75 Speed Limit - How Fast

[riltri]

We are heading to Utah from NC. I-40 most of the trip with speed limits at 75mph along much of the way. I do NOT go that speed when pulling. What do you guys do?

ETA: Carlisle HD Radials rated to 81mph

[fj12ryder]

Hey, all I want is to see the statutes this guy seems to think exist with all the ROW nonsense. In all my many years, I've never heard most of the stuff this guy is passing off as legal and not legal. You pull left directly in front of that trooper who is directly behind someone passing a vehicle, and I guarantee that you will not escape that encounter unscathed. Telling him he has no right to be where he was probably won't cut much ice. 🙂

[MFL]

BarneyS wrote:
Another tip.
Stop the preaching and the bragging. That will keep the flamers away and reduce my work load! :B Some really good advice buried in amongst other stuff in your posts above.
Barney

Hey Barney, didn't mean to flame, but guilty of teasing a little. I think we may have inherited from a forum that banned? It is easy to understand the heightened road rage on the roadways today, with attitudes doing the driving, and the ROW can mean DEAD right.

Appreciate your hard work! I'm sure you are well paid! :B

Jerry

[rhagfo]

MFL wrote:
The GOOD NEWS...you are in the Fort Worth area!

Jerry

Good point, I don’t need to deal with him either!

[BarneyS]

Another tip.
Stop the preaching and the bragging. That will keep the flamers away and reduce my work load! :B Some really good advice buried in amongst other stuff in your posts above.
Barney

[MFL]

Lol...welcome to the forum! Yes, all kinds of people make up these forums. You will be an interesting member! A tip...shorten your posts! Oh, now tell us you are also a hiway safety engineer, when you aren't trucking/typing!:Z

Jerry

[BackOfThePack]

Mike134 wrote:
I get the one car one semi crash, cars fault, but how come there's often multiple trucks involved? Must be all those good semi drivers taking their ROW.

Did you hear me say truckers are all of them better? Same problem with cars: incompetents who shouldn’t be allowed over 40-mph. But that’d be both racist and sexist to enact. “Safety” isn’t safety when it conflicts with other agendas.

I recently wrote a long post or two about CB (before my phone crashed). It’s worth the time and effort to have a GOOD installation.

It’s mucho fun to call out bad truck drivers as another truck driver. Bad habit’s by many. The word constructions depend on how the job is performed (may be unfamiliar), but the intent is the same. As the consequences are worse (call his company or the state), it’s a familiar story. Daily.

That gets things going on air. Legalities.
Ask, “how to”, and it gets real interesting real quick.

Take your job. Make it into one with the highest fatality rate with use of wrong procedure. (Seriously). There are many good students among the mass of fools.

Believe me that we’ve saved your bacon more than once.
And you never noticed.

But the numbers of bad & worse truck drivers only increases.

I’ve had them try to play chicken with my rig.
On the radio I let them know it’ll be otherwise.
This is America.
They can go back where they came from.
Or to hell.

It’s up to them.

.

[Mike134]

I get the one car one semi crash, cars fault, but how come there's often multiple trucks involved? Must be all those good semi drivers taking their ROW.

[BackOfThePack]

MFL wrote:
The GOOD NEWS...you are in the Fort Worth area!

Jerry

Nope. I’m all over the US. With experience you can’t hope to match for vehicle type, weather, roads and loads. And it looks (again) with understanding of the rules you ignore when convenient.

You one of them runs at too high a speed into a construction zone to “get ahead” of the big truck. Jam yourself in front of him as he tries to keep a reasonable distance? And you’ve attached your nose to the hindquarters of the car ahead of you. Who has done the same again, and again, seven cars ahead? No braking distance at all?

The Midwest beats the South any day for intelligent drivers. As a class, they’ve all but disappeared (farmers & ranchers used to be among them; not any more). Connecticut is — generally — the state where skill & vehicle & ROW best come together.

Indiana doesn’t have the worst drivers. But they’ll take advantage of the lower truck speed limit to cut over too late, brake, and exit the highway. Enter a single lane. Even accelerate to do it.

