It isn’t as chaotic as it looks. Going in the pit everybody is prepared and shouldn’t be any problem. Going out there is a mechanic that signals when it’s clear.
Sometimes there are screw ups, of course. Some bad and others quite funny, like when the driver stopped at his old team by mistake!
How do they deal with potential collisions coming in and out of the lane like that?
Crews holding the car basically have to check. Failing to do so is called “unsafe release” and there is typically a penalty for that.
There’s also dudes who job it is to move their air lines out of the way for their neighbor’s pit stops. It’s pretty well orchestrated.
It isn’t as chaotic as it looks. Going in the pit everybody is prepared and shouldn’t be any problem. Going out there is a mechanic that signals when it’s clear.
Sometimes there are screw ups, of course. Some bad and others quite funny, like when the driver stopped at his old team by mistake!