In Michigan, and presumably many other states, there are a couple of very clever traffic regulations that really help to avoid jams and keep cars moving.
One of these is the rule that says that you are allowed to turn right at a red light (provided there is no-one hurtling towards you, that is). At certain junctions this also applies if you are turning left. This reduces the number of cars standing at the lights, and speeds up the flow of traffic when the light is green.
Another smart idea is what is known as the "Michigan U" or "Michigan left". Again to keep traffic flowing smoothly, you are not allowed to turn left at major crossings, but rather must turn right (i.e. into the near lane rather than potentially blocking the intersection). A few hundred yards further on, you then get an extra "u-turn" feeder lane on the left which helps get you in the opposite direction.
Last, but by no means least, there's the middle lane that you find on larger - though not major - roads. This is intended for those who wish to turn into driveways on the left, and again prevents the kind of bottlenecks you get in Europe as you stop and wait for a break in the oncoming traffic. The centre lane is also handy when you turn left into a busy road from a drive or side street, since you can already face in the right direction ready to feed into the "proper" lane when there's a gap.
Practical as it undoubtedly is, this last traffic solution is also by far the most dangerous of the three described, and one that should be used with utmost care because the middle lane is at the disposal of cars moving in either direction. I haven't seen any centre-lane head-on collisions yet, but I suspect they're probably relatively common.
One of these is the rule that says that you are allowed to turn right at a red light (provided there is no-one hurtling towards you, that is). At certain junctions this also applies if you are turning left. This reduces the number of cars standing at the lights, and speeds up the flow of traffic when the light is green.
Another smart idea is what is known as the "Michigan U" or "Michigan left". Again to keep traffic flowing smoothly, you are not allowed to turn left at major crossings, but rather must turn right (i.e. into the near lane rather than potentially blocking the intersection). A few hundred yards further on, you then get an extra "u-turn" feeder lane on the left which helps get you in the opposite direction.
Last, but by no means least, there's the middle lane that you find on larger - though not major - roads. This is intended for those who wish to turn into driveways on the left, and again prevents the kind of bottlenecks you get in Europe as you stop and wait for a break in the oncoming traffic. The centre lane is also handy when you turn left into a busy road from a drive or side street, since you can already face in the right direction ready to feed into the "proper" lane when there's a gap.
Practical as it undoubtedly is, this last traffic solution is also by far the most dangerous of the three described, and one that should be used with utmost care because the middle lane is at the disposal of cars moving in either direction. I haven't seen any centre-lane head-on collisions yet, but I suspect they're probably relatively common.
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