[lagniappe]

> Tell me you're a bad driver without telling me you're a bad driver.

> You need to not care about that, and you're actually supposed to let people change lanes into your lane. You're getting into a mental competition with other drivers and sacrificing the safety of yourself and everyone around you.

> And if anyone believes that longer following distance causes more traffic, that is also false and the reverse is actually true. It is the poor reaction times of tailgaters that cause traffic slowdowns.

I think that what they're saying is the flow of cars in front of them keeps that distance between them and the 'next car' to a shorter undesirable distance as more cars fill that gap during traffic.

[tbrownaw]

... And then you end up just going slower than the rest of the traffic, and people behind you change to the faster lanes to pass you, and some of the people passing you change lanes back to in front of you. And so trying to keep a longer following distance than the rest of traffic allows just means thtey lots of people are doing things other than just staying safely in one lane.

[lamontcg]

you're better off letting people change lanes to the lane they want to be in, and if you're not camping in the left lane then typically you'll find people changing lanes from the left lane to exit, or will change lanes through yours into the left lane.

if you leave lots of space they can do so entirely safely.

trying to prevent other people from changing lanes does not enhance traffic safety.

[lamontcg]

then you let off the gas slightly and widen the gap. when people change lanes from in front of you, then you can speed up slightly and close the gap. that isn't a practical problem. it comes out in the wash.