Depends on the city, I've seen interchanges with left lane exits that there was no way for me to reach in time from the right lane I took to enter. Also an exit too soon after an entrance on the right lane can make it unsafe to get far enough to the right, though this is more common in cities with parkways that have access roads running parallel.

There is never a reason to hug the passing lane(s).

If you're actively passing then it's not hugging.

If you're not actively passing then GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE LANE!

I know Luis CK has gotten a bit problematic for other reasons, but I always liked his take on this in particular.

Apologies as I couldn't find an original video, just this weird channel animating the original audio. But every time my wife and I are in a car and see someone cross multiple lanes to get to an exit they almost missed we look at each other and say "but that's their FAVORITE way!"

Mind you, at least here, the left lane is a passing lane only on roads at or above 80kmh/50mph, below this speed limit, the left lane is just another lane. There's a lot of 70kmh highway around the cities here, and it's totally ok to be transiting in the left lane in those cases.

A friend of mine got a phone call at daft o'clock one evening from his son who hadn't turned up home.

"Dad, can you pick me up from the city centre please?"

Bear in mind that he lived in a smaller town 40 miles or so from the city; on a bus route that spanned two cities about 90 miles apart.

Turns out that he had been taught how to board a bus; ask for a ticket; pay; and take a seat... but never learned how to leave a bus.

His dad was understandably pissed off, having been kicked out of bed at midnight to do a near two-hour round trip drive to pick his lad up. He asking him why he hadn't pushed the bell to signal the driver to stop.

"I thought they were just emergency stop buttons, and because I told the driver where I was going when I got the ticket, I thought he would stop for me... and when he didn't, I just sat and waited until the end of the line".

Poor soul.

This reminds me of one time earlier this year I went to get some food which required me to get on the highway and then a main highway. The main highway is a 2 min drive to the next exit, and it's directly off the exit. So the entire trip is about 10 min. I got food, got back on the highway, and started thinking about stuff and not realizing I passed the exit to go back home. I then forgot exactly how bad that was because the next exit was 20 min away with no turn and full divider. So that dumb mistake cost me 40 minutes of time, and im basically screaming at myself the entire time for being a dumbass.

There's no such thing as a passing lane here (CA), the left lane is called the fast lane and staying in one lane is recommended (but of course, stay in the one that matches your speed, don't go 60 in the fast lane on the highway) vs weaving in and out.

I thought buses just stop at a station, you have to signal to the driver to stop? I've never ridden a bus before, so at least that's my main reason, but if I got on and didn't see a button or anything, I'd probably make that mistake

They by default stop at stops only if there is someone waiting there, otherwise you need to call the stop by pressing the button.

It differs regionally.

I had to rake a detour in an area that looked like a maelstrom hangout in cyberpunk 2077 because my gps didn't tell me which lanes i needed to be in when i crossed a junction.

That's something I pretty frequently hear from parents with autistic childs

You should tell your friend to watch out for other potential signs and maybe get his son checked out by a health professional

I used to think the same before I tried driving in California (European btw) and the left lane WAS AN EXIT???

Glad you're okay, Choom.

Even in my tiny country. Small town bus makes stop if you stand up or someone's waiting, capital city bus makes every stop, other city bus needs to be prompted by the light.

So I definitely missed my stop first time I took the bus in the other city lol

That's... existential.

Yeah, but that saying is absolutely brain dead, because if you take it literally it states anyone that has ever missed their exit is a good driver, which clearly isn't true

that's so wild. is it too personal to ask what country you're in?

Everyone look!

(Crowd looks up at the sky)

It's Captain Pedantic here to save the day!!