Ive recently returned from a nice jaunt to Prague and back (i drove) and the european roads were an utter revelation! they just flowed so much nicer because they have good lane dicipline.. got back on the M1 in the uk and with in 30 minutes i was worn down and pissed off!
the other good thing about european roads... well specifically german roads is a certain de-restricted one-way toll road...
heres a pic of me queing up patiently after paying my 19euros...
I've also heard this from a number of different folks - there are far too many selfish, ignorant, and rubbish drivers in this countryOriginally Posted by Neo_VR
(some of them just don't know any better I think...)
correctedthere are far too many drivers in this country
that is true - probably half the problem is pure quantity of traffic!
On the 4 lane stretches of the M6 they all seem to hog lane 3, even when lanes 1 and 2 are both clear. At least it's a bit safer to undertake them though - you can leave a clear lane between them and you.I think those traffic patrol vehicles (and traffic police) should pull people over for lane hogging and fine them for it. The money claimed can be put into adding an additional lane to the road
What grinds my gears most of all - worse than seeing someone with no wing mirror - is seeing someone driving along with their mirror folded in. So not only were they incapable of parking within two feet of the kerb when they got home last night, but they haven't even thought to look in their mirror once on their entire journey that morning. People like this should pulled from their cars for a punishment beating.
Isn't it illegal to drive without at least a driver's side mirror anyway?
Hogging the outer lanes when there's no traffic in the left lane is wrong ..... but it can depend on how far it is until you get to the next car to overtake.
Lane changing on a motorway is about the most dangerous part of motorway driving, and in my view, even worse than staying in your lane when there's 'nothing' in the left lane is popping in and out of the left lane constantly.
For a start, if you move over when there's a gap, it's often the case that by the time you catch up with the next slow-moving car in the left lane, there's a stream of traffic coming down fast in the outer lane, and you either have to slow down or pull out in front of someone. The latter is inexcusable, and the former downright irritating ..... especially if you were doing the legal speed limit and the traffic that's now preventing you from overtaking was going way over the speed limit.
So it's all about the exact circumstances.
If there's a clear section of road, I always pull over to the left, even if there's nothing at all behind me.
On the other hand, if I'm doing the speed limit (-ish) and there's a gap which, if I pull over is going to leave me stuck when I catch up to the next car on the left, then I'll stay put. I'm not dodging in and out of the lane constantly, especially if the traffic that's impatient to get past is having to do a grossly illegal speed to do it.
As for my speed, I'll be doing the legal speed limit, or perhaps even a bit over it, providing road conditions and traffic levels permit it, and given a reasonable gap, I'll move over to let those overtly breaking the speed limit by. But if it's a pretty busy bit of road, and there's a more-or-less continuous queue, I'm NOT going to pull over and get stuck because some impatient twerp wants to jump the queue car by car.
I obviously have no idea of the speed those moaning about lane-hogging are doing, and there certainly are those that will sit in the middle (or even outer) lane of a three-lane motorway at 50mph. But, fairly often, those itching to get past 'lane hogs' are those that are wanting to do illegal speeds to do it and, if that's the case, it's pretty hypocritical to moan about 'lane-hogs' driving standards preventing them from speeding.
Oh, and there was the beautiful example of that on the A1 South around Peterborough a few weeks ago. I was in the middle lane, and a BMW was going past me at about 75. A Mercedes came hurtling up and flashed the Beemer several times. When it didn't pull over, the Merc pulled up rather close (intimidatingly, and in my view, dangerous close) to the Beemer and flashed him again. By this time, the BMW had passed me so he pulled over and the Merc shot past.
Mistake.
The Beemer was an unmarked police car. The rest of the story is obvious. And hilarious.
Sorry I dont agree. I have seen so many drivers like this. Its nothing to do with safety or risk, just pure lazyness. Im not just talking about motorway driving (since I rarely use motorways) but more about busy dual carriage way.Lane changing on a motorway is about the most dangerous part of motorway driving, and in my view, even worse than staying in your lane when there's 'nothing' in the left lane is popping in and out of the left lane constantly.
If your awareness is too low, that changing lane becomes dangerous, or takes that long (you have gears for a reson, USE THEM) then you shouldnt be on the road.
.../says me as I drive past at 90
Last edited by SilentDeath; 25-09-2007 at 02:51 AM.
Sorry I dont agree. I have seen so many drivers like this. Its nothing to do with safety or risk, just pure lazyness. Im not just talking about motorway driving (since I rarely use motorways) but more about busy dual carriage way.
If your awareness is too low, that changing lane becomes dangerous, or takes that long (you have gears for a reson, USE THEM
.../says me as I drive past at 90
I agree with Saracen, although mainly it's on motorways. If you've overtaken a car and there's a lorry 300 yards up ahead then it's easier, less erratic and safer to just continue in the middle lane while maintaining reasonable speed.
