I posted this on Pennocks, but since some here don't visit that forum, I thought I'd share an experience.
If anyone has ever driven in Atlanta area traffic during rush hour, you know what a pain it is. To add to the problem, there are regular little bumps in the rear when someone stops short. Commonly known as Fender-Benders. These idiots will sit there in the middle of 6 lanes of traffic, get out and walk around talking on a cell phone while the traffic keeps backing up. In Georgia you are required to move the car from the travel lane if you can drive it. As they say; "If you can steer it-Clear it!" There is a provision for a $500 fine if you fail to do so, but I doubt tickets are ever issued for the offense.
Well, yesterday, I found a fix for this situation. While returning from a Doctor appointment, I was sitting on a divided 4 lane street. Vehicles ahead of me were paused at the intersection, waiting for enough room on the other side to proceed without being caught in the intersection when the light changed back to red. As traffic on the far side started to move, the big Mercedes-Benz in front started across as did the little Toyota pickup behind. Then the MB driver apparently decided he couldn't clear the intersection and jammed on the brakes just about the time he entered the intersection. Well, the little Toyota truck was still accelerating. Even though he managed to hit the brakes, he had enough speed that he slid into the MB. Just a little bump. I don't even remember seeing the MB shake from the impact.
The Toyota driver eventually got out and walked up to the MB. While talking to the driver, I saw him point toward a parking lot on the other side of the intersection, then he came back to his truck. Two long light changes later with all the traffic behind us backing up, the MB still was sitting in the first lane of the 4 lane cross street, also causing a backup there. Finally, I got out, and walked up to the Toyota driver and suggested they move to the parking lot he had previously pointed to. He said he'd asked the MB driver to do so, but he wouldn't budge.
SO, I walked on up to the MB, tapped on the window and when he rolled it down, I asked him to please move the car to the parking lot across the intersection so that he wasn't blocking traffic. I reminded him that there could be a $500 fine for failing to do so. His response was that he had 911 on the line and he wasn't moving. I guess it was so he could prove that the other driver was at fault. Well, DUH, if you get hit in the rear I think it's pretty obvious who's at fault.
So, I says to him "Looks like I'm the only witness to the accident that stayed here. If you don't move, when the officer arrives, suppose I tell him you backed into the truck because you got caught in the intersection?" I then returned to my car. At the next green light, the MB slowly crossed the intersection and pulled into the indicated parking lot with the Toyota truck following at a little safer distance.
I went on my merry way.
