Traffic Merging .. who is at fault.

aero3685 · 04-06-2006, 08:33 PM

I have wondered this for a while, and after people were driving crazy today, figured i would see who would be at fault.

If you are in slow or stop and go traffic (after a toll booth where it merges back to 2/3 lanes during rush hour), who would be liable for an accident where someone is clipped.

Say you squeeze the front corner of your car in between two cars, and the person that you get in front of hits you... who's fault is that?

I thought I remember someone saying it would be the person that is in the lane, since the other person obviously had room to get a part in there. Most people are morons here (being snowbirds or tourists, or just pricks) and they try not to let people in even though people have to merge in. People that drive on the shoulder and cut in, i can understand... but stop and go traffic, 1 or two cars wont hurt.

OFFICER737 · 04-06-2006, 11:13 PM

Generally speaking the car that is ALREADY established in the lane has right of way and if a vehicle forces his way and gets hit then he is at fault for failure to yield right of way.

Those sections after a toll booth is chaos at best and it would depend on lane and car position, who is or is not established in a lane and a host of other variables.

aero3685 · 04-07-2006, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OFFICER737

Generally speaking the car that is ALREADY established in the lane has right of way and if a vehicle forces his way and gets hit then he is at fault for failure to yield right of way.

Those sections after a toll booth is chaos at best and it would depend on lane and car position, who is or is not established in a lane and a host of other variables.

yeah, figured it would be the officers discretion... whoever was older or easier to deal with..

DepWraith · 04-09-2006, 09:25 AM

I agree, the driver who has established lane position will be in the right. Squeezing your car/bike into a lane is an improper lane change if there is not room for you to enter the lane. The changing vehicle must always yield to the vehicle in the lane they want to change into.

MRBoss429x · 04-09-2006, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by aero3685

yeah, figured it would be the officers discretion... whoever was older or easier to deal with..

So true.