You’re bopping along on a two (or three) lane highway.  Traffic is nicely spaced out and is running smoothly at whatever speed.  All is well with the world.  Suddenly, there it is – the “Rolling Roadblock.”  All is no longer well with the world.

Traffic mysteriously begins to slow down and bunch up.  You “forward look” and sure enough, up there ahead, are two or three cars running side by side at a significantly slower speed.  Ahead of them are miles of wide open road.

No one can get past the Rolling Roadblock and as more miles go by, your formerly placid fellow drivers are starting to bunch up – and steam up.  It’s impossible to safely pass the rolling roadblock, so what’s a Driverthink driver to do?

The first thing we need to do in this predicament is to chill, and analyze the situation.  If nothing else, this will keep our driving brain active as we dawdle along.

This aggravating road hazard is comprised of two very distinct components.  We have the slow lane driver to the right, and beside him, a slow driver in the left, passing lane.  So who’s the better driver?

Well the guy in the right lane is entitled to be moving more slowly.  We may normally associate these drivers as the lesser skilled, but it certainly isn’t always the case.  The vehicle in the left lane however, is in the passing lane and is obviously not passing.  We can immediately classify him – at the very least, as a less than astute driver.

Between a driver who may be oblivious to the condition (the right lane driver) and one who is obviously clueless, (the left lane driver), we could immediately suggest that if either of these parties attempts to brake up the bottleneck, it would be the one in the right hand lane – the more likely astute driver.

When a Driverthink driver finds herself in the right lane of a Rolling Roadblock, she will immediately attempt to open up the bottleneck.  She will speed up a bit, allowing others to pass the pokey behind her, and move back over to the left lane, or if uncomfortable with the higher speed, will slow down further, allowing the flow to swing in front of her and back around the clueless road hazard.

But wait, there’s more to consider.  Let’s study that left lane component for a few more moments.  Why is he clogging up the passing lane?

Is it an inexperienced driver who got trapped in the passing lane and can’t figure out how to get out of it?  Tailgating or flashing the lights will only make her more nervous.

Perhaps he’s on Cruise Control – the bane of Driverthink driving.  If so, he’s not actually driving the car.  The car is driving the car.  The driver is simply aiming it down the road. The car doesn’t have a brain and the driver obviously isn’t exactly focused, so neither he nor his car could care less about the traffic bunching up behind – in fact, this driver probably hasn’t checked his rearview mirrors since he left the driveway.  If your left lane roadblock is on Cruise Control, you’re probably going to have to rely on the right lane driver (or assault) to break up the bottleneck.

Then of course there’s the self righteous driver who wants to play traffic cop.  He’s doing God’s work by slowing down traffic to save the rest of us on the planet – or – he’s doing exactly the speed limit and if others want to pass him, ”It’s just too bad!  It’s their problem”.  In the process of course, this driver places himself and his passengers at risk.  Drivers will start to tailgate him or even cut him off to get around him.  Not Good, but of course he’s not exactly up to speed on “Road Reality” either.

We can think of lots of ways to handle the self righteous roadblock driver (dismemberment or mutilation come quickly to mind) but probably the best way to handle him is to dial 911 and report him to a real cop for inhibiting traffic flow.  We've still got to get safely to Grandma's! 

In any event, the Driverthink driver will recognize that once the Rolling Roadblock finally does break up, it will take a few minutes for the congestion to unravel.

If we’re in the right lane and our right lane driver chooses to slow down, we’ll be caught in the “highway squeeze” as our left lane buddies move ahead to pass.  Advantage left lane.

If we’re in the left lane, and the right lane driver chooses the “go faster” option, it’ll be “advantage right lane.”

Ah, the Rolling Roadblock.  If you find yourself part of one, breaking it up will gain you instant respect from your fellow road warriors.

Please Add your COMMENTS BELOW.  What do You Think? 

CLICK HERE to BUY NOW at Amazon.com