One of Boise's Worst Driving Habits is Also It's Most Dangerous

Left Turns & T-Bones

It was around 2:30 in the afternoon when I was headed east on Fairview Ave about to turn south/right onto Cole Rd. So you know: I was free and clear to make the turn, road conditions were clear, and I was in no hurry to get to where I was going.

As I began making the turn from Fairview onto Cole, out of nowhere, a pickup truck turning south/left onto Cole sped through the arrow and decided to turn into the right lane instead of the immediate left lane. It nearly t-boned my Camry.

Demystifying the Right-of-Way

The driver, a young woman who looked to be in her early '20s, swerved into the left lane where she belonged in the first place. Then she flipped me the bird as if I was in the wrong!

Based off her reaction to my properly executed driving maneuver, it was obvious homegirl missed right-of-way day in driver's ed. Was it scary? Yes. Was it annoying? Also yes. But what matters most is both of us drove away with our car insurance premiums unscathed.

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That said, since so many people have the very dangerous habit of making left turns into right lanes around Boise, I thought a refresher blurb from the Idaho Legislature would be helpful:

The driver of a vehicle intending to turn left shall approach the turn in the extreme left-hand lane lawfully available to traffic moving in the direction of travel of the vehicle. Whenever practicable the left turn shall be made to the left of the center of the intersection and so as to leave the intersection or other location in the extreme left-hand lane lawfully available to traffic moving in the same direction on the highway being entered.
-Idaho Code 49-644

If you're curious to know how Boise Police might respond to other poor driving habits, check out the gallery below!