Zipper in merging situations

I heard the zipper term from a European colleague of mine. The definition is that, during merging situations from two lanes to one, that cars alternate in merging. What a great concept for the United States. There are too many situations where the signs for merging indicate that a merge is required 1-2 miles down the road. All the traffic comes to a screeching halt and the merging process starts way to early. The entire lane that is being merged is empty, and a lot of road capacity is wasted.

What is worse are those individuals who feel the need to enforce this premerger behavior, by getting in the merging lane and going as slow as possible. Then there are the people who will swerve into your lane as you pass, to intimidate you, and creating a dangerous situation.

Now we have highway signs that indicate "Start Merging Now", two miles before the merge occurs. Not only is is crazy, but the state governments are supporting it. Let's use common sense, some merging civility (see previous post) and also use the highway capacity. Zipper together and keep the traffic moving.