to use both lanes

[adogisforlife91]

A dual carriage way I regularly use has a section down to one lane for roadworks for about 9 weeks.

There are signs telling you how far until the merge and there is even a sign 800yards before the merge that says 'USE BOTH LANES' yet still people insist on sitting and queuing in the lane that's staying open. The queue then stretches back into the normal dual carriageway. One lane standstill, one lane empty.

Drivers then try and stop me from merging at the merging point because I've not been sitting in a queue like a mug, and have used the open lane (as directed!)

YANBU: Both lanes are open until the merging point. Use them.
YABU: Start queuing straight away like a good British Citizen.

YANBU. Everyone should use both lanes and merge in turn.

I'm not sure the British can be deprogrammed from mindless queuing. At a service station, I once stopped an entire coach load of polite ladies from queuing up for 3 toilets when there were 20 around the other side of the sinks. No one dared go past the first person in the queue to find out.

You are right, this annoys the hell out of me! They look at you like you're pushing in, when you're just doing what you're supposed to!

The problem is that you need one system or another - both will work well but you need people using that system exclusively.

If you have people who get into the left hand lane early that works fine if people don't push in.

If you merge in turn like a zip, that works as long as everyone is doing it and people don't start queuing miles back.

Effectively you need signs at all such points where two lanes go into one to tell drivers to merge in turn.

I get fed up when people force the issue and decide that you are more scared of having a collision than they are. Often the drivers of the more expensive cars, too. Maybe they are company cars and they just don't care?

I'm not sure the British can be deprogrammed from mindless queuing. At a service station, I once stopped an entire coach load of polite ladies from queuing up for 3 toilets when there were 20 around the other side of the sinks. No one dared go past the first person in the queue to find out

Ha ha, people get really cross with you if you suggest there may be other options, don't they

If I don't know the area or junction I'll just sit in the long line however I'll happily let people in front of me. I do sometimes whizz along and join but it does make me uncomfortable for some reason.

I’m always delighted by, and grateful to, the daft people who go into the left lane about a mile earlier than they need to. They are kindly leaving the outside lane free for me to zoom a mile up the queue to the front, where I can merge in turn and get through the whole roadwork while they are still sitting in an almost stationary line!
The signs clearly state use both lanes, so if they won’t, I certainly will. It’s no good them moaning when they eventually reach the merge point- they should have used the other lane too.

I'm a bit worried at how many people in this thread don't understand merge in turn and will deliberately not allow that merging to happen because they insist on sitting in a queue.
YANBU op.

Just to add what others have said, things aren't helped by the lack of consistency in the UK as regards signage. Some mergers are unsigned, some do say "merge in turn" and some say "use both lanes until merge".

There's one near me at the top of a very steep hill. If cars start playing silly buggers then people can get stranded on the steepest part (it's the handbrake start from hell). I've twice seen police pulling over cars to have a chat.

When zip merging works, it's an odd thing of beauty. I have to pull over to wipe the tears from my eyes ....

Genuine question - how does merging save any time? Same number of car, 1 gap to get through? Doesn't it just benefit the person who tries to get in ahead?

but that doesn’t mean someone has to immediately let you in when you reach the front. Not unless there is a sign saying merge in turn.

I think you are supposed to merge in turn regardless of whether there's a sign. So, once you've let one car past, the next one is in the wrong if they don't let you in.

Genuine question - how does merging save any time?

I don't think it does save any time - it's just supposed to stop cars being backed up to the previous junction.

It is frustrating, but less annoying and dangerous than when people do the opposite on motorways and use a lane when the overhead gantry has X over it.

@Mollyandmack

Genuine question - how does merging save any time? Same number of car, 1 gap to get through? Doesn't it just benefit the person who tries to get in ahead?

It's a more efficient use of the tarmac. The more tarmac that is covered up to the merge, the number of cars that can pass increases compared to the same number of cars in a queue twice the length with the added stopping distances between cars, plus lag of each driver reacting to the car in front.

Genuine question - how does merging save any time?

In this case I don't think it does. What using both lanes does achieve is minimising impact on junctions and roads further back, more importantly it prevents anyone queue-jumping.

@OrtamLeevz

It is frustrating, but less annoying and dangerous than when people do the opposite on motorways and use a lane when the overhead gantry has X over it.

If it's a smart motorway, then the tickets in the post.

What @delilahbucket said, and there are people on here who have admitted no following the rules and getting snipping about those who do, namely those who use both lanes and merge at the final point. No hope.

YANBU. People in the right lane are not doing anything wrong someone send the left laners a memo

If you want to sit in traffic needlessly for 10 minutes go ahead but don’t get the knock with me for using my brain 🤷🏼‍♀️

@WhatATimeToBeAlive

But if people used both lanes then nobody would be 'sat in traffic for ages' surely?

But if every other car in the left hand lane has to let in a car then then it would still take ages to move down.

No, that’s the whole point it wouldn’t take as long.

The roundabout near me which has big "merge in turn" signs straight afterwards is soo hotly debated round here, it is a banned discussion on the local Facebook page! Some people just dont get it!

@Mollyandmack

Genuine question - how does merging save any time? Same number of car, 1 gap to get through? Doesn't it just benefit the person who tries to get in ahead?

If everyone merges in turn without being arsey then the traffic flows more continuously without coming to a standstill. If only people would realise this we would have a lot less traffic jams and people wouldn't get so irate at letting people in. It's the stop-start driving that causes problems. Vaguely recall covering this sort of thing when doing mathematical modelling back in the day.

If everyone merges in turn without being arsey then the traffic flows more continuously without coming to a standstill. If only people would realise this we would have a lot less traffic jams

Less wear & tear. Less emissions. Better fuel economy.

All good things in a society. All bad things when it's all about me. Fuck society. Fuck you all (see also: litter ....)

You are assuming the other motorists read or are all able to see the sign properly.

My dad never surrendered his driving licence and was never asked for an eye test, for twenty years after stopping driving because of limited vision.

@nosswith

You are assuming the other motorists read or are all able to see the sign properly.

My dad never surrendered his driving licence and was never asked for an eye test, for twenty years after stopping driving because of limited vision.

Reading is part of driving, surely ? (Be curious to know if there's any case law on that ?)

Meanwhile your Dad is an "edge case" - very much representing a minority of a minority.

@DGRossetti couldn't agree with you more!
Sat at the junction of the A2 and South Circular the other day just gobsmacked at the amount of litter thrown out whilst people must be stationary at the traffic lights. Why on earth can people not just take it with them and dispose of it properly in a bin? Wish there was a camera there to capture everyone that chucked something so they could be fined. Either that or placed in stocks so that everyone can throw aforementioned litter at them!

It really pisses me off to see someone zooming along then expecting to merge at the last minute, I never let them in.