Slowing down for a hearse?

[WrendaleCountryDogs]

Growing up, my mum always slowed down when driving and a hearse was coming the opposite direction. As a result, I do the same.
Do you?? I've never seena nobody else do it.

Oh and I turn my music off too.

No. That wouldn’t be safe driving.

I don’t drive but I do tend to stop walking and bow my head. Maybe that’s weird though

I slow down a little.
Obviously if behind a hearse I don’t over take and leave a respectful gap.

Just a single hearse or a funeral procession?

I don’t slow down if driving the opposite direction but if behind one I keep a much bigger distance than normal. Don’t know why but seems respectful ensuring everyone is having as peaceful a day as possible.

I also stop when walking.

No, you’re upsetting the flow of traffic behind you and could cause a shunt.

I keep distance between me and the hearse and I always nod my head or (weirdly) touch my forehead as a mark of respect as they pass.

It used to be the done thing. I haven’t seen anyone do it lately though.

What I did see, not long ago, sitting outside a SW London pub after a covid jab, was a Victorian style horse-drawn hearse going by - black horses with black plumes on their heads, black-coated funeral staff with top hats, you name it. It was like something out of Dickens - quite a spectacle.

It depends - having followed a hearse as part of the "procession" or whatever you call it, I always leave a large gap now to make sure the whole procession is able to follow behind the hearse.
I wouldn't speed past at 50mph on the other side of the road! But I also wouldn't slow down to 20mph.

No, but when I was a child in the early 1970s, it was the done thing then OP.

Now there's far too much traffic on the road to slow down because there's a hearse coming from the opposite direction.

This sort of funeral is still very popular in the East End of London.

My neighbour's husband had one like that 2 years ago and I agree, it's pretty breathtaking.

I do that too

I remember being in the car following my Grandads hearse. And we passed a group of workmen in the road. A young guy, couldn’t have been older than 22/23. Stopped working, took off his hard hat and bowed his head until we passed him.

Nothing major but I’ll always remember that.

I live across the road from a church and probably see at least one funeral a month. It seems fairly normal here to slow down for a hearse or funeral procession.

My drive to the supermarket goes past a crematorium, so regularly drive near funerals.
They drive at normal pace for the roads fore most of the route. Cars make an effort not to "butt in" to the middle. If only half gets through a traffic light, they will slow down (and expect the other cars to overtake so that the formation can reform!)

Directly outside a funeral or the deceased home there would be no overtaking or noise.

It’s a weird thing but my mum always used to stop and hold her collar when passing a funeral procession. I do this too now.

That's reminded me of a batshit (and extremely unpleasant) therapist who ran a group I used to have to attend.

One week, on my way to the session, I ended up a couple of cars behind a hearse/funeral procession on the dual carriageway, and while it wasn't crawling along, it was doing a fairly dignified speed for the circumstances. Nobody was overtaking, and while in life or death circumstances I might've done so, this didn't seem life-or-death enough for me to be the one person to do so. So I came into the session a couple of minutes late while everyone was still settling down, as someone or other often did without any major fuss being made about it, and said something along the lines of, "Sorry I'm late, was held up behind a hearse".

To which the therapist responded by asking, "So why do you think it is that you're thinking about death this week?" and went on talking and questioning me as though I had conjured a whole fucking hearse and somebody else's actual dead loved one, purely through the power of my own supposed morbid thoughts. Like I'm somehow the centre of the universe and create reality through my imagination. Which IMO is a very disrespectful way to interpret a real dead person with real mourning relatives, quite aside from being utterly insane.

Yes, i do slow down safely.
If im walking i stop while it passes. My sign of respect

A young guy, couldn’t have been older than 22/23. Stopped working, took off his hard hat and bowed his head until we passed him.

It used to be the done thing for a man to remove his hat when a funeral was passing. The young man's Granny must have taught him well.

Also for men to raise their hats when passing the Cenotaph. Or salute, if in uniform.

If there is a funeral procession ahead of me I slow down and keep a respectful distance. My Mum always used to close the curtains in the living room if she knew a funeral procession would be passing. Someone would come around saying it is coming now and all the houses would close their curtains and adults go and stand outside on pavement and bow their heads.

Yes I do this. I also turn my music off. And if walking i stop and now my head as it goes past.

Years ago, a single neighbour cake and stood outside with her bowed when we left with my grandad in his hearse. It was a gesture that meant an awful lot to us at the time and never forgotten. I was still quite young but if she happens to be reading, thank you x

*came

Slowing down aside... why are you turning music off inside your own car?!