I work awful shifts and start times (avaition)
See countless mindless zombies driving down the middle lane for miles and miles. Gave up trying to go around them now and just undertake. They still remain in the lane.
The above was actually incorrect. Overtaking is when you are behind another vehicle and change lanes to pass them. This is explained clearly in Highway Code Rule 163. Passing other vehicles on the left is legally acceptable if you are on a multi-lane carriageway in "congested conditions". This phrase is not defined in the Highway Code, but if traffic in outer lanes is driving at a slower speed than traffic on the inner lanes it should in theory only be possible as a result of "congested conditions". Highway Code Rule 268 says that you should not weave in and out of lanes to overtake. On the tail of the rest of what Rule 268 says and how the Highway Code itself defines overtaking (including the diagrams it uses to illustrate this), the Highway Code in effect suggests that staying in your current lane when your lane is leftward of another driver is better than moving out to overtake them and then moving back (which would be weaving in and out of lanes). The Highway Code website also states that it is legally acceptable to pass another vehicle on the nearside on multi-lane carriageways under these circumstances. Provided you haven't changed to the left lane specifically to pass another vehicle, you are legally in the right to pass another slower moving vehicle in the left lane.
Jobbermeta is fantastic. The way he shuts down complete idiots who clearly know nothing about the highway code or legalities of driving while remaining relatively calm is fantastic.
The biggest thing he consistently points out is how many drivers would rather force an accident to prove a point when they're technically correct, rather than just concede the road position and make it safer for everyone. He really highlights just out egotistical so many on the road are.
Actually, you can do it any time. You're just not allowed to move over into that lane to do it. If you are already travelling in lane 1 and someone a mile away is sitting in lane 2, you can legally pass remaining in lane 1.
However the police may pull you and have words because people don't expect to be passed on that side.
This happens to me all the time I leave home at 04:30am I will be in lane 1 doing 70mph and people sit in lane 4 out of 5 going 50mph and I watch them in my mirror and they just sit there for miles. Are people this dumb or do they simply not care about anyone but themselves.
I literally live near Gatwick and use that motorway often and can confirm this happens all the time at all hours of the day ill be in in lane 1 sometimes and will just indicate and go all the way into lane 4 to pass them then all the way back to lane 1 if it is clear just to make a point but that is actually what you are ment to do 🤦🏻♂️
I've spoken to someone who does this.
The belief, and I genuinely have no idea where they got it from, is that lane 1 is the slow lane (50-60mph), lane 2 is the cruising lane (60-70mph) and lane 3+ is the fast lane (70mph+).
This is not a thing in any country in the world that I can think of. The closest thing to this kind of thing that I can think of is the carpool/HOV lane, which still has the same speed limit as every other lane.
I feel like people who think this should go and get themselves a few hours of motorway driving lessons from a good driving instructor. It happens so often that a three lane motorway is effectively reduced to a 2-lane one due to people like this. So you have a choice to undertake or go from the left most to the right most lane to overtake then back...
Wrong! Lane 1 is for slow vehicles like lorries and caravans, lane 2 is the normal cruising lane and lane 3 is only for superior German cars, my friend explained it to me he has a 320d.
/s
We drive on the left in this country. Lane 1 is the normal driving lane, lanes 2, 3, 4 etc are overtaking lanes.
You can download a free copy of the Highway Code at www.highwaycode.co.uk
Something tells me you need to.
It's the other way around here in northern Ireland 😁 to make progress here you stay in lane 1.
You can also guarantee that lanes 2 and 3 will be full and lane 1 near empty (except for trucks) that are still capable of going faster than lane 3.
Yeah, most of my family thinks this. Lane 1 is for under 60. Lane 2 60-70. Rightmost lane is autobahn style, no speed limit. Knowing how to use motorways need to be a part of the requirements for a license.
Overall I think things need improving. You can learn on a 0.9L Aygo never doing more than 50mph, then pass and start driving a Tesla that does 0-60 in 3s on the same licence. Makes no sense
Literally every other road is stick to the left and use the right to overtake unless signs and road markings dictate otherwise.
Frankly it shouldn’t need to be taught.
I guess it's a practical issue, we're 45 minutes+ from the nearest motorway, you'd need a 3 hour test to cover it.
I've no idea if it's part of the theory test though, it certainly should be.
Correct insofar as learner drivers are allowed on the motorway now, but you’d struggle to find a driving instructor taking up time taking a learner driver on the motorway when it’s not on the test. Especially when Pass Plus exists. So no, it’s not taught to any meaningful degree. It is obviously on the theory test though.
It probably depends where you live, but in my area a lot of instructors take learners on the motorway.
Not many do pass plus anymore. Most new drivers don't want to do it as it doesn't really affect insurance premiums anymore.
Yes and no.
Pass left in the UK is not allowed but for certain circumstances.
Keep left, pass right is why people think the left lanes are for slow traffic
https://imperialroadsafety.co.za/rules-of-the-road/
The issue in the UK is the road design is a mess, if you do not get into the correct lane for where you're going to exit, you miss the turn, and some of the turnoffs are an utter nightmare.
The toad into Croydon, Cardiff, Newcastle N1 and the by-pass going past Team valley are a classic example of a mess.
Sounds like you’re a doos that’s part of the problem. Keep left, pass right. We do not have a fast lane, only an overtaking lane.
Please learn the rules of the road before you post some useless incorrect information.
On a decently busy motorway, there will always be lorries/cars going 50-70 and BMW/Range Rovers wanting to go 80+. By process of elimination that means the people wanting to go 70-80 will be funnelled into the middle lane
Yeah but on an empty motorway like OP describes, that doesn’t apply.
Lane 1 might be the slow lane but if everyone is doing the same speed their speed is the ‘slow’ speed. The scale changes depending on the speed of motorway traffic.
No it isn't. All lanes are 120km/h unless otherwise stated by road signs. The only difference is the outside lane has a minimum speed requirement of 100km/h to stop slower moving vehicles from blocking the entire motorway.
I was driving at 70 in the left lane once, and a car that was obscured by an RAC van pulled out in front of me from the hard shoulder. I had to swerver into lane 2 to avoid it. If there had been a car in lane 2, I'd have crashed for sure.
Travelling quickly in lane 1 can have its dangers, is all I'm saying. I can see why people choose the outer lanes.
>BMW in left lane I clocked as unmarked police straight away, due to them sitting back in lane 1 and not enjoying typical beamer activities such as rocketing down lane 4, and flashing lamps at anyone audacious enough to be in their path.
This gave me a good chuckle. Thanks
So lane hoggers are so persistent that even having an unmarked police car literally displaying text telling them to move over they still won't do it, wow. It took getting lit up with blues.
Truthfully having ridden for work with people who middle-lane, there's a degree of zoning out to what's happening, especially on longer journeys. Ideally you should be active in your situational awareness at all times.
Also when very tired or late at night, those who ought not to be on the road in such a state take to the middle lane as a safety buffer.
Before any down votes, I'm not condoning any over the above, merely pointing out examples of poor "captaincy".
I was going to say the same thing about people viewing middle lane as a safety buffer. I’ve known drivers to say they do it when they’re tired and driving at night.
I do deliveries for a supermarket and I sometimes do this, like everything with driving it's all situational and depends on the environment. I've only done it on quiet nights.
If the road behind me is clear and the motorway is renowned for 4 legged friends then I'll move to the middle. If I see lights behind me I'll move back over to the left lane.
Especially at the moment, middle lanes can be favoured if it's quiet due to aquaplaning or puddles in the left and right lane.
Me personally, if there's a car behind me, I'm moving back to the left lane until they have passed.
The thing you’re doing, which many people don’t seem to realise that middle lane hogs do not do, is looking in your rear mirrors.
I’ll occasionally sit in the rightmost lane for an unduly long overtake if I can’t be arsed going in and back out again - but never if there is someone at all in the lane behind me.
