Is it okay to drive well below the speed limit on a main road?

[ScarboroughFairy]

Hi all, tomorrow I’ll be driving on a main road where the speed limit is 60mph, but I’m thinking of sticking to 40mph. I know it’s well under the limit, but I just feel safer at that speed. Does anyone else do this

Driving instructors daughter here, when learning to drive my dad always emphasised on driving for the conditions, if the road is clear, not wet, ice etc then you drive at 60 or just under, you dont drive at 40 and create more traffic. I was told if you dont drive appropriately on a driving test you couldn't get a mark for it as it is considered " not making progress "

Have you ever driven in the Scottish Highlands?

Honestly - overly nervous drivers who can't handle a straightforward dual carriageway are a danger in themselves....

This is the road we're talking about. There is no viable B-road alternative.

Edit: Scrub the viable, there just isn't one.

You should always be aware of what is happening with the car on front of you, so the only reason you would be slamming on brakes if you weren't paying sufficient attention. Same for the car behind you.

The Police will pull you for going stupidly slow as they think you’re drunk.

40 will be fine, isn’t it the speed most people drive at anyway?

You think most people drive at 40 on a 60mph arterial trunk road and on 70mph dual carriageway and motorway? Jesus wept. I'm assuming you're being facetious though.

I mean, 40mph is the speed most people drive at around here, at all times. Unfortunately.

I checked - you can go via the A93 via Ballater. It will take an extra 2 hours and still have to join the A9 before Perth.

That 5hrs is travelling at normal speeds though, add a whack on for 40mph...

So don't be the cause of even more crashes by putting people in the position that they have to overtake you.

Ah yes, the A93, in January, with snow forecast.

Confused I think. The M90 (as opposed to the A90) runs between Perth and Edinburgh. From Inverness to Perth the road is the A9. The A90 runs down the East coast from Fraserburgh through Aberdeen and Dundee to Edinburgh but isn't continuous. It is connected in a stretch north of Perth until one crosses the Queensferry crossing coming from the North, by the M90. She may choose to pick up the A90 again at that point. Depends which area of Edinburgh she is aiming for

The OP says she is driving from Inverness to Edinburgh. So that has to be the A9 at least as far as Perth. She is correct that it is a road notorious for bad accidents often fatal ones. Which is why there is work ongoing to dual the whole road from Inverness.

Most accidents on the A9 are caused by the sheer frustration of drivers sitting behind long lines of traffic while the vehicle at the front goes at a much slower speed than neccessary for the road conditions and you can't safely overtake for miles. So too many people take dangerous risks. Those drivers are in the wrong, of course, but it's what happens too frequently.

We drive in Scotland a lot and there are ways of avoiding the A9, normally by cutting across country and going up along side Loch Ness. But if you aren’t comfortable doing 50 on a A road, there is no way you would be happy driving these roads as they can be single track and need a lot of traffic awareness.

My driving instructor was always telling me to slow down.
I failed that test. One reason was failing to keep up with the traffic 😂
tbh, you shouldn’t be driving.

Alongside Loch Ness is slower traffic, right enough. But full of lumber lorries, tourist buses doing insane manoeuvres and tourist traffic as well as locals who just want to get to work/school/past the slow drivers. It isn't much better for an anxious driver.

That's concerning!

If a driver cannot drive above 40mph then they shouldn't be on the road, they are likely to be the cause of accidents. In some countries as well as maximum speed limits there are minimum limits as well.

Norfolk maybe? There seem to be a lot of drivers here who drive at 40, whatever the limit!

Driving at a slower speed gives you chance to avoid potholes and costly repairs. Also you’re more likely to stop in an emergency. Why is everyone in such a hurry these days.

I know someone who failed their driving test for driving at 30 in a 40.

Do you mean the A90? If so, why would you be on that road going from Inverness to Edinburgh?

You drive to the road conditions. The speed limit is exactly that. It's a limit not a target. However, driving too slowly is also dangerous as others have said. If the weather and road conditions allow then you shouldn't be driving a third under the speed limit. That's not to say you have to hammer along at 60 if you don't feel confident but 40 is really too slow.

You are joking, right? Firstly, it's not a B road, hence the name A93 so it is still a 60mph A road. Secondly, the Cairnwell Pass is the highest public road in the UK and the snow gates are often closed at this time of year. For a nervous driver that wants to crawl along, this route is far more dangerous than the A9 with 17% gradients and narrow parts along mountainsides, not to mention the Devil's Elbow!

I feel for you, but please don’t do this. It’s dangerous. Someone might not realise you’re going too slowly until it’s too late. Also, if you have people joining you from a slip road you need to be able to speed up or slow down to accommodate them.

although, I do agree that people who are impatient and do risky overtakes are completely at fault, rather than the slow driver.

Because people cannot afford to spend 5 hours stuck on the A9 because someone shouldn't be driving.

If you did that for no good reason in your driving test you'd probably fail. It's very dangerous.