MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
Drove back from Scotland* last night and got a bit wound up by all the people driving in the middle lane (in England) when the inside lane was clear.
Since it's been voted the top frustration in driver surveys before, I wondered if anyone would own up to doing it - and if you have a justification for it?
* Where people generally seem to have very good road manners. I was astonished when several people pulled over to allow me to pass on the minor road down from Innerleithen.
[i]Drove back from Scotland* last night and got a bit wound up by all the people driving in the middle lane (in England) when the inside lane was clear.[/i]
Ah but if you move back into the inside lane, you'll never get back into the middle lane 🙂
I just hog the outside lane, so I don't find it a problem 🙂
most people do it occasionaly in error - it's the ones eho sit out there obliviously who piss me off.
what annoyed me yesterday returning from Devon was on the hill south of bristol where a fourth lane is created by a road merger, outside rammed, next lane in empty, second lane rammed, inside lane empty....
why?
and what p1sses me of even more lately is more or more drivers arent indicate before they turn left
I just got cheesed off this morning with a van driver who went from the 2nd lane, through the first and off to park in a bus stop, all without indicating, cutting me up, almost forcing me into parked cars. Middle lane hogs get approached from behind and flashed to let them know I'm there. If they dont move I'll undertake cautiously, assuming I can't overtake for some reason.
Middle lane hogs get approached from behind and flashed to let them know I'm there. If they dont move I'll undertake cautiously.
Not overtake in the outside lane?
I did perfect the the three lane swerve around them to overtake with full beam, but got bored and now just cruise past on the inside on an empty motorway.
I'll admit to hogging sometimes.
If there are frequent HGVs etc on the inside lane then I'll just cruise along in the middle lane. Winds the missus up, but I don't really see the point in constantly pulling in and out - especially if there is no one behind me wanting past.
A friend of mine, who's not a confident driver, stays in the middle lane because she's not happy with having to repeatedly overtake, and then pull in front of large lorries, so she stays put, and can do 70mph (mostly). Where there's a good clear space she'll pull in, but during the day on the M1 and M6 where she spends most of her driving time, that's tricky.
not really, if you aren't confident enough in a car to overtake on a motorway then you really shouldn't be driving.
If you're not happy repeatedly overtaking and changing lanes you shouldn't be on the motorway. Stick to the rules of the road, stay left unless overtaking. No need to swerve in and out between each car/wagon and everyone has a different judgement of distance that they wont go into, but some clearly take the P.
GrahamS -
I don't really see the point in constantly pulling in and out
You probably don't see the point of riding offroad on singletrack as well then, as that weaves all over the place on rough terrain. You probably only ever ride on very straight roads.
The middle lane and outside lanes on motorways are for overtaking ONLY. If your not overtaking anything then get the f*ck over to the inside lane. And if you don't like the way the UK road system works then stop using them.
You may be able to tell that I do a lot of motorway miles and I find people who hog the outside lanes incredibly annoying.
would be good if the Police could give points for it, as at 3 points a go it wouldn't take long to get the muppets off the road.
If it's busy, with mostly trucks and coaches in the "slow" lane, then I'll hog the middle. But then on the autobahn, there's often a much bigger speed differential between lanes.
What's annoying is when someone is hogging the middle and there's no other traffic around. Suggest to me they're not paying any attention, except to their mobile, mp3 player, stereo, fags/lighter etc...
What annoys me more are tailgaters. Pretty hefty fine here for doing it, but there's still drivers that'll happily sit 5 nano-microns from your rear while doing 160kph+.
And if you don't like the way the UK road system works then stop using them.You may be able to tell that I do a lot of motorway miles and I find people who hog the outside lanes incredibly annoying.
The UK road rules say 70mph maximum speed on a motorway, if you find people constantly hogging the outside lane and getting in your way I take it you choose to ignore this rule!
I am 100% with the OP on this - winds me up so much - I can cope with it on a busy road during the day when I put it down to lack of concentration, but when they do it on an almost deserted road I feel like screaming.
In fact, on recent motorway experiences, I have noticed an almost 'inverted' situation, where the outside lane is really busy, the middle lane a little less so and the inside lane almost deserted.
No doubt Trolling Zoo Fighter will be on soon explaining why it is okay to hog the middle lane really.