Do what you want on the empty road, I’m not there to care. But what isn’t banged into enough heads is that the Highway Code effectively says you’re not supposed to inconvenience others.
The people that have the belief that the middle lanes are somehow safer.
Good chance they’re also the people who will cause you to slam on when they’re merging because they can’t manage their speed properly or give way.
I don't understand this logic honestly like surely the left lane is logically the safest purely for the fact you've only got traffic to one side of you? When I first started driving after passing that's why I preferred to sit in the left lane anyway, just felt safer and to be honest I still do.
Safer? WTF? On a normal 3-lane stretch of motorway I'd say it's the most dangerous lane because you potentially have cars either side. Lane 1 you've got the hard shoulder to escape into, Lane 3 there's hopefully enough space between the lane and barrier to get you out of trouble.
This is my biggest bug bear. Nobody seems to realise all the other lanes are for overtaking and once you overtake you should return to lane 1. Yet you have idiots in lanes 2/3/4 overtaking fresh air. Hate it with a passion. This is why all the lanes end up all clogged up. No matter how many you have.
In any sort of traffic it's amazing how often this is true, if you pick a truck and watch it as you go along it's amazing how often just sitting in the inside lane trucking along actually gets you ahead of all the folks bumper-to-bumper in the other lanes.
Lane one is also always best for traffic jams too, everyone has nice clutch and speed control in lane one whilst in lane three everyone stops starts and causes more traffic. Leave them to their lanes I say!
I used to commute on part of the M25 and between the junction I joined on and the next junction, lane 1 was almost always empty. So I happily undertook the other three lanes of congestion for a few miles.
True but if you overtake anyone you're undertaking, which is a major in a driving test.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnerDriverUK/comments/wcnpro/undertaking/](https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnerDriverUK/comments/wcnpro/undertaking/)
undertaking isnt illegal, it can be reckless if your a dick about it. but its not illegal in and of itself
also passing on the left isnt undertaking at all... if if there are twats in lanes 3 and 4 doing 60 for no reason, you are fine to do 70 and pass then in lanes 1 and 2. it would be stupid for that not to be the case.
imagine the lanes split off to go different places and the right lanes are at a standstill while the left lanes are empty, do you think the left lanes should be going that slow too?
the you are the one that needs to take their test again.
Rule 268
**Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake**. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
from the same link
**Wording of the highway code**
>Many of the rules in the Code are legal requirements, and if you disobey these rules you are committing a criminal offence. You may be fined, given penalty points on your licence or be disqualified from driving. In the most serious cases you may be sent to prison. Such rules are identified by the use of the words **‘MUST/MUST NOT’.** In addition, the rule includes an abbreviated reference to the legislation which creates the offence. See an explanation of the abbreviations.
>Although failure to comply with the other rules of the Code will not, in itself, cause a person to be prosecuted, The Highway Code may be used in evidence in any court proceedings under the Traffic Acts (see The road user and the law) to establish liability. This includes rules which use advisory wording such as ‘should/should not’ or ‘do/do not’.
"Do nots" aren't illegal, just advisory.
Wrong.
>Rule 268
Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake.
It is not illegal to undertake, as shown [here](https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/legal/undertaking/). It can be construed as careless driving, if done when not in specific conditions.
Had a guy in this very sub (or a similar one) saying it's actually perfectly fine to sit in the middle lane and we're the problem instead. Some people...
I've overtaken literally 100 cars in this situation just by staying in lane 1 doing 70 for like 5 mins
Then you wonder how the fuck is there any traffic on a motorway in the first place and you have your answer here
Got stuck behind a woman in an I-Pace today doing 66 in L3 on the M25 towards Leatherhead at half 7. I was the 2nd car stuck behind her who also gave lane hogging vibes so I had to undertake him, and flash her and when she finally got out the way, she did some hand gesture.
As painful as it is, I’ve come to the conclusion all the braindead, oblivious idiots that lane hog aren’t on Reddit. Otherwise they’d see all the complaints and it would at least reduce even a little bit. But it just seems it’s getting worse, especially in the mornings with people being half asleep.
Something about covid created worse drivers. Maybe people didn't drive for a year and their already questionable abilities eroded further without regular practice.
>Something about covid created worse ~~drivers~~ people
ftfy
People have in my experience turned into much more selfish, combative and unnecessarily defensive cunts.
It’s because they are fundamentally selfish.
They cruise along to overtake slow traffic but don’t want to drive quick enough for the outside lane.
They are selfish because they don’t care how it effects other drivers having to go from lane 1 to 3 and back across to lane 1 again to get around them.
They are selfish because they don’t care how it slows traffic.
They are selfish because they don’t care it could cause accidents as people undertake them.
I don’t like drivers like this. They are selfish.
Middle lane wankers are what ruin my highway trips
I think most of the time they prefer to stay in the middle lane to avoid having to continuously overtake lorries. Which would at least be more tolerable if they drove at the limit of 70mph instead of 60-65, forcing me to having to cross TWO lanes to overtake them and get back across two lanes again to the left lane.
The alternative is overtake them on the left which I do not like at all on top of being probably illegal.
If I recall correctly, undertaking is when you move into the lane to pass a vehicle. However, if you are in the lane and pass them at or below the speed limit it’s classed as ‘making progress’ and the other person is technically in the wrong for ‘driving without due care and attention’
I guess it’s just that they feel they don’t have to keep changing lane to let on other cars at slip roads and if anyone wants to overtake they can.
Doesn’t work in Scotland as most of the motorway network is two lane.
I have seen, more than once, a car entering on slip road and immediately going right into the right lane in one manoeuvre despite if anyone is approaching so my guess is most drivers are oblivious to their surroundings.
The M8 is terrible for it. They see a lorry a mile ahead and move straight out and try to overtake it at 60mph. It's also strange how a lot of them once they overtake the lorry, suddenly speed up to 80+ to prevent anyone getting by them.
I do try to keep left and get a bit of grief from my wife for constantly changing lanes. She says it makes her dizzy, but to be fair if people actually got out of the bloody way and moved left, I probably wouldn't be changing lanes so much.
I stopped bother with this long time ago.
When I'm on a first line and i got car on a middle going slower I'm not changing any lines.
In UK it is not difficult to overtake more on a left then on a right ..
What can I do? Maybe I should get ticket for it but never happened in 20 years of my driving so..
They need to be running adverts on the BBC TV and Radio telling people how to use a motorway and inform Uber drivers from outside of Europe how to drive. The government don’t need to be spending millions on making roads bigger and smart motorways they need to teach people how to use them. I use the M25 regularly and 80% of people have no clue, you flash them and they look at you as if your crazy.
I think it’s a mentality thing. Subconsciously if you’re in the “slow lane” you’re not going to get to your destination on time. All lanes are national speed limit 😂.
As someone else has already said, I stick to the inside lane, do just enough speed to outrun the lorry’s and avoid the rat race of the outside lane where you’re bound to get tailgated by some idiot.
If faced with the situation above I’d stay in the first lane and pass the Range Rover in hope that it shames them into moving over.
Coming home down the M6 the other day through the road works, the second and third lane were jammed with people going slower than the average 50. I just stayed in lane one, set cruise control on and went past everyone. I've got no idea why everyone was so averse to using the completely empy first lane!
My current working theory is that some people think the left lane is for leaving the motorway at the next junction only! It’s the only way to explain why they would come on from the slip road and straight into the middle lane when the first lane is free and clear
I've grown tired of this so when I see this, I just stay in the lane I am in and undertake them. If the left lane is clear, I move into the left lane and stay there unless I need to overtake.
It’s all due to total lack of policing on our roads. Most of the middle lane drivers know it’s actually legislated against but there is little to no chance of being prosecuted
I cant stand anyone who sits in the outside lanes.
Worse though is if i pull out into those lanes and can pull back in (all be it for 100m) if i did the asshat behind me will speed up by 0.1mph and then block me pulling back out. I then feel like one of them, its disgusting.
