I hate motorway driving!

[AWiseWomanOnceSaidFuckThisShit]

Country roads? Fine. A roads? No problem. Residential streets? That's me.

Motorways? Oh I hate them, I find them so scary! I'm capable... I wouldn't go on them if I wasn't. I keep on fighting the fear because I don't want to restrict myself... but I hate them, they scare me. The lorries. The wind you feel sometimes when the car sways. Having to speed up when overtaking. My palms always have a thin film of sweat when it's over and I'm always so relieved to see that turn off. I didn't give a flying shite in my 20s but the older I get the more anxious I feel.

Is it just me?! Lighthearted...

@Wearywithteens

“Yes, never heard of a man scared of motorways. Depressing as shit that women still play into this helpless, feeble stereotype.”

^oh god this. Especially when you consider that Motorways are statistically the safest type of highway you can drive on...

I think motorways would be a lot safer if some of the incompetent male drivers who can’t calculate braking distances properly were afraid of motorway driving.

Where are you all driving on boring motorways? The motorway near me is one of the most scenic roads I've ever driven on.

The M3 and M27 are both fuck boring. As for the M25...
The A3 down south is much more scenic and sometimes the motorways are no quicker so I'll take the A-roads, but often the motorways are a necessary evil.

I don't mind motorway driving after having a motorway lesson soon after passing my test - I did drive on near-empty motorways in between and was cacking myself as I couldn't tell what lane things in my mirrors were in. Driving instructor got me to practice that.

But it is generally boring on motorways. I don't mind if I'm alone and can put music on loud and make up stories about other drivers, but with kids it's tedious (unless DH is there so I can doze).

A1M between Leeds and Newcastle.
The entire length of the M1
The M42

Dull, dull, dull

It's actually shocking how many women on this thread have openly said
1- they need DH, DP, insert other generic Male, to be able to drive a car on a motorway.
2- will drive miles out of their way to avoid a motorway,
3- dont like joining the motorway,
4- dont like changing lanes
Etc.
These are all extremely basic parts of driving. If you are incapable of doing these things hand back your driving licence and get a taxi. Motorway driving is the MOST simple part of all driving. No reversing, no cars coming at your in the middle of the road, no single track blind bends, roundabouts etc. It's 3-5 lanes of traffic moving in the same direction as you are at mostly the same speed as you are.
Sitting in any lane doing 50 miles per hour on a motorway, obviously excluding average speed limits/variable speed limits is more of a hazard than travelling at the same speed as everybody else. You are pretty much creating a rolling road block with yourself as the stopping point. If you cannot/will not travel at the same speed as the rest of the traffic you should not be driving. As for joining the motorway the slip roads are ole ty long enough for you to see where there are gaps and at what speed the traffic next to you is travelling, you simple speed up/slow down to fit in the gap it really is not hard!
No wonder women get such a bad rep for driving when it's written, clearly, by women in this post that the vast majority of you are incapable and have incredible dangerous points of view!

My late father was very much of his era, born in the 1930s, and whilst he was an absolute gentleman he had some rather old fashioned views. But he had no time for women claiming they couldn't possibly drive on a motorway or whatever. When my sisters and I learned to drive, he insisted that we practised until we were confident, learned to reverse a big car, and after we passed our tests he had us driving on the motorway.

Two of my sisters married men who are very misogynistic. And what do you know but over time they declared themselves incapable of driving on motorways or on unfamiliar roads, and they can't possibly do such journeys without their husbands. I don't think it's a coincidence.

I'm a good driver but I had a mini panic attack years ago on the m25 in multiple lanes of heavy traffic with two crying children and a barking dog. I still go on the m3 and quieter motorways but the thought of bring stuck in between multiple lanes of lorries brings me out in a sweat. I know it is illogical that motorways are safe but the memory still haunts me. It was the feeling of being trapped between multiple lorries with no hard shoulder (not smart motorway but an intersection with multiple lanes converging).

I wouldn't say I hate them, but I felt just like you described this weekend, dropping DD of to University.

The wind was the scariest thing and other cars tailgating too.

I notice my hands are clenched to the steering wheel and I hate lorries being in the lane next to me.

I too feel capable and I know I am capable, but it's not my favourite thing...mainly due to other drivers speeding and overtaking dangerously.

Love motorway driving i just find it easier as despite the speed there's actually less to think about. Plus if I need to go in a motorway for more than ten mins I'm normally going somehwere more exciting than work/nursery/ local shop.

