To not really understand the problem with driving in the middle lane?

[BrokenSunglasses]

I've done a lot of motorway driving recently, and it's got me thinking, because I don't really understand when it's ok to be in the middle lane and when it's not.

I've worked out that its ok to stay in the middle lane when there's lots of cars/lorries on the inside lane and I'm going faster, but how long is it ok to stay in the middle lane when there's nothing right next to you on the inside lane?

Sometimes I stay in there longer than I perhaps should, but that's either because I can see that I'd only have to move out again in a minute because there's a slow moving lorry ahead, or because I can see a junction coming up and there will be cars filtering onto the the motorway.

I did that yesterday, and got flashed a lot by a van behind me, but it was raining so the visibility was crap, and I'd have had to slow down and be too close behind the car that was on the inside lane and would have been able to see even less because of the spray. It seems to me to be sensible to leave lots of space inbetween vehicles when it's raining, but this van made me doubt myself. He overtook me in the outside lane eventually, and I thought he should have just done that in the first place because that's what it's there for.

Was I being a lane hog or was he being a twat?

I really don't get it.

Wa he flashing you because you didn't have your lights on or something?

My oh is a middle lane hogger, I'm a keep left all the time kinda person. It causes many arguments especially as I'm right
I do get enraged by a flasher, especially as they always do it when I'm over taking so can't move in even if I wanted too.
I also get enraged by the under taker who uses all the lanes to weave

It there is enough space that a car could undertake you then you should move in.

I don't know what is confusing about making sure your in the right lane. I have been driving for 10 years with an awful lot of motorway driving and never been confused over which lane I should be in.

If you find driving on the motorway confusing you should maybe take an advanced driving course. It is a bit daunting driving on the motorway for some, but I sure as hell wouldn't want to be involved in an accident with someone who was confused.

The m25 is different though, because the traffic is heavier. In fact, the signs often tell you to stay in lane.

Op, sounds like you're a bit of a middle lane hogger. How about moving in if you're going to be more than say, 30 secs, waiting to overtake? You might be overthinking getting back out again, is it ever really a problem?

I've never had trouble pulling out to overtake slower vehicles except it the most congested of traffic, when there are so many vehicles on the road that it isn't possible to lane hog anyway.

If I'm in the middle lane and its obvious I'm going to overtaking constantly for a bit then I stay. Nothing wrong with that. If the next vehicle is up the road in the distance I move over as soon as it is safe to.

Anyone else finding the word 'vehicle' a bit funny to look at now?

No, I was definitely being flashed because he wanted me to move over. I had my lights on, I was just trying to stay far enough away from the vehicles in front that they spray they were creating from the rain wasn't coming directly onto my windscreen. He probably didn't have that problem though, because his driving position was so much higher than mine.

Movingonandup, you have it spot on!

I never had a motorway lesson and never really got shown how to do it. I did have to do the theory test, but that was it.

And there are so many lorries on the motorway, I hate being stuck behind them because it feels like you can't see as much.

It's not 'the middle lane'. It's an overtaking lane.

I don't understand how anyone can find this simple fact confusing, frankly.

In cases of doubt, ask yourself: Am I overtaking anything? If not - pull the fuck back in.

I fail to see how the majority if responses in this thread validate your approach. You are not driving safely

Of for gods sake - just get out of the middle lane! Of course if there is lots of slow moving traffic in the inside you aren't going to move in. But if there is no traffic or a big gap you should move. And from watching the other traffic and how fast you are going you should be able to judge how soon you will approach them and whether it is worth pulling in. When there is a slip road onto the motorway you only need to move to the middle if you can see there is lots of traffic coming on.

To the person not switching lanes so they are not breaking and speeding up all the time to save fuel - I think its your driving that is the problem. You shouldn't need to slow down and speed up loads to change lanes. And you will save a lot more fuel doing 60, in which case you should get in the inside lane!

I would suggest that all the people unable to move out of the middle lane stop driving on the motorway. However drivers who say they can't drive on the motorway also annoy me. So maybe you should all take a motorway driving lesson.

I agree with movingon about the M25, I use it a lot and rarely drive in the left hand lane.
What about the issue of the speed limit being 70 though? If you are doing 70, no one should be overtaking you so does it matter which lane you are in?

