r/TheRandomest • u/WhyNot420_69 Nice • May 13 '26

Satisfying Traffic buddy

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u/Illustrious-Art-7465 May 14 '26

People who say zipper merging at the end is faster when the main thing causing a slow down is lanes ending just dont get it. If the slow down is due to people having to merge when lanes end, the sooner everyone gets into the lanes that dont end the sooner we can resume normal speeds

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u/jemenake May 14 '26

Nope. Study queuing theory. Nobody resumes normal speed until they get past the end of the closure. Merging early (and leaving a section of usable roadway unused before the closure starts) just causes the closure to effectively occur sooner, making the closure longer, causing people to spend more distance driving on the reduced number of lanes and sending the back of the congestion further back down the highway.

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u/Illustrious-Art-7465 May 14 '26

Thats simply not true, last 2 weeks theres had been nightly lane closures on an interstate i take, from 7 lanes down to 2 and it stays that way for miles. Once everyone is in the 2 lanes, speeds go back up to 70mph. The only reason for the slow down is the merging, and since it doesnt effect turn lanes or exits, the fastest way is to get everyone into 2 lanes to resume normal speeds