However, I live on the edge of a large city centre and get nervous at the thought of having to drive in "town". Also not a massive lover of country roads, especially those in Cornwall.

I like motorways.

They're the same country wide, and really even abroad too.

Try driving round a town centre one way system you've never been in before.

Waaaaaaay worse than a motorway.

I had to traverse Luton when the M1 was backed up one night. Ugh was crap.

If you’re nervous in the roads at all, should you really be driving on them?

Op I’m exactly the same and the fear of getting lost if I miss the exit. I don’t go on the motorway without my husband.

But on a motorway is way easier to correct getting lost than in a town.

You get off at the next exit. Get back on the other side and go back to the junction you wanted.

Also we all have smart phones. You can't get lost now.

The M4 has to be the dullest yet one of the scariest motorways in England. Oh for the roads in parts of Scotland...my cousins think 3 cars at a temporary red light for roadworks is a major traffic jam...I loved the lack of traffic at the start of Lockdown and am seriously wondering if we couldn't move somewhere like Sark....

Part of the problem imo is that motorway driving isn’t on the driving test. If I’d practiced it like I had practiced roundabouts or junctions, it wouldn’t be so intimidating.

Fortunately I had to drive to work down the motorway shortly after passing so I got used to it, but I think it’s absurd not to test people on such a major part of driving.

Sark is one of my favourite places in the world.

Give me a motorway 7 days a week. No one has swerved into my lane and obliterated my wing mirror on the motorway, A roads however

@riotlady

Part of the problem imo is that motorway driving isn’t on the driving test. If I’d practiced it like I had practiced roundabouts or junctions, it wouldn’t be so intimidating.

Fortunately I had to drive to work down the motorway shortly after passing so I got used to it, but I think it’s absurd not to test people on such a major part of driving.

Not as absurd as it would be to exclude thousands of people from accessing a driving test. We don't all live near, or anywhere close to, motorways.

I am perfectly at ease with motorway driving. Not a problem.

Smart motorways on the other hand...they're just turning most of the M4 to smart motorway...leaves me feeling cold when you see they've put a barrier then only just enough room to stand the other side of it between the barrier and an 8ft high wooden fence. The refuges are small and miles apart. It's still 50mph roadworks because it's still being altered but I think my days of a quick nip down the M4 from 10 to 12 to miss the middle of Reading are going tat least one reported accident on the radio pretty much every traffic news every day)

@riotlady

Part of the problem imo is that motorway driving isn’t on the driving test. If I’d practiced it like I had practiced roundabouts or junctions, it wouldn’t be so intimidating.

Fortunately I had to drive to work down the motorway shortly after passing so I got used to it, but I think it’s absurd not to test people on such a major part of driving.

If you can drive on a dual carriageway, you can drive on a motorway. It's exactly the same skill set

Motorways are fine. It's unlit country roads with high hedges on both sides that get me!

@BlackberrySky

Motorways are fine. It's unlit country roads with high hedges on both sides that get me!

At least there isn’t much traffic on those.

I much prefer motorway driving to other driving. Other drivers behaviour is much more predictable.

“Yes, never heard of a man scared of motorways. Depressing as shit that women still play into this helpless, feeble stereotype.”

I don’t think it’s very nice that people’s genuine fear of something is being dismissed as them playing into a stereotype. I don’t know why men won’t admit to ever being scared driving- it’s not macho I suppose. Either way, I’d rather people were honest about their driving worries and did something to alleviate their fears then just drove badly but with a ton of bravado.

I'm fine with motorways apart from worrying about the twats that change lane without indicating or checking their blind spots
I make a big effort to stay out of people's blind spots. I do like seeing those blind spot alerts illuminate on some people's mirrors - relieves the tedium a bit, but I don't assume they have noticed them because they are on their car - half of them probably don't even know what they are, and are too busy on Facebook anyway.

@TheMarzipanDildo

“Yes, never heard of a man scared of motorways. Depressing as shit that women still play into this helpless, feeble stereotype.”

I don’t think it’s very nice that people’s genuine fear of something is being dismissed as them playing into a stereotype. I don’t know why men won’t admit to ever being scared driving- it’s not macho I suppose. Either way, I’d rather people were honest about their driving worries and did something to alleviate their fears then just drove badly but with a ton of bravado.

This made me wonder - obvs Motorways have been designed by men for the most part - what would the women who don't like them change to make them less scary?