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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think you don’t drive down the middle of the road

38 replies

Idonotlikeyoudonaldtrump · 11/04/2019 12:06

Braving AIBU so please be kind! I IABU I’m happy to hear it.

We live rurally. I’m a non-driver.

The other day a friend (A) and I were given a lift by friend of a friend (B).

The road was a very winding one. B drive down the middle of the road spanning both lanes and sometimes on the wrong side of the road. When a car came in the opposite direction she returned to her own side of the road.

I wasn’t happy and wanted to get out of the car. A and B found it funny and called me an old woman.

A said afterwards that this is the safe and normal way to drive down this road and that she drives in the same way. She says that taking the straightest route down a winding road is the safest way to drive and that it reduces risk of skidding.

Asked friend C, who says WTAF and that this isn’t a thing, that visibility isn’t good and they might not spot a car coming the opposite way until too late.

So AIBU or is this a normal driving technique? Am I being silly not wanting to accept a lift from A or B again?

OP posts:
BiscuitDrama · 11/04/2019 12:07

I’d consider it normal. Probably not correct, but pretty common.
I’d return to my side of the road as soon as I saw another car.

mbosnz · 11/04/2019 12:09

I just about needed a new pair of knickers after driving down a long stretch of B (and possibly C - do they exist?!) roads on the weekend.

DanielRicciardosSmile · 11/04/2019 12:13

According to the information I've found online, YANBU, and they should have stuck to their side of the road not driven in the middle.

Example: midrive.com/learner/how-to-drive-on-rural-roads

bumblingbovine49 · 11/04/2019 12:18

I never do this but I am not a particularly experienced countryside driver as I have always lived in cities .

I have observed this sort of driving, usually on long windy/ mountainous roads. Usually it is locals who like to go as fast as possible but who l know all the bends etc.

Having said that, in the area in the mountains I have most experience of, people do drive off the road on accidents. Several of my relatives who live there have done his over the years. Whether this is just because they do a lot of country road driving so the risk of coming off the road is higher than mine just because of how much they do it compared to me or because they drive like lunatics, I couldn't possibly say . Wink

Celebelly · 11/04/2019 12:19

On fairly narrow country roads you tend to be more central when the road is clear ahead and move over further to your side when you have to squeeze past another car. If visibility is OK then it's not really an issue. Was it a narrow road or was it a wide road with two discrete lanes? If the road is a wide one then there's no need for it, but if it's narrow then sticking rigidly far to the left means you're sometimes on uneven ground and at risk of going into a sudden ditch if the roadside isn't very well maintained (well round here anyway!).

Socksey · 11/04/2019 12:21

1st rule of driving "you must always drive so that you can stop on your own side of the road within the distance you can see to he clear" ... paraphrased from Police Drivers Handbook. There is no requirement to only drive on your side of the road, just that you can stop there. It is often safer to drive straddling the white line etc on some roads if it increases how far ahead you can see. However, you should be driving at a speed where you can safely return to your own side of the road if another car approaches.
It shouldn't terrify you if the driver is generally driving safely. This is not taught to learners initially as the whole idea with that is to get them driving in a safe but basic way. It is taught by the Institute of Advanced Drivers etc.

Socksey · 11/04/2019 12:22

Sorry Institute of Advanced Motorists

Original poster
Idonotlikeyoudonaldtrump · 11/04/2019 12:23

It was a ‘main’ road (for these parts, hardly the M25!). Not a dirt track. Wide enough to have two discrete lanes and markings down the middle.

Ok, it looks like it is just driving style rather than being totally not done.

OP posts:
AyeitstheCaddy · 11/04/2019 12:24

....except range rovers and Audi q7s - they sail down the middle and everyone else is consigned to the verge

KnitterOfSocks · 11/04/2019 12:25

Where I live it is safer to stay away from the edge if you can as there are a lot of potholes. So I tend to drive leftish but towards the middle until I see another car. Round tight bends I would slow down and keep hard left, but if there is decent vision I would be more to the middle.

Original poster
Idonotlikeyoudonaldtrump · 11/04/2019 12:25

That’s incredibly helpful socksey thank you

OP posts:
thecatsthecats · 11/04/2019 12:25

A lot of the roads up to my parents are less than 2 cars wide at many points - blind bends included.

Driving more slowly and more centrally can improve your visibility to other cars on the road in those circumstances.

Steamedbadger · 11/04/2019 12:25

Sounds wrong to me unless the road was narrow as pp mentioned.

PeggySueOooOo · 11/04/2019 12:28

My driving instructor taught me to drive in the middle of rural roads where there are no lines. I only do it if I can properly see ahead as I don't think it is particularly safe.

bellinisurge · 11/04/2019 12:33

I drive on narrow country lanes in the middle of the road mindful of inclines, bends and where the last passing place was (if it's that narrow).

Damntheman · 11/04/2019 12:36

Oh no no no! I live in a place where a lot of roads wind along the coast. They're narrow and twisty and you should never drive in the middle of the road unless you have excellent vision forward. If someone else came around the bend you'd have nowhere to go but a head on collision!

Damntheman · 11/04/2019 12:38

As previous posters have stated though, if the road didn't have a middle line on it - so there was actually no lane division, then the middle is more expected. Although if you're doing that then you also need to be driving slowly enough to be sure that you can react in time should someone come the other way. It should not be hair raising.

Original poster
Idonotlikeyoudonaldtrump · 11/04/2019 12:48

There was a middle line

OP posts:
BiscuitDrama · 11/04/2019 12:49

Damn Obviously you would only drive on the wrong side or the middle if you can see far enough ahead.

frasersmummy · 11/04/2019 12:53

If there is a middle line you should drive in the left hand lane. Not straddling the white line and most certainly not in the right hand lane.. Thats just plain dangerous

Original poster
Idonotlikeyoudonaldtrump · 11/04/2019 12:55

At risk of outing myself, this is the road

To think you don’t drive down the middle of the road
OP posts:
bellinisurge · 11/04/2019 12:56

I might take a "racing line" (it's a term) on a corner on a white lined road if I have an uninterrupted view of oncoming traffic - usually down hill with no blind bends and no other cars in the road coming towards me for about half a mile. There's a spot where I do this but only in those specific circumstances and not routinely.

bellinisurge · 11/04/2019 12:58

If they cross the unbroken line that is wrong. There's a fairly sharp blind bend there that I wouldn't take chances with.
At night you can see oncoming headlights but that still doesn't mean there are no other hazards.

Seeline · 11/04/2019 12:59

If there is a solid white line on your side of the road, you shouldn't be crossing it.
If it's dashed lines it's ok to cross if you can see it's safe etc

Nacreous · 11/04/2019 12:59

I would definitely expect to drive on my side of the road on a road like that. It's not a narrow, rural, barely more than single lane job. It's a proper, fully functioning road. I would potentially expect that someone might cross onto the other side if they were somewhere without walls or hedges obstructing their view and it made for an easier corner. Otherwise, no.

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