Yes. All the time.
And especially when I'm towing the caravan... 🙂
[not really. pees me off also]
leggyblonde - my job requires me to have a clean driving licence so I don't speed. I reckon people who lane hog lack confidence in their driving ability and that's why they do it. Their lack of confidence is probably also the reason why they are going at 55-65mph.
JTS, fair enough, I assumed wrong. I find people very rarely do less than 70 in the outside lane but I am aware it does happen.
If you're not happy repeatedly overtaking and changing lanes you shouldn't be on the motorway.
I'm perfectly happy repeatedly overtaking, but I just don't see the point pulling in after overtaking if I can see from the traffic that I'm just going to have to pull out again within a minute.
That is just completely unnecessary manoeuvring, especially when there is an outside lane for anyone who feels like speeding past.
Stick to the rules of the road, stay left unless overtaking.
A strange argument given that if you are "sticking to the rules of the road" then you won't be overtaking me anyway.
leggyblonde - to put things into context I live in N.Wales and the main road across the top of the coast is the A55 which is a dual carriage-way. The A55 is busier than a lot of motorways and when you get somebody doing 50mph in the outside lane and not willing to get back over it can cause slow moving traffic for miles upon miles.
GrahamS is it really that much of a bother to use the lane system properly? It really is pure laziness, I bet you don't bother yer arse indicating either because 'it's too much like hard work'.
[i]'most people do it occasionaly in error'[/i]
Not if they're paying attention to their driving. As for people who stay in the middle lane because they are too scared to overtake then they really, really should not be driving a vehicle on the road.
ive given up.
living down south now, everyone seems to have a much more "relaxed" attitude to driving, and are happy enough trundling around in ALL lanes at 45.
i have to admit, ive gone one worse than being a middle lane hog.
i now, drop into the leftest lane, and pull up to 70.
i wouldnt say its undertaking (in MY mind thats, swerving in inside someone to get past them), i figure if im in a lane, and my lane ends up going quicker, then thats thier loss.
usually im on my own in my lane, and therefore free to do 70!
GrahamS - whether you see the point or not is irrelevant, thats how the rules work - while you may only do it when it causes no problems, other people ignore the rules and it does cause problems.
A strange argument given that if you are "sticking to the rules of the road" then you won't be overtaking me anyway.
It's not an argument. Everyones speedo reads slightly different, when you're doing 70 by your car, I might be doing 2-3mph more by my speedo, and you'll be in the way unless you move over, or unless there's another lane to use. It's just poor lane discipling and laziness and there's no excuse for it.
What I find more annoying than people hogging the middle lane is...
... people complaining about people hogging the middle lane.
It's rubbish, people do it and they shouldn't. They're very naughty.
But you'll see it every time you drive on a motorway, so it's predictable and not something that should wind you up so much.
It's discourtious and shows that you're probably not a particularly competant or confident driver, but I get much more annoyed with people on phones no matter which lane they're in, and with tailgaters.
i'm an occasional hogger - to my shame.
it's always because i forget to pull in, and i'm very quick to criticise those i see doing exactly the same.
here's the scene: i'm overtaking in the middle lane, Something distracts me a little - perhaps a discussion on radio 4 about the economic contribution of moss, can lichen be grouped with moss for tax purposes? what is lichen?... and before you know it i've driven a mile or so in the middle lane.
please, make my execution quick. i understand you will be empaling my body on a pole beside the motorway as a warning to others.
bikemonkey - just because its a minor inconvenience rather than a mass murder doesnt mean it should be tolerated or accepted. Slowly but surely chipping away at the rules until people wonder why the roads are full of morons that don't indicate, change lanes when it's dangerous, dont change lanes when they should, dont merge in turn at roadworks and instead clog the one inside lane back for miles.
The longer I drive the more stupid things I see, the more blatant disregard for the rules become apparent. They're there for a reason, because they make 95% of driving safer, more predictable and overall quicker than if you just let everyone get on with their own thought process.
I'll be sure to pass on your comments to my friend, I'm sure she'll welcome them... 😉
There are two separate scenarios here. One, being in the middle lane almost constantly because the inside lane is full of large vehicles going slower than you'd like to travel. and two, being in the middle lane whilst the inside lane is free from traffic. One is caused because some stretches of our motorway network are over-used, and the other is the cause of much frustration.