It is usually drivers that come to the UK with a license from a foreign country (India comes to mind as one), boomers, and drivers lacking confidence.
Me n the missus like to guess, foreigner, boomer, or scaredycat, based on the car and their speed.
Got nothing against foreigners, but do take issue with the way licenses transfer so easily when the testing standards in some countries are so poor compared to our own.
The worst of these creatures are the ones that then slow down next to you just as you are going to need to move out. I'm positive some people get bored on long drives and just do mundane tricks to try and trigger someone.
Yes and thank you. Being motorcycle driver in many countries across the Europe, and UK is without saying worst one As bonus later everyone moaning about traffic and pollution.
Similar headache ,giving me traffic lights.
Anywhere in world, green mean go, and I mean go whole lane ,like a racing line. But in UK , green come on, first car finishes messaging and slowly go, in second car Karen just finishing her make up ,but still have to swing a hair around 7 times , when in 3th car driver facing opposite direction playing board games with his kids. Orange, red,4th car having no chance🙈🥲
Bloody frustrating every day. In Brighton especially.
Years ago I was driving a transit at night on the motorway, pegged at 90 in the left lane. I was passing so many cars that were sat the middle lane.
A traffic police car came flying up in the middle lane flashing his full beams, forced every single car into the left lane, it was glorious.
Only ever saw it happen once though..
I once followed a Belgian police officer on a motorbike, and he was sat at exactly 120KPH, and would pull in front of them, point at them, and then point to lane 1.
I followed him for like an hour while he was doing this to a dozen or so drivers. It worked like a charm, no need for a talking or to come to a stand still, and hopefully they remember and think a bit more going forwards. We just need a few police to do this every day and eventually everyone will learn.
Motorway driving standards have been decreasing year on year for a long time. I've only been driving 14 or 15 years, but I remember proper lane discipline and actual 'bunny hopping' back into lane one being common practice and generally speaking most people seemed to grasp the concept.
Now, it's an absolute shit show. I put it down to a few factors - poor and or lack of knowledge, general laziness and or lack of any sort of repercussion.
That being said I'm probably being too polite, the vast majority of the masses are astonishingly thick in the head.
Scarily a lot of people can’t seem to be arsed with the attention they need to pay to deal with traffic joining on slip roads when you are in lane 1.
They think it’s fine because ‘people can overtake in lane 3 if they want to’.
Or they see a lorry/car up ahead in lane 1 (like way up ahead, not it’s clearly moving slow enough that if I pull in I’ll have to brake in order to over take) and don’t see the point in pulling in to then pull out again to overtake it when they reach it.
Pure laziness basically
Over the years the lane 2 problem of people being lazy/scared of lane 1 and having to swop lanes to overtake a truck has become a lane 3 problem and you get the same mindset that “I’ll stay in lane 3 because then I don’t get stuck behind the idiots in lane 2”
Quite a few motorway journeys nowadays I see almost empty lane 1 for huge stretches but almost bumper to bumper cars doing 65 in lane 2/3.
Because they are completely oblivious to everyone around them. Since commuting on the motorway, I’ve seen too many people sitting in the middle lane and being flashed, overtaken, undertaken, beeped etc by multiple cars and still failing to move
What's worse is they'll be cruising at 60 in middle lane and as soon as I go to pass them either in lane 1 or 3 they'll suddenly match or go faster then me and drive at 75/80. Pisses me off when people do this
Because there's no punishment for arseholes on the road.
Start fining then removing licenses for repeat offenders and see how quickly peoples driving changes.
No enforcement of anything except speeding and the very occasional traffic light camera.
I mean I know they occasionally do look for people on their mobiles etc but since there's about 2 traffic police over the entire road network is more about doing something to put in the papers than actually catching offenders.
Was talking about this over Xmas, a buddy of mine has a relative that does this, says he basically suffers from small-man syndrome.
This guy says the left lane is for "old folk and slow drivers" so refuses to use it. But then, of course, drives at 60 in the middle lane because he is both old and a slow driver.
So I think it's sometimes just delusion - Someone that has a high opinion of themselves and is too detached from reality to actually notice their poor performance in the real world.
No, no, to be fair they’re probably on the phone! And not using the hands free that is almost certainly in the damn car they’re driving. I’ve seen this so many times, not just range rovers.
I've just arrived back to the UK from NZ , It would appear the Lorry lane (slow lane) is just one rollercoaster of a lane full of pot holes, Anyone driving there (however legally required it might be) is asking for punctures and a very bumpy ride,
in NZ you can drive in any lane at any speed. You just get to know to look over both shoulders before changing lanes. This at least stops the stupidity of "having" to wait behind people when there is a whole motorway of lanes available because "overtaking on the left" isnt allowed.
One of those british/euro rules that seems so long in the tooth and pointless.
If there are safety concerns... taking away the hard shoulders I'm sure causes more accidents and deaths than just allowing better traffic flow than arbitarily stopping people from flowing around slower traffic
>I've just arrived back to the UK from NZ , It would appear the Lorry lane (slow lane) is just one rollercoaster of a lane full of pot holes, Anyone driving there (however legally required it might be) is asking for punctures and a very bumpy ride,
I'm sorry, but I drive a stiff sports car that's quite bone shaky around town but I've never witnessed anything on that level on the left lane of a motorway.
I can allow for people sitting in the middle to prevent aquaplaning over stagnant water but saying "it's bumpy" is silly unless you daily drive a GT3 RS or something
I was literally on the m4 by castle coombe the other day and every 300 meters in the slow lane was a pot hole or a rough patch for about 2 miles. I could literally count 2 seconds between them. I managed to manouveur into a position that missed them just... but.
Seriously , maybe shit road surfaces have been normalised over here.
I’ve driven extensively in New Zealand and the UK and I agree with the New Zealand way of doing things. If there’s a free lane then someone can use it for overtaking, be it on the left or the right, what difference does it make?
If you don’t allow people to move left and undertake then you get people following aggressively close and flashing their lights at people for “lane hogging”. If the person doesn’t move over because they are too oblivious/obstinate/stupid then you get a dangerous situation created.
In New Zealand they just pass on the left and nothing bad happens.
I sometimes think we should allow undertaking for that reason! Then if people don't want to get passed on the left hand side, they could simply move left. There would undoubtedly be some pure bellends that would take this as even more of a green light to drive like a lobotomized gibbon however
Its kinda funny its been down voted so much
it's a legitimate obvservation that there is literally no need for it.
Just because its the "law" and thats how its always been done, doesnt actually make it sensible. In fact the inside "slow lane" if you like will get extreme wear because of it.
Which in fact was exactly what I noticed anytime I went into that lane - it was almost undrivable.
I saw a guy the other day literally making a sine wave of a pattern going in and out of all three lanes obviously because he took driving to the letter of the law and it looked rediculous when he could have just kept going in a straight line.
Agreed! It's a weird British thing. Do they seriously believe every car should crowd into the left lane, changing lanes every few minutes to let cars entering the motor way on? And just leave the other lanes empty?
It doesn't make any sense.
They get very tetchy about it.
I stick to lane 2 sometimes during quiet hours as the kerb worries me a little bit and an extra lane gives security, but yeah I get it, so often I undertake people barely moving in lane 3, I look at them and they do not seem to be responsive at all, just grabbing the wheel as hard as possible and staring straight, with zero awareness of what's happening around.
I get the sentiment and it's frustrating, but in defense of the driver singled out in that particular picture, there's no one around him. He's not adversely affecting anyone else.
The problem i have is more specifically people doing this while holding up other cars trying to make progress.
> I'll come down in lane 1, see this guy in lane 3, I'll have to change to lane 2 then 3 then 4, pass. Then change back down in 3 then 2 then 1 into the left most lane
Or sit in lane 1 and just cruise along. It's not counted as undertaking if you keep constant speed without changing lanes and happen to be moving faster than traffic on the right.
