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Comment by renewiltord | Hacker News Reader

Interesting. So if you are driving on a road and come across an intersection that you don't have a stop sign for but the cross roads do, you treat the intersection as an all-way stop?

In all my decades of driving I have never seen anyone drive that way. I think I'd believe it with dashcam evidence only.

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City driving: some drivers have the unpleasant habit of approaching an intersection from a secondary road with no visible slowing down, slamming the brakes at the very last moment. If I happen to glimpse such a vehicle, I hit the brakes myself. Right-of-way won't pay for damage costs.

I watch these intersections closely, yes. And make sure I have time to slam on the brakes if necessary. I've seen far too many cars blow through residential-area 25mph stop signs as if they don't exist, and it really only takes one to give you a very bad day. And that's in residential areas - in higher-speed quieter-area intersections like this, hell yes I'm extra paranoid. I've seen multiple cars plow through intersections like this at triple the speed limit since I started driving.

As a biker, this all applies doubly so, because one mistake like this can pretty frequently be fatal. Be paranoid or you risk death, there's no alternative.

I’ll keep vigilant of someone potentially pulling out, and usually prepare to brake (eg foot off accelerator, prepared to hit the brakes). This is also roughly what we learnt in a defensive driving class I took (as part of high school).

(Note also that all-way stops are rare outside of NA; it’s far more common to have roundabouts or clear priority, but you always keep an eye out.)

I don't stop, no, but I do slow if needed to give myself options.

You should definitely slow enough to look both ways before crossing.

Better than driving ten over and assuming everyone can see every stop sign.

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