Friday Transportation Tips: Planning Ahead and Right Turn Etiquette

Transit: Plan Ahead before heading to the bus stop for better productivity

Before you head to the transit station or bus stop, take 5-10 minutes, plan your trip, get to know which transit routes you need to take, and note the departure and arrival times. Watch your productivity increase as you spend less time in uncertainty. There’s plenty of resources and ways to efficiently plan your trip: Go to your transit agency’s website and from there, check out the schedules and maps, use online trip planners, or if you need assistance, give the transit agency a phone call. You’ll be on your way with a prepared itinerary for your trip which will improve your productivity.

Example:

RTA Route 1 to Downtown 7:22-7:36am - $1.50

Metrolink Riverside Line to LA Union Station 8:15-9:38am - $25.00 Round Trip
[Work on term paper on train]

LA DASH to LA Fashion District (departs every 6 minutes) – xfer

Appointment 10:30am-12pm
Lunch 12pm

Metrolink Riverside Line to Riverside 1:15-2:43pm – Return
[catch up on sleep on train]

RTA Route 1 to Home 3:00-3:24pm - xfer

Driving: Right turns done right

It’s almost always frustrating when you’re proceeding along a surface street and a vehicle in front of you slows in your lane to make a right turn without moving toward the right edge of the road. This weekend, remember the wise words from the DMV California Driver Handbook on right turns. At about 100 feet before you make your turn, signal and drive close to the right side of the road; if there’s a bike lane, remember that you’re permitted to drive up to 200 feet in it before making the turn, no more. That means don’t use the bike lane as a quarter-mile passing lane to bypass traffic prior to turning. As always, watch for cyclists.

Also, unless signs or pavement markings instruct otherwise, remember to begin and complete a right turn in the far right lane. Don't swing wide into another traffic lane. Enjoy your weekend!