It sounds like there is going to be quite a lot of revenue made from the proposed fines for middle lane hogging if this thread is anything to go by!

You might be overthinking getting back out again, is it ever really a problem?

It is when the traffic is heavy and there isn't a gap in the middle lane for you to safely pull into, and despite indicating, no one will move into the outside lane to create a space for you.

Surely I can't be the only one who has experienced that?

Maybe I should say, this was the M4 in the morning. There was a particularly large number of lorries.

It's not a "middle lane" though, is it?

It's for overtaking.

Then you return to the left hand lane when you've overtaken.

If you're not going all that fast in the "middle lane", then people from the left hand lane have to move all the way to the outside lane to overtake you!

As someone who quite often drives vehicles that are not allowed in Lane 3 (the furthest right) due to their size (trailer attached - although this also applied to Heavy Good Vehicles too) and therefore can ONLY overtake when the slower vehicles are in the left hand land (assuming 3 lane motorway) .. middle lane drivers are extremely frustrating, as you have to drop speed behind them until they get out of the way..

The Highway code is quite clear - always return to the left hand lane where possible.

And don't forget larger vehicles can't accelerate or slow as easily as a car so by blocking them middle lane hoggers are ensuring that the fuel consumption on those vehicles is vastly compromised!

30 seconds takes you a fair distance if you're travelling at 70 mph - I'm not even sure you should be in the middle lane for that amount of time, it all depends on what speed other traffic is going, how busy the inside lane is, what's ahead of you, what's on the outside lane etc etc.

The thing is, there is no straightforward rule - it's about experience, judgement, confidence, driving to conditions and so on.

Let's have fines for travelling over 70, and double them for over 80

Why don't you stick a speed and stick with it, except for overtaking (for which you then use the outer lanes)?

Threads like this always provoke rumination on my part on the strange terminations of capitalist democracy ...

What about the issue of the speed limit being 70 though? If you are doing 70, no one should be overtaking you so does it matter which lane you are in?

Probably best stick to the B roads.

I always move over to the left if possible but I'm quite strict about it because I tow a lot and if I'm towing I can't use the outside lane, I can't overtake slower moving middle lane hoggers so I make sure I never put someone else in that position.

The mix of responses on this thread show just how many middle lane hoggers there are.

So for those who say I wasn't driving safely, (I'm really trying not to be one of those AIBUers that refuses to accept they are BU, but it appears to be happening anyway!) would it really be safer for me to move into the inside lane if it meant that my already crap visibility was reduced even further by doing so, and that I would have had to slow down?

I drive regularly on the M25 and M20. In the rush hour then I won't spend much time in the inside lane, because I'll be going faster than the traffic in the inside lane and there won't be much space between those vehicles. At other times of the day there will be much wider gaps between the vehicles in the inside lane, in which case I will gently pull into them when I've passed the slower vehicle. Then indicate and gently pull out again as I see the next slower vehicle approaching ahead of me.
Say for example you pull out to pass inside lane traffic, and you can see there's another slow vehicle coming up, but there is definitely a gap you could pull into for a couple of minutes. You are supposed to pull in. Particularly if you see a faster vehicle than you approaching in the middle lane in your rear view mirror.
By the way, if you do end up having to lift your foot off the throttle for a few seconds, it's not the end of the world. You won't lose more than a few seconds off your journey time. If you accelerate calmly and gradually when you have space (but still it only takes a few seconds) you won't use extra fuel. Trust me, I live with a motor mechanic. I drive 1,000's of motorway miles in a year, I know from experience that this is really easily done if you're a decent driver. You'll only start wasting fuel if you constantly accelerate sharply, and unless there's a crisis situation, you should never need to do that on a motorway.
Some people seem to think that everything has to be so instant - there's a car going a bit slower than they thought up ahead, so they put the brakes on instead of just easing off the throttle and slowing gradually while waiting calmly for an opportunity to move over to the next lane. They need to pull out, so they dive out into the next lane, accelerating as they go, instead of waiting for a space large enough to do this smoothly. This is just poor driving.

Serious suggestion for anyone who is uncertain - why not invest in a couple of motorway driving lessons with a qualified instructor? All your questions would be answered in real-time as you drive.

If there was enough of a gap to move in why would you visibility have been reduced?