I was pumping gasoline last week and was nearly run into by someone who was cutting through a corner gas station parking lot (at a fairly high rate of speed) because apparently he was too impatient or too lazy to wait for the red light to change. I notice a lot more people doing this (just cutting through corner lots to avoid waiting for a red light). A friend of mine owns a carpet cleaning business which sits on a corner lot here in Lincoln NE.He has put up several big orange cones in the past in hopes of deterring the lot cutters and often they just drive right over or around them like it is their birthright to cut through private property. Now he just parks his trailer there to totally block the lot cutters. It is a dangerous practice to get into especially or pedestrian who are in the lots. I never have heard of anyone getting ticketed for it by police,but maybe they do stop and ticket offenders who do this. It is a practice that certainly seems be on the increase from what I observe. I guess people are just very,very impatient and cutting through a corner lot even when it puts others at risk to get to Starbuck 90 seconds faster for that double goat milk ,honey, soy boy latte must be real important to them See it usually several times per day. Not as dangerous as red light runners,but it is a problem i suspect nation wide.
Corner lot cutters
- Thread starter BJD78
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Kestas
Staff member
It is illegal to cut corners. It's called avoidance of traffic control devices. I've seen it as a line item on the back of tickets.
And yes, it's dangerous.
And yes, it's dangerous.
Yes it is illegal. But done all the time, I doubt LEO's are looking for this infraction unless blatantly done in front of them when they are in a bad mood to start.
I see it all the time. There's a gas station nearby that has a split driveway on the main road that only allows eastbound traffic to enter and folks exiting to turn right. Lots of signs posted saying "no left turn" and "do not enter" facing westbound, but that doesn't seem to stop westbound folks from bypassing the traffic light at the corner and making a left into the driveway that's pointing away from them. Doesn't seem to matter that they have to turn extra wide unless they drive over the curb. Also doesn't matter to them that they hold up folks in the left turn lane who are waiting to turn on the left arrow.
It would be nice of RPGs were allowed for just this kind of situations.
I share my morning commute with one of these drivers. They'll cut a little strip mall and an auto shop. Then later down they'll sit the the right turn lane at an intersection.
If I'm bored and in front of them, I'll stop with plenty of space cutting their short cut. Or keep up with their pace while they try to cut the right turn only lane and merge in.
We'll make eye contact. They'll flip me off. I wave. Rinse and repeat.
If I'm bored and in front of them, I'll stop with plenty of space cutting their short cut. Or keep up with their pace while they try to cut the right turn only lane and merge in.
We'll make eye contact. They'll flip me off. I wave. Rinse and repeat.
This was a huge problem when I worked in Schaumburg IL and lived near there...the E/W roads (Golf and Higgins in particular) would get so jammed up that many drivers would cut through the parking lots of the many strip malls in the area and then THOSE would get jammed up, making it impossible to shoppers to get in. I think I bought one of my favorite tshirts ever when I got stuck in one of these parking lots and just parked for 1/2 an hour and checked out all the stores....found a Clash concert t in one of them.
I'm not proud of it, but I will admit that I became a habitual corner cutter when the only job I could find during the Great Recession was about 1.5 hours away from my home (at best). A busy two lane road I took a lot had only one straight lane at a major intersection (the other was left turn only) and the timing of the light was just set up horribly for the actual traffic conditions. There was a very large gas station on the my right as I drove to work and it could be a huge time savings to cut through it, take a left on the not very busy cross street, and then a right back onto my original road.
I didn't have an issue if I left at my usual 5:30am from home, but if I was late for some reason I would typically cut through the gas station. I had a little routine where I would turn in at a reasonable speed, drive up to one of the pumps and stop, make a show of looking at the gas prices, shake my head, and then pull away onto the cross street. I figured that, if I got stopped, I would tell the officer that I was going to buy gas but found the prices at the pump to be outrageous and just left as a result. This station was actually so spacious that I could have cut through without getting within 50 feet of a pump...
I did actually buy lots of gas at that station, typically on the way home, but that's not an excuse for what I did.
I had another driving habit during that time...there was an all night Walmart on my usual route and I would often stop there when I knew I was going to be getting home too late to see my daughter before bedtime and buy her a little toy to leave for her to find at breakfast. Typically left too early and got home too late to spend time with her during the week...still makes me feel bad to think back on that.
It was a tough time and I guess I made some stupid decisions...can't complain too much, many people were losing their houses and careers at that time. I dealt with a rotten commute and job to keep my career alive even though we probably had financial resources to deal with at least few years of joblessness...if something like that happens again, I will probably just retire and forget about ever living like that again.
I'm not proud of it, but I will admit that I became a habitual corner cutter when the only job I could find during the Great Recession was about 1.5 hours away from my home (at best). A busy two lane road I took a lot had only one straight lane at a major intersection (the other was left turn only) and the timing of the light was just set up horribly for the actual traffic conditions. There was a very large gas station on the my right as I drove to work and it could be a huge time savings to cut through it, take a left on the not very busy cross street, and then a right back onto my original road.