The term "lane hog" comes into play when said person overtakes a lorry and just sits there at whatever speed regardless of how empty the inside lane is.
@ Saracen: I'm not "itching" to get past them, often I'll sit there in the inside lane matching their speed, staying behind them while tutting to myself that they can't be arsed to flick the little stalk next to the steering wheel, glance in their mirror and steer slightly to the left
edit: Or if you're a van driver, violently jerk the steering wheel to the left while briefly flicking the indicator post-maneuvure
Home cinema: Toshiba 42XV555DB Full HD LCD | Onkyo TX-SR705 | NAD C352 | Monitor Audio Bronze B2 | Monitor Audio Bronze C | Monitor Audio Bronze BFX | Yamaha NSC120 | BK Monolith sub | Toshiba HD-EP35 HD-DVD | Samsung BD-P1400 BluRay Player | Pioneer DV-575 | Squeezebox3 | Virgin Media V+ Box
PC: Asus P5B | Core2duo 2.13GHz | 2GB DDR2 PC6400 | Inno3d iChill 7900GS | Auzentech X-Plosion 7.1 | 250GB | 500GB | NEC DVDRW | Dual AG Neovo 19"
HTPC: | Core2Duo E6420 2.13GHz | 2GB DDR2 | 250GBx2 | Radeon X1300 | Terratec Aureon 7.1 | Windows MCE 2005
Laptop: 1.5GHz Centrino | 512MB | 60GB | 15" Wide TFT | Wifi | DVDRW
If the M'way is empty and I'm, how shall we say, driving spiritedly then I'll sit in the middle lane, same amount of road both sides, gives me more room to move if I need too.
But normally I'll be on the inside lane...
Why would you need "more room to move" if you're travelling down an empty motorway? I am always puzzled by this. I've been on motorways with hardly any traffic and found people cruising down lane 2. I asked a friend of mine who did this and she said that it was "safer". I pointed out that she was unnecessarily put herself one lane closer to the other carriageway (on a 4 lane road, including the hard shoulder), and how was that "safer" and she didn't have an answer!
The lane hogs in lane 2 and 3 drive me crazy on my way to and from work. I get on the M4 at junction 11 and and get off at junction 5. I spend most of my time in lane 1, doing the same speed as everyone in lanes 2 and 3, and occasionally going faster than them when someone takes exception to someone else driving 3 feet behind them at speed and decides it's time to test their brakes!
The best thing about my journey is junction 8/9. I've never known a motorway junction like it. Two dual carriageways join here, so there's always quite a stream of traffic getting onto the motorway. Normally, somewhere around 1/4 of a mile before the junction, you can see people start to move from lane 1 into lane 2 and from lane 2 into lane 3. They obviously think that they'll move over to avoid getting stuck behind the people joining the motorway. This means that lane 1 slowly becomes empty. I always stick to lane 1 and just drive past two lanes of completely stationary traffic in lanes 2 and 3. After a slowdown where the sliproad joins the motorway and everyone filters in, off we go. Meanwhile lanes 2 and 3 are still crawling along. I've seen the same people moving out of lane 1 into 2 and 3 just to sit in stationary traffic, morning after morning. Surely at some point they'd realise that it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but no, they continue to do it!
Steve
brain dead?
I'm on about 3 lanes M'ways.
If I'm in the inside lane and I need to go left for whatever reason that puts me on the hard shoulder, which isnt always there, generally isnt as good a surface either.
Trig's line of thinking is similar to my own. At night when you can't see clearly what's on the side's of the roads/motorway, I want as much reaction time to something coming off the hard shoulder (like a deer/badger/drunk chav) etc as possible. I also want to avoid driving in the tramlined first lane since I have a lowered hot hatch which doesn't have the most forgiving of suspension.
I'll drive the middle lane at night when I'm alone for these reasons - however once I get a set of traffic lights in the rear mirror I'll move over.
During the day, this isn't quite so important, but then the situation wouldn't really be the same in that traffic...
Though I don't drive, there is one situation where I've been in the car and not sure what lane we're supposed to be in (I do ride, but generally on a 125 I'm being overtaken not the other way round
Sitation goes like this. Travelling on a dual carriageway. Slow lorry doing 60mph in the nearside lane. National limit applies. Slow lorry overtaking him at 65mph.
A queue of cars behind 65mph man.
Now, do I stay in the nearside lane as nothing is impeding making progress, up to the lorry, then wait until I can move over. Or do I plan ahead, and see I'm going to move over, now there is nothing in the offside / overtaking lane obstructing me so I can do so.
Whilst forward planning is key, if everyone does it, it ends up causing more congestion as nobody wants to undertake. But I'm still not 100% which is the correct / best course of action.
Those living near Cambridge probably know exactly which road I'm talking about
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
SCAN.care@HEXUS
Posting Permissions
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote
