Does no-one give way on motorways anymore? The old school thought of M-S-M appears to have given way to M-S-S (Manoeuvre-Signal-Sometimes).
I have lost count of the times where I have left a suitable gap between myself and the car in front, only for someone to dive in, leaving me with no option but to slow down to account for the fact my safety zone have just been nicked.
Add to this the fact that as soon as the idiot has pulled out, they invariable have to brake themselves due to the lack of space they have left - this surely causes a domino effect and people a mile behind come to a standstill...
Am I ranting for no reason? Is this practice now acceptable and I'm set in my ways?
PS: Lorries seems to do this with a "I'm bigger than you attitude". However, if they didn't, I suppose they'd be there all day waiting for someone to let them out....
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Lorries often tend to do it because of the time it takes them to build up enough momentum to carry out an overtake. Doesn't justify an unfair or dangerous maneouvre, of course, but helps understand why they're sometimes tempted to chance it.
You're not ranting for no reason and a series of maneouvres like that can have a knock-on effect for miles, but that's human nature.
I'm one of those who prefers to stick to inside or middle lanes and allow people to blast past. Theres' so much traffic these days that, sooner or later, you catch them up or arrive just behind them.
Lane-hopping is not worth the extra stress, juice and risk.
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Man! I understand the lorry driver momentum-thing (I had an ageing Mercedes 190E where behaviour for speeding up was much the same!) but some lorry drivers just signal and go for it!
I often change lanes in a panic as a lorry's indicator flashes once and begins to move over ...
... AND if it's not safe, I DON'T move over if I'm alongside them when they begin flashing. They expect it though. As soon they DO get behind me, they reward me by flashing their lights, thus blinding me ...
Indicating doesn't mean it suddenly becomes a right. If you're a lorry a driver, please bear this in mind.
I also see very good driving from lorries too, reading the road way in advance .. but some use their size to bully
rojer@lycos.co.uk
Astra, Renault 18, Renault 25 TXi, Astra Est, Passat Est, Mercedes 190E, Mercedes
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If you are suggesting that drivers are not signalling while joining a motorway, I have given up doing that on the grounds that my intention is clear - in fact I have no alternative except to stop at the merge line or drive along the shoulder. I don't see how my signalling affects how or when I join the traffic flow - I don't think it means 'move out, I'm coming in'. That said, I don't *expect* cars to move out for me, but of course I appreciate it if they do. I also flash to invite drivers in in front of me.
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I sympathise with you. In motorway traffic I find moving right a lane can be very hard mainly because few people are willing to let you in. So I sometimes sit there with me winker doing its nut in the hope that someone will see it and give me some space.
I am reluctant to simply slide into the space between two cars for safety reasons. It is hardly surprising some people do just that though.
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If you are suggesting that drivers are not signalling while joining a motorway, I have given up doing that on the grounds that my intention is .
I'm sure your intention is clear, but don't forget that a signal isn't just an indicator of a maneouvre, but also a flashing light which can attract attention.
You'd be amazed (or maybe you wouldn't!) at the numbers of drivers who, perhaps because they're on the old motorway autopilot, simply don't tune into the fact that someone is trying to join. A flashing signal sometimes wakes them up (especially in the dark).
There are also a fair few awkward you-know-whats who take umbrage at the fact that you haven't signalled and adopt the 'I'll teach him a lesson by not letting him in' tactic. Sad, I know, but people do it.
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Took the words out of my mouth Morris. It can't hurt to draw attention to the fact you're there in the accelleration land and are going to join.
Terry
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This thread neatly covers two rather daft things I saw on a trip back from Durham to Stockport on Wednesday. Firstly, old chap in a Yaris, probably candidate for the 'should they be allowed on the road' thread. Was coming up to overtake a lorry, said lorry indicated, chap then swerved out in to the fast lane, right in to the path of another car bearing down on him quite fast. Slowly got past the lorry (I don't think he exceeded 60 at any point) and then indicated to pull back in. And kept on indicating for about 2 miles after pulling in to the middle lane even though the left hand lane was clear, all the time weaving around within the lane.
The other one was joining the M60 at Chadderton. I'd been followed down the sliproad very closely by a woman in a 306. This slip is the type that becomes the third lane to a 2-lane road IYSWIM. As I was coming down, I'd been checking my mirror to see if it was clear, as we'd been following a very slow lorry down the slip. Saw two cars approaching side-by-side and rapidly so decided to wait until they had passed before coming out to pass the truck. The woman behind didn't even wait for the end of the hatched bit before pulling out right in to the path of the again rapidly approaching car. And then proceeded to potter along the centre lane at about 55 anyway.