I didn't have an issue if I left at my usual 5:30am from home, but if I was late for some reason I would typically cut through the gas station. I had a little routine where I would turn in at a reasonable speed, drive up to one of the pumps and stop, make a show of looking at the gas prices, shake my head, and then pull away onto the cross street. I figured that, if I got stopped, I would tell the officer that I was going to buy gas but found the prices at the pump to be outrageous and just left as a result. This station was actually so spacious that I could have cut through without getting within 50 feet of a pump...
I did actually buy lots of gas at that station, typically on the way home, but that's not an excuse for what I did.
I had another driving habit during that time...there was an all night Walmart on my usual route and I would often stop there when I knew I was going to be getting home too late to see my daughter before bedtime and buy her a little toy to leave for her to find at breakfast. Typically left too early and got home too late to spend time with her during the week...still makes me feel bad to think back on that.
It was a tough time and I guess I made some stupid decisions...can't complain too much, many people were losing their houses and careers at that time. I dealt with a rotten commute and job to keep my career alive even though we probably had financial resources to deal with at least few years of joblessness...if something like that happens again, I will probably just retire and forget about ever living like that again.
Originally Posted by Donald
It would be nice of RPGs were allowed for just this kind of situations.
Aye!
and fender mounted ones for slow left lane drivers.
It would be nice of RPGs were allowed for just this kind of situations.
Aye!
and fender mounted ones for slow left lane drivers.
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Originally Posted by BJD78
I was pumping gasoline last week and was nearly run into by someone who was cutting through a corner gas station parking lot (at a fairly high rate of speed) because apparently he was too impatient or too lazy to wait for the red light to change. I notice a lot more people doing this (just cutting through corner lots to avoid waiting for a red light)....
They locally have a $250 fine for that here and its posted at some stations.
I was pumping gasoline last week and was nearly run into by someone who was cutting through a corner gas station parking lot (at a fairly high rate of speed) because apparently he was too impatient or too lazy to wait for the red light to change. I notice a lot more people doing this (just cutting through corner lots to avoid waiting for a red light)....
They locally have a $250 fine for that here and its posted at some stations.
Another thread for a bunch of old man whiners.
Been going on forever ...
When I was a kid gas pumper, a severe corner cutter ran deep across the station, knocked OVER A GAS PUMP, barely missing the canopy post, and just kept going out the other side, dragging much of the chassis of the Tokheim ( maybe Gilbarco ) pump along with him, like something out of a bad movie.
My memory is that he got almost to the other side of town before the trapped pump debris, and car damage, made his vehicle inoperable. He likely didn't save much time that day.
When I was a kid gas pumper, a severe corner cutter ran deep across the station, knocked OVER A GAS PUMP, barely missing the canopy post, and just kept going out the other side, dragging much of the chassis of the Tokheim ( maybe Gilbarco ) pump along with him, like something out of a bad movie.
My memory is that he got almost to the other side of town before the trapped pump debris, and car damage, made his vehicle inoperable. He likely didn't save much time that day.
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Another thread for a bunch of old man whiners.
Come back once you've been hit by a driver cutting the corner as mentioned above. It's a legitimate problem, and it's illegal for a reason.
Another thread for a bunch of old man whiners.
Come back once you've been hit by a driver cutting the corner as mentioned above. It's a legitimate problem, and it's illegal for a reason.
If the owner of the lot would call the police and their city mayor and councilman asking for enforcement and suggesting prime times, they usually will send someone out. If they write enough tickets they will continue post someone. If they can generate more revenue on traffic, then they will go there.
Rod
Rod
Originally Posted by Kestas
It is illegal to cut corners. It's called avoidance of traffic control devices. I've seen it as a line item on the back of tickets.
Does this include taking a back road to avoid a toll booth?
It is illegal to cut corners. It's called avoidance of traffic control devices. I've seen it as a line item on the back of tickets.
Does this include taking a back road to avoid a toll booth?
I've been seeing this more lately around Columbus. It would be ok if they would just do it slowly....
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I only do it if I get behind clowns who insist on going straight in the right hand lane,or those clowns who are always afraid turn right on red when the lane they're feeding into is totally deserted. Of course I proceed very slow and cautious.
I never go straight in the right hand lane, I always leave it open as a courtesy to those who turn right on red.
I never go straight in the right hand lane, I always leave it open as a courtesy to those who turn right on red.
Guys, people have always done this. Your getting older and are paying more attention to things that bother you.
Originally Posted by rooflessVW
Another thread for a bunch of old man whiners.
Another thread for a bunch of old man whiners.
Originally Posted by atikovi
Does this include taking a back road to avoid a toll booth?
Since when is that illegal???
Does this include taking a back road to avoid a toll booth?
Since when is that illegal???
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