Continued: Signaling your intent when there are four places to turn right

Alert reader Arvid from Prior Lake wants other drivers to know when he's about to make a turn, but it gets complicated when there isn't a right-turn lane:

There are three opportunities to turn right 25, 75 and 150 feet from the intersection -- depends if I want chicken, tacos or burgers for lunch. When should I turn on my right-turn signal so as [to] communicate my intent to turn right at the intersection ... yet not confuse those poor souls who are trying to get out of the chicken, taco or burger parking lot?

My personal preference is to "over-signal" ... but I have gotten some strange looks from those trying to get out of the parking lot, so I thought I would ask.

Perhaps car blinkers will someday be able to be more specific: "No, I'm not turning here. I'm turning there." Until then, Debbie Prudhomme, co-owner of the Training Wheels driving school, says it's generally safer to "under-signal."

If the burger-eaters think Arvid is turning earlier than he actually plans to, they might pull out in front of him, said Prudhomme, who recommends that he signal as soon as he's past all the driveways.

Sgt. John Stanger of the Prior Lake police agreed, saying misinterpreted signals have indeed caused crashes.

Although state law instructs drivers to signal at least 100 feet before a turn, Stanger says officers understand the whole driveway conundrum and use "good discretion" in determining what's appropriate.

"It comes down to common sense and what's going to be the safest thing to do," he said.

Last week, we touched on scooters traveling below the speed limits on city streets. Today we hear from alert reader Ann from Plymouth, who was driving along in her car when ...

I was so surprised to be pulled over on a county road in Anoka County by the sheriff. He approached my car and asked if I was having car problems. I said no, and he proceeded to tell me that I had been driving 47 miles per hour, a speed slow enough to be "ticketable" because it could make other drivers impatient and cause an accident. (This was in a 55-mile-per-hour speed limit zone.) However, he did not issue me a ticket.

Granted, I had been closely watching my speed, as I knew he was behind me! So I was targeting driving in the low 50 mph range, realizing that speedometers can vary. (I was very surprised that he clocked my speed at 47.)

I know that there are minimum speeds posted on freeways. ... It only seems reasonable that there would be at least a 10 mph range on a county road with a speed limit of 55.

No official minimums

There aren't official minimums on such roads, but "there's a significant amount of accidents caused by people traveling too slowly," says Lt. Paul Sommer of the Anoka County Sheriff's Office. So if an officer decides your speed might cause a rear-end collision or otherwise be unsafe, he or she can issue a ticket, Sommer said.

His advice: "If it's 55 and you're completely able to travel 55, that's what you should be traveling or you should choose a different route."

Jim Foti can be reached at 612-673-4491 or roadguy@startribune.com.

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