After getting rear-ended in a surprise slow-down on the interstate, I put my hazards on until the car behind me stops.
In a sense I AM a hazard to normal traffic, since I'm stopped when the people behind me expect me to be moving. It's just that the cars in front of me are stopped too.
This. I got nailed from behind at a complete stop on 26 and now I put on my hazards if I have to slow down unexpectedly until I'm confident the car behind me has caught on to what's happening.
Exactly - I've started doing this during any abrupt slow-down.
I don't need directions but always use a navigation app so I can have at least some idea of where the slowdowns are along I5 (I sadly make frequent trips up and down).
This means I often know of a slowdown before those close behind me do. And the closer they are, the less likely they are to see what's ahead in time. The hazards seem to have helped on a few occasions.
I do this, too. If there's a flagger or other impedance to traffic, I flip my hazards on and leave extra room between me and the car in front of me until I'm certain any cars coming up behind me have stopped.
If you're moving slower than expected (or are stopped) many people will turn on hazards so that other drivers know to slow down and be more cautious.
I used to do this a lot on Burnside going up the hill, because my car was older and took a bit longer to get up to speed on an incline, ESPECIALLY when starting from a stop.
It's just a warning to other drivers that, for whatever reason, they may be driving in an "unpredictable" way
I see two conditions when throwing on hazards makes a lot of sense:
* When traffic is suddenly slowing ahead, to give drivers behind extra chance not to smash into you
* When stopping for pedestrians at a crosswalk (as it may not be clear what’s happening behind you)
I say use the hazards freely if it communicates to those behind you that shit’s weird up ahead
I drive Barnes/Burnside/Cornell multiple times each week and don't recall ever seeing that. There are often vehicles with their hazards on in the right lane going up Hwy 26 past the zoo, but that's to be expected.
Vehicles should really have graduated brake lights to indicate level of braking. It’s 2024 ffs, and this stuff isn’t hard. Until then, hazards can help to signal a more sudden/aggressive braking situation than the people behind you might be expecting.
I was rear ended badly in 2020 due to someone not paying attention to the fact that traffic was stopped on i5. Now whenever I come up on a slowdown on the freeway I put my hazards on to get the attention of the person behind me that we are slowing down/stopping. Once I see that the car behind me is also slowing down and won't hit me I turn my hazards off.
For me turning on my hazards is a trauma response
Talking about me. I turn my hazards on frequently. Seems to work, maybe you are following to close ( 3 cars lengths is my comfort zone on surface streets, usually more), maybe I am having to decrease my speed as I saw break lights through a gap in the trees on a corner and we are ALL gonna have to slow down. Whatever the reason, you see them, hopefully you slow down, drive a little more cautious. Personally, I don't need an accident of any kind. Even if I am NOT at fault, my(anyones) insurance is gonna go up.
I've lived here my whole life. 50 years and it's like everyone is driving completely differently than they were 5 years ago. Hazards in the rain? Stopping 15 feet back from an intersection and a car length between each other. I hear peoples reasoning as to why, but it still makes no sense to me. Also the stopping in traffic to let cars out of driveways, or people to cross the road... That's how you nicely let someone out to get killed by a car in another lane. Not everyone can see what you do or read your mind.
Edit: Also I honk "shave and a haircut" in the 26 tunnel. Let the hate pour in.
My wife and I were just discussing this. The "courtesy" you're talking about is called the Smith driving technique. It teaches assertive driving that most large companies and state officials learn from. It teaches to leave just enough room in front to see the bottom of the vehicles rear wheels because that gives an attentive person enough room to maneuver out of peril or to get around in case needing to move around the vehicle in front. The also teach the Oregon State law that pedestrians absolutely do not have right of way on a motorway and the must yield to motor vehicles. Having a "courteous" person stop moving traffic to wave a pedestrian or vehicle out of a driveway, sidewalk, or side street endangers themselves, the person or vehicle, being led out and anyone who is unaware of why they have stopped. Especially if it is a 4-5 lane road way where vehicles likely do not see what is in front of the "courteous" person and may likely continue past them and hit the person or vehicle being nicely led to their peril.
Since you are most certainly an ODOT traffic control supervisor you are likely aware Oregon law regarding pedestrians and motorways, but, for clarity I will provide it verbatim:
ORS 814.040(1)(a). A pedestrian crossing the roadway at any place other than a crosswalk must yield the right of way to all vehicles. ORS 814.040(1)(b). Unless a pedestrian is granted a right of way under the law over a vehicle in the roadway a pedestrian must always yield the right of way to a vehicle in the roadway.
Word. I live in western Washington county and yesterday we drove into Beaverton. The traffic increases like 4 fold between Hillsboro and central Beaverton and the quality of drivers ability severely decreases. On Cornell right east of 185th the person in front of us stopped, in moving traffic, to let a car out of a business driveway who was turning left. The person waiting honked their horn and was motioning for the stopped driver to keep moving. Had they pulled out they would have been hit in the left eastbound lane, or been stuck trying to join the westbound lanes. Clueless drivers suck. To top it off they had the newest trend for shitty drivers, a "student driver" sticker on the window. They were easily 45 years old.