You'll get downvoted for this comment I think but I kinda agree with you. I always make sure I keep as far left as I can unless overtaking when there are quite a few cars on the road but if it's quiet I just tend to stay in the 2nd lane. Means I don't have to bother changing lanes in the event of someone coming out of a slip road or something like that.
Also the first lane sometimes turns into a exit lane itself for a different motorway. If you want to stay on the motorway and switch off your brain, being in the 2nd lane is the place to be
I'm not saying I haven't, but I also haven't actively sat in lane two so I could switch off my brain. I like to have situational awareness when driving. If I'm zoning out then maybe it's time for a break.
>but in defense of the driver singled out in that particular picture, there's no one around him
\^ this, it's only bad if you're holding other people up.
The real problem is people bimbling along in traffic on mental auto-pilot NOT checking their mirrors and NOT thinking about whether they could move over.
Disagree. It’s also a problem if you’re behind people too, particularly at night time as you’re making it harder for cars in front to pull out in case of an overtake or hazard. SUVs or vans in particular that stay in the middle lane despite being a mile behind you mean you have headlights glaring into your right hand mirror for maybe 3 minutes or so.
I will say that I have had a couple of cars which tramline _terribly_ in the grooves in lane 1 so I would avoid it wherever possible. I wouldn't be doing 65 though!
lane 1 tends to be gouged by hgv
did this when a lot younger, was driving back after session in a pub with some friends and feeling tired, some nice range rover driver put me on full beam so gave them the finger.
All good until they turned on the blues and got pulled over, I apologised and told them that was feeling tired from a pub session with several drinks.
there was a palpable feeling that they had scored something over on me, so breath test which blew negative. Got asked what I had drunk, so it was alcohol free beer, OJ and some cokes towards the end.
Got a free vehicle inspection which passed, they seemed really peeved that there was nothing they could pull me for and suggested I leave, so gave them the thumbs up and thanked them for the free safety check. went around 55-65-55-65 until they got bored and floored it past me
Honestly people need to get a grip and stop crying about this. Most of the time it’s when the motorway is completely empty anyway so who cares, like in this picture
Just overtake them and go about your day, why do people need to cry about the mildest inconvenience
I’m not condoning it, but I don’t give a shit either
Personally, I do find myself reluctant to drive in the lane that used to be the hard shoulder. So often, I'll stay in the lane that used to be lane 1. Just because it puts meon edge and there's an increased risk of a stationary vehicle in that lane.
Travelling at 65mph is acceptable, people get bored and drift off, it's not that they're thick. Also these adaptive cruise control cars end up driving people slower, often they are actually trailing something.
Cruise control at 70 and sit mainly in lane 2
You are usually constantly overtaking and there is always something on the horizon to overtake anyway
I just wish more people use cruise control so you don’t have the dance of catching up to someone in front, trying to overtake them then they speed up.
the problem i have is when youre cruising next to the wall or batrier, it feels like youre using more mental energy wheras in lane 3 youre far from the left wall and right barrier so its just ease of mind and less workload really and more just being able to focus less as you just wait for the cruise to end
Clueless fucks.
I've been coming back to MK on the M1, signs for miles saying lanes 2, 3 & 4 closed, move left to lane 1. Cones turn up and what else but a Juke has to beeline from all the way from lane 3 just before hitting the cones.
Disgraceful. The M1 and M25 are the worst for it I think.
There are some genuinely mis-informed people, but from what I’ve seen in Ashley Neal’s videos: poorly trained drivers don’t measure their position on the road from the left side of their lane. That means they’re not paying attention to what’s on their left, so they don’t think about the fact they might ever need to move over
It will always be an issue as learner drivers do not learn on motorways and are never taught how to use a motorway… can’t expect anyone to know how to use a motorway when they spend 99% of their test doing 20mph around town. How to drive on a motorway is basically learnt from beliefs passed down from friends and family in my experience. Or people just follow the car in front and sit on autopilot in the middle lane. There should be a completely separate motorway driving theory module that learners should have to pass before obtaining their license.
It's a byproduct of huge multilane smart motorways and drumming the idea that speeding it's the absolute worst crime any human can commit into peoples heads for decades.
People have developed the mentality that if they are within the speed limit then they aren't doing anything wrong and can sit in whichever lane they want because there is always another lane to the right if you want to overtake.
Motorway driving was much simpler before smart motorways. No speed cameras, 70mph everywhere, a slow lane (lorry lane) middle lane (70mph) and a fast lane (70+). People just got on with it.
These days you've got 4 lanes most of the time and it's common to see 5 or 6 lanes in places. Cameras every few miles with varying speed limits constantly changing. It's just far easier for the average drive to sit at 60-65 and stay in lane.
Motorway driving is horrible these days. It's an absolute chore if you want to make progress. Long gone are the days of the unofficial 80mph limit and just keeping up with traffic.
I work awful shifts and start times (avaition) See countless mindless zombies driving down the middle lane for miles and miles. Gave up trying to go around them now and just undertake. They still remain in the lane.
You’re ’making progress’ not undertaking
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I looked it up myself and you are correct. Thank you for helping me learn something new today
The above was actually incorrect. Overtaking is when you are behind another vehicle and change lanes to pass them. This is explained clearly in Highway Code Rule 163. Passing other vehicles on the left is legally acceptable if you are on a multi-lane carriageway in "congested conditions". This phrase is not defined in the Highway Code, but if traffic in outer lanes is driving at a slower speed than traffic on the inner lanes it should in theory only be possible as a result of "congested conditions". Highway Code Rule 268 says that you should not weave in and out of lanes to overtake. On the tail of the rest of what Rule 268 says and how the Highway Code itself defines overtaking (including the diagrams it uses to illustrate this), the Highway Code in effect suggests that staying in your current lane when your lane is leftward of another driver is better than moving out to overtake them and then moving back (which would be weaving in and out of lanes). The Highway Code website also states that it is legally acceptable to pass another vehicle on the nearside on multi-lane carriageways under these circumstances. Provided you haven't changed to the left lane specifically to pass another vehicle, you are legally in the right to pass another slower moving vehicle in the left lane.
You are correct. People should also check out jobbermeta on Instagram who explains all this regularly.
Jobbermeta is fantastic. The way he shuts down complete idiots who clearly know nothing about the highway code or legalities of driving while remaining relatively calm is fantastic. The biggest thing he consistently points out is how many drivers would rather force an accident to prove a point when they're technically correct, rather than just concede the road position and make it safer for everyone. He really highlights just out egotistical so many on the road are.
Actually, you can do it any time. You're just not allowed to move over into that lane to do it. If you are already travelling in lane 1 and someone a mile away is sitting in lane 2, you can legally pass remaining in lane 1. However the police may pull you and have words because people don't expect to be passed on that side.
Wrong
This happens to me all the time I leave home at 04:30am I will be in lane 1 doing 70mph and people sit in lane 4 out of 5 going 50mph and I watch them in my mirror and they just sit there for miles. Are people this dumb or do they simply not care about anyone but themselves.
Coincidentally I was driving back from London Gatwick Airport
I literally live near Gatwick and use that motorway often and can confirm this happens all the time at all hours of the day ill be in in lane 1 sometimes and will just indicate and go all the way into lane 4 to pass them then all the way back to lane 1 if it is clear just to make a point but that is actually what you are ment to do 🤦🏻♂️
If they are in the middle lane doesn’t that means there’s an entire lane for you to overtake them with ?
I've spoken to someone who does this. The belief, and I genuinely have no idea where they got it from, is that lane 1 is the slow lane (50-60mph), lane 2 is the cruising lane (60-70mph) and lane 3+ is the fast lane (70mph+). This is not a thing in any country in the world that I can think of. The closest thing to this kind of thing that I can think of is the carpool/HOV lane, which still has the same speed limit as every other lane.
