What were THEY thinking?

This week, I read that the Georgia Supreme Court deemed a motor vehicle law "unconstitutional," largely on the basis that the wording was vague and confusing. The law? Making a left turn into the near lane, when turning onto a multiple lane road. WHAT is confusing about that?

You want to talk about confusing? Why can't drivers turn their (power) steering wheels well enough to aim for the correct lane? Are they lazy? Inconsiderate? After all, this allows the oncoming traffic to go "right on red," safely. Or is that law too confusing, too?

Come to think of it, red lights DO seem to be confusing for Georgia drivers. The way I was taught to drive, a yellow traffic light meant "caution, the light is about to turn red." That meant I should continue through the intersection, if I was close enough, WITHOUT ACCELERATING. Around here, it seems to mean, "hurry up, so the next two vehicles behind you can make it through the red light before the people in the cross traffic notice." (Of course, those people are probably talking on their cell phones, so it will take them some time to notice.)

While we are on the subject of turning, I have to wonder why most people do not use their turn indicators around here. Are they lazy? Inconsiderate? Too busy talking on their cell phones?

Beyond my frustration with sloppy driving, there is a public health hazard. Ignoring laws that regulate the flow of traffic causes accidents. This is common sense -- and is validated by my personal experience. Both my husband and I -- in separate cars at separate times in separate places -- have been victims of accidents caused by someone running a red light. Note that, both times, our cars were stopped, and we were still hit! Thankfully, we (and our toddler child) were not hurt. We did, however, have the gross inconvenience of insurance claims and extensive car repairs.

How does this rant relate to a topic of management interest? Think about traffic flow as a process. If the process is not followed properly, what happens? At best, you have slower throughput in the process. In the case of the lazy left turns, instead of two people turning, one left and one right, only one can turn because the right turner cannot be sure of an open lane. The same is true when people don't use their signals -- this causes confusion and delays with other drivers. And with the cell phone talkers, their inattention to driving slows everyone down. Of course, when an accident occurs, throughput is further slowed, or stopped all together.

Throughput is a critical success factor in managing processes. If you have consistent processes, you can maximize your throughput, improve your quality, and reduce your costs.

What is confusing about THAT?