everyone else... now my concern became that glowing mpg gauge...

I was able to hit 56 mpg on a tank then my wife started carpooling with me... complaining that I had turned into exactly what I had hated for so many years before... I've became much more concious and have been slipping back into my old driving habits while maintaining a respectable 50 mpg average...

I do get people passing me or tailgating... but OH how i LOVE that PWR button... if used in moderation

I love my 2011 prius, you don't HAVE to drive slow in order to get great mpg, I am often passing people on the roads, but I also coast and act as if i have no breaks when I can.

 

Today, about a mile from home, some guy in an older Dodge Ram saw my Prius driving toward him and he perched his left hand atop his side view mirror and flipped me the bird as I drove by. He was probably warning me that the state police were flying overhead and timing speeders, right?

 

Have you ever noticed that anybody driving slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac? -George Carlin