VIDEO: Freeway Entering and Exiting

A high percentage of freeway crashes occur near on-ramps and off-ramps. Here’s some driving advice, provided by the Colorado Driver Handbook, on how to merge safely onto a freeway:

• When entering a freeway from an on-ramp, try to increase your speed to match that of the freeway traffic.

• Do not merge into traffic until the solid white line has ended.

• Do not stop in the acceleration lane unless absolutely necessary.

• Remember, you must yield the right of way to the traffic already on the freeway.

• Signal and move carefully into the freeway lane.

• If the freeway entrance ramp has a traffic signal to regulate the release of vehicles onto the freeway, you must obey the signal. Stop and wait to be released on a green light to enter the freeway. (Such lights generally operate during peak traffic periods, such as 6:30-8:30 a.m. and 3:30-6:00 p.m.)