Op-ed that mentions Nestoring (driving slowly in the left lane)

[cpzilliacus]

I am posting this in Off-Topic, because most of it is about politics (and I disagree with much of it), but it does make some AAROADS-relevant commentary about the late John O. Nestor, M.D. and his habit of "Nestoring" (driving the posted 55 MPH in the left lane of the Capital Beltway, even though the 85th percentile speed was (and is) more like 65 or 70).

Good sense and gun control

In the early 1980s, transit officials in Washington couldn't figure out why traffic on the Beltway would grind to a near halt every day around the exact same time. The usual explanations didn't fit.

The writer made a common journalistic mistake above in confusing "transit" with "transportation."

Then it was discovered that a single driver was to blame. Every day on his drive to work, this commuter would plant himself in the left lane and set his cruise control to 55 mph, the posted speed limit, forcing those behind him to merge right, and you can imagine the effects.

To his credit, this driver came forward in a letter to the editor of The Washington Post. The man's name was John O. Nestor. He explained that the left lane was great; less traffic, less merging -- why not ride it into work every day? Besides, he wrote, "Why should I inconvenience myself for someone who wants to speed?"

[NWI_Irish96]

Nobody ever thought to get in front of him and go 45?

[Brandon]

Nobody ever thought to get in front of him and go 45?

I would have.  The dipshit sounds like he needed a dose of his own medicine before he learned to stay in the right lane.

[agentsteel53]

Nobody ever thought to get in front of him and go 45?

I'm surprised nobody ran him off the road, egged his house, shot him, abducted his children, mutilated his livestock, genocided his species, etc.

were people just that much less prone to road rage back then?  the other day I was two necessary evasive maneuvers away from being run off the road for merely doing 87 in front of someone!

[oscar]

Nobody ever thought to get in front of him and go 45?

I'm surprised nobody ran him off the road, egged his house, shot him, abducted his children, mutilated his livestock, genocided his species, etc.

He did draw lots of verbal hostility, some of it on the Washington Post opinion pages, as well as traditional "hand signals".

My favorite response in the WaPo was from someone (I hope didn't use his real name) saying he didn't mind people driving 95mph in the left lane of the Beltway, so long as they moved right to let him pass. 

[kphoger]

Road rage ain't cool.  The other day on my way to work, I cut over to the left lane in front of a guy who was hogging it; I didn't leave him much breathing room before cutting over, but I didn't slow down either.  Anyway, he got the message, but then reacted to it by gunning it on my other side.  My exit was coming up soon, so I figured, No worries.  He got into the exit lane for my exit, so I decided to fake him out just to escape his wrath; I got into the exit lane, then jumped back onto the highway, planning to take the next one instead.  He saw me do it, and swerved at the last possible second in front of me.  At that point, I figured he would probably follow me to North Dakota if necessary and beat me to a pulp, so more advanced avoidance maneuvering was called for.  So, after crossing over my street, I flipped a U-turn and drove the wrong way down the on-ramp; problem solved.

Since then, I've made the decision to never piss a left lane hog off like that again.  It's not worth the insanity.

[amroad17]

I remember reading a mystery/thriller novel based in Washington, DC that had a character who "Nestored."  He ended up getting his head blown off while driving on the Beltway near the beginning of the book (although that's not why he was killed).  I cannot remember the name of the book, but it dealt with an assassination attempt of George H.W. Bush, a drug/gang underworld, and martial law within the nation's capital.  It was a very enjoyable read.

[Road Hog]

I remember reading a mystery/thriller novel based in Washington, DC that had a character who "Nestored."  He ended up getting his head blown off while driving on the Beltway near the beginning of the book (although that's not why he was killed).  I cannot remember the name of the book, but it dealt with an assassination attempt of George H.W. Bush, a drug/gang underworld, and martial law within the nation's capital.  It was a very enjoyable read.

It's a Tom Clancy novel, but I don't remember which one. That's the same thing I thought of when I read the first post.