INDIANAPOLIS — At some point during your daily commute, you may come across construction zones with barrels and an alert to merge due to lane closures.
In some cases, you will find zipper merging signs, which are used in many construction zones where a lane is blocked off.
“A zipper merge is a very simple concept that allows motorists to share the road and alternate vehicles when they need to merge from right to left or from left to right,” Indiana State Police Captain Ron Galaviz said.
According to INDOT, they’re designed to keep traffic moving by allowing drivers to take turns getting into one lane. And yes, that includes the drivers who pull all the way up to the barriers and merge just before the lane ends.
“We’ve all been there. We’ve all seen that vehicle speed up on the left or right because they have to get there first,” Captain Galaviz said.
INDOT says those drivers are actually doing it the right way. In fact, they have created a video to explain the procedure that you can watch here.
On Thursday, many Indianapolis residents WRTV spoke with had no idea what zipper merging was.
“I have no idea. I’ve never heard of it,” Neal Harvey said.
ISP says zipper merging is not required by law.
Galaviz also encourages drivers to switch lanes once they notice the merge sign to prevent traffic from becoming bottle necked.
“We see all kinds of defense driving to prevent people to keep from moving over. If there is the opportunity to get over before you get to that check point, it would be ideal to get over. If everyone who shared the road was considerate and allowed zipper merging, things would go a lot smoother,” Galaviz said.
ISP says drivers should already be slowing down since zipper merges are in construction zones.
For more information from the Indiana Department of Transportation about zipper merging and other important driving tips, visit the INDOT website.
