In Orlando we get this a lot. 4 exits before the Disney exit is at a crawl when you get to the First Disney Exit everything seems fine. People just need to be aware of which lane they are in and who is behind them and what exit they are getting off on. As for tailgaters bitching about the “fast lane”. I’m pretty sure tailgating and speeding are against the law you so justly defend when someone is in your way.

ok look, freeways come to a stop because most people have no idea how to drive. I am amazed that more accidents do not occur and that anyone actually gets to where they are going. Rarely does anyone accelerate to match the flow of traffic when entering a freeway or merging into other traffic. Very few people use their signals, and almost no one pays enough attention to what is happening around them. Please for the love of god listen to this last bit. If you are not the faster moving vehicle, get the hell out of the fast lane. It’s the law.

You should never tailgate and never drive next to a car, you should always stay in a zig-zag formation in the event vehicle in front of you slams their break and you need to switch lanes. you can always tell whos in a hurry or amateur drivers when they break the zig-zag formation. I worked on high-rise buildings overlooking highways and witnessed many times this ripple effect, oddly not all lanes ripple the same in sync. I also witness people suffering longer waits exiting a ramp because vehicles cutting in last minute, thats why its important to stay close to vehicle in front when exiting a backed up exit ramp, people are rude and will cut you off. Theres an art to execute that just right and has to do with perfect timing. I admit I do it a couple times. I dont recommend this, just wait in line like the others, you never know who will jump out on you. I would!

Some folks are just over-brakers by nature. Many of those same folks happen also to be tail-gaters. Aaaaand they should all choke on it.

This article should mention that keeping adequate distance with the car(s) in front of you (3 seconds driving at 0 -50 / 5 seconds driving > 50 mph) prevents over-breaking and therefore many shockwaves. Shockwaves also occur on freeways with hills: if drivers do not maintain constant speed going up they will slow down (often involves stepping harder on the accelerator as described in page 47 in your learn-to-dmv handbook) :P

There is another factor at play here and people that drive around the beltway and along interstate 95 around D.C. are well aware of it. When people approach a turn they cannot see around or a hill they cannot see the other side of, they slow down a little, which, as the diagram above aptly demonstrates, causes the person behind him/her to slow, and so on and so on.

Sorry. I am with Car A — who wants to go to Cleveland?

That’s why you shouldn’t brake when you see people braking in front of you. Most people don’t realize that your car will slow down if you just take your foot off the gas (and, because of wind resistance, the faster you’re going the faster you’ll slow down). Instead, they slam on their brakes, get everyone behind them freaked out, and create a boatload of traffic. Amateurs.