So...

Xar · Unread post by **Xar** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:10 pm

...What's the deal with all of the U-turn lanes in Taylor?

Is it a Michigan thing? Do they help with traffic flow? Did anyone else almost make an illegal left multiple times?

Am I being goofy?

Reddenedone · Unread post by **Reddenedone** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:13 pm

U-turns.... We stayed in Dearborn, and it was absolutely impossible to find a route to get to Taylor without making a U-Turn... it was the most... well, it was weird. Also, as soon as we hit Michigan, the highway was so full of pot holes and cracks... wowie.

grymhammer · Unread post by **grymhammer** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:20 pm

Lots of the roads around here are like that. You eventually get used to going right to go left and making those uturns. It's strange going anywhere else, where they DON'T have that now.

Reddenedone · Unread post by **Reddenedone** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:26 pm

In our little neck of the woods, U-Turns are illegal...

Xar · Unread post by **Xar** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:28 pm

Oh, I see!

Thanks for the name.

The Galactus Kid · Mon May 15, 2006 3:43 pm

Its kinda like Jersey. YOU CAN'T TURN LEFT HERE TO SAVE YOUR LIFE!!! You have to go right at a jughandle which may be about half amile away from where you want to turn...on a side note, its illegal to pump your own gas.

Maryann · Unread post by **Maryann** » Mon May 15, 2006 3:51 pm

Oh no!!! You guys are going to get Preacher going on this again!!! When we went up to Michigan it drove him absolutely CRAZY!!! I don't find it weird cause I grew up with the odd U-Turn Lanes, but it drove Bryan absolutely nuts!

Unread post by **AlexM** » Mon May 15, 2006 4:01 pm

In the old days, a zillion cars would be in the left turn lane and drivers would continue to turn left until the millisecond the light turned red. Of course, sometimes drivers going the other way would begin moving the millisecond the light turned green for them. So a guy determined to be the car that turns left no matter what, got hit or nearly hit.

So, they began making these what I call turnarounds and made it a lot easier to go where you wanted to go without the guy behind you leaning on his horn and yelling "Get going!"

Alex Marciniszyn

grymhammer · Unread post by **grymhammer** » Mon May 15, 2006 4:39 pm

The flashing red is just a little extra beyond the green arrow. You can go through the flashing red while waiting if traffic is clear. You'll typically get the green arrow before or after the flashing red. It's just a way to keep traffic moving.

Preacher · Unread post by **Preacher** » Mon May 15, 2006 5:05 pm

Yep with the exception of the Circle Traps in New England the go way the hell out of your way turn arounds suck the most.

Humm? I think I will turn into this neat little diner there on the left, ok so all I have to do is drive three miles on down the road and then turn around and come back. Yep that is a lot easier and makes tons of sense. In fact that makes about as much sense as going from ohio to say Tennessee via the North Pole and around the entire frikken globe and back up and around!!!

Maryann · Unread post by **Maryann** » Mon May 15, 2006 5:06 pm

Told you he didn't like the turn arounds

Xar · Unread post by **Xar** » Mon May 15, 2006 5:22 pm

Wow!

Sorry.

Braden Campbell · Mon May 15, 2006 5:43 pm

On a related note, I heard that you can't make a right-hand turn on a red light in US.

Is that true?

Brian Manning · Mon May 15, 2006 6:33 pm

[DoomIII]Untrue[/DoomIII]

Unread post by **NMI** » Mon May 15, 2006 7:06 pm

Yeah that whole "no left turn" crap sucked!!!

Braden Campbell · Mon May 15, 2006 8:03 pm

Also, according to Michigan law...

A man legally owns his wife's hair.

In Detroit, it is illegal to ogle a woman from a moving car.

In Port Huron, the speed limit for ambulances is 20 mph.

Under state law, dentists are officially classified as mechanics.

In Clawson, it is legal for a farmer to "sleep with his pigs, cows, horses, goats, and chickens".

Reddenedone · Unread post by **Reddenedone** » Mon May 15, 2006 8:52 pm

Braden, GMPhD wrote:Also, according to Michigan law...

A man legally owns his wife's hair.

In Detroit, it is illegal to ogle a woman from a moving car.

In Port Huron, the speed limit for ambulances is 20 mph.

Under state law, dentists are officially classified as mechanics.

In Clawson, it is legal for a farmer to "sleep with his pigs, cows, horses, goats, and chickens".

Aside from being... mildly shocked, I believe it would interest me to find out what weird laws are in my home town. Thank you Braden.

