After watching car after car drive straight through the "turn only" lane on southbound Dale Mabry Highway north of I-275, Howard Rosenberg started asking questions.
Among them: When is a "turn only" lane not a "turn only" lane?
Rosenberg said he assumes that a right turn arrow and the words "turn only" painted on the lane mean that is the direction to be followed. As a driver headed to the southbound I-275 entrance ramp, Rosenberg drives through the intersection in the center lane, then merges to the right to access the ramp onto I-275.
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However, many times he is unable to make the safe lane change due to other drivers who don't follow the lane directions.
"And what that causes is a problem," he said. "Do you get in early, even though you're not supposed to? Do you wait until after the light then try to get in? Which is what I did on Sunday, and there was a car in the right lane and he didn't want to let me in."
The right turn arrow and "turn only" designation are posted both before and after the intersection. According to FDOT spokesperson John McShaffrey, the lane markings allow for a variety of actions.
"Usually when you get into a lane like that and you're going to turn at the next available right, be it a driveway into one of the businesses or eventually when you get down to the interstate, but it is an open lane, so drivers do have the option of staying in that lane longer than the next right turn that they come to," he said.
According to McShaffrey, when construction finishes this spring, both the shopping plaza before the interstate and the interstate ramp will each have a dedicated turning lane.