Etiquette

Having been out here driving for a while and seeing all sorts of stupid moves by four wheelers, I figured I'd make a short post offering a few rules of the road.

1. Give us room. However much space a car needs, a truck needs at least three times as much room. You can probably stop a car in about two or three seconds at interstate speed, but I need at least five seconds under ideal conditions to safely make the same maneuver. I've noticed that some drivers seem to like cutting in front of the rig as closely as possible, creating a dangerous situation for both the truck and car. Tailgating is even more dangerous. I don't have a rearview mirror or anything of the sort, so I have no idea what's directly behind me. If you're right on my back bumper, you can't see anything but the truck in front of you, and you'll have just enough time to see the brake lights come on before you hit the back of the trailer if I have to stop suddenly. While cars are always supposed to maintain a two second following distance, I'd suggest increasing that when you're behind a truck so everybody has enough time to react. As a truck, I try to keep it least seven seconds in front of me.
   
2. Use your turn signals. I shouldn't have to say this, since it's the law no matter where you go, but anytime you're going to turn or change lanes you need to use your signal. I've lost count of the number of times I've had a car swerve in front of me without using its signal or that's made a turn without signaling after making a sudden stop in the highway. As an added bonus, if I see your signals are on, I'll try to make room for you do what you need to do by slowing down or changing lanes as appropriate. If I have no idea what you're going to do, I can't make it any easier for you to do it.
   
3. If I have my signal on, get out of the way. I know that sounds rude, but there really isn't a polite way of putting it. If I turn my signal on, it's for a reason. It might be that the lane is ending ahead, that there is a car stopped on the side of the road, that I'm trying to pass another vehicle, that I need to make a turn somewhere, or any of various other reasons. In a truck, I can see much further down the road than you can in your car, so I may be reacting to something you can't even see yet. I don't want to hold up traffic, so I'll get back in the right lane as soon as I can after making my lane change. So please don't make it difficult for me to do so.
   
4. Don't flash your highbeams at me. While I appreciate the intention, flashing your highbeams causes a painfully bright reflection in the mirrors. Also, there may be some reason I'm not moving back over to my lane, for any of the reasons I described above. Even so, if you still want to signal, try flashing your low beams instead. Or, at night, briefly flip your headlights off and back on.
   
5. Turn off your highbeams. Practically every state requires, by law, that you turn off your highbeams if you're within 500 feet of another vehicle. Even if you're on the other side of the divided highway (like an interstate), an oncoming vehicle with its highbeams on makes it very difficult to see. Likewise, if you're coming up behind me, turn your highbeams off as you approach so I don't have that blinding reflection in my mirror.
   
6. Don't get mad if I'm driving slowly. I get paid by the mile, so I have no incentive to drive any slower than absolutely necessary. But if I'm driving in a work zone, trying to find a customer, or I'm just not sure where I am, I need to slow down. Like wise, if I'm going uphill, I can't maintain my speed nearly as well as a car, especially if I have a heavy load. For example, I might be able to go up a hill at 60 miles an hour with an empty trailer and only 30 miles an hour with a full load. Swerving in front of me and slamming your brakes isn't going to make me go any faster; I'll have to slow down, which just might annoy the driver behind me, if not cause an accident.
   
7. Read the road signs. If there is a sign that says the right lane ends or is closed, don't wait until the very end to slide over; move into an open lane as soon as you can. This will help traffic continue to move smoothly instead of forcing it to stop when you get to the end and have to force your way into traffic. Likewise, if you see a sign for your exit, get into the right lane as soon as you can so you don't have to swerve over at the last moment
   
8. Don't be a jerk. Just because some truck drivers act unprofessional doesn't mean you should take out your frustration on all of us. The numbskulls are generally few and far between and they're the ones that are probably going to cause an accident and have their career come to an abrupt end. The rest of us try to drive responsibly as we can, so please return the favor. This job is hard enough without worrying about bad drivers.