Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to ask middle-lane sitters why they do it?

289 replies

Gentleness · 15/02/2013 12:15

I'm not starting this thread to criticise or belittle at all, so please don't flame me. The audi thread just got me thinking about my constant mental battle to assume the best of other drivers. I have to, as I'm naturally a harsh critic and I don't like it in myself. But while I can think someone speeding is trying to get to their sick child, or someone dithering has had a bad scare, I struggle to understand the drivers who sit in the middle line on motorways. So, tell me why so I can train my brain to be kind!

OP posts:
howdoyouknowjenny · 15/02/2013 22:35

Squinkies. You slow down therefore widening the gap between you and the lorry in front!!! Problem solved, no?

juneybean · 15/02/2013 22:46

CarlingBlackMabel get back in your box, if you read the thread I accepted I was uneducated on what undertaking actually was.

Gottalovecosta · 15/02/2013 22:58

You should be more concerned about the morons in the 'fast lane' doing 100mph - there isn't a 'fast lane' but that doesn't stop them attempting to own the road, does it? sigh I spend too much time on the M6.

SquinkiesRule · 15/02/2013 23:05

Squinkies. You slow down therefore widening the gap between you and the lorry in front!!! Problem solved, no?
No it doesn't work I use to try that. Leave a car length between you and people start lane jumping and pushing in front of you from both sides, it's bloody brutal. I'm sure you tube has amusing clips of the California freeways rush hour traffic.
I am now quite zen in my driving habits, no one fazes me really I just keep going and ignore people flipping each other off and honking at cars pushing in. LOL

Original poster
Gentleness · 15/02/2013 23:47

Wow, I definitely see more middle- lane sitters in real life than on mumsnet! And yes to those who realised I was talking about drivers sitting in the middle lane when nothing is in the inside lane.

I do a lot of my motorway driving late at night to avoid the worst traffic so have seen many instances of clear roads apart from one person doing 63 in the middle lane. And yes to the poster who observed that they tend to look oblivious. I hadn't realised there were drivers who thought the middle lane was for 70mph. Though I now recall reading on here that someone had their midwife explain to them that the inside lane was for lorries. Worrying all round, and not much to help me achieve gentleness...

OP posts:
Original poster
Gentleness · 15/02/2013 23:48

Oh, and I love "clods"!

OP posts:
poodletip · 15/02/2013 23:51

I think this is the most frightening thread I have ever read on Mumsnet Shock

MLM are not people who drive in the middle lane passing a steady line of slower traffic in the inside lane. Obviously it would be dangerous to keep bobbing in and out of two busy lanes with traffic at different speeds.

MLM on clear roads are dangerous because you can have faster traffic travelling at different speeds needing to get past at the same time. They now only have one lane between them to pass instead of two ergo it is more dangerous for everybody.

Unless you actually are the traffic police then it is not your job to control how fast the other traffic is moving. Trying to do so actually creates a more dangerous situation with people getting frustrated and having to do more complicated overtaking manouvers to maintain their speed (which may or may not be above the speed limit but that's still not your business to do anything about it). I have actually seen on one of these police camera programmes on TV where they pulled someone over for doing exactly that.

Criticising other people's driving on the internet is not dangerous. Trying to control what other road users do while on the road is dangerous. Yes people speed. Yes they are breaking the law. But it happens all the time so you either have to deal with it and drive as safely as you can allowing for that or you are actually part of the problem.

rollmopses · 16/02/2013 00:22

I drove 345 miles on motorway yesterday and THE most annoying/dangerous types are the ones who weave in and out between lorries every bleeping 5 seconds. You are a driver. You have eyes. And a brain, hopefully. You can forward plan. You see lorries dotted every hundred yards for as far as your little beady eye can see.
DO NOT start ticking in and out like bloody sewing machine but TRY and rub your two withering brain cells together and think. Plan. Stay in the middle lane doing speed limit UNTIL you see a long enough stretch of free road in left lane. Then move over.
Again, do not needle like a stung eejit in and out. You are making me dizzy. And you are bloody dangerous,
FORWARD PLAN!

[And breathe. Bloody wankers]

rollmopses · 16/02/2013 00:23

..were the ones, even.
Ah, never mind. So so angry.

JingleMum · 16/02/2013 00:25

I'm scared Blush I totally hog the middle lane & wasn't aware it was frowned upon!!

The reason I do it, is that I travel faster than "the slow lane traffic" but slower than "the fast lane" traffic. Also, there's loads of slip roads in the slow lane, so I'd have to keep changing lane, which I think is dangerous on a busy motorway? No?

