Not sure how I feel about this

As a lot of DC-area drivers probably know, one of the most frustrating "exits" in the whole metro area is from the EB SE-SW freeway to Pennsylvania Ave. As it's not really an exit at all, but the end of the freeway, all traffic has to go onto Pennsylvania Ave. EB. However, the leftmost lane of three turns into an access road for RFK stadium, but it is signed that it is to only be used by emergency vehicles or for stadium events. Not very well signed, but signed nonetheless. Since I pbutt through this area several times a week, I know well in advance what lane I should be in; however, some people apparently do not and attempt to merge over at the last possible second. I can easily see how that would happen, as I said, the signs are small and hard to read. However, I suspect that the vast majority of drivers that sit in the gore waiting to be let over are MFFYers because nobody in their right mind would be on that road unless a) they knew exactly where they were going or b) were hopelessly lost. (this is true for a lot of DC "freeways," one wrong turn and you're in somewhere you *REALLY* don't want to be.) Therefore, I (and other drivers) have made it a practice to hold station a foot or two away from the bumper of the preceding car, which isn't particularly safe, but necessary unless you want a flood of gore-cutters to keep you from missing yet *another* light after you've already sat patiently waiting your turn for 15 minutes or so.

Anyway, this week DC has apparently decided to do something about this. To keep people from flying up to the front of the line and sitting in the gore MFFYing with their right blinker on, they have put in little breakaway stand-up reflectors so that you can't cut across the gore without running these reflectors down. This to me seems like a great idea EXCEPT... what about the poor bastard that is only on the freeway because he's lost, and-or is looking at a map and doesn't know ahead of time what lane he's supposed to be in? The only real clue, until you come around the last curve, is the fact that the lane line between the leftmost lane and the middle lane is solid, and the two little signs that say something like "left lane stadium traffic only" and are about 24" square. By that point the right two lanes are packed solid and not moving, so driver's aren't as likely to let a late merger over. Wouldn't it have been more helpful as a part of this work to post a large, clear sign (maybe using the wording "stadium exit only" instead?) or painting the wording directly on the pavement in large letters so it's clear to people that they need to get out of the left lane while they still have a chance to do so?

In any case it was pleasant the last few days not to have to ride the bumper of the car in front of me to keep the MFFYers from making me sit still through another light cycle.

nate

-- replace "fly" with "com" to reply.