To ask- top tips for motorway driving

[AnxietyForever]

Not really a regular user of the Motorway but have used occasionally in the past however tomorrow we have a 3/4 hour journey.
Any top tips??

Drinks, Snacks, good playlist. Just focus and power through

Sat nav on your phone (for any traffic updates), make a mental note of a services halfway there for you to stop if you need to, music playlist, snacks, make sure you have enough fuel (obvious point but worth making!), check tyres and fluid levels before setting off

I travel on motorways quite often and actually prefer it to pootling around town.
Look up the route on AA route planner to get your bearings.
Don't be a "middle lane hogger " ie move to the inside lane if finished overtaking.

Mirrors, mirrors, mirrors and good lane discipline.

Know which junctions you need to come off at. Speed limit is 70 unless directed otherwise so don't be tempted by other traffic to drive too fast as there are a lot of speed cameras around.

Stay on the left if you aren't overtaking. Relax and think of your journey as part of an enjoyable outing. Don t get wound up if other drivers aren't considerate

it is easier than dual carriageways. I was surprised when I plucked up courage to try. (many many years ago)

Respect lorries - the amount of people I've seen this weekend cutting back in far too close to them is rediculous.

Just respect the normal rules of the road (No lane hogging, tail gating etc) and get a good playlist on :) also probably worth noting what services are at the halfway point just incase

Ensure you are driving fast enough when you join the motorway.

Join the motorway at the speed of the traffic so you can slot straight in between traffic.

Look well ahead as well as what is going on in your immediate vicinity to plan ahead braking/overtaking etc.

Don’t hog the middle or other overtaking lanes.

Take breaks, even if just for a wee. A quick 10-20mins off the road can make a lot of difference to how fresh you feel.

If you can, think about the timing to avoid cities at rush hours if you can. To do this, we often leave very early in the morning. We try to remember to check the Traffic England website for road closures.

Fill up with petrol before you join the motorway, we didn’t do this yesterday and got stung with ridiculously expensive petrol at the services but had no choice but to pay it.

Lorries and other large vehicles have a blind spot where they cannot see you so don’t sit alongside them - get past if you can or wait until you have a clear shot at passing.

If there are sections of 'smart motorway' with reduced speed limit (eg 40, 50, 60) then stick to the limit imposed even if there is no apparent reason for the limit and little traffic

I found this out the hard way recently 😩

Indicate.
Indicate.
Keep your distance.
Check your mirrors all the time - also over left shoulder when coming back in.
If passing a lorry, check that you can see the whole length of it in yur rear view mirror before pulling back in. Sometimes, they will flash that it is OK to do so.
Indicate.
Indicate.

@DynamoKev

Lorries and other large vehicles have a blind spot where they cannot see you so don’t sit alongside them - get past if you can or wait until you have a clear shot at passing.

Good advice. After a high speed brush with a lorry some years ago I am very respectful of them. Definitely avoid lingering alongside them. Pass them completely.

Once you’re on the motorway, it’s the easiest driving there is. For 3-4 hours, I’d stop once, maybe twice. There’s no need to be continuously changing lanes. Unless you get stuck behind anything particularly slow moving, you can do the whole journey in the left hand lane if you want to.

If you need to change lanes because the lane you’re in is peeling off, but the lane you want to move to is busy, indicate and then wait (whilst still moving), someone will usually let you in.

INDICATE when you change lanes!

Honestly the amount of people- IME often young men- who weave in and out, undertaking and overtaking in the belief that everyone else on the road will behave entirely predictably. Well- they won't.

(Sorry don't mean to be negative- can you tell I have been driving all day today )

One thing that helps me is the knowledge that motorways are safer statistically than country lanes.

Leave more space in front of you than you think you need. I once noticed that a driver behind me was texting on a busy motorway traffic was too busy to change lanes to avoid him immediately so I slowed down just enough to open a decent gap in front - then sure enough all the traffic slowed from 60 to about 40 due to congestion and he didn't react quickly - I needed every inch of that extra space to avoid him ramming into the back of me!

Give me a motorway over any other road any time

Build up speed on the slip so you join it as the speed of traffic. Drive at 70 where possible, keep left unless over taking, use indicators and leave a good gap between you and the car in front

Though I imagine it'll be busy with it being bank holiday so prepare for an extra hour on the estimated journey time

If you realise that the lane you are in is going off and there's no way you can get over go off and come back on. It's not the end of the world. Swerving across the hatching on the other hand.......

Yes if you get off at the wrong junction don't panic, everywhere leads somewhere.

Also, don't slam on your brakes. Take your foot off the accelerator in plenty of time.

KEEP LEFT UNLESS OVERTAKING!