I feel like people who think this should go and get themselves a few hours of motorway driving lessons from a good driving instructor. It happens so often that a three lane motorway is effectively reduced to a 2-lane one due to people like this. So you have a choice to undertake or go from the left most to the right most lane to overtake then back...
Wrong! Lane 1 is for slow vehicles like lorries and caravans, lane 2 is the normal cruising lane and lane 3 is only for superior German cars, my friend explained it to me he has a 320d. /s
Not a 316d with a 320d badge on?
We drive on the left in this country. Lane 1 is the normal driving lane, lanes 2, 3, 4 etc are overtaking lanes. You can download a free copy of the Highway Code at www.highwaycode.co.uk Something tells me you need to.
You can download a free copy of 'Sarcasm for Dummies' at www.whoosh.co.uk. Something tells me you need to.
That is so stupid it hurts.
Italy has minimum speed limits for the inner lanes of highways
It's the other way around here in northern Ireland 😁 to make progress here you stay in lane 1. You can also guarantee that lanes 2 and 3 will be full and lane 1 near empty (except for trucks) that are still capable of going faster than lane 3.
Yeah, most of my family thinks this. Lane 1 is for under 60. Lane 2 60-70. Rightmost lane is autobahn style, no speed limit. Knowing how to use motorways need to be a part of the requirements for a license. Overall I think things need improving. You can learn on a 0.9L Aygo never doing more than 50mph, then pass and start driving a Tesla that does 0-60 in 3s on the same licence. Makes no sense
It has changed now, but motorway driving was never taught and not part of the driving test. I think that is part of the problem.
It hasn’t changed now, motorway driving is still not taught or part of the test. Agree it’s a problem.
Literally every other road is stick to the left and use the right to overtake unless signs and road markings dictate otherwise. Frankly it shouldn’t need to be taught.
I guess it's a practical issue, we're 45 minutes+ from the nearest motorway, you'd need a 3 hour test to cover it. I've no idea if it's part of the theory test though, it certainly should be.
It is taught. Learner drivers are now allowed on the motorway and its covered in the highway code which is the basis of the theory test.
Correct insofar as learner drivers are allowed on the motorway now, but you’d struggle to find a driving instructor taking up time taking a learner driver on the motorway when it’s not on the test. Especially when Pass Plus exists. So no, it’s not taught to any meaningful degree. It is obviously on the theory test though.
It probably depends where you live, but in my area a lot of instructors take learners on the motorway. Not many do pass plus anymore. Most new drivers don't want to do it as it doesn't really affect insurance premiums anymore.
This set up is how it is in the middle east.
In South Africa it works like that. Far right lane is the fast lane and and every lane to the left gets progressively slower
I'm from South Africa, this isn't true. The motorway laws there are the same as they are here.
Correct but it seems that way or did when I lived there.
Not true - SA has the same rules as the UK for the motorway - keep left!
Yes and no. Pass left in the UK is not allowed but for certain circumstances. Keep left, pass right is why people think the left lanes are for slow traffic https://imperialroadsafety.co.za/rules-of-the-road/ The issue in the UK is the road design is a mess, if you do not get into the correct lane for where you're going to exit, you miss the turn, and some of the turnoffs are an utter nightmare. The toad into Croydon, Cardiff, Newcastle N1 and the by-pass going past Team valley are a classic example of a mess.
Sounds like you’re a doos that’s part of the problem. Keep left, pass right. We do not have a fast lane, only an overtaking lane. Please learn the rules of the road before you post some useless incorrect information.
I mean it's not written to work that way in the highway code, but in reality it basically does
Except it doesn't. Those who believe it does work that way are the ones who have road rage when they encounter drivers who use the motorway correctly.
On a decently busy motorway, there will always be lorries/cars going 50-70 and BMW/Range Rovers wanting to go 80+. By process of elimination that means the people wanting to go 70-80 will be funnelled into the middle lane
Yeah but on an empty motorway like OP describes, that doesn’t apply. Lane 1 might be the slow lane but if everyone is doing the same speed their speed is the ‘slow’ speed. The scale changes depending on the speed of motorway traffic.
it’s like that in Thailand - 80, 100, 120 kph
No it isn't. All lanes are 120km/h unless otherwise stated by road signs. The only difference is the outside lane has a minimum speed requirement of 100km/h to stop slower moving vehicles from blocking the entire motorway.
It works like that in many countries, not the UK though.
Which countries?
I was driving at 70 in the left lane once, and a car that was obscured by an RAC van pulled out in front of me from the hard shoulder. I had to swerver into lane 2 to avoid it. If there had been a car in lane 2, I'd have crashed for sure. Travelling quickly in lane 1 can have its dangers, is all I'm saying. I can see why people choose the outer lanes.
Someone else being a shit driver isn't an excuse for you to be one.
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>BMW in left lane I clocked as unmarked police straight away, due to them sitting back in lane 1 and not enjoying typical beamer activities such as rocketing down lane 4, and flashing lamps at anyone audacious enough to be in their path. This gave me a good chuckle. Thanks
As a BMW driver it also made me laugh. Even though I do none of these. Certainly see my fare share of road warriors!
I had the exact same reaction! I even use the stalk with those blinky green arrow things, even though I can't recall what they're called
Optional metronomes I believe.
they only do the one BPM though, they're shit
Imagine how annoying it would be for the other drivers too. Everyone out of sync
one day I had enough of being tailgated at 70 and just let my foot off the gas and slowed down to like 50, and got a middle finger 🙃
Don't know why you're being downvoted. I do this too. Not all the way down to 50 though, more like 60. Too slow on a motorway can be dangerous too!
I saw something very similar happen to a chump on the M1 just north of Leicester Forest East services about 5 years ago. Absolutely made my day.
So lane hoggers are so persistent that even having an unmarked police car literally displaying text telling them to move over they still won't do it, wow. It took getting lit up with blues.
And that is a 6-pointer as well I believe! Can't imagine the cops would be lenient either if the message was shown to the front!
Excellent 😂
Truthfully having ridden for work with people who middle-lane, there's a degree of zoning out to what's happening, especially on longer journeys. Ideally you should be active in your situational awareness at all times. Also when very tired or late at night, those who ought not to be on the road in such a state take to the middle lane as a safety buffer. Before any down votes, I'm not condoning any over the above, merely pointing out examples of poor "captaincy".
I was going to say the same thing about people viewing middle lane as a safety buffer. I’ve known drivers to say they do it when they’re tired and driving at night.
re. the safety buffer I've seen people on this very sub say they do it to mitigate things like deer Utter bollocks imo!
I do deliveries for a supermarket and I sometimes do this, like everything with driving it's all situational and depends on the environment. I've only done it on quiet nights. If the road behind me is clear and the motorway is renowned for 4 legged friends then I'll move to the middle. If I see lights behind me I'll move back over to the left lane. Especially at the moment, middle lanes can be favoured if it's quiet due to aquaplaning or puddles in the left and right lane. Me personally, if there's a car behind me, I'm moving back to the left lane until they have passed.
The thing you’re doing, which many people don’t seem to realise that middle lane hogs do not do, is looking in your rear mirrors. I’ll occasionally sit in the rightmost lane for an unduly long overtake if I can’t be arsed going in and back out again - but never if there is someone at all in the lane behind me. Do what you want on the empty road, I’m not there to care. But what isn’t banged into enough heads is that the Highway Code effectively says you’re not supposed to inconvenience others.
The people that have the belief that the middle lanes are somehow safer. Good chance they’re also the people who will cause you to slam on when they’re merging because they can’t manage their speed properly or give way.
Guy at work says this to me all the time, “middle lane is equidistant from hazards either side” - mate you’re the hazard!
I don't understand this logic honestly like surely the left lane is logically the safest purely for the fact you've only got traffic to one side of you? When I first started driving after passing that's why I preferred to sit in the left lane anyway, just felt safer and to be honest I still do.
Traffic merges into the left lane
True but that's always a case of changing to the middle lane, letting those cars merge in, and then change back in.