If that truck driver had to brake to avoid hitting you the “accident” won’t be his fault.

If it’s me, I know how to keep my truck upright and lane-centtered to come to a controlled-stop. It WON’T be with you jammed under my right Steer tire. You’ll be somewhere other than on the road is my guess of how it’ll go.

Unlike you I have a family who expects me to come home. Also unlike you I have devices recording all that I do. A medical card. HOS regulations. I must daily certify the vehicle is safe to operate. Etc.

And I’ve gamed out how to control a situation with the least damage.

Whether or not you go home is up to you.

Know the rules. Stay inside them.

For an RV’er, ones at the helm of the LEAST capable vehicle out there.

With the least capable driver (he’s always the new guy). On a two week vacation you MIGHT have worked out the rhythms by the time you get home.

Every one believes that they are good drivers.
The differences between best and worst are tiny.
At speed, it’s all about vehicle separation.

Use ROW — and separation — then the habits become natural.

Having a trailer behind you shouldn’t occasion ANY CHANGES WHATSOEVER.

But RVers are bad drivers. How do I know? Just read here about “engine power”. And NOTHING about steering control or antilock trailer disc brakes. “Payload” and “Tongue Weight” and “Tow Capacity” and other non-existent (imaginary) “concerns”.

What’s the RVer answer to what they think is a bad TV? Get a worse one.

.
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[MFL]

The GOOD NEWS...you are in the Fort Worth area!

Jerry

[BackOfThePack]

rhagfo wrote:


Wow, talk about it is all about me attitude.
First of all if you are in the right lane, you need to yield to a vehicle passing you in the left lane, you just can't bull your way into the lane, same on returning to the right lane.

Well if you are driving defensively you are looking down the road and not beyond your ability to slow or stop for traffic issues.

Lastly if you pull from the right lane into the left lane and strike a vehicle already there, you are at fault, not the vehicle already in that lane.

Wrong.

1). A vehicle passing at a 7-mph variance will, with some minor slowing on the part of the travel lane vehicle, get around the right lane vehicle quickly.

2). But those on his tail have ZERO right-of-way. It’s illegal to block the left lane. No exceptions. Tail-gating and lane-blocking aren’t a defense to being knocked off the road. Illegal passing, by definition.

The road design IS the rule.

Faster traffic NEVER has ROW except in the confines of a legal pass.

I’ve had several hit me this year as I LEGALLY moved left. Thought they could speed up to block me: (1) They were illegally in the lane to begin with; (2) “Blocking” can be a go-to-jail offense.

Wake up.

I spend my days maintaining the MAXIMUM distance I can (traffic volume); slowing from a cruise speed by 10-mph TO GET OTHERS AROUND ME FASTEST.

When the idiots jam up ahead of me to pass a slow mover, I back off and wait. Only them do I pass. Alone.

Had an extremely slow big truck get onto the Interstate yesterday at a distance that only emergency braking could solve. I signaled and moved left. LEGALLY, as vehicles illegally tailgating DONT EXIST.

You NEED TO EXPECT THAT (what your father SHOULD have taught you).

Had someone hit your car, but you had no insurance? Same principle, YOU shouldn’t have been on the road. The other guy could be drunk and ran a light. Your fault.

Anyone thinks a big truck driver should roll his vehicle (as that will happen) versus move into the left lane is a fool.

Left lane confers ZERO right-of-way. All risk assumed except within the confines of a legally-executed pass. YOU CANNOT OTHERWISE BE IN THE LEFT LANE.

Your commuter miles = ZERO highway experience.

A guy running the legal minimum of 45-mph MAY decide to move left. You’re running 77-mph AND ARE OUTSIDE THE PASS ZONE you’re screwed.

What speed you “want” to run has ZERO to do with responsible driving. High traffic volume means you don’t get to run the upper limit.

“Overtaking” isn’t passing. Has no defense. IS a traffic offense.

