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The Massachusetts "curve into the curb" edge line instructs drivers to
violate the traffic law by making their right turns without merging to the right as
required by Chapter
90, section 14 of the statutes:
Edge lines should simply be discontinued at intersections as specified in the national standard for signs and markings, the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. The "curve into the curb" edge line results in unnecessary delays when a driver who wants to continue straight or turn left can not overtake another who is preparing to turn right. Much more seriously, it leads to one of the most common types of car-bicycle crashes, in which an overtaking motorist turns right from a bicyclist's left side. More about this type of crash and how to avoid it is available on other Web pages, here and here. |
Curve-into-curb pavement marking, Route 135,
Framingham, Massachusetts, December, 2004.
The traffic law requires drivers to merge right before
turning right. The marking instructs them
to violate the law. The red car turning right should have
merged to the right.
Another example, at 984 Greendale Avenue, Needham.
If the turning SUV doesn't get you, maybe the parallel-bar
storm grate will.
