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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Road ragey driver yesterday

102 replies

perfectlyspherical · 28/01/2019 12:50

Picture the scene. Sunday afternoon, M5 southbound near Bristol. Left lane pretty full of traffic, me in my little Toyota Aygo struggling a bit in the high winds. Satnav tells me in two miles I need to keep right to get to Cribbs Causeway. Check middle lane, it’s empty. So is fast lane. I move over, figuring two miles of empty lane, not a problem to anyone and I’m less of a threat to my own and others’ safety in an empty lane than a fairly full one in this high wind.

Woman in a white car (Subaru, I think) pulls in right behind me, tailgating hard. Maybe half a metre between my car and hers? Flashing lights like crazy, gesticulating very angrily at me to move over. It’s not safe for me to move left as too much traffic and I don’t want to mess up the manoeuvre in such high wind. Besides, it’s now about 1.5 miles till I’ll have to be in this lane anyway. Fast lane is empty, she could simply overtake me. Which she does, after a minute or two of trying extremely aggressively to intimidate me and make me move over.

She then zigs back in front of me, zags into left lane, right in front (and I mean right in front) of a lorry who has to move over to prevent himself crashing into her.

Why do people drive like this? I fully accept I was lane-hogging, however I was no danger to other traffic and no obstruction to her overtaking as the fast lane was empty. In high winds, me driving in an empty lane in my little car is much less dangerous to me and others. I couldn’t have moved over safely due to volume of traffic in the left lane, and I would have needed to move back over fairly swiftly anyway. It’s the look of crazed anger in her eyes that shook me the most. Like she was some self-appointed lane cop or something. Genuinely did make me wonder if she was on something.

Anyway, probably will be told I was the rude one for not moving over but like I say, I couldn’t have. She nearly caused a pile up in the left lane herself! Just wondering what others thought of the situation?

OP posts:
Mookatron · 28/01/2019 15:33

I do think the law is stupid. I keep it, of course. It should be a matter of good practice not law.

But everybody getting so aerated about it is proving my point. It is never acceptable to tailgate or drive aggressively. If you can't get into the inside lane without doing it you shouldn't be on the road.

whatsthecomingoverthehill · 28/01/2019 15:36

The subaru was apparently wrong for overtaking then darting back to the left lane, presumably because she was coming off at that junction. OP seems to think this was not her fault. The only other alternative was for the Subaru to undertake, which obviously the Subaru was trying to avoid.

I think you are assuming that the OP was going slower than traffic in the left hand lane. If you think the subaru had no option but to cut up a lorry I'd be a bit concerned about your decision making.

Onlyjoinedforthisthread · 28/01/2019 15:44

Mookatron
Why is it a stupid law? Because it was a Tory law? Motoring organisations like rac and aa would disagree with you.

Charlie97 · 28/01/2019 15:53

@Mookatron you may think it's a stupid law and that would seem to be biased due to your political view, but nevertheless it's a law and one OP admits she was breaking.

She shouldn't have broken that law and the resulting chain of events would never have happened!

Lydiaatthebarre · 28/01/2019 15:59

It's annoying when people hog the overtaking lane (there's no such thing as a 'fast' lane) but it doesn't excuse dangerous driving. That woman should lose her licence. She could cause a serious or fatal accident with that kind of bad tempered and arrogant driving.

Mookatron · 28/01/2019 16:04

@Charlie97 I don't deny being politically biased - who could?? But it is this that really pisses me off :

She shouldn't have broken that law and the resulting chain of events would never have happened!

Being in the middle lane "too long" can be argued in terms of whether it was appropriate to be there, who was in front etc. The person who drove up her arse beeping and then cut a lorry up drove dangerously and there are no excuses for that. It is Not justified by someone else's misdemeanor which is irritating rather than dangerous. You should drive for the conditions you find not what you want to find.

Howhot · 28/01/2019 16:05

Why on earth did you need 2 miles to move over into a lane you admit was empty?

That's unnecessary.

Her tailgating and hastily pulling in sounds dangerous.

But just because they were driving worse than you, it doesn't make your bad driving a non issue....

Charlie97 · 28/01/2019 16:10

The other person acted badly as well no denying, she was guilty of driving without due care and attention.

However, when we do things wrong we need to think of how it can escalate and turn a relatively minor offence into a tragedy.

So middle lane hogger, someone pulls out to overtake and it results in an accident, then people get hurt or worse. Ultimately the middle lane hogger drives on without recourse ...... but has played a part in the accident.

This is why the law was changed IMO it causes accidents and the middle lane hogger just drives away.

Our actions have consequence, don't start a chain of events.

Disclaimer:- I'm not a Tory voter.

Mookatron · 28/01/2019 16:11

Well I think it's fair to say it has nothing to do with the tories really Grin

Anonanonanariston · 28/01/2019 16:12

So long as you were going faster (even marginally) than left lane traffic when you pulled out then you were OK. If you weren't then that's no good or you're forcing everyone in the left lane to slow down (not good for trucks especially) or they'd be illegally and dangerously undertaking you. Regardless, she was being a knob. You could have stayed in the left lane anyway as it forks into two then you stay in the right hand fork.

