Hypermiling and reducing traffic waves

Yay!Gurrr

Yay!Gurrr

Better Faster Stronger
Moderator
Joined
Mar 17, 2005
Location
N. N. Raleigh, NC
Was reading up on some hypermiling techniques and found a good article on anit-traffic. Basically in congested areas easing off a little and carrying 4-5 spots in front of you in to a congested area, this allows others room to ease in and change lanes to exits, etc. Excellent read if your interested in helping.

http://amasci.com/amateur/traffic/traffic1.html

After reading a bit, I learned some new things and understand why 'normal' driving habbits can cause much of the problems on the road.. I can clearly think of several times where backing off several miles from a slow down could have provided enough gaps to smooth out the flow by the time I got there..


Hypermiling - Where you drive in such a way to improve you MPG, cut out the rabbit starts and pounding the brakes when you raced to the next light..


Anyone else do this ?
 
I actually do hang back in traffic. Not in an effort to clear the congestion but so that I don't have to ride my brakes. Plus you don't have to pay as much attention to what is going on. In the diesel there are very few rabbit starts and pounding the brakes doesn't work well. Now on the bike it is rabbit starts every chance I get. One of the up sides to being on a bike is the 0-100mph times. I like to take advantage of that whenever I can.
 
If you can get the idiots who cut in front of me and fill in my 4 to 5 lenghts between the next car and I to read this...mission accomplished.
 
yager said:
Was reading up on some hypermiling techniques and found a good article on anit-traffic. Basically in congested areas easing off a little and carrying 4-5 spots in front of you in to a congested area, this allows others room to ease in and change lanes to exits, etc. Excellent read if your interested in helping.
http://amasci.com/amateur/traffic/traffic1.html
After reading a bit, I learned some new things and understand why 'normal' driving habbits can cause much of the problems on the road.. I can clearly think of several times where backing off several miles from a slow down could have provided enough gaps to smooth out the flow by the time I got there..
Hypermiling - Where you drive in such a way to improve you MPG, cut out the rabbit starts and pounding the brakes when you raced to the next light..
Anyone else do this ?
Click to expand...

Ya BUT...........

How about all that time you save by being 3" off the bumper of the car in front of you, gnashing your teeth, and cussing about slowpokes? :beer:
 
I think its a balance of both. 99% of the time, my goal in traffic is to make progress. If I can make one light, that saves at least a minute, plus the wear and tear on my brakes and tires and drivetrain, and gas from the stopping and going again. This may allow me to make the next light and not get caught behind 3 grandpas all going the same speed and riding side by side in all 3 lanes.

All of my friends from school talk about how "fast" i drive, but when I drive with them, they drive just as fast (numerically), but they are not consistent. Driving ahead of yourself and seeing other cars as obstacles that you must move around helps keep things smooth and allows for good progress. I like to consider the traffic light the Great Equalizer though. No matter how much progress I make, I can still get held up just as long as the next guy.
 
The real way to solve traffic problems is for people to use the on ramp as an accerleration lane instead of waiting to try and get into traffic till they accel. See, that way, noone that's already on the interstate doing 60+ has to brake to let in the morons trying to accel. The other thing that would help is to wait to get into the exit only lane untill all the people merging have at least got up to close to traffic speed. That would prevent a ton of brake check in Raleigh. (It seems like common sence to me) to merge at the speed of traffic, but I guess all the Doctorates degrees here have killed the common sence.
 
No way, cus when yer commin off the ramp and I need to exit on the other end I need to be IN FRONT OF YOU !!! reguardless of how easy it would be to slide in behind you as you are accelerating and I am braking.

ME FIRST ALL THE TIME ANYWHERE !!! the rest of you can just wait !

:flipoff2:
 
another thing i notice is when the sign says right lane closed 2 mile ahead, get the heck over before it closes down. IME traffic seems to flow better when one doesn't have to stop and go to let the numbnuts in who wait til the last minute to get over...
 
rattlecanpaint said:
The real way to solve traffic problems is for people to use the on ramp as an accerleration lane instead of waiting to try and get into traffic till they accel. See, that way, noone that's already on the interstate doing 60+ has to brake to let in the morons trying to accel. The other thing that would help is to wait to get into the exit only lane untill all the people merging have at least got up to close to traffic speed. ...
Click to expand...
yeah, what he said ^ that's another of my petpeeves, the merge sign ain't red and octagonal! step on the skinny pedal!
 
Oneofsix said:
another thing i notice is when the sign says right lane closed 2 mile ahead, get the heck over before it closes down. IME traffic seems to flow better when one doesn't have to stop and go to let the numbnuts in who wait til the last minute to get over...
Click to expand...


that's kinda my thought..

but, I do enjoy hearing Robert D. Raiford (on the John Boy & Billy Show, in case somebody doesn't know) vent on how he pays taxes on all the lanes, therefore he's gonna use 'em!!! :D

Greg
 
I'd be happy if people would realize that the guy driving 20,000lbs of truck & trailer is leaving that room in front of him NOT for you to cut in and hit your brakes.

Why do you think I got the train horns? :D

Emptied the *entire* air tank on this dumb bitch on I-40 who went from the merge lane across 3 lanes to the hammer lane, while accelerating at a rate only slightly faster than 5mph per minute from 40mph. I was "at speed" in the lane already. Oh, her window was down.. Oh how I love the Jersey walls for carrying sound.
 
Rich said:
I'd be happy if people would realize that the guy driving 20,000lbs of truck & trailer is leaving that room in front of him NOT for you to cut in and hit your brakes.
Why do you think I got the train horns? :D
Emptied the *entire* air tank on this dumb bitch on I-40 who went from the merge lane across 3 lanes to the hammer lane, while accelerating at a rate only slightly faster than 5mph per minute from 40mph. I was "at speed" in the lane already. Oh, her window was down.. Oh how I love the Jersey walls for carrying sound.
Click to expand...
LMAO! I bet she bout shite herself!
 
Back
Top