Is it me or do you notice more and more drivers seem reluctant to drive in the nearside lane on motorways even when traffic is light. In particular I find some drivers won't move over when th einside lane is free and if you overtake them in outside lane and go into the nearside lane they still stay in middle lane why?

 

Probably is getting worse although it's always been a problem, there just seems to be a reluctance to use the inside lane as though it's viewed as a crawler lane or something.

I think driving in general is worse now though. I blame speed cameras, all they do is catch people for speeding, not incorrect lane use, or tailgating etc. So that's all people are worried about getting caught doing.

 

its a speed limit, not an requirement

 

This IS getting worse, last weekend out with the wife and kids and was driving along in the middle lane having just over taken someone, decided to stay there as I was coming upto a slower car towing a little boat, when all of a sudden the driver pulls into the middle lane forcing me to brake hard to avoid rear ending her (couldn't move over as a car was passing me at the same time) ......... the thing is there was NOTHING in the inside lane for her to overtake for about half a mile or more, she just wanted to drive in the middle lane

 

If you cant beat um join um ..........


In all seriousness have you tried driving in the inside lane of some of our motorways. Its awful, the ruts in the road are so deep that you are constantly fighting the car in the tramlines. To hell with that......

Gary

 

So is driving in the middle lane, which was the point of this thread!

 

These are the very same people who will still do 40 in a 30, in some cases speed up!.
Wheres a speed trap when you need one! lol

 

That really gets me, driving in the countryside people sit right up yer bumper in a 30 limit, get into a 60 limit and they're nowhere to be seen in your mirrors, next 30 limit and sure enough they catch you up, still doing their steady 43mph!

 

And i bet when you "speed" off upto 60 they think look at that nutter, he won't get there any quicker etc etc........!

 

I'm sure they do, muppets!

 

Is undertaking actually a prosecutable offence. I dont mean weaving and taking the pi55, just doing a steady 70 in the inside lane because it's empty and undertaking the middle lane dawdler who's sat at 55/60 refusing to move over ?

Also, isnt middle lane dawdling an offence too ?

Another website did a thread on this and some woman thought the inside lane was called the slow lane because it was if you were going slow, if she was doing 60/70 she wouldnt use that lane - and she was serious and really thought that !.

 

I did not change the topic

 

Motorway driving is particularly bad, i was driving late night down the m1 and at one point there was no other cars for at least 2 miles, however mr slows brother was in the outside lane doing 55 and then swung across in front of me as i went to go inside him 2 lanes over!!!!! unbelievable!!! i wasn't driving fast either, crazy nutter

 

I think undertaking is illegal, unless you are in a traffic jam.

I have to admit I've done it occasionally when extremely p*ssed off by someone though.

 

You can under take legally, but you need to be careful. You defiantly need to be doing this side of 70 and what you are doing is maintaining lane discipline. You start on the nearside lane and remain there unless overtaking. If someone happens to be in another lane going slower than you then hey ho. Your lane is moving quicker than the other lane so all is ok.

Blatant lane hoping is what is a bit dodgy on the motorway.

 

Try driving your scoob on 19's with rubber band tyres up the A303 past Andover with the ruts on the inside lane before you slate middle lane drivers too much .....

 

wanna try keeping the lorries out of the middle lanes wile trying to over take other lorries going up hill thats why some places are always slow on motor ways

picture the scene lorries in slow lane doing 55mph 1 trying to over take at 56mph going up hill

anoying or what !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I could post 'use suitable wheels/tyres and geometry for uk roads' but i wont

Simon

 

It p!sses me off no end. My wife has a point, it is normally middle-aged men.

I like it in france, cars come up behind you and flash from a distance to get you out the way. After driving 700 miles down the autoroute in france, i got to the UK and tried the same approach. Just to be given the bird or V's when passing.

I still flash people if they're floating in the middle/inner lane or i confess to making a point and undertaking.

 

quite simply yes middle lane hoggers are getting worse as is the general standard of driving.
If you have policy that blames speed as the main route of all evil, sponsors terrorists (give it a while and the spin will be there !) etc, and is policed by static cameras thst do nothing to stop the above, what do you expect !

Richard

 

Middle laners - This one really gets my blood boiling !!!!!!!!

When you undertake them and look, they just don't have a clue. You should be able to "P.I.T." them off the road U.S. police style, the f**king w**kers.

Breathe deeply............. Ah that's better.

Then you get those new electronic overhead signs saying "Don't drink and drive while using a mobile phone, or you may drop your spliff". What a waste of time. They should be saying "move over you stupid B'stard".


Breathe deeply............ Ah that's better.

Rant over,

Regards,
Graeme.

 

It's the people who put their fogs on at the slightest excuse that get me. A bloke up ahead puffs his cigar smoke out his window a couple of miles away and you see at least 3 cars put hem on. WHY.??? 100 metre visibility is the rule idiots.