MADMANMIKE · Unread post by **MADMANMIKE** » Mon May 15, 2006 9:49 pm

..I wasn't the one driving, so maybe my perspective was flawed, but I found it refreshing; by relocating left turns down the road from the main bottlenecks (intersections) traffic naturally flows better. Likewise merging with traffic from an angle as opposed to trying to turn into it from a perpendicular position is going to be much safer.

..Right on Red. RIGHT ON RED!!! This irks me to no end; if you don't see a fricken sign saying not to do it, GET OUT OF THE FRICKEN WAY!!!

..How many lights have I had to sit through for no reason other than the lack of sense of the person in front....

..Sorry, I drive for a living.

-Mike >8]

Todd Yoho · Unread post by **Todd Yoho** » Mon May 15, 2006 11:48 pm

That whole no left turns thing is a conspiracy by the reverse-vampire saucer people or something. They're worse than traffic circles!

The Galactus Kid · Tue May 16, 2006 12:41 pm

In seminary, they teach you the 11th commandment.

"Thou Shalt not get caught."

Carmen · Unread post by **Carmen** » Tue May 16, 2006 11:01 pm

You think doing a Michigan Left is bad in a car, try it in a semi-truck!!!
I have to put up with it everyday in my normal job.

Grey Death · Unread post by **Grey Death** » Wed May 17, 2006 9:20 am

Its all a matter of perspective. Growing up in michigan the "michigan left" on a divided road is no big deal to me. But while I was in virginia (near Fairfax) the main drag thru the area I was in was divivded also. But you could not turn left. So you had to do one of two things. Drive around the block (which is not square shaped or easy to understand if not from the area, they literally have roads that cross them selves). Or turn around in a parking lot that had a big sign saying do not turn around here. Drove me crazy.

J. Lionheart · Unread post by **J. Lionheart** » Thu May 18, 2006 5:48 pm

Savariousx1 wrote:...invented by Buddhist monks to provide to you relaxation and breathing time...

Perhaps, but not the first time you get to one and you don't know the area, so you're saying "Oh crap, that's the street I need to take, but I can't turn there! Ahhh!"

Ah yes, that was quite the experience. Fortunately, the local McDonalds parking lot connected to both streets, and I was able to save myself by visiting Micky-D's.

Randomfist · Unread post by **Randomfist** » Wed May 24, 2006 12:46 pm

Looks like they just need to put in some round-abouts.

Xar · Unread post by **Xar** » Wed May 24, 2006 3:53 pm

Oh no! I hate roundabouts! Not for myself, but for all of the rest of the drivers that can't figure them out. Yield to the left, people!

Once I saw someone go right up the middle, over the curb, through flowers, down the other side and straight on through to the street on the other side. Everyone else on the whole road just stopped in wonderment at his stupidity.

Maryann · Unread post by **Maryann** » Wed May 24, 2006 3:56 pm

Xar wrote:Oh no! I hate roundabouts! Not for myself, but for all of the rest of the drivers that can't figure them out. Yield to the left, people!

Once I saw someone go right up the middle, over the curb, through flowers, down the other side and straight on through to the street on the other side. Everyone else on the whole road just stopped in wonderment at his stupidity.

Ha Ha Ha! The last time I was in Australia I was in Cairns and met up with Rodney Stott from here on the boards. We rented a car and in one shot I learned how to drive on the wrong side of the road, shift with my left hand AND get through round-abouts. It was a blast!!! We'd get into a round-about and when the time was right he'd direct me out of the thing or we'd still be there going around in circles!

God that was fun!!!

Xar · Unread post by **Xar** » Wed May 24, 2006 4:14 pm

Look kids, Parliament. Big Ben!

MADMANMIKE · Unread post by **MADMANMIKE** » Fri May 26, 2006 7:16 am

Xar wrote:Look kids, Parliament. Big Ben!

..Thanks man, I needed a good laugh. After being assaulted at work yesterday this just seemed outrageously funny..

-Mike <8]

Vinny · Unread post by **Vinny** » Fri May 26, 2006 4:17 pm

Preacher wrote:Yep with the exception of the Circle Traps in New England the go way the hell out of your way turn arounds suck the most.

Humm? I think I will turn into this neat little diner there on the left, ok so all I have to do is drive three miles on down the road and then turn around and come back. Yep that is a lot easier and makes tons of sense. In fact that makes about as much sense as going from ohio to say Tennessee via the North Pole and around the entire frikken globe and back up and around!!!

We don't have those in Vermont. In New Hampshire, however. Aren't those fun!