[meatwad]

Thanks for explaining this for us. What is missing from this compared to what I see on the roads is trucks. The truckers always leave large gaps and it's a sure bet that jerks will cut in front of these rigs. I don't think the trucks are leaving that much space to "smooth out" the traffic but it's more a matter of safety and efficiency (saves fuel) when all the nimble passenger vehicles are stop and go and zipping all over the place. Truck drivers are so patient, they have to be, especially in rush hour I've seen cars jump in front constantly and the trucks keep making more space for them. The other half of people seem to just follow at the same pace instead of cutting in front, and every time some one does cut in front it slows them down another 2 seconds. So my theory is aggressive drivers aren't much affected by trucks but easy drivers are slowed down because they won't get in front... But if nobody gets in front of the trucks then everyone makes it at the same time. Basically the trucks are blockers for the aggressive drivers, so if you use them they'll get you home ahead of others. I don't imagine any truckers are on HN?

[timthorn]

If ever I hit a jam on the motorway, I always pull to the left lane (UK), join the trucks, and imitate their driving style. Almost always, over the length of the jam, I beat my neighbours in the middle lane without doing any lane hopping.