Mookatron · 28/01/2019 16:13

I just CANNOT Stand aggressive drivers. They make me feel like punching them (yes, irony I know). Ideally none would make any driving mistakes but in real life...

Charlie97 · 28/01/2019 16:13

@Mookatron true that but I did need to put my disclaimer just in case you thought I was GrinGrin. I'll accept people thinking certain things about me .... but not that: Grin

Charlie97 · 28/01/2019 16:15

Agree @Mookatron aggressive drivers without a shadow of a doubt are the worst drivers. They become unable to think rationally. Which is a huge danger to themselves and everyone around them.

Gooseygoosey12345 · 28/01/2019 16:34

Why is being in a tiny aygo a problem with wind? I've driven all sorts and currently have a Peugeot 108. Basically the same car. It's not exactly high sided and sticks to the road just fine. They do 70mph easily so it's kind of irrelevant what kind of car it was. You sound like a nervous driver. If you were overtaking and didn't cut her up then she's being a twat. But if you pulled out in front of her/weren't overtaking/were driving ridiculously slowly then I can see why she got annoyed HOWEVER she still shouldn't have driven like that, it's just a ridiculous reaction!

Gooseygoosey12345 · 28/01/2019 16:36

@Anonanonanariston no that's not the case at all. It is legal to undertake if the traffic in the lane next to you is driving slower and you haven't moved into the lane/changed position to undertake. Otherwise traffic would never move!

CuriousaboutSamphire · 28/01/2019 16:36

If all lanes are going “at the same speed.” And lane changing is dangerous.

Why pick the middle lane?

In this specific case because, as has been describe quite a lot, the left hand lane was about to become a different motorway and the middle lane was about to become the left hand lane of the motorway the OP wanted to be on!

You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking a number of slower-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past Unless of course, that left hand lane is about to be another motorway. In this case the OP changed to the middle lane which them became the left hand lane of the motorway she wanted to be on!

The thing is, if cars in the left lane were going faster than you, they have to pull out, go into the right lane to over take you, Unless, as in this case, the left hand lane is a run off lane to another mtorway and dirvers shouldn't be pulling out and overtaking but judging their speed to match the traffic and filing into that lane in order to change roads.

It is not as if such splitter roads are uncommon. Surely we have all met them?

CuriousaboutSamphire · 28/01/2019 16:39

Why on earth did you need 2 miles to move over into a lane you admit was empty? Ooh, this gets to be fun!

Because that lane was the lane she needed to be in so as not to be on the wrong motorway! And, as I said earlier, contrary to A N Other poster, the signs telling you about the splitter lane start at about 2 miles from the junction... just less than 2 minutes at 70mph. The lefthand lane was full... OP moved into the lane she needed to be on what, a whole 60 seconds earlier than absolutely necessary.

Roussette · 28/01/2019 16:50

What she did was fine (I think) unless she was going 50 or 60. In which case it was really not fine!

I'm not sure what wind has to do with anything.

Charlie97 · 28/01/2019 16:58

But OP fully admitted and accepted she was lane hogging, she said sat nav told her two miles ahead she needed to keep right. No indication that road markings advised it was time to move lane.

Thesnobbymiddleclassone · 28/01/2019 17:01

You both a bit dicky really. You had loads of time and didn't need to be in that lane yet but she was also an idiot for her manoeuvres

Lizzie48 · 28/01/2019 17:06

The OP changed lanes too early, and it doesn't sound as if there was any need to, as it would have been a simple matter to wait until the appropriate time make the change. I therefore understand why the other driver might have been irritated about it, but tailgating the OP and then cutting up the lorry was downright dangerous, no excuse for that.

How fast were you going, OP?

GinDaddy · 28/01/2019 17:08

@CuriousaboutSamphire

Wow ok.. thanks for the first two. The Highway Code doesn’t say “always stay in the left hand lane in every circumstance, no exceptions. “ otherwise there’d be a lot of people going round and round in circles... we know people have to occasionally come into another lane in order to continue on the same road.

Don’t let me get in the way of a good bit of righteous pedanticism though..

Mushroomsarehorrible · 28/01/2019 17:21

Yabbers

2 miles ridiculously early to pull over. Folk doing that give me the rage. If you can’t cope with the driving conditions, stay off the road

I wouldn’t have tailgated you, but I’d have been swearing at you

People like you on the roads are what has made driving so unpleasant. You need to calm the fuck down and learn some patience Hmm

CuriousaboutSamphire · 28/01/2019 17:32

Gindaddy why? Just why be so bloody miserable about it? Knowing the junction I just don't think she did anything dangerous or wrong. She just moved over a tad bit early.

In real.life shit often happens less perfectly than on paper.

Lizzie48 · 28/01/2019 17:35

'2 miles ridiculously early to pull over. Folk doing that give me the rage. If you can’t cope with the driving conditions, stay off the road
*
I wouldn’t have tailgated you, but I’d have been swearing at you*'

'People like you on the roads are what has made driving so unpleasant. You need to calm the fuck down and learn some patience'

As long as the swearing is under her breath, it won't affect anyone else. My DH often swears about bad driving when behind the wheel but it only affects him (well, me too of course!).