I'm wondering now if there should be a separate motorway test before you are allowed out... Some people need one!
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I can't help but agree with you DieselBoy. I have a 2-hr round trip to work everyday on motorways and I have this happen to me and see it happen to others.
If I'm travelling between 80mph and 90mph I like to leave a lot of space around me.
It's a shame that other people think that 1 foot off someone elses bumper is acceptable.
CHris
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I'm one of those who prefers to stick to inside or middle lanes and allow people to blast past.
Me too. I get a sadistic pleasure in watching the nutters who are mindlessly alternating between accelerator and brake (why?).
Whether or not they may arrive marginally sooner than me, in any case they will be more stressed, and are going to have to stop for fuel one hell of a lot sooner, having converted much of their fuel into heat instead of forward motion. And they will be the first ones to moan about fuel prices.
Oz (as was)
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Would it hurt some people to move into the middle lane when they approach the on ramp, to allow others to join the motorway in safety?
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Not physically .. although ..
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Whenever I drive on a motorway, which is not that regularly I must admit, I rarely exceed 65mph. I find that I can relax a little more (although I'm always alert!) and I arrive at my destination feeling a lot more chilled out.
I, too, get a perverse pleasure from watching the habitual speed merchants and quite enjoy the pretty light show they provide from their continual braking!
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Yes me too, I usually do 70 on the motorway. Much more relaxing.
Though on a clear motorway I recently took the Ka up to 115mph on the clock to see what it would do. Allegedly.
When I am on a slip road and see cars ahead of me fighting for dominance, I just fall back, drop a gear, and join the motorway well behind them. The extra space I have, and room to accelerate, usually lets me get into lane 2 and overtake them while they are still fighting with each other. You have to laugh.
Blimey what a bunch of nice considerate relaxed drivers we all are! What we need is some tail-gating speed junky to post a comment so we can persecute them and feel ever so self righteous! :>
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"Blimey what a bunch of nice considerate relaxed drivers we all are! What we need is some tail-gating speed junky to post a comment so we can persecute them and feel ever so self righteous! :> "
All this signalling is a right PITA. I mean operating the winkers you risk spilling the coffee, getting doughnut jam all over your trousers , not to mention interrupting the phone call while shaving at 100mph. Its about time you lot learnt that I swap lanes there every day!!!!!!!!
;-D
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If I drive at a constant (and usually slower) speed, my mind wanders. This is best doing 20-30 in a 30 area, I cannot concentrate, I rely on the car in front and keep a safe distance behind it, yet if I drive faster, I'm aware and I believe far safer, I react quicker and tend to drive more curtiously, I've no idea why, but it works for me...
Kev
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Horses for courses, Kev. As long as you feel safe and in control (and of course, you are safe and in control!) then do it your way!
I'm the exact opposite to you - the faster I drive the more stressed I get. I guess I find it difficult to concentrate fully on what's ahead when I'm busy looking in the rear view mirror for jam sandwiches...;-)
Cheers
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Well said Rob. If I go too fast, I struggle to take in all the hazards around me, make errors of judgement, and get stressed out of me tiny little box. If I go at a more relaxed (but not slow) speed, I find driving so much more pleasant, I make good progress, and can react well in advance of, and take measures to avoid, potential hazards. And who won the race between the hare and the tortoise anyway?
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The hare.
He was last to the line because he was at South Mimms having a fag and a full English.
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If we get back to the original point made by Dieselboy about cars diving into inadequate gaps, we can't have it both ways.
The BR is always condemning - rightly - those motorists who hog the outside lane and refuse to move left. However if they get over they often have difficulty getting back in the outside lane because drivers simply won't let them into 'their' gap.
I drive the whole length of the M40 regularly and under most conditions the outside lane traffic moves at 85-90mph. On the odd occasion, when I have not been in a particular hurry, I have tried to drive at 70-75mph unless I need to get into the outside lane to overtake. At that speed you are constantly coming up to slower traffic and, as said earlier, it difficult to get into the outside lane because of the speed differential. Rather than repeatedly carrying out this manoeuvre I usually give up my good intentions of slower driving and find myself speeding up and going with the flow in the outside lane. For me it is less stressful.
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