A big truck needs more than 350’ clearance between him and anyone else. It’s when he needs to move to the left lane. And does. Do you believe it smart, safe, prudent or legal to cut between him and the vehicle he’s passing (from the right lane)?

Did you enter a rural Interstate and fail to have BOTH a 5-7/mph leeway PLUS 350’ ahead of a big truck? Otherwise, it’s an illegal maneuver you’ve made. You CANNOT force the travel lane occupant to have to brake or steer to avoid. Period.

Passed a big truck and re-entered the right lane ahead of him without a football-field length difference? (Same thing).

None of what I’ve written was any mystery 50-years ago, even 40.

ROW is everything. And it’s defined.

Your “presence” where you aren’t supposed to be, can — and will — get you killed.

Know the rules. A turn signal is A SIGN (which you must observe) where ROW has defined who may do what (when).

I’m not required to sacrifice my life for yours. And I won’t. Same as you.

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[Super_Dave]

70 if I'm driving and 75 - 80 if the wife is driving.

[rhagfo]

Wow, talk about it is all about me attitude.
First of all if you are in the right lane, you need to yield to a vehicle passing you in the left lane, you just can't bull your way into the lane, same on returning to the right lane.

Well if you are driving defensively you are looking down the road and not beyond your ability to slow or stop for traffic issues.

Lastly if you pull from the right lane into the left lane and strike a vehicle already there, you are at fault, not the vehicle already in that lane.

[fj12ryder]

"Next, It is illegal to otherwise block entry to the left lane. Period. A pass is by one vehicle at a time."

Yeah, I'm gonna have to see some written proof on that one.

Never heard of right lane ROW, and I doubt it could be found in any handbook or list of regulations. If so, I would love to see it.

So I should "SLOW MIGHTILY" to let someone pass me? Even though "Traffic overtaking you has exactly ZERO RoW"? I don't think so. All that does is create a domino effect of slowing cars. Dumb idea.

Slowing way down, 55-mph or lower, in the right lane before you exit. Another dumb idea.

Two sets of tires in 250,000 miles!!?? I may need to see some proof before I'll buy into that one. 🙂

A few decent ideas in there, but too many bad ideas too.

[BackOfThePack]

My stop distance is 700’(all big trucks). If you enter a highway without leaving me 350-500’ OR MORE you have done so illegally. If have to use the the brakes, all the more so. . A football field is the minimum SAFE entry ahead of a big truck.

You NEVER want a big truck behind you. Ever.

Travel speed of 62-mph, be doing 70+ coming down that entrance ramp. That’s the design. . Use slowing/braking to merge carefully.

You should act as do big trucks when your exit is ahead. Not less than two-miles before the exit, move to that lane. Signal on at 4/10s of a mile out.

Drop to 55-mph or lower before entering exit. Continue slowing to 45-mph OR LESS by using brakes and only then start to accelerate up to the side road speed.

Why? Because your rig is only under control with mild acceleration.

This is the road design. Entry & Exit are isolated lanes.

When you make a pass, begin it by accelerating in the right lane and move over 300-350’ out to the left lane (wait for other traffic to clear; hang back) at a speed a good 7-mph OR MORE than the other guy. Stay on it PAST your trailer rear being 100’ ahead of his front bumper. (Cancel cruise during this; Resume only after re-entering right lane).

This is the road design. Use it.

(Traffic overtaking you has exactly ZERO RoW).
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I shouldn’t need to tell you to get down to temporary limits (45-mph construction) as soo as you see the signs. Same with being 5-under on ramps or flyovers.

I have “maybe” two extra-hard braking events in a year of driving all over the USA at 100k-120k miles per year. How about you?

My pickup is about ready for the second set of replacement tires now that it has a quarter-million on it. One brake job before I bought it. All else original. 15-mpg average pulling my 35’. (You?)

If you think it’s because I drive slow, you may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer. There far more detail than is outlined above. (As with your job: took time to get good. Commuter miles don’t count as experience on The Big Road). How slow am I if you’ve passed me three times in 300-miles? (There’s method).