I do 70 everytime I use the motorway and have to agree with Graham in that I am not pulling in to then pull out 60 seconds later. If I am on at 2 lane motorway and there are lorries on the inside I keep my eye on what is coming up behind me and pull in to let them by
f-m - while you and Graham may be the small minority of driver who do keep a look out behind, the VAST majority of motorway drivers seem to forget anything exists behind their B pillar unless they're about to overtake themselves (and some even then forget theres a world behind them), they just do what they see everyone else doing in general without seeing the detail. You're simply contributing to the morons getting it wrong.
nickc - please do!
With driving esp on the motorway there is obviously some compromise between safety and speed.
We could put the speed limit down to 40 mph and hour and there'd still be accidents or we could put it up to 100 mph and there'd be a whole lot more.
One thing is that people seem to think if they stick to the rules they'll magically be safe. People who want to drive fast get obsessed with the overtaking rule and think if every one stuck to their right lane they'd be no accidents while another group of people seem to think if they drive slowly they'll magically be safe.
Personally I do get annoyed with middle lane drivers but I also get annoying with them nobs who insist on over taking right on the bumper of the car in front with lights blazing and then pulling back in front of the car as soon as possible. These people think they are driving PROPERLY and then suggest other people shouldnt be on the road because there not confident in over taking.
What these people fail to see is if everyone on the motorway drove like this there would be far more accidents as everyone would be CONSTANTLY changing lanes and it would be very difficult to predict where everyone was going and you would often get the situation where the cars in the inside land and outside lane where both trying to move into the middle lane.
Now clearly the middle lane drivers are not driving correctly because there not concentrating on the road. However I can see if would be safe if everyone was constantly changing lanes also what does OVER TAKING mean ?
Presumably it means you are catching on the car on the inside lane of you. However I like to leave large spaces between me and the car in front so I wont pull in if Im still catching on the car in front and I judge the gap to be too small which is probably a lot larger than the OP. However everyones judgment is different.
Clearly I would agree is someone is in the middle lane and not closing on the car in front they need to pull in, but they might be closing just very slowly.
Personally I would prefer a few (very few) middle lane drivers than more idiots tailgating then overtaking and weaving from one lane to the other.
Again there has to be a compromise between safety and speed and every time you change lanes it has to increase the chance of a accident some what.
Middle lane is a no-mansd land where people really don't know what to do. It's worse when it's a 4-lane motorway and there's no "middle" lane!
There is of course an alternative set of rules concerning the outside lane...
The other day I was cruising along as usual coming onto one of my motorways, which was very busy with inferior cars.
First off, I couldn’t believe that the volume of traffic DIDN’T slow down for me AT ALL as I came off the exit ramp! I had to squeeze into a barely big enough gap between two cars in order to get onto my motorway!
The driver of the car behind me did realise his mistake though and honked an apology to me with a long blast of his horn.
Unbelievably, I had to do the same again before I could get to the BMW lane.
Anyway, once I was in the BMW lane and posing along at 110 mph enjoying the adulation that the inferior car drivers were giving me, I noticed an inferior car ahead of me which was not only in the BMW lane of my motorway, but was driving at a ridiculous 70 mph!
Naturally, I got within a foot or so of his rear bumper and flashed my headlights to remind him he shouldn’t be in the BMW lane of my motorway and to get out of my way.
Of course, once he realised it was a BMW behind him, he did just that, but I could hardly believe it when he pulled straight back out behind me!
He also tried to keep up with me and when he realised I would out-run him, he put on some blue lights in his front grill and urged me to get onto the hard shoulder so that he could congratulate me on my excellent car.
Needless to say, I was eager to oblige and when we had stopped, the man gave me a piece of paper confirming what I already knew – that my car goes fast!
Apparently he wants everyone to know what a superior car I have, so I had to take my drivers licence to a police station to be sent away to have some points put on! (They’re not free points either – they’re £20 each and I was only allowed 3.) But the man at the police station said that because I drive a BMW, it won’t be much longer before I earn the full 12 points, and then I won’t even NEED a driving licence, so they will take it off me!
See, now THAT’S the sort of respect you get when you own and drive a BMW!
These people think they are driving PROPERLY and then suggest other people shouldnt be on the road because there not confident in over taking.