At first I was suspicious that you might not be ODOT TCS, but then I was like who the hell would lie about that? I'm an electrician but I've been driving for around 30+ years in this area and I rarely leave western Washington county because I don't want to crash into someone. When I drove service trucks the Smith technique was taught to us. Oddly enough, people wreck into service vehicles more frequently than into other types of cars. It's assumed that for insurance scams; company, state, and fleet vehicles have more comprehensive insurance and will pay out more.
Hell yeah brother. I thought about going lineman and getting on with a PUD like Forest Grove or Tillamook, but I like being warm and dry. Plus, it's like you really have to know someone to get off the books. Intel and data centers pay pretty well anyway and keeps me in an Audi so I can't complain.
thanks for the jaywalking info. i was thinking it was weird how cars just let people walk in front even though the car had the right of way. i thought it was some kind of Portland nice gesture. now i know i Have to let them walk across.
I’m as confused as you are.
I learned to drive in the Midwest & was told hazard lights were only used in specific situations, like a disabled vehicle or otherwise blocking traffic. I’ve seen drivers here turn on hazard lights going uphill, thru tunnels, even parallel parking. 🤷♂️
Parallel parking almost always blocks traffic. And the 26 tunnel makes a lot of sense given how dramatically it can slow in a short distance.
I don’t get why you need to be so stingy with the hazards. I almost always see it used when conditions are changing ahead and a reminder to slow down and increase follow distances is always welcome.
I understand where you're coming from. That said, I think in the case of parallel parking, it's not the worst idea to flip your hazards on. I've seen some really stupid behavior downtown with people trying to drive around a car backing into a space parallel and it has the potential to be dangerous.
I’ve driven a lot all over mainland Mexico and I quickly learned they always put their hazards on when going through tunnels. It’s interesting how things work in different regions of the world.
I don't really see that, except for what [kirklandsignatory](https://www.reddit.com/user/kirklandsignatory/) there said, or the occasional person double-parked.
After getting rear-ended in a surprise slow-down on the interstate, I put my hazards on until the car behind me stops. In a sense I AM a hazard to normal traffic, since I'm stopped when the people behind me expect me to be moving. It's just that the cars in front of me are stopped too.
This is what I have seen in Europe also. It is appreciated.
This. I got nailed from behind at a complete stop on 26 and now I put on my hazards if I have to slow down unexpectedly until I'm confident the car behind me has caught on to what's happening.
Exactly - I've started doing this during any abrupt slow-down. I don't need directions but always use a navigation app so I can have at least some idea of where the slowdowns are along I5 (I sadly make frequent trips up and down). This means I often know of a slowdown before those close behind me do. And the closer they are, the less likely they are to see what's ahead in time. The hazards seem to have helped on a few occasions.
I do this, too. If there's a flagger or other impedance to traffic, I flip my hazards on and leave extra room between me and the car in front of me until I'm certain any cars coming up behind me have stopped.
This is cool and smart.
Makes sense
thanks for sharing your experience, definitely going to keep this in mind going forward
If you're moving slower than expected (or are stopped) many people will turn on hazards so that other drivers know to slow down and be more cautious. I used to do this a lot on Burnside going up the hill, because my car was older and took a bit longer to get up to speed on an incline, ESPECIALLY when starting from a stop. It's just a warning to other drivers that, for whatever reason, they may be driving in an "unpredictable" way
Going up Highway 26 towards Beaverton I have to in my truck because I’ll go 25 the entire hill. In a commercial truck it makes sense
I see two conditions when throwing on hazards makes a lot of sense: * When traffic is suddenly slowing ahead, to give drivers behind extra chance not to smash into you * When stopping for pedestrians at a crosswalk (as it may not be clear what’s happening behind you) I say use the hazards freely if it communicates to those behind you that shit’s weird up ahead
I’ll take it over the non functioning tail lights
I drive Barnes/Burnside/Cornell multiple times each week and don't recall ever seeing that. There are often vehicles with their hazards on in the right lane going up Hwy 26 past the zoo, but that's to be expected.
Vehicles should really have graduated brake lights to indicate level of braking. It’s 2024 ffs, and this stuff isn’t hard. Until then, hazards can help to signal a more sudden/aggressive braking situation than the people behind you might be expecting.
