Not Only Are You A Jerk If You Do This, But It’s Illegal in New York

I have been quite vocal lately about my frustrations with Hudson Valley drivers, as over the past couple of years I feel like our roadways have been full of weird maneuvers and wacky drivers that leave me speechless. Just as I was starting to have hope for the future of our Hudson Valley roads I encounter this as I'm leaving the radio station on Tuesday.

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Why Is This Car So Far Into The Intersection By Marist After The Light Turned Red?

I left the radio station on Halloween and as I was waiting at the light across from Marist to turn left onto route 9 south, I noticed the red car in the photo below making their way into the intersection a little too far, the black car following suit.

Naturally, I had to grab a photo of this cluster...

Once the light changed and the other cars started heading in their respective directions, the black car, and the one behind both reversed to get out of the intersection, leaving plenty of space, however, the red car just stayed put, in the middle of the intersection, causing the rest of us to do some maneuvering in order to get around it.

When it was finally my turn to make my left, you know I had to get a closer look at the driver of this car in the middle of a very busy intersection on route 9, and there she sat, starting straight ahead, seemingly avoiding any and all contact with other drivers.

Not to mention, just south of this particular spot has to be the area's worst intersection, which you can learn more about below.

READ MORE: Route 9 & 44/55 Interchange Master Plans

This Isn't The First Time Something Wacky Has Happened In This Area

Not too long ago I was behind someone who made a crazy (and completely illegal) u-turn in this area over the sidewalk/median of Marist Dr./Rt. 9G, and of course you know we had to take a look at the top ten Hudson Valley drivers you encounter on a regular basis...

Not Only Is This Illegal, But It's Dangerous, Too

According to New York State Traffic Law Citation 1175, blocking or obstructing traffic in an intersection reads as follows:

Obstructing traffic at intersection. When vehicular traffic is stopped on the opposite side of an intersection, no person shall drive a vehicle into such intersection, except when making a turn unless there is adequate space on the opposite side of the intersection to accommodate the vehicle he is driving notwithstanding the indication of a traffic control signal which would permit him to proceed

If you visit New York City, you may have noticed signage referencing 'blocking the box,' or the New York gridlocking law.  An article on TrafficTickets.com, when looking at Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL) 1175, states that 'if you are caught blocking the box you will be handed a summons and have to pay a substantial fine,' reinforcing the fact that drivers should not enter or block the intersection obstructing traffic.

Which brings me back to the person driving the red car yesterday - there's always lots of activity with Marist students crossing the roads here, not to mention the cars going in and out of all the businesses in the particular area. You kind of put the rest of us who had to maneuver to get around you in a pretty bad spot; hopefully you'll do better next time.