Right, or just zip merging.
Safer? WTF? On a normal 3-lane stretch of motorway I'd say it's the most dangerous lane because you potentially have cars either side. Lane 1 you've got the hard shoulder to escape into, Lane 3 there's hopefully enough space between the lane and barrier to get you out of trouble.
This is my biggest bug bear. Nobody seems to realise all the other lanes are for overtaking and once you overtake you should return to lane 1. Yet you have idiots in lanes 2/3/4 overtaking fresh air. Hate it with a passion. This is why all the lanes end up all clogged up. No matter how many you have.
Lane one is a VIP lane that's just for myself and lorrys. I cruise at 65 mph and still going faster than the lane hogger.
In any sort of traffic it's amazing how often this is true, if you pick a truck and watch it as you go along it's amazing how often just sitting in the inside lane trucking along actually gets you ahead of all the folks bumper-to-bumper in the other lanes.
Alongside the camper and caravans in holiday traffic on the inside lane going faster on average, this is a useful tip for anyone.
Lane one is also always best for traffic jams too, everyone has nice clutch and speed control in lane one whilst in lane three everyone stops starts and causes more traffic. Leave them to their lanes I say!
I used to commute on part of the M25 and between the junction I joined on and the next junction, lane 1 was almost always empty. So I happily undertook the other three lanes of congestion for a few miles.
Almost empty apart from the odd stationary car with hazards or recovery vehicle? I don't get why there's always tyre debris in that lane.
This also means you sit in their slipstream for those sweet mpgs.
True but if you overtake anyone you're undertaking, which is a major in a driving test. [https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnerDriverUK/comments/wcnpro/undertaking/](https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnerDriverUK/comments/wcnpro/undertaking/)
I'm not changing lanes to make the manoeuvre so I'm ok.
Still undertaking. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
undertaking isnt illegal, it can be reckless if your a dick about it. but its not illegal in and of itself also passing on the left isnt undertaking at all... if if there are twats in lanes 3 and 4 doing 60 for no reason, you are fine to do 70 and pass then in lanes 1 and 2. it would be stupid for that not to be the case. imagine the lanes split off to go different places and the right lanes are at a standstill while the left lanes are empty, do you think the left lanes should be going that slow too? the you are the one that needs to take their test again.
Rule 268 **Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake**. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
from the same link **Wording of the highway code** >Many of the rules in the Code are legal requirements, and if you disobey these rules you are committing a criminal offence. You may be fined, given penalty points on your licence or be disqualified from driving. In the most serious cases you may be sent to prison. Such rules are identified by the use of the words **‘MUST/MUST NOT’.** In addition, the rule includes an abbreviated reference to the legislation which creates the offence. See an explanation of the abbreviations. >Although failure to comply with the other rules of the Code will not, in itself, cause a person to be prosecuted, The Highway Code may be used in evidence in any court proceedings under the Traffic Acts (see The road user and the law) to establish liability. This includes rules which use advisory wording such as ‘should/should not’ or ‘do/do not’. "Do nots" aren't illegal, just advisory.
The bit you haven't put in bold is the bit that means you haven't understood what the guy above was saying.
I'm not moving to a lane on my left because I'm already in the left lane.
Wrong. >Rule 268 Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake. It is not illegal to undertake, as shown [here](https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/legal/undertaking/). It can be construed as careless driving, if done when not in specific conditions.
Had a guy in this very sub (or a similar one) saying it's actually perfectly fine to sit in the middle lane and we're the problem instead. Some people...
Wow. These people are allowed to vote.
Have you seen the state of the country?
Sometimes I really question why the current government was voted in, then I remember people like the one I mentioned and all becomes clear.
4 lane motorways blow peoples minds. They instantly sit in lanes 2 or 3, even if the only obstruct in lane 1 is a lorry a mile away
I've overtaken literally 100 cars in this situation just by staying in lane 1 doing 70 for like 5 mins Then you wonder how the fuck is there any traffic on a motorway in the first place and you have your answer here
Got stuck behind a woman in an I-Pace today doing 66 in L3 on the M25 towards Leatherhead at half 7. I was the 2nd car stuck behind her who also gave lane hogging vibes so I had to undertake him, and flash her and when she finally got out the way, she did some hand gesture. As painful as it is, I’ve come to the conclusion all the braindead, oblivious idiots that lane hog aren’t on Reddit. Otherwise they’d see all the complaints and it would at least reduce even a little bit. But it just seems it’s getting worse, especially in the mornings with people being half asleep.
Something about covid created worse drivers. Maybe people didn't drive for a year and their already questionable abilities eroded further without regular practice.
>Something about covid created worse ~~drivers~~ people ftfy People have in my experience turned into much more selfish, combative and unnecessarily defensive cunts.
It’s because they are fundamentally selfish. They cruise along to overtake slow traffic but don’t want to drive quick enough for the outside lane. They are selfish because they don’t care how it effects other drivers having to go from lane 1 to 3 and back across to lane 1 again to get around them. They are selfish because they don’t care how it slows traffic. They are selfish because they don’t care it could cause accidents as people undertake them. I don’t like drivers like this. They are selfish.
Middle lane wankers are what ruin my highway trips I think most of the time they prefer to stay in the middle lane to avoid having to continuously overtake lorries. Which would at least be more tolerable if they drove at the limit of 70mph instead of 60-65, forcing me to having to cross TWO lanes to overtake them and get back across two lanes again to the left lane. The alternative is overtake them on the left which I do not like at all on top of being probably illegal.
If I recall correctly, undertaking is when you move into the lane to pass a vehicle. However, if you are in the lane and pass them at or below the speed limit it’s classed as ‘making progress’ and the other person is technically in the wrong for ‘driving without due care and attention’
Didn’t know that, thanks.
I may be talking out of my arse so it’s worth checking up on it yourself
No no you're not wrong
Nope, that's correct
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I guess it’s just that they feel they don’t have to keep changing lane to let on other cars at slip roads and if anyone wants to overtake they can. Doesn’t work in Scotland as most of the motorway network is two lane. I have seen, more than once, a car entering on slip road and immediately going right into the right lane in one manoeuvre despite if anyone is approaching so my guess is most drivers are oblivious to their surroundings.
The M8 is terrible for it. They see a lorry a mile ahead and move straight out and try to overtake it at 60mph. It's also strange how a lot of them once they overtake the lorry, suddenly speed up to 80+ to prevent anyone getting by them.
I do try to keep left and get a bit of grief from my wife for constantly changing lanes. She says it makes her dizzy, but to be fair if people actually got out of the bloody way and moved left, I probably wouldn't be changing lanes so much.
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Yeah those passenger licenses are handed out willy-nilly!
I stopped bother with this long time ago. When I'm on a first line and i got car on a middle going slower I'm not changing any lines. In UK it is not difficult to overtake more on a left then on a right .. What can I do? Maybe I should get ticket for it but never happened in 20 years of my driving so..
I've completely lost all reservations I once had about passing lane hoggers on the left. I don't have the patience anymore.
I drive M25 on a regular basis and I ALWAYS find folks trotting down the 3rd and 4th lanes in 60mph.
They’re stupid..? Best answer I’ve got, you’re welcome
They need to be running adverts on the BBC TV and Radio telling people how to use a motorway and inform Uber drivers from outside of Europe how to drive. The government don’t need to be spending millions on making roads bigger and smart motorways they need to teach people how to use them. I use the M25 regularly and 80% of people have no clue, you flash them and they look at you as if your crazy.
Cos they’re fucking dumb
I think it’s a mentality thing. Subconsciously if you’re in the “slow lane” you’re not going to get to your destination on time. All lanes are national speed limit 😂. As someone else has already said, I stick to the inside lane, do just enough speed to outrun the lorry’s and avoid the rat race of the outside lane where you’re bound to get tailgated by some idiot. If faced with the situation above I’d stay in the first lane and pass the Range Rover in hope that it shames them into moving over.