And W-H-Y put them on in the rain EVER !!!!

Rich

 

When motorways were new, the three lanes were called slow lane, fast lane and overtaking lane. That was early '60s when there was no speed limit. Then comes '70s and the 70 limit.

Suddenly 70 mph is as fast as you can go, 'so' if you're doing anywhere near 70, it has to be the middle lane, 'coz that's called the fast lane and you're going as fast as you can. No-one wants to be considered slow, so who wants to be caught in the slow lane.

Just my 2p theory

 

I think its a lack of education, most people STILL think that the lanes are for certain speeds, so if they are going over 60 they feel they must be in atleast the middle lane..

The number of times I've flashed people to get out of the way (when the other two lanes are empty) and they stick their finger up at me? *****!.

 

Exactly - well said.

It seems to me that more and more people are stuck in lanes or driving at the same speed regardless like some kind of 'lemmings in a trance' regardless of the opportunity to make progress on open roads or to observe sensible and/or posted speed limits in built up areas.

On motorways and dual carriageways, I make a point of moving back into the inside lane whenever possible, even in heavier traffic and notice that by doing so, people following me seem to do the same - we need to make proper and correct lane discipline really obvious and noticeable so as to set the right example.

As to undertaking, it's not something I do normally. However, the other week where a driver was doing 60 in the outside lane and where there was no other traffic in any lane for some distance ahead (driver staring vacantly ahead etc.), I undertook in the inside lane therefore keeping a lane between me and them and of course I had the further option of using the hard shoulder - and felt justified in 'completing the undertaking procedure' as rapidly as possible. I believe this movement is considered legal, but of course temporarily exceeding the speed limit to do so was not.

 

Outside lane hoggers - make my blood boil. Came across one the other night on a deserted NSL dual carriageway. Entering the dual carriageway from a roundabout Clio man/woman moved straight into the outside lane and proceeded at 40 mph. I stuck behind for a moment and then gave a polite flash. His reaction was to start weaving about the road taking up BOTH lanes

I therefore roasted him with the xenons until he moved over, then I blasted past

Naturally he then decided to chase me He lost

 

Agree with you Rich,

Fog lights on no matter what gets on my "rasberry ripples".

It's not just the "boyracers", but people of all ages. Most of them are not even aware of what they are doing, or where their fog light switch is.

Comes down to what a few have already said - Driver Education.

At the moment once you've passed your test that's it. The powers that be should offer a very good incentive for people to take an advanced driving course after 5 years of driving. This should open their eyes to what is going on around them. I would bet most people driving from A to B have no idea what is going on around them, or how their (bad) driving is affecting others.

Rant over, again,

Regards,
Graeme.

 

agree with above - the number of cars with miss-aligned headlights seems to be on the increase as well - they are a right pain in the a*se especially now a lot of bulbs are HID's

 

You can undertake if your lane (being the slow lane or middle lane) is driving at a faster speed than the 'faster lane'. Its all to do with flow of traffic.

I am undecided, it is really annoying when approaching a slow car in the middle lane, but where are the drivers that sit a more brisk speed meant to go.
I go in the fast lane when I want to boot it, however, there is always some rep in a big merc or audi, doing double what i'm doing, tailgating me and flashing me until I move over. Now I've moved over from the fast lane into the middle lane, people in the middle lane who are hammering it have to over take using the fast lane...! Where exactly are we meant to drive?
Surely the biggest culprit is the tailgating rep's that are flat out everywhere in there 'highly stable at speeds' Vauxhall Vectra 1.8's.
Surely the easist way to change this it, this maybe unpopular but if you want to drive slow 50-60 or you are towing/driving a bus or truck then use the 'slow' lane, if you want to drive pretty briskly say 70-80, then use the middle lane and if you fancy your chances with the police speeding target setters, then sit at 90-100 in what we call the 'fast lane'.
Can't we all get on a share the motorway in an ordally manner, or are we going to have to get a special 'Subaru Turbo' lane built?

Cue the objections

 

I tend to cruise up to the culprit at a reasonable closing speed, giving them a chance to move over without forcing me to change my speed due to their actions (somewhere in the highway code). If they havnt budged then I would maybe go in and then back out of their blind spot (to guage whether they are using their nearside mirror) and if still no reaction then gently cruise up the inside. If the road is free off traffic I would normally use the outside lane, just to remove any chance of fines from plod. If pulled over I would argue the lane discipline card strongly, but to no avail I'm sure.

I reckon some sort of testing on a regular basis, the period of which being age dependant, (a bit like pilots in the aviation industry) would help people to keep and of course further their roadcraft. As we all know the initial test doesnt cover all bases but is groundwork to survive, roadskills should improve with practise and so should be checked once in a while.