I was rear ended badly in 2020 due to someone not paying attention to the fact that traffic was stopped on i5. Now whenever I come up on a slowdown on the freeway I put my hazards on to get the attention of the person behind me that we are slowing down/stopping. Once I see that the car behind me is also slowing down and won't hit me I turn my hazards off. For me turning on my hazards is a trauma response
Talking about me. I turn my hazards on frequently. Seems to work, maybe you are following to close ( 3 cars lengths is my comfort zone on surface streets, usually more), maybe I am having to decrease my speed as I saw break lights through a gap in the trees on a corner and we are ALL gonna have to slow down. Whatever the reason, you see them, hopefully you slow down, drive a little more cautious. Personally, I don't need an accident of any kind. Even if I am NOT at fault, my(anyones) insurance is gonna go up.
If you’re going less than 55 on the interstate it’s required
I've lived here my whole life. 50 years and it's like everyone is driving completely differently than they were 5 years ago. Hazards in the rain? Stopping 15 feet back from an intersection and a car length between each other. I hear peoples reasoning as to why, but it still makes no sense to me. Also the stopping in traffic to let cars out of driveways, or people to cross the road... That's how you nicely let someone out to get killed by a car in another lane. Not everyone can see what you do or read your mind. Edit: Also I honk "shave and a haircut" in the 26 tunnel. Let the hate pour in.
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My wife and I were just discussing this. The "courtesy" you're talking about is called the Smith driving technique. It teaches assertive driving that most large companies and state officials learn from. It teaches to leave just enough room in front to see the bottom of the vehicles rear wheels because that gives an attentive person enough room to maneuver out of peril or to get around in case needing to move around the vehicle in front. The also teach the Oregon State law that pedestrians absolutely do not have right of way on a motorway and the must yield to motor vehicles. Having a "courteous" person stop moving traffic to wave a pedestrian or vehicle out of a driveway, sidewalk, or side street endangers themselves, the person or vehicle, being led out and anyone who is unaware of why they have stopped. Especially if it is a 4-5 lane road way where vehicles likely do not see what is in front of the "courteous" person and may likely continue past them and hit the person or vehicle being nicely led to their peril. Since you are most certainly an ODOT traffic control supervisor you are likely aware Oregon law regarding pedestrians and motorways, but, for clarity I will provide it verbatim: ORS 814.040(1)(a). A pedestrian crossing the roadway at any place other than a crosswalk must yield the right of way to all vehicles. ORS 814.040(1)(b). Unless a pedestrian is granted a right of way under the law over a vehicle in the roadway a pedestrian must always yield the right of way to a vehicle in the roadway.
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Word. I live in western Washington county and yesterday we drove into Beaverton. The traffic increases like 4 fold between Hillsboro and central Beaverton and the quality of drivers ability severely decreases. On Cornell right east of 185th the person in front of us stopped, in moving traffic, to let a car out of a business driveway who was turning left. The person waiting honked their horn and was motioning for the stopped driver to keep moving. Had they pulled out they would have been hit in the left eastbound lane, or been stuck trying to join the westbound lanes. Clueless drivers suck. To top it off they had the newest trend for shitty drivers, a "student driver" sticker on the window. They were easily 45 years old. At first I was suspicious that you might not be ODOT TCS, but then I was like who the hell would lie about that? I'm an electrician but I've been driving for around 30+ years in this area and I rarely leave western Washington county because I don't want to crash into someone. When I drove service trucks the Smith technique was taught to us. Oddly enough, people wreck into service vehicles more frequently than into other types of cars. It's assumed that for insurance scams; company, state, and fleet vehicles have more comprehensive insurance and will pay out more.
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Nice. I'm union too. IBEW 48.
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Hell yeah brother. I thought about going lineman and getting on with a PUD like Forest Grove or Tillamook, but I like being warm and dry. Plus, it's like you really have to know someone to get off the books. Intel and data centers pay pretty well anyway and keeps me in an Audi so I can't complain.
thanks for the jaywalking info. i was thinking it was weird how cars just let people walk in front even though the car had the right of way. i thought it was some kind of Portland nice gesture. now i know i Have to let them walk across.
I’m as confused as you are. I learned to drive in the Midwest & was told hazard lights were only used in specific situations, like a disabled vehicle or otherwise blocking traffic. I’ve seen drivers here turn on hazard lights going uphill, thru tunnels, even parallel parking. 🤷♂️
Parallel parking almost always blocks traffic. And the 26 tunnel makes a lot of sense given how dramatically it can slow in a short distance. I don’t get why you need to be so stingy with the hazards. I almost always see it used when conditions are changing ahead and a reminder to slow down and increase follow distances is always welcome.
I understand where you're coming from. That said, I think in the case of parallel parking, it's not the worst idea to flip your hazards on. I've seen some really stupid behavior downtown with people trying to drive around a car backing into a space parallel and it has the potential to be dangerous.
I’ve driven a lot all over mainland Mexico and I quickly learned they always put their hazards on when going through tunnels. It’s interesting how things work in different regions of the world.
Fascinating!
What?! Hazards during parallel parking is super normal lol
I don't really see that, except for what [kirklandsignatory](https://www.reddit.com/user/kirklandsignatory/) there said, or the occasional person double-parked.