How can you NOT get onto a motorway?

[purplecurtaindog]

I have driven on motorways for many years and avaerge 15,000 miles some years as I drive for work. I consider myself a very confident yet safe driver. I have experience driving lorries and an extended professional license.

Never in my 20+ years of driving have I had trouble getting onto a motorway...

Yet my friend told me today that she was not able to join a motorway today, that she matched with speed of traffic but there were 'no gaps.' She got stranded at the end of the slip road, DC in car, and ended up getting a vehicle recovery service to come out and get her car as she was too scared to move onto the motorway from a stop.

She says it was not her fault and that this was not due to fault of her driving.

However I can't see how you could fail to get onto a motorway if you were merging correctly?

I've always matched my speed with the traffic, indicated right, ended up on carriageway. If the traffic is slower, you still match your speed! My guess is she want too fast or slow. Yet she insisted this was not her fault.

So AIBU to not see how a safe and competent driver can get stranded at the end of a slip road? And AIBU to ask if this has ever happened to anyone/ if they've witnessed it?

I personally never have in all my years of driving.

Friend has been driving for ten plus years. I did mention that this shouldn't happen and that it was very dangerous, but I wasn't harsh or rude.

Thank you.

Yes, JosieJasper, you are supposed to allow traffic on the slip road to join the motorway. I always change lanes if it’s safe to do so.

I have always thought you should allow traffic to join the carriageway either by moving into the middle lane or by slowing down/allowing a larger gap. I realise that vehicles on the motorway have right of way but common sense should prevail and leaving a car unable to join, as in the OP, is dangerous as well as inconsiderate.

I hope that adding a motorway element to the driving test will help people gain the confidence to drive well on motorways.

I guess I'm getting old but I'm so much more aware of how vulnerable people are when travelling at high speeds on multi-lane roads than I used to be.

I once saw an elderly man driving the wrong way down the outside lane of the M40 near Wycombe seemingly oblivious to the cars having to get out of his way. I called the police because that certainly could have caused an horrific accident. When I dialled 999 the operator told me that the police were already aware and on the way, thankfully.

I think after reading some of these posts that there is a problem here that needs sorting out. The guidance given in the highway code for joining a main road or motorway doe's not say what should happen if there is not a gap in the traffic big enough for a vehicle joining to move in too.
It is not safe for vehicles on the motorway to slow down as this could cause shunting, and it is not safe for cars to have to stop at the end of the slip road as the same could happen.
No two slip roads are the same, but I think as as general rule (at busy times) cars on the motorway or main road should move over to the next lane to allow cars to come on from the slip way, with signs telling you to do so.

The only time I've ever had to slow significantly - and even then I didn't stop - getting onto a free flowing road, was a very short slip road onto a fast dual carriageway at a medium busy time. I matched speed properly and had a gap to pull into pretty much at the start of the slip road - the fucking arsehole behind me drove up behind me far too close, then pulled out behind me into the gap I was about to go in, and blocked me from moving. I had no choice but to slow down a lot, but the idiot who pulled out then also slowed down, matching my slower speed half a car length from me so I literally couldn't pull out without hitting him.

I had to slow to a crawl and the twat STOPPED in the slow lane so I could pull out in front of them. Causing everyone else behind him to have to stop or pull out into the fast moving outside lane.

I have replayed this so many times in my head and I cannot work out what I should have done to prevent this; it was like they just did not see that I was in front of them and then panicked because they'd fucked things up for me.

Even worse, my car is a lovely but slow to accelerate runabout, so it felt like three years before I could get back up to speed, and the one who caused the issues then tailgated me. I was shaken, so pulled out at the next exit, and they followed me for ages and ages, tailgating all the way. I had to pull over into a pub in the end to shake them.

Hi there I have just attempted to driver our new camper van which is gears After about 12 year of automatic golf having serious confidence issues any help out there ???

@HermionesRightHook that sounded seriously scary! Sounds like they were following you/trying to run you off the road. I would have taken the number plate and reported it to the Police I think.

It didn't feel like they did it on purpose to start with @GoingRogue but afterwards, yeah. I don't know if they were just going that way, or they had also scared themselves, but the net result was horrible. Did not have the presence of mind to get the number plate.