If you cant drive faster than 30mph on a rural road why visit a rural location

[JustAnotherPoster00]

I live in a rural part of Wales and I'm sick of inconsiderate drivers not pulling over when they clearly have a cue of 15 cars behind them because they're so happy daudling along. I understand if they're nervous that's ok just pull over and let us very frustrated drivers by.

Rant Over

The obvious one is drive for conditions. That btw means slower if it is the first rain after a long dry spell - another big crash day round here.

It does not include not getting your arse out of bed earlier, or being so terribly important that you cant wait those extra 10 seconds which is all that lethal overtake will gain you

The problem is that you don't know if the car in front of you is going slowly because they do know the road, or because they don't. I have lost count of the times I have been beeped or flashed by cars when travelling on an innocuous stretch of road, on the afternoon school run, as they think I should be going faster. When they go round one of the bends and see there is a herd of cows in the road, they probably understand why I was driving so slowly. Sometimes I see the car in front of me going far too fast and then hear the squeal of brakes as they round the bend. My Driving instructor used to say that road conditions change constantly and that you can never truly know the road even if you have driven it thousands of times.

I agree if you have more than 10 cars piled up behind, then you should dip in and let them pass.

However, not everyone is sure of the edges being hard, or that they won't be stuck off road for ages waiting while there's a safe spot to pull out in.

Guilty: in my yoof, occasionally I've driven like a rally driver along rural roads I knew and slowed down to an almost stop in places where I knew were tricky- think barren Heath lands (no hedges) with excellent visibility up road, but with dips and bends.

However, I agree, where there is poor visibility, unclipped hedges, and tractors, mowers, horse boxes, horses, dairy cow herds etc, it makes sense to keep it slow and stick into the left, even if that means cars are piling up behind.

However, if there were tourists in hired cars, driving on their "wrong" side, I'd be patient, and let them drive the way they felt comfortable with. I'd just get there later than I intended, rather than try and pass. Sometimes I'd stop and whip out my thermos, and have a cuppa! They'd be gone ahead enough when I'd finished.

There are other considerations to consider when driving and that is noise pollution, and its effect on the communities of animals living there. Slow speeds are sometimes there to ensure vulnerable animals and birds can life their lives without being stressed from the noise of engines and wheels.

So yes in a way I agree with you OP.
If cars are piling up behind in a queue then it's polite (and Highway Code) to pull in and let them off, but if there is a tourist or someone who isn't sure of the road then I'm afraid slow and safe is better than driving like hell and getting there.

Sometimes you've just got to suck it up. At least you've fresh air and nice scenery, eh?

If it's a wide straight road with a 60 mph limit then yes, crawling along at 30, oblivious to a queue building behind you is inconsiderate at best, dangerous at worst.

However, having done a lot of rural driving myself, what's worse is the ignorant shits who belt along narrow country lanes at breakneck speed, and only avoid accidents because other people are better, safer drivers. I always want to say to them 'you do realise if I drove as badly as you, we'd have had a head on collision?' Really grinds my gears (no pun intended!) that some people rely on other, better drivers to avoid accidents

When I was learning to drive it terrified the life out of me having to drive on roads like that, because my instructor insisted that I should drive at the speed limit on thsee ridiculous roads and secondly because even when I WAS driving at the right speed, people were taking it upon themselves to overtake me. So I was driving at 60, which was the limit, they must have been going faster than that to overtake me.

Under the circumstances you describe then YANBU to be annoyed.

However, YABU for having the thread title "If you cant drive faster than 30mph on a rural road why visit a rural location". This is illogical as it implies that the only reason for visiting a rural location is so that you can drive faster than 30mph.

What gets my goat is people who pull out of side roads when you are quite clearly close to them doing 60 mph causing me to Have to slam the brakes on

Today being a prime example driving along quite happily (nice straight road) doing 55-60mph and this idiot pulls out in front of me from the junction when I was clearly visible. As it was safe to do so I went to overtake as he was dawdling having just pulled out Infront of me. Instead of letting me past and pulling In again safely he speeds right up until I have no choice but to pull back in. Arsehole

Drivers not stopping for horses is my other bugbear. What is it about a car that turns people into egomaniacs?

If it is because of health issues then the answer should be regular driving tests. If not, then just something that you should cope with.

The really dangerous drivers aren't the slow and steady ones, it's the twitchy nervous ones who slam on their brakes suddenly every time a car comes along on the other side of the road (despite it being a fairly wide road with white lines down the middle).

And the most annoying ones are the ones on narrow country lanes who refuse to pull into the side or reverse to let others pass, and just sit there glaring at you to - well, I don't know. Make the road be wider somehow so they don't have to risk scratching their precious shiny people carriers on a hedge? Spontaneously evaporate? Reverse half a mile down the road when there was a passing place a few yards behind them? Drives me round the bend. Literally. Backwards.

I have so nearly started this exact thread so many times.

I travel two A roads very regularly, both are straightish one has a few bends that can be safely completed at 50/55mph if you don't know them and 60 if you do. On this road although the road is safe to do 60 mph there are very few places to pass, 9/10 you end up following daytrippers doing 35 - 40mph for 7 - 8 miles WHO THEN DRIVE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AT THE FEW WIDER PLACES YOU CAN PASS

I live in an extremely touristy area. Without fail every weekend the other road grinds to a halt due to tourists not driving to the road and insisting on going 35mph - 40 mph in a perfectly safe 60. This is a perfectly straight, wide stretch of road. It is so frustrating for local people and yes, there are many accidents wholly down to impatient drivers.

I can't remember where I first saw this cartoon but I am frequently reminded of it!