this post was submitted on 03 Jun 2026
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"Early" being relative to the specific vehicles involved. Lorries/tractor-trailers need a LOT more time to find an opening before a merge than a "four-wheeler" does, for example.
Besides, it's long been proven that "zipper merging" - which is basically waiting up to almost the last second to merge - is the more efficient method.
It's more efficient if people let you pass in front of them. Which they might not
Not very efficient if you have to stop next to a moving lane lol
That's a training issue more than anything else. People have never been taught how to merge well, and so inevitably everybody has their own "camp" when it comes to best practices. Those who complain about "fairness" typically have a more myopic view than those who take "the big picture" into account (or they have a faulty "big picture" in mind). I'll grant that a good number of those "cheaters" are indeed just being selfish pricks, but statistics still show that zipper merging is best in the end. Far too many people care more about their illogical feelings than the facts, tho.
Zipper merging is ideal in certain situations but not all of them. It reduces the total "length" of traffic the choke point, but doesn't necessarily increase the total throughout. It's primarily meant to prevent traffic from backing up to other lights and intersections on the road. The throughput optimum for lighter traffic is to merge earlier (though not miles back) to maintain speed, and people who force their way in at the last second cause the standard "traffic wave" problems. That's why it isn't quite as clear cut as people make it - the optimum behavior is situational and that level of complexity is not well gasped by your average person who is profoundly uncurious of the world around them.
Then there's the issue of people wanting to zipper merge in places where it is completely inappropriate because it blocks a travel lane. This was a weekly debate on our local subreddit when I was still using it. The number of people who insisted that a highway interchange should be treated as a zipper, despite that blocking the main road, is high enough that I am convinced that the zipper narrative has been a net negative. Though I also concede that most of these people would still be idiots about it without the plausible justification for bad behavior.
Zipper merges are always more efficient, though the problem is idiots don't understand what they are. They are not racing up to the last moment you need to merge. Ever. They are never that. Ever.
They are ONLY two rules:
If you need to merge, roughly match speeds with through-traffic once you've identified an opening, line up with that opening, and merge.
If you're in the through-lane, make room for roughly 1 to 1 cars to be able to merge in.
It is a whole different matter to occupy all of closing lanes or merge lanes. Solves a totally different problem. The people insisting it's part of zipper merging are idiots that do not understand zipper merging.
Came here to find this argument.
Well done everyone!
Nope. Waiting until the last second is not zipper merging.
I said "basically" to imply it was being stated in a simplistic manner for expediency. The article I linked to gave the full story, and I'd rather they read that along with proof it provided. You're nit-picking, which isn't surprising considering your other responses.