One often notices with dismay as one drives by on a four-lane highway that a 4WD moving leisurely in lane 1, which is meant for those meaning to turning left, suddenly switches lanes in quick and frenetic succession, jumping them at an alarming speed to the consternation and discomfiture of other drivers, only to land up in lane 4 meant for those meaning to turn right!
May be in good old days where the cars were fewer and the traffic was sparse a cavalier attitude could gel with the slow and laidback lifestyle of our island and suddenly switching lanes on virtually empty roads created no hassles. But with thousands of vehicles being added to the crush of traffic every year, even a simple act like switching a lane or getting ahead of a snail-paced driver calls for a degree of calculation and a bit of logistics. And then having to do that just because you have not planned your route is nothing short of a grave error.
Indeed anybody trying to switch a lane these days – for no matter what reason – is sometimes confronted with a daunting task and a harrowing exercise which can culminate in emotions ranging from anxiety and frustration to anger, defeat and rage for a variety of reasons:
- The driver you want to overtake may not notice you want to change the lane. He may refuse to allow you to get ahead of him as if it’s a slur on his masculinity!
- The traffic may be so fast that you may not find a chink to get into the desired lane due to pressure on each vehicle in that lane not to slow down.
- The signal ahead may have just turned green and many a driver in the lane you want to get into may be reluctant to miss it and thus may now allow you to come ahead.
- The signal ahead may be red with the traffic at complete halt so you may not get into the next lane even if a drivers in that lane is ready to oblige you.
So it does make sense to chalk out a strategy, a plan, in other words a map in your mind when you start your car as to which route and which lanes and which turns you are going to take to reach your destination. And then better join the ‘proper’ lane from the world ‘go’.