That's not driving properly or within the rules of the road. It's dangerous and stupid, and made worse by those hogging lanes when they should pull in.
There is nothing wrong with changing lanes - do it properly and it's perfectly safe.
Clearly I would agree is someone is in the middle lane and not closing on the car in front they need to pull in, but they might be closing just very slowly.
Then they should pull in until they are close enough to overtake. You should overtake swiftly and stay return to your lane when the move is complete.
Changing lanes does not have to increase risks if it is done properly. Of course you can say that it increases the chance of an accident as someone may do it wrong, but so does getting in the car in the morning in the first place. In my personal experience, stopping at red lights increases my risk of being hit from behind by a careless driver, but I'd not suggest allowing some people to go through lights as it reduces the chances of someone else screwing up.
GrahamS is it really that much of a bother to use the lane system properly?
Well, the [url= http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/DG_069862 ]Highway Code (264: Lane Discipline)[/url] states:
"You should always drive in the left-hand lane [u]when the road ahead is clear[/u]. If you are overtaking a number of slower-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past."
So if I can see that there are further vehicles in the inside lane then the road ahead is NOT clear and I AM following the rules and "doing it properly" by staying out.
It's not an argument. Everyones speedo reads slightly different, when you're doing 70 by your car, I might be doing 2-3mph more by my speedo
I'll be doing a steady 76mph set on my cruise control, as I know that happens to be "true 70" in my car. If you are overtaking me then you're speeding - so any argument about me not following the road rules is pretty incongruous.
But ignoring that: there is an entire other lane. Why should I pull in and be forced to brake when there already exists a third lane for you to pass me?
Isn't it a mark of good driving NOT to cause others drivers to have to brake for you?
I drive (and have always driven) as though the people around me are idiots - that they may do the most stupid thing and the worst possible time. Occasionally, I'm correct and as I was expecting it, I could do something about it.
As I expect everyone else to be stupid, I find driving to be a calm experience, full of patronising 'tutting' as I notice the fools around me making the mistakes I knew they would make as I glide on in a bubble of condescending smugness.
If I expected everyone else to drive to the letter of the law I imagine it must be a frustrating experience.
How common is it that there's a permanent line of traffic in the left hand lane that needs overtaking? In my pretty extensive experience, very rare.
It isn't a minor inconvenience just like adding an extra lane to a motorway isn't a minor inconvenience (M25, M1, M62, M4 drivers + others). It's a major pain in the arse.
When it gets busy one middle lane moron (70mph) can often cause line of equally dumb sheep to sit behind in the middle lane because they don't want to overtake and won't undertake so it's quite plausible to get half a mile of empty road that can only be used by those willing to break the law (or wait for the traffic in the other two lanes to slow slightly in which case undertaking becomes perfectly legal - section 268 of HC.
For more righteous spleen popping - [url= http://www.middlelanemorons.com/index.php ]http://www.middlelanemorons.com/index.php[/url] (I only just found this website - honest).
Thankyou scuttler, well put.
Ach, middle lane hoggers are no problem on a motorbike. 130mph up the inside lane scares the bejeezus out of 'em.
Even better in the roadworks where eveyone is doing 50mph, because the front facing cameras can't touch you.
How common is it that there's a permanent line of traffic in the left hand lane that needs overtaking? In my pretty extensive experience, very rare.
I didn't say I [i]never[/i] pull in. Just that I'm quite happy to stay out and "hog" if I can see further traffic ahead that requires overtaking (as per the HC above).
When it gets busy one middle lane moron (70mph) can often cause line of equally dumb sheep to sit behind in the middle lane because they don't want to overtake
I don't get this at all. Surely the "sheep" are just the people who are obeying the rules of the road? If you feel you want to go faster then you could overtake them using the outside lane?
[size=1][i]40 post bug[/i][/size]
I cannot believe there are people out there that are that annoyed about it they built a website. Get a life FFS
[i]I cannot believe there are people out there that are that annoyed about it they built a website. Get a life FFS [/i]
Falkirk Mark - at last, the voice of common sense
I cannot believe there are people out there that are that annoyed about it they built a website. Get a life FFS
Maybe now you realise how annoying it can be to others?
