Right-Turn-On-Red Bullies

I observed a most interesting scene at the corner of Rt. 19 and Boyce Road the other day. The light was red for those of us on Boyce Road, and the man in the lane next to me had his right blinker on. Even though drivers are allowed to turn right on red there, it can be pretty dangerous, so I understood why the man was being cautious about proceeding. The woman behind him was of a different opinion, however, and she decided to encourage him to turn with a little honk. It appeared that the man wasn’t going to turn until he was ready, so the woman decided a second honk was the most appropriate course of action. At this point, I actually hoped the light wouldn’t change until I could see how this was going to play out. The man got out of his car and walked slowly back to talk with the woman.

The light turned green and I was forced to catch the resolution of the incident in my rear view mirror. After a quick “chat” with the woman, the man got back in his car and drove away.

Several thoughts ran through my head afterward, the first of which was that the woman was pretty lucky. Things could have easily escalated into a classic case of road rage worthy of the 6 o’clock news.

Then I thought of the numerous times I’ve had to jockey for position with people impatient to turn right into my lane at this same intersection. For these drivers, turning right on red has become a mandate rather than a convenience.

All this right-on-red confusion makes me long for a simpler time when red meant “stop” and green meant “go”. Of course radical change like that would be a tough sell, unless we emphasize the positives. Waiting for the light to turn green gives people time to finish that text message they started a block ago!