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

Obviously 50 is better than 40 (in this case), but the point is that you should adjust your speed to the prevailing driving conditions rather than arbitrarily deciding it before setting off.

If you seriously need three days to recover from driving 150 miles I think you'd be much better off taking public transport.

But you should approach corners (and driving in general) to ensure you can stop if there's an obstacle. So your speed (and therefore stopping distance) is obviously linked to your visibility. So you should never be steaming round a blind bend at a speed where you can't stop safely if there's an obstacle the other side. What if someone had booked down, or there was an accident! Large open bends you don't need to slow down partly because you retain that visibility.

If you turn a corner and smash into a vehicle, it's your fault for driving badly and not giving yourself.enoigh time.

There are no blind corners on the A9. You've clearly never driven the road. It's a major trunk road which can easily be driven by a reasonably competent driver in decent weather conditions at the speed limit.

No, you shouldn’t be driving if you don’t feel confident enough to do it properly.

Maybe a wee detour to the Cockbridge to Tomintoul road.

Someone did suggest that earlier. 😂

police do not bother pulling you up for driving 40/45 on a motorway ... as hardly ever there and they are too busy . Some traffic is usually in lane 1 doing 45 - 50 mph . . . . ( vintage , trucks and old cars , caravans , automatic cars which are excessively consuming without a 5th or 6th gear , ....people who think they are " breaking in new cars " , wide loads etc )

Given there are so many experts on this thread I would refer you to two separate rules in the highway code:
Rule 146
Adapt your driving to the appropriate type and condition of road you are on. In particular
...
take the road and traffic conditions into account. Be prepared for unexpected or difficult situations, for example, the road being blocked beyond a blind bend. Be prepared to adjust your speed as a precaution
...

Rule 154
Take extra care on country roads and reduce your speed at approaches to bends, which can be sharper than they appear, and at junctions and turnings, which may be partially hidden. Be prepared for pedestrians, horse riders, cyclists, slow-moving farm vehicles or mud on the road surface. Make sure you can stop within the distance you can see to be clear. You should also reduce your speed where country roads enter villages.
...

I think this is exactly what I'm saying - you take extra care when there are likely to be hazards like horses and cyclists. This is not the A90.

At night , there is no traffic at all after 11.30 and you can safely do 45 or 50 and switch off BMWtwat/Rangerover-fatMum mode , which all these m-netters are auto-manufactured to do .

I have driven to Inverness and it's not a great route at all.

I disagree. It was a very pleasant drive indeed last May. It was dry and the sun was shining, and more to the point, people were driving sensibly (apart from the lorries driving at 70 mph on the dual carriageway bits).

Yes, but this is the A9 the OP is talking about. It is the main artery road to the north of Scotland. It's an incredibly busy road! There are no motorways north of Perth.

The A9 isn't a motorway though, for much of it's length it's single carriageway where it's virtually impossible to overtake as there is a constant stream of traffic in the opposite direction.

There is no "Lane 1" to pootle in. Drivers of the vehicles you mention need to be aware and either speed up or pull off onto the loops of the "old A9" to let the traffic behind get moving.

I would like to see a rule implemented that slow-moving vehicles have to divert onto designated loops of old road or face penalties, kind of like a reverse bus-gate.

Unless you're in a tractor or on a moped, doing 40mph on the A9 would result in you being pulled over!

Yes, it might well do. But that would be because the police could be suspicious that you are drunk, under the influence etc. or because you're inconveniencing other road users. If you weren't and were otherwise fine, they wouldn't charge you for driving slowly. Driving slowly isn't an offence. Causing a nuisance to other road users is - and driving slowly might be one of the ways in which to do this.

P.S. Being pulled over doesn't necessarily mean that you are doing something wrong.

It’s dangerous! Don’t drive on the roads if you can’t actually drive safely

I'm thinking about the big English motorways , eg M5 which go completely dead at night for 9 months of the year

It's more like the A1 north of Morpeth.

@Willowywisp A slow vehicle on a road in Scotland can add hours on to a journey.

No it doesn't.

I gave zero tolerance for nervous drivers who only drive in ways that 'make them feel safe.' Ditto drivers who are scared to drive at night, or on the motorway, or anywhere 'new' or a 'different' car etc.

They should gave their licences immediately removed.

Evidence?

To be fair if someone doesn't feel comfortable driving at night and doesn't, or doesn't feel comfortable driving new places and doesn't thats fine by me. The issue is getting in the car and feeling entitled to drive in a way that impacts other drivers I get frustrated by.

Hi OP seems like you’ve done the drive. Well done but please look at a course to boost your confidence. People less confident, going too slow or nervous/jumpy can be really dangerous.

Yes, I'd much prefer they be too nervous to drive and therefore just don't. Nervous drivers are as much a danger on the road as overly confident ones.

My neice failed her driving test as a major for doing this a 60mph road and did just over 40mph