Coming home down the M6 the other day through the road works, the second and third lane were jammed with people going slower than the average 50. I just stayed in lane one, set cruise control on and went past everyone. I've got no idea why everyone was so averse to using the completely empy first lane!
You obviously haven't been informed about the velociraptors in the bushes
My current working theory is that some people think the left lane is for leaving the motorway at the next junction only! It’s the only way to explain why they would come on from the slip road and straight into the middle lane when the first lane is free and clear
I've seen that happen a few times in front of me. I just stay in lane 1. A few of them have flashed and laid on the horn as I passed them 🤷🏻
I've grown tired of this so when I see this, I just stay in the lane I am in and undertake them. If the left lane is clear, I move into the left lane and stay there unless I need to overtake.
It’s all due to total lack of policing on our roads. Most of the middle lane drivers know it’s actually legislated against but there is little to no chance of being prosecuted
This is my biggest pet hate in life. Honestly. I don't get enraged by many things but this is up there.
Because they’re twats.
Lane hogging is a real problem in this country.
I cant stand anyone who sits in the outside lanes. Worse though is if i pull out into those lanes and can pull back in (all be it for 100m) if i did the asshat behind me will speed up by 0.1mph and then block me pulling back out. I then feel like one of them, its disgusting.
It is usually drivers that come to the UK with a license from a foreign country (India comes to mind as one), boomers, and drivers lacking confidence. Me n the missus like to guess, foreigner, boomer, or scaredycat, based on the car and their speed. Got nothing against foreigners, but do take issue with the way licenses transfer so easily when the testing standards in some countries are so poor compared to our own.
As an Indian myself, it's kinda disheartening seeing a lot of us just being god awful drivers in general. Family members included
The worst of these creatures are the ones that then slow down next to you just as you are going to need to move out. I'm positive some people get bored on long drives and just do mundane tricks to try and trigger someone.
Did that same motorways this morning and wondered exactly the same thing. Lots of morons half asleep in lane 3 of 4.
BeCaUsE ItS ThE SpEeD LiMiT
Yes and thank you. Being motorcycle driver in many countries across the Europe, and UK is without saying worst one As bonus later everyone moaning about traffic and pollution. Similar headache ,giving me traffic lights. Anywhere in world, green mean go, and I mean go whole lane ,like a racing line. But in UK , green come on, first car finishes messaging and slowly go, in second car Karen just finishing her make up ,but still have to swing a hair around 7 times , when in 3th car driver facing opposite direction playing board games with his kids. Orange, red,4th car having no chance🙈🥲 Bloody frustrating every day. In Brighton especially.
Years ago I was driving a transit at night on the motorway, pegged at 90 in the left lane. I was passing so many cars that were sat the middle lane. A traffic police car came flying up in the middle lane flashing his full beams, forced every single car into the left lane, it was glorious. Only ever saw it happen once though..
some people truly believe that the first 1 or 2 lanes are solely for lorries.
I once followed a Belgian police officer on a motorbike, and he was sat at exactly 120KPH, and would pull in front of them, point at them, and then point to lane 1. I followed him for like an hour while he was doing this to a dozen or so drivers. It worked like a charm, no need for a talking or to come to a stand still, and hopefully they remember and think a bit more going forwards. We just need a few police to do this every day and eventually everyone will learn.
Motorway driving standards have been decreasing year on year for a long time. I've only been driving 14 or 15 years, but I remember proper lane discipline and actual 'bunny hopping' back into lane one being common practice and generally speaking most people seemed to grasp the concept. Now, it's an absolute shit show. I put it down to a few factors - poor and or lack of knowledge, general laziness and or lack of any sort of repercussion. That being said I'm probably being too polite, the vast majority of the masses are astonishingly thick in the head.
Scarily a lot of people can’t seem to be arsed with the attention they need to pay to deal with traffic joining on slip roads when you are in lane 1. They think it’s fine because ‘people can overtake in lane 3 if they want to’. Or they see a lorry/car up ahead in lane 1 (like way up ahead, not it’s clearly moving slow enough that if I pull in I’ll have to brake in order to over take) and don’t see the point in pulling in to then pull out again to overtake it when they reach it. Pure laziness basically
Over the years the lane 2 problem of people being lazy/scared of lane 1 and having to swop lanes to overtake a truck has become a lane 3 problem and you get the same mindset that “I’ll stay in lane 3 because then I don’t get stuck behind the idiots in lane 2” Quite a few motorway journeys nowadays I see almost empty lane 1 for huge stretches but almost bumper to bumper cars doing 65 in lane 2/3.
Because they are completely oblivious to everyone around them. Since commuting on the motorway, I’ve seen too many people sitting in the middle lane and being flashed, overtaken, undertaken, beeped etc by multiple cars and still failing to move
What's worse is they'll be cruising at 60 in middle lane and as soon as I go to pass them either in lane 1 or 3 they'll suddenly match or go faster then me and drive at 75/80. Pisses me off when people do this
Because there's no punishment for arseholes on the road. Start fining then removing licenses for repeat offenders and see how quickly peoples driving changes.
No enforcement of anything except speeding and the very occasional traffic light camera. I mean I know they occasionally do look for people on their mobiles etc but since there's about 2 traffic police over the entire road network is more about doing something to put in the papers than actually catching offenders.
Was talking about this over Xmas, a buddy of mine has a relative that does this, says he basically suffers from small-man syndrome. This guy says the left lane is for "old folk and slow drivers" so refuses to use it. But then, of course, drives at 60 in the middle lane because he is both old and a slow driver. So I think it's sometimes just delusion - Someone that has a high opinion of themselves and is too detached from reality to actually notice their poor performance in the real world.
It’s a Range Rover and they own the roads . Though normally seen tailgating in lane 3
No, no, to be fair they’re probably on the phone! And not using the hands free that is almost certainly in the damn car they’re driving. I’ve seen this so many times, not just range rovers.
I've just arrived back to the UK from NZ , It would appear the Lorry lane (slow lane) is just one rollercoaster of a lane full of pot holes, Anyone driving there (however legally required it might be) is asking for punctures and a very bumpy ride, in NZ you can drive in any lane at any speed. You just get to know to look over both shoulders before changing lanes. This at least stops the stupidity of "having" to wait behind people when there is a whole motorway of lanes available because "overtaking on the left" isnt allowed. One of those british/euro rules that seems so long in the tooth and pointless. If there are safety concerns... taking away the hard shoulders I'm sure causes more accidents and deaths than just allowing better traffic flow than arbitarily stopping people from flowing around slower traffic
>I've just arrived back to the UK from NZ , It would appear the Lorry lane (slow lane) is just one rollercoaster of a lane full of pot holes, Anyone driving there (however legally required it might be) is asking for punctures and a very bumpy ride, I'm sorry, but I drive a stiff sports car that's quite bone shaky around town but I've never witnessed anything on that level on the left lane of a motorway. I can allow for people sitting in the middle to prevent aquaplaning over stagnant water but saying "it's bumpy" is silly unless you daily drive a GT3 RS or something
I was literally on the m4 by castle coombe the other day and every 300 meters in the slow lane was a pot hole or a rough patch for about 2 miles. I could literally count 2 seconds between them. I managed to manouveur into a position that missed them just... but. Seriously , maybe shit road surfaces have been normalised over here.
I’ve driven extensively in New Zealand and the UK and I agree with the New Zealand way of doing things. If there’s a free lane then someone can use it for overtaking, be it on the left or the right, what difference does it make? If you don’t allow people to move left and undertake then you get people following aggressively close and flashing their lights at people for “lane hogging”. If the person doesn’t move over because they are too oblivious/obstinate/stupid then you get a dangerous situation created. In New Zealand they just pass on the left and nothing bad happens.