Like everything else, it's down to education. if motorway driving was a mandatory part of the driving test, lane discipline might be something that drivers are actually aware of.
A friend of mine was doing it when he gave me a lift to Wales.
I was embarrassed to be in the car with him and asked why. He said he thought it was safer driving in the middle lane.
I'd think the inside lane is the safest personally.
How about these websites:
www.people-who-leave-the-seat-up-when-they-use-the-toilet.com
www.women-who-only-get-their-purse-out-when-they-get-to-the-checkout.org
or my favourite:
www.people-who-insist-you-take-your-shoes-off-when-you-enter-their-house.co.uk
http://www.people-who-insist-you-take-your-shoes-off-when-you-enter-their-house.co.uk
My house. My f$%#in rules. Not difficult that one.
I try not to get annoyed with anyone on motorways, full stop. Doesn't always work, but honestly, I don't really want to die horribly as a result of some anger-fuelled manouevre, mine or anyone else's. At least middle-lane hogs are predictable, I'm more concerned by the deluded Highway Code sticklers who scream up behind you at three-figure speeds, slew left across the three lanes of traffic into the lefthand land, sit there for three seconds, then swing right with instant indication as they move, out back across two lanes to the outside, past traffic, then back in etc, ad nauseum.
I'm sure these people think they're fantastic drivers, but honestly, if you have the faintest semblance of spatial judgment and acceleration sense, you'd work out that there's not much sense in pulling in and out like a demented yo-yo, especially when you're driving 20mph faster than everyone else on the road.
Middle lane hoggers - they turn a perfectly good 3 lane road into a dual carriageway
if motorway driving was a mandatory part of the driving test, lane discipline might be something that drivers are actually aware of.
I disagree - you are required to indicate on a driving test. You are expected to use your handbrake when waiting in a queue on a driving test. You are required to look both ways before pulling out from junctions on a driving test. You are required to use your rear view mirror on a driving test.
I could go on... 😉
You should take a look at:
www.people-who-don't-use-their-handbrake-when-waiting-in-a-queue-on-a-driving-test.com
Boils my blood!
...deluded Highway Code sticklers...
Exactly BadlyWiredDog. So incensed are they by the perceived highway code violation of the middle lane hogger, that they are compelled to perform a dangerous manoeuvre and break at least four or five [i]actual[/i] road rules to point out what a terrible driver he is. 🙄
And of course all this showy melodrama doesn't actually work.
The hogger doesn't scuttle back to the left lane, suitably chastised and in awe of the superior driving talents of the stickler. Instead they just shake their head, think "What a complete c**k" and turn up The Archers.
http://www.people-who-don't-use-their-handbrake-when-waiting-in-a-queue-on-a-driving-test.com
🙂
It doesn't bother me - I was just commenting that good motorway driving will not be achieved through education in driving tests as no other good practice in driving test conditions are maintained by some drivers.
Exactly BWD/grahams - if the stupid middle lane hoggers didn't hog we'd have fewer of the people who get very upset about middle lane hoggers doing things they shouldnt. So lets get rid of middle lane hoggers and the problem is solved and everyone is happy and the roads are working as they should.
I cannot believe there are people out there that are that annoyed about it they built a website. Get a life FFS
As above, maybe you just dont realise how annoying it is to people. Also maybe you dont realise just how easy and cheap it is to make a website.
If everybody stuck to the Highway Code I bet that accidents on Motorways would reduce by more than 50%. If everybody stuck to a 70mph speed limit, a 75m stopping distance at 70mph, returned to the inside lane after overtaking and used their mirrors and indicators before changing lanes, then motorways would be a whole lot safer and traffic would move along a whole lot easier.
Middle lane 'hoggers' need to realise that they are just as dangerous as the bloke in the car behind you tailgating. If you weren't hogging the road then they would have no one to tailgate.
It's quite simple. When overtaking you return into the inside lane when you are 75m ahead of the vehicle you are overtaking and not within 75m of the vehicle in front. I'm sure we've all driven on motorways with those chevrons painted onto the road to give you an idea as to how close a safe stopping distance is from the car infront, that's the distance that you should leave between yourselves and other cars. The safe stopping distance at 70mph when converted to time is 2.4secs.
So middle lane hoggers next time you are driving ask yourself 'Am I more than 3 seconds away from the car infront on the inside lane'? If the answer is yes then you are risking your own and everybody else's life.
