Whos A Middle Lane *****?

[Fmrl]

this is depressing and i think i have dubbed myself the worst driver in britain, but hey least i have fun.

...until you hurt or kill someone... then it's not quite so much fun

[Fmrl]

while watching middle lane drivers over take gradually while the crawler laner was doing about the same speed i just lost it...

So there were cars in the left hand lane as well? The cars in the middle lane were overtaking but just not as fast as you would have liked?

[Fmrl]

7.5t lorrys are not restricted to 56mph. only vehicles over 12t GVW are. 7.5t lorrys can be driven by anyone on a car licence who passed the driving test before 1/1/97.

Yep, I know they're not restricted (though when I see a rent-a-van bombing down the outside lane of the motorway at 100+ I sometimes wish they were!!). Some larger vehicles don't seem to be restricted either (does the same rule apply to foreign vehicles? What about lorries with empty trailers?).

Maybe if SOME car drivers were a little more thoughtful when it comes to HGVs the would be a little more thoughtful in return!

I'm always considerate of lorry drivers but I think the majority of lorry drivers attitudes have changed over the years. Maybe there's a lot of bad car drivers about now but that's no excuse for lorry drivers behaving badly too - if I was driving a big hgv I'd be a LOT more considerate of others (mainly because of the greater amount of damage they can cause compared to a car).

And why do some hgv drivers like to drive about 1 inch from your rear bumper when the roads are busy?

Only this morning I was travelling into work - I was in the middle lane overtaking a lorry, he decides to overtake a lorry infront, starts to pull out, then sees me having to brake hard in his mirror, then puts on his indicator (like that makes it okay!). I always overtake with caution now - I've seen a couple of close calls where a car in the middle lane has nearly become a sandwich.

I'm not saying ALL lorry drivers behave like this - it just seems like bad driving is becoming more commonplace.

[tcooper]

while watching middle lane drivers over take gradually while the crawler laner was doing about the same speed i just lost it...

So there were cars in the left hand lane as well? The cars in the middle lane were overtaking but just not as fast as you would have liked?

nope, the cars in the middle lane where going at the same speed with huge gaps in the slow lane...

[Scorpion]

Yep, I know they're not restricted (though when I see a rent-a-van bombing down the outside lane of the motorway at 100+ I sometimes wish they were!!). Some larger vehicles don't seem to be restricted either (does the same rule apply to foreign vehicles? What about lorries with empty trailers?).

Its the engines that are restricted NOT trailers....though you can unrestrict them by pulling a fuse....yes thats all it takes!!!

But if you are caught having done this you run the risk of:

1)The company you work for could lose its operating licence.

2)Losing your license.

3)A fine of up to 5k.

4)You will join the ranks of the unemployed.

At the end of the day we are all aware of bad driving/drivers,we just have to accept that these people are given driving licences and are let loose on the road.

[immx]

does the same rule apply to foreign vehicles?

In theory yes, the same rules should apply. However, the police seem as though they cant be bothered with the extra paperwork involved with a foreign truck. And the drivers of them know that! 9 times out of 10 when you see a accident involving a HGV on the motorway, it will be a foreign lorry!

I was hit by a foreign artic once, I had the reg no, the company's name and address in budapest ( sorry for the spelling) and a witness. The driver just drove off, with out stopping.

The police said unless I had the Drivers Name and Passport number there was nothing they could do!!!!

[mudzs]

Problem with the foriegn lorries is they have a massive blind spot in their passenger mirror just as a car gets level with thier door the car disapears from their view and the driver thinks it's clear and just pulls out clipping the rear of the overtaking car and jamming it on to the front of the hgv ,then the lorry brakes and flings the car sideways down the motorway.happened to my brother a few months back and he hit the concrete bridge support backwards at around 50 mph after riding on the front of the hgv for a few hundred yards ,the police at the scene said it was the most common accident they are called out to and only the fact he was in a strong car (bmw 3 series) stopped him from being killed as the back lights were against the rear seat. :o .So always take care when overtaking lorries especialy the foreign ones

[tcooper]

yea, im always in the fast lane as a lorry over takes another car, or i just sit behind and wait...

[Scorpion]

Slip roads are long enough for you to look up the m/way b4 joining it to see if its clear or not and for you to adjust your speed accordingly and pick a gap in the flow of traffic to accelerate/decelerate.

jct 6 M25 heading west

long slip road up hill !!

you dont get to see the mototway untill you are almost on it

bottom left !!

Road markings speak a thousand words.... :D

[ColinBarber]

A motorway is a motorway as much as there's a speed limit there should be a minimum speed on the middle lane and the fast lane.

There is no such thing as a 'fast lane'. All lanes other than the inside are for overtaking, once you overtake you pull back into the inside.

[Scorpion]

A motorway is a motorway as much as there's a speed limit there should be a minimum speed on the middle lane and the fast lane.

There is no such thing as a 'fast lane'. All lanes other than the inside are for overtaking, once you overtake you pull back into the inside.

They are defined as Lanes 1,2 and 3.

[ColinBarber]

Reading through this thread it seems some people should read this:

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/23.shtml

[Scorpion]

Especially 233.

It amazes me that so many people,once they have passed thier driving test they dont keep up to date with the highway code.

I meant 223.

Edited September 23, 2004 by Scorpion

[Bazza]

Slip roads are long enough for you to look up the m/way b4 joining it to see if its clear or not and for you to adjust your speed accordingly and pick a gap in the flow of traffic to accelerate/decelerate.

jct 6 M25 heading west

long slip road up hill !!

you dont get to see the mototway untill you are almost on it

bottom left !!

Road markings speak a thousand words.... :D

really :o

ive never heard them :D

[Scorpion]

Keep your ears and EYES open :P

[harlowrog]

Count me in, all middle laners are w :tsktsk: s, join the M11 northbound from the M25 and your going uphill then all them middle lane w :tsktsk: s pull into the outside lane doing 45mph, yes 45 to overtake a lorry doing 44 thats overtaking alorry on the inside lane doing 43! w :tsktsk: s the lot of them.

instead of listing all the other examples of bad drving, 3 letters and one word sum them all up...BMW drivers!!

[ColinBarber]

Especially 223.

It amazes me that so many people,once they have passed thier driving test they dont keep up to date with the highway code.

Another one is 103. How many older people still think the national speed limit for single carriage-way is 50mph and dual carriage-way is 60mph? They must have changed those limits 15 years ago

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/09.shtml#103

[Scorpion]

Im sure if/when you approach a jct/slip road the road markings change from small to large strips indicating a hazard from the start of the exit to the beggining of an entry to the m/way,theres just not enough attention paid to road markings,they are there to help all of us in the decisions we make to make our journeys a safe one,i travel at least 2k a week and some of the things i see are scary,it beggars belief that some people even have a license.

106 was the one i was looking for :winky:

A broken white line. This marks the centre of the road. When this line lengthens and the gaps shorten, it means that there is a hazard ahead. Do not cross it unless you can see the road is clear well ahead and wish to overtake or turn off.