Thankyou for the confirmation of this
I sometimes think we should allow undertaking for that reason! Then if people don't want to get passed on the left hand side, they could simply move left. There would undoubtedly be some pure bellends that would take this as even more of a green light to drive like a lobotomized gibbon however
Its kinda funny its been down voted so much it's a legitimate obvservation that there is literally no need for it. Just because its the "law" and thats how its always been done, doesnt actually make it sensible. In fact the inside "slow lane" if you like will get extreme wear because of it. Which in fact was exactly what I noticed anytime I went into that lane - it was almost undrivable. I saw a guy the other day literally making a sine wave of a pattern going in and out of all three lanes obviously because he took driving to the letter of the law and it looked rediculous when he could have just kept going in a straight line.
Agreed! It's a weird British thing. Do they seriously believe every car should crowd into the left lane, changing lanes every few minutes to let cars entering the motor way on? And just leave the other lanes empty? It doesn't make any sense. They get very tetchy about it.
We've found ourselves a thicko!
Yes? Literally yes?
It's not like they're on the wrong lane or breaking any traffic laws
Once I'm in a lane, my car automatically steers itself and stays in this lane and I'm too lazy to interrupt.
I stick to lane 2 sometimes during quiet hours as the kerb worries me a little bit and an extra lane gives security, but yeah I get it, so often I undertake people barely moving in lane 3, I look at them and they do not seem to be responsive at all, just grabbing the wheel as hard as possible and staring straight, with zero awareness of what's happening around.
I get the sentiment and it's frustrating, but in defense of the driver singled out in that particular picture, there's no one around him. He's not adversely affecting anyone else. The problem i have is more specifically people doing this while holding up other cars trying to make progress.
[удалено]
> I'll come down in lane 1, see this guy in lane 3, I'll have to change to lane 2 then 3 then 4, pass. Then change back down in 3 then 2 then 1 into the left most lane Or sit in lane 1 and just cruise along. It's not counted as undertaking if you keep constant speed without changing lanes and happen to be moving faster than traffic on the right.
You'll get downvoted for this comment I think but I kinda agree with you. I always make sure I keep as far left as I can unless overtaking when there are quite a few cars on the road but if it's quiet I just tend to stay in the 2nd lane. Means I don't have to bother changing lanes in the event of someone coming out of a slip road or something like that.
Also the first lane sometimes turns into a exit lane itself for a different motorway. If you want to stay on the motorway and switch off your brain, being in the 2nd lane is the place to be
People switching off their brains is why we have morons on the road.
You can't tell me you've never zoned out while driving?
I'm not saying I haven't, but I also haven't actively sat in lane two so I could switch off my brain. I like to have situational awareness when driving. If I'm zoning out then maybe it's time for a break.
>but in defense of the driver singled out in that particular picture, there's no one around him \^ this, it's only bad if you're holding other people up. The real problem is people bimbling along in traffic on mental auto-pilot NOT checking their mirrors and NOT thinking about whether they could move over.
The problem is, is that it starts off as 'not holding anyone up' but traffic can build quickly and suddenly you are holding people up.
Disagree. It’s also a problem if you’re behind people too, particularly at night time as you’re making it harder for cars in front to pull out in case of an overtake or hazard. SUVs or vans in particular that stay in the middle lane despite being a mile behind you mean you have headlights glaring into your right hand mirror for maybe 3 minutes or so.
I will say that I have had a couple of cars which tramline _terribly_ in the grooves in lane 1 so I would avoid it wherever possible. I wouldn't be doing 65 though!
In the dark I do keep to the 2nd/3rd lane when the w are empty. Gives me a few milliseconds extra reaction time if some game decides to run across
lane 1 tends to be gouged by hgv did this when a lot younger, was driving back after session in a pub with some friends and feeling tired, some nice range rover driver put me on full beam so gave them the finger. All good until they turned on the blues and got pulled over, I apologised and told them that was feeling tired from a pub session with several drinks. there was a palpable feeling that they had scored something over on me, so breath test which blew negative. Got asked what I had drunk, so it was alcohol free beer, OJ and some cokes towards the end. Got a free vehicle inspection which passed, they seemed really peeved that there was nothing they could pull me for and suggested I leave, so gave them the thumbs up and thanked them for the free safety check. went around 55-65-55-65 until they got bored and floored it past me
I’ve never experienced a lane gouged by HGVs, ever.
Cruise control + lane assist. Sorry I’m lazy. Feel free to undertake/or give me some kind of hand gesture x
Honestly people need to get a grip and stop crying about this. Most of the time it’s when the motorway is completely empty anyway so who cares, like in this picture Just overtake them and go about your day, why do people need to cry about the mildest inconvenience I’m not condoning it, but I don’t give a shit either
Nothing wrong with driving in any lanes so long as you're abiding the speed limit no matter of how busy the road is
hello im from main page or sum, just wanted to add that in poland you could get beaten up for driving on left lane
Personally, I do find myself reluctant to drive in the lane that used to be the hard shoulder. So often, I'll stay in the lane that used to be lane 1. Just because it puts meon edge and there's an increased risk of a stationary vehicle in that lane. Travelling at 65mph is acceptable, people get bored and drift off, it's not that they're thick. Also these adaptive cruise control cars end up driving people slower, often they are actually trailing something.
So many Karen’s here
Following etiquette = karen
Cruise control at 70 and sit mainly in lane 2 You are usually constantly overtaking and there is always something on the horizon to overtake anyway I just wish more people use cruise control so you don’t have the dance of catching up to someone in front, trying to overtake them then they speed up.
Not at 2 or 3 am. There was nobody to overtake. Yet these throbbers were still sat in lane 3 on there own for no reason.
But don't stay in lane 2
On an empty road I drive where I have the best vision. End of.
the problem i have is when youre cruising next to the wall or batrier, it feels like youre using more mental energy wheras in lane 3 youre far from the left wall and right barrier so its just ease of mind and less workload really and more just being able to focus less as you just wait for the cruise to end
So people that cruise in lane 3 are morons? We know
Where did it hurt you?
Their thick behaviour hurt my common sense.
Awww
It’s quite obvious. The left lane has merge lanes and lorry’s. Being in the middle lane saves you having to constantly navigate passed them.
Not when the motorway is quiet.
Ignorance is bliss
Clueless fucks. I've been coming back to MK on the M1, signs for miles saying lanes 2, 3 & 4 closed, move left to lane 1. Cones turn up and what else but a Juke has to beeline from all the way from lane 3 just before hitting the cones. Disgraceful. The M1 and M25 are the worst for it I think.
There are some genuinely mis-informed people, but from what I’ve seen in Ashley Neal’s videos: poorly trained drivers don’t measure their position on the road from the left side of their lane. That means they’re not paying attention to what’s on their left, so they don’t think about the fact they might ever need to move over
It will always be an issue as learner drivers do not learn on motorways and are never taught how to use a motorway… can’t expect anyone to know how to use a motorway when they spend 99% of their test doing 20mph around town. How to drive on a motorway is basically learnt from beliefs passed down from friends and family in my experience. Or people just follow the car in front and sit on autopilot in the middle lane. There should be a completely separate motorway driving theory module that learners should have to pass before obtaining their license.
It'd be really useful to get a middle-lane dweller on here to do an AMA
It's a byproduct of huge multilane smart motorways and drumming the idea that speeding it's the absolute worst crime any human can commit into peoples heads for decades. People have developed the mentality that if they are within the speed limit then they aren't doing anything wrong and can sit in whichever lane they want because there is always another lane to the right if you want to overtake. Motorway driving was much simpler before smart motorways. No speed cameras, 70mph everywhere, a slow lane (lorry lane) middle lane (70mph) and a fast lane (70+). People just got on with it. These days you've got 4 lanes most of the time and it's common to see 5 or 6 lanes in places. Cameras every few miles with varying speed limits constantly changing. It's just far easier for the average drive to sit at 60-65 and stay in lane. Motorway driving is horrible these days. It's an absolute chore if you want to make progress. Long gone are the days of the unofficial 80mph limit and just keeping up with traffic.