I hate motorways, ever since I was involved in a nasty accident that nearly did me in, lorries hurt like hell when they hit you!
(Had a lorry crash into me as I passed it in the middle lane, that went on to block all three lanes of the motorway, with other cars using me as a sandwich filling against the lorry!)
Now, I am happy to go with the flow in the inside lane, that is, as long as I don't have some nutty lorry trying to tail gate me, I don't think I will ever feel 100% safe with lorries on the motorway again.
So I guess you could call me a inside lane hogger 😉
hogging any of the two [b]overtaking[/b] lanes on a motorway is just wrong !
No !!!!
"Middle lane 'hoggers' need to realise that they are just as dangerous as the bloke in the car behind you tailgating."
This is not right and is what I was trying to describe earlier and BadlyWiredDog also is trying to express the same thing and did a much better job.
If everyone drove like a middle lane driver the motorways would probably flow but extremely slowly and there would probably be few accidents.
However if everyone drove like one of those tailgating luns who insist on pulling in and out when there isnt any need, the motorways probably wouldnt flow at all because there would be so many accidents.
So what you've stated is wrong, middle lane driving is bad and exceedingly annoying but not as dangerous as other bad driving techniques such as speeding / tailgating.
I don't know, the french can speed and tailgate very well but they also have much much better lane discipline than us. Their motorways may well not be as busy but you never ever see middle lane hogs.
middle lane driving is bad and exceedingly annoying but not as dangerous as other bad driving techniques such as speeding / tailgating.
Wrong.
If everybody stuck to a 70mph speed limit, a 75m stopping distance at 70mph, returned to the inside lane after overtaking and used their mirrors and indicators before changing lanes, then motorways would be a whole lot safer and traffic would move along a whole lot easier.
Any guesses which of those is the least important factor in safety and good traffic flow?
"If everybody stuck to a 70mph speed limit, a 75m stopping distance at 70mph, returned to the inside lane after overtaking and used their mirrors and indicators before changing lanes, then motorways would be a whole lot safer and traffic would move along a whole lot easier."
Im not arguing that point am I ? I agree with everything you've wrote there. Your not changing one variable at a time there are you.
However I dont see how that in any argues against this point.
"Middle lane driving is bad and exceedingly annoying but not as dangerous as other bad driving techniques such as speeding / tailgating."
Your best argument would be to say I have no data to back this is up which is true. But then you have no data to back this up
"Middle lane 'hoggers' need to realise that they are just as dangerous as the bloke in the car behind you tailgating."
So its opinion against against opinion and I disagree with yours
Oh yes Im meant to guess order of importance. Well one I wasnt arguing against traffic flow was I ?
Ok Safety
Joint First (im not sure to be honest)
1. Speed 1. Stopping Distance
3. Getting in the Right lane
Traffic Flow
1. Getting in the Right lane
2. Stopping Distance
3. Speed
You seems to be suggesting safety directly correlated with good traffic flow but I would disagree with this as queuing in a traffic jam is normally very safe.
Although I will agree that driving on a open road tends to be pretty safe as well so there not directly correlated I would not know what the relationship is.
i'd say the speed limit, all other factors should work out even if doing 300mph
ENOUGH OF THIS PETTINESS!!
Let's get onto the really important stuff that makes my blood boil - people who don't press the hand brake button in when putting it on.
I wasn't using the second as evidence to disprove the first - just making two points in one post (though they're not totally disconnected, hint).
scu98rkr - When you are driving you can't control the other vehicles on the road, you can only control your own vehicle.
For somebody to tailgate it requires another car to be in front of them so that they can drive too close to them. Are you following so far?
I would hazard a guess as well that the reason that most people tailgate is because they want to get past the vehicle in front. Would you agree?
So if you return to inside lane as soon as it's safe rather then just stay in the middle/outside lane then you can't be tailgated because there will be at least one other lane in which they can pass you.
You cant stop somebody driving too close to you, but what you can do is make sure that you minimise the amount of time you spend in a lane that could result in you being tailgated. As I have already mentioned if you are driving in the middle lane and there is a gap of more than 80m between yourself and next car on the inside lane then you are causing an obstruction and you are therefore a hazard to the road.
