Stop the YIELD Bashing

Stop the YIELD Bashing

A friend was chatting with me the other day, and she nonchalantly mentioned that she wished that people would learn how to yield. Then she went off on how people will come to the Yield sign on the entrance ramp to I-581/Hersheberger Road in Roanoke and stop. People following behind them are then forced in to a radical abortion of their own merging move to avoid the stopped vehicle. These people, she suggested, are a danger to all on the road, and she’s frustrated by them.

The problem with her complaint is that she is wrong.

For many years now, I’ve been equally frustrated by drivers who don’t understand the true meaning of the word YIELD.

Here is what the Virginia Drivers Manual says about yielding.

· Yield also means to stop if you cannot merge safely into the flow of traffic.

· Drivers entering an interstate from an entrance ramp must yield the right-of-way to traffic already on the highway.

Most of the issues surrounding Yield infractions on Interstates involve tangles with drivers trying to safely exit the highway while Mergers fail to properly yield. In relation to the discussion I had with my friend, this means that the driver entering the Interstate at the Hershberger Road interchange must Yield to traffic flowing along the Interstate. When approaching the Interstate on the entrance ramp, the driver should scan to their left to see what kind of traffic is oncoming. If there is sufficient space, the driver may merge smoothly into the right lane of the Interstate. If however, there is traffic inside the safe zone, the driver needs to yield to the Interstate driver.

Two methods of yielding are most popular. The rolling yield is used most often by people who sort of understand the law. In these cases, the driver entering the highway continues rolling slowly along the access ramp and allows the Interstate driver to exit on the other side of the cloverleaf. In most cases, this form of yielding is safe and acceptable; however, if the driver entering the merge zone miscalculates by rolling into the middle of the merge zone, it becomes a dangerous merge. Exiting cars must either radically accelerate to enter the highway or decelerate abruptly on a busy, speedy highway to exit. Remember, drivers entering the highway must always YIELD to the highway traffic.

Rolling yielders cause many accidents and tense moments when driving. A highway driver who is exiting has to read the mind of the roller and make a split second decision as to how far they are going to roll and at what speed in order to adjust the exit strategy. Many accidents happen thanks to these rollers. These accidents are the fault of the rollers.

The stopped yield is correctly used when traffic in the oncoming right lane of the highway is inside the safe merge zone. Stopped Yielders are correct to stop if they are about to roll into the shared merge zone. Stopping ensures that the highway driver does not have to brake radically on the high speed Interstate and can exit safely without being forced into radical maneuvers.

Inattention and lack of understanding lead to many accidents in the stopped yield situation. Drivers following too closely behind a driver on the entrance ramp may slam the rear of a correctly stopped yielder. Such accidents are the fault of the driver who slams the tail of the yielder.

Over the years, I’ve written letters to the editor and started very animated discussions with my friends on this issue. It seems many people feel very strongly as my friend at the beginning of this piece does. People should not STOP when merging. I would agree with them if the signage on these ramps were different. Sometimes at the end of ramps, you do see MERGE signs, but around where I live almost all of the signs are YIELD signs.

So to everyone out there who gets angry when people stop in front of you on an entrance ramp, chill out and pay attention. Stop going so fast and talking on your cell phone and pay attention to what’s going on. Drive defensively and safely.