I am both sympathetic and guilty of acting upon the impulse many of us seem to share when it comes to merging from two lanes to one.

“Surely switching to the sustaining lane early and at random when an opportunity arises would be the polite thing to do. I am a conscious and considerate member of this community. I am doing good.”

However, as the old saying goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I humbly and as unpedantically as possible encourage us all to search the internet for “zipper merging,” and refresh our knowledge of the road and efficiency.

That vehicle passing you on the left as you drive into town from the west end after getting over early is not your enemy to be boxed out at the merging point. That vehicle is your guardian angel in punctuality and deserves a friendly wave as you let them in. Perhaps we can all come together and live with a sliver less traffic induced stress.

Ted Kwasigroch
Steamboat Springs