Why would someone tailgate you in the middle lane, would they not go out to the overtaking lane?
matter of principle if the inside lane is clear
So if you return to inside lane as soon as it's safe rather then just stay in the middle/outside lane then you can't be tailgated because there will be at least one other lane in which they can pass you.
Yes and no. I'm not about to defend somebody not pulling in given the chance, but I've been tailgated in the right hand lane when I was overtaking something in the middle (presumably they think I might speed up or somehow get out of their way quicker - given the fact I can only control what's in front of me I tend to do the opposite to decrease the chance of having to stop suddenly).
I didn't argue middle lane hogging wasn't bad/dangerous.
I understand the cause and effect relationship however if you could isolate the techniques by making every driver on the road do either middle lane driving/tailgating I believe middle lane driving would be safer hence my statement.
"Middle lane driving is bad and exceedingly annoying but not as dangerous as other bad driving techniques such as speeding / tailgating."
Therefore I also believe this statement to be incorrect
"Middle lane 'hoggers' need to realise that they are just as dangerous as the bloke in the car behind you tailgating."
matter of principle if the inside lane is clear[/i]
But its not there are slow moving lorries in it and even if it was not, surely someone not aware that middle lane hogging pisses people off so much is not as bad as someone deliberately tailgating them when he could safely overtake
You do still seem to have added an extraneous point in there, which you're not actually justifying - did you not get my hint?
If you weren't hogging the road then they would have no one to tailgate.
And why exactly isn't the tailgating bloke in the outside lane??
'Am I more than 3 seconds away from the car infront on the inside lane'? If the answer is yes then you are risking your own and everybody else's life.
Genius! Except that rather assumes that the car on the inside lane is travelling at the same speed as me. Which clearly it isn't if I'm passing it.
If the car on the inside is doing 50 and I approach it at 70 until I am 3 seconds behind it, then I only have a second to either overtake or brake before I'm in closer than the safe braking distance.
Likewise you say pull in when "not within 75m of the vehicle in front", but if they are only doing 50 then that gives me [url= http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=75m+at+20mph ]8.3 seconds[/url] before I crash into the back of them.
So forgive if I stick with the Highway Code and only pull in when it is clear ahead.
On the way down the M1 with a car full on the way to our hols, pulled out to lane 3 to get past someone going even slower than me (I guess I was doing about 70 indicated speed).
Merc coupe comes up behind ultra ultra close and stays there while we went past the slower traffic.
As I pulled in felt obliged to offer a finger in return for the nice road manners - and got the same back from the old dear in the passenger seat!
We fell about the car for the next 5 mins after that one.
GrahamS - Highway Code stopping distances relate to your car, the speed of other cars are irrelevant. A modern car can go from 70mph to a complete stop in anything between 20-60mtrs, thererfore if you are travelling at 70mph 75mtrs(2.4 secs) is more than enough braking distance between yourself and the car in front. If that means that after overtaking another vehicle you only come back into the inside lane for a couple of seconds before you pull back out again then so be it.
If you are not comfortable complying to suggestions within the Highway Code may I suggest further driving lessons before you cause an accident.
If that means that after overtaking another vehicle you only come back into the inside lane for a couple of seconds before you pull back out again then so be it.
Sorry, but that's silly. I'd not do that, nor would I expect anybody else to. Fairly sure there's even provision in the HC that you don't have to do that, but can't be bothered checking right now. The people who cause the problems are those who could spend at least 20s in the inside lane.
I love the noise it makes when I don't press the handbrake button in. Sounds like going up the first climb on a rollercoaster!
the speed of other cars are irrelevant
Not when you are approaching them its not.
if you are travelling at 70mph 75mtrs(2.4 secs) is more than enough braking distance
Yes it is. But at those relative speeds [url= http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=4+seconds+at+20mph ]after 4 seconds you'll be at half that distance[/url], so pulling in 75m away with no regard for your relative speed is frankly a bit mental.
If you are not comfortable complying to suggestions within the Highway Code may I suggest further driving lessons before you cause an accident.
As I said before, the Highway Code explicitly contradicts what you have just said.
It says [i]"drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear"[/i], not pull in for a [i]"couple of seconds before you pull back out again"[/i].
I am quite comfortable following its advice and I suspect it is you that needs the lessons.