Ideal: Smooth, easy, no lane-changes or braking. Steady.
(The problems are emotional).

The fix is in skill acquisition. A plan. Discipline.
For you . . . not your passengers.

Average MPH as planning tool separates men from boys.
It is First Principle in how to write a Trip Plan.

A good truck driver can give you an ETA with 15” on each side, for a destination1,000-miles or more away.

It works being on vacation. As known limits produce freedom from worries.

.

[BackOfThePack]

rhagfo wrote:

fj12ryder wrote:

rhagfo wrote:
Very seldom that semis run at their speed limit, now days the limits are 65 autos, 60 trucks most semis run between 65 and 70, autos 65 and 75.
Running 20 mph below the flow of traffic in the right lane, basically setup a rolling road block.

Rolling roadblock? That's what that passing lane is for. If people would drive like they should, i.e. move over to pass and then move back over to their original lane, it wouldn't be an issue, but instead you have people that pull into the right lane and just sit there, even when they could get back over. There's your rolling roadblock.

Makes a person wonder how they keep the autobahns in Germany from being endless car wrecks, when you have people driving 100+mph and other people doing 60-70 mph. Oh yeah, they know how to drive.

Well when you consider about 90% of the interstate system is only two lanes in each direction, a rolling road block is a vehicle going significantly slower than the general flow of traffic forcing all to move to the left lane to get around them. If the volume of traffic is higher than moderate many will have a difficult time fitting into the left lane.

The reason the Interstates were made to this expensive design is exactly that: the right-hand lane has precedence. It is the travel lane. The passing lane exists only to facilitate a legal pass so that traffic in the right lane remains at a higher average.

Extended travel in the left lane is illegal by definition. The left lane has NO right-of-way whatsoever. The exception to that is during the close confines of a pass. One cannot be in the lane otherwise.

Only the stupid argue they’re going faster. Traffic volume determines average speed. Irrelevant how fast one WANTS to go.

Next, It is illegal to otherwise block entry to the left lane. Period. A pass is by one vehicle at a time.

In a big truck I put my lane-change signal on per requirement: as I am ready to start the move to the left lane. I AM NOT, “asking permission”.

This makes the cretins mad as reading was never a required subject. Have even had a few hit me this year. No concept of what is ROW and who has it (situation).

Emergencies happen. Smooth 67-mph traffic in travel lane and no left lane illegals, a suddenly stalled vehicle — or worse — means traffic diverts around into the left lane. It means the big trucks are coming over as that Is the road design.

Right lane (of two lane) ROW is an absolute. All other rules start from there.

If you are in the left lane, you will be at fault. Assuming you live to tell about it.

As to RVs, none of you have the brakes you need to do over 60. The trailer electric drum brakes will have ceased functioning before you come to a full emergency stop.
If you are passing much of any traffic, you’re the handicapped vehicle that screws it up for everyone else when things go wrong.

58-62/mph covers a range where other traffic flows around you as you learn to manage that situation . The big trucks are at 64-66/mph and all the stupids run in packs above that.

NEVER be in any crowd, ever. Vehicles ahead, behind and athwart means you’re in the RV with the picture title of, “Can’t fix stupid” .

It isn’t hard to learn how to stay away. How to drop off 5-10/mph and get them gone. . A football field or more.

What is your FULL emergency stopping distance? Why haven’t you measured it? One-half of that (including 100’ extra for reaction time) is your dead-minimum. Where you pullout to pass. What you use to re-enter the right lane.

None of this was anything controversial 50-years ago. Everyone knew. The two-lane highways made passing difficult. Headlights & Hand Signals. CB Radio. It was coordinated. Cooperative.

Someone’s slowly passing you YOU ARE OBLIGED TO SLOW MIGHTILY TO GET THEM AROUND YOU SOONEST.

That’s the Interstate design. The way rules flow from First Principle: The health of theTravel Lane.

Stay below the flow. Manage (and help) others get past. Stay separate.
Plans stops in advance of leaving, and execute those legs one-at-a-time.

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