What am I supposed to do? But worried now. Shall I stay in slow lane & just keep moving over for slip road traffic?

AgnesBligg · 16/02/2013 00:30

I stick to the middle lane if I'm on a pleasant 68+ mph. I skip all the lorries to my left and the speeders still have the far right option if they can't help themselves. This seems ideal driving on motorway (to me).

rollmopses · 16/02/2013 00:46

zhwiszensug or whatever you are called. The speed-limit is 70mph. That's about 75m on your speedometer. Nobody should LEGALLY go faster than that, correct?
Your comment :''It's the police's job to police peoples driving, if people want to drive at 100mph then on their head be it if they get caught or crash into a tree.
'' is utterly, absolutely idiotic, I hope you do realise that.
Not many trees around motorways, plenty of cars though. The morons doing 100mph should be castrated on the spot.

LittleTyga · 16/02/2013 00:56

Just remember We drive on the left unless overtaking - thems the rules! If the nearside lane is empty move over!

Kleptronic · 16/02/2013 01:00

They don't know how to drive. It's like chess. That is all.

JugglingFromHereToThere · 16/02/2013 03:25

Loving your honesty Agnes ! Smile

TheSmallerPenguin · 16/02/2013 03:49

I am constantly amazed by the number of drivers who just don't get that both the middle and outside lanes are there for overtaking. Why is that so difficult to grasp?

This evening I drove about 270 miles, pretty much all on motorways. I lost count of the number of times I had go from the inside lane to the outside, then straight back to the inside lane to go past cars merrily cruising down the middle lane of an empty motorway. This was after about 9pm on the M5 southish before anyone argues about the empty bit, really, it was very quiet.

Why do they do this? I just don't get it. The temptation to just be done with the faff and undertake them is huge. I didn't, but boy was I tempted.

TheSmallerPenguin · 16/02/2013 04:03

And, if you were on the M5 south between 9pm and 11pm doing just that, please explain why. I am genuinely interested as to why people do it.

JugglingFromHereToThere · 16/02/2013 04:10

I think people do it because the inside lane has lots of slow traffic such as lorries, and has people joining from slip roads (and leaving) - the middle lane seems easier and pleasanter and safer to many !
But I can see it's annoying to others, especially when inside lane very empty.
In that case, yes, it's just a bad habit.
But not as bad as other people's bad habits ! I'd never undertake for example - so dangerous.

AKissIsNotAContract · 16/02/2013 04:22

I think everyone should have to do motorway lessons after they've passed their driving test. I did pass plus after mine. It's astonishing how many people don't know how to use motorways correctly.

As for comments about people speeding - just move out of the way of speeding drivers and let them pass. The safest place for a tail gater is in front of you.

VivaLeBeaver · 16/02/2013 05:53

It's all very well people saying they sit in the middle lane as they're going faster than the inside lane. But what about the poor sods stuck behind a lorry in the inside lane.

I pull back into the inside lane after overtaking. Then I get behind the next lorry and want to pull back out. I can't because of all the middle lane sitters who stayed in the middle lane rather than pulling into the very large, half mile gap behind me. I'm stuck there indicating to come out and they all pretend they haven't seen me and sail past. Fuckers.

diaimchlo · 16/02/2013 07:45

There are far more annoying and dangerous things on a motorway than middle lane sitters tbh.

Those who join at a slip road and go directly into the outside lane.
Those who switch lane without indicating
Those who think it is ok to switch lanes when there is a gap that is only a cars length... This one really annoys me as they are stealing my safe breaking distance.
HGVs going into the middle lane for any reason other than to get into a correct lane for their destination.

Sparklingbrook · 16/02/2013 07:48

Exactly Viva. Common courtesy does not exist on the motorway. Everyone seems very angry.

rollmopses · 16/02/2013 09:22

Read my post Viva. I could murder the lane-weavers like you. Use your brain. Please.
If you see a lorry in about 100 yards ahead of you in the left lane, what do you deduct, dear?
That the lorry moves about 56mph which is considerably slower than you at 70mph.
That if you were to move to the left lane you'd have to move out to overtake in about 5 seconds.
That constant lane changing is dangerous and done by utter nitwits who lack the power of forward planning.
To decide against the abovementioned action on the grounds that it would be beyond stupid.
Elementary, dear Watson.
Or is it too difficult to grasp?

[arrghh]

Sparklingbrook · 16/02/2013 09:24

Ooh bit patronising roll. And murder? Sad

rollmopses · 16/02/2013 09:24

I believe ability to THINK is more important, than common courtesy.
I'd take rude but intelligent drivers any day.