People driving at 50mph on a 60mph road

[impossibldream]

I have to use an A road most days which has a national speed limit (60mph). It seems like I’m always stuck behind some idiot driving along at 50mph. I find it so hard not to get wound up. It just results in people trying to overtake (sometimes taking risks so I think it increases a chance of accidents) and generally increasing levels of stress. Why do people do this? AIBU to find it rude and annoying?

That’s fine if it’s possible to overtake. I drive against the traffic on my commute so often it’s just me a couple of other cars going in my direction but a steady stream coming in the opposite direction. Despite there being plenty of places to pull in safely on my side of the road, the number of drivers driving well under the limit in good conditions (it’s a wide A road) who refuse to do so to let others pass them is unbelievable - it’s like they’re oblivious to what’s behind them. Either that or they enjoy the control.

50 seems reasonable! (Not 59)

I am assuming that the conversations I have been involved in around driver training where questions have been put forward to the audience around speed limits are not a figment of my imagination.

'It seems like I’m always stuck behind some idiot driving along at 50mph. I find it so hard not to get wound up'

'Some idiot'. Charming.

50 on a 60mph road is fine. Calm down. it's people who get 'wound up' and call other drivers 'idiots' that that are the problem not folk going at 50.

Honestly - try it. If you’re doing serious miles between cities and towns. turn down your speed by 5 - 15 mph (do the 5 on single carriageways and the 15 on dual) and watch as your journey time magically is the same, but you potentially end up saving hundreds a year.

At the 25-30% fuel saving and mileage I’m doing, that’s a grand a year in savings if you’re doing similar. And I get my fuel free thanks to it being an old Tesla 😂, so it’s purely a conscious decision to save energy and battery cycles.

'Either that or they enjoy the control'

God, they'll just be minding their own business. 'Enjoy the control'

The thing that annoys me the most is the people who are totally incapable of sitting at a steady speed. Clear straight road ahead of them but are going up and down between 45 and 60 constantly. Happens a lot in my area 🙄😩

We went to Norway a couple of years ago. The speed limit is 50 mph on most roads. And they are very strict on that.

It's quite nice doing 50 mph when you have to. And no one is tailgating you because that's cracked down on as well. (But of course the roads are quieter)

'Honestly - try it. If you’re doing serious miles between cities and towns. turn down your speed by 5 - 15 mph'

Exactly. Fuel prices are high, any way to conserve it is a good idea.

Yeah that’s infuriating and kills fuel consumption. 👍

No but I sure would love to see a cyclist doing 50mph! 😂

Difference with caravans, tractors and cyclists, they can't help going slower. Caravans are only allowed to do 50. Tractors can only do certain speeds. Cyclists are limited to what their body can do.

A supposedly competent person in a car has no excuse for doing 50 on a straight bit of road. Not knowing the speed limit is just proving incompetence. Not being able to do it out of fear is again incompetence. If you don't want to because of fuel prices, fine, but pull over to let people past regularly. It's not difficult. On today's roads with them being so busy, the chances of people being able to over take is slim. Just pull over.

50 in a 60 …consider yourself lucky!! My work route is an A road and there is always some dangerous driver crawling at 30-40 on a 60 !! Bloody dangerous because it then encourages the faster drivers to overtake. These people should be fined for driving too slowly!!

I sometimes drive home to North Wales where half the journey is country roads. There is now a 50 mile an hour restriction, which I could cope with if it were not for selfish holiday makers doing just 30 so that they can admire the views.
It is so selfish and dangerous, causing long tailbacks and causing huge frustration to drivers who end up taking massive risks to overtake. Madness.

I own a vintage vehicle. It does not go 60mph. I don’t think I’m rude or annoying.
people need to drive what they consider safely. The fact that you’re admitting that you’re doing dangerous moves to over take someone blows my mind while trying to sounds like you’re the safer driver.

There's often someone doing 50 on an a-road I use for work. It's a long straight road with no sharp bends and traffic builds up behind them as people doing 60mph catch up. It makes it more difficult for people trying to join from the side roads. At 60mph there are gaps in the traffic. At 50mph there are long stretches of cars.

I overtake when I use my DH's car because it has some power behind it. I don't overtake in my little car. I had a few incidents where the driver decided to speed up while I was overtaking to stop me getting ahead so I've given up. My little car doesn't have the oomph to deal with that.

It's probably me, I don't pay too much attention at driving dead on 60 and prefer to go a bit slower as it's more relaxing

I just changed my car. It is taking a while to get used to it so I am not going as fast I I did in my old one. It doesn't handle as well. 50 in 60 is fine and will have no impact on the time you arrive.

40 in 60 as pp said tend to be the ones who just do 40 everywhere!

are you one of those drivers that sits up people's arses on a bendy country road raging at the driver in front to go faster despite blind bends? then takes the first opportunity to do a risky bit of overtaking leaving the car in front often having to slow down so you can get back in the left hand lane because there's suddenly an oncoming vehicle? All the while convinced you are a Very Good Driver?

I do have to remind DH that it is 50 when towing the caravan

To quote Shawshank Redemption: 'the world went and got itself in a big damn hurry'. Why not give yourself a little extra time for the drive and space for the unexpected? 50 in a 60 is fine. Tractors pulling out, animals and pedestrians on the road - leeway is a good thing.

'On today's roads with them being so busy, the chances of people being able to over take is slim. Just pull over.'

That would seem a bit silly and rather hazardous. Just accept that 50 on a 60 mph road is fine!

I failed me test for driving at 50 on a 60 road. In pouring rain. Lack of progress and hesitancy apparently.. So maybe it isn't a limit but an actual target?

@SirChenjins No sorry, I won't be pulling in when I am going at a perfectly acceptable and sensible speed. Perhaps you could slow down if you can't overtake safely? You do not have to be going at the speed limit, you must be making progress which, at 50, I most definitely am.

I have seen someone get pulled over for driving too slowly. Doing 30-40 all the way to a city, was about 20 miles. After 5 miles in, the police car directly behind them put their lights and sirens on to pull over. The driver ignored them. Police tried a few more times to get them to pull over (and they had plenty of opportunity) but they still refused. So police had a blockade in place at the city waiting for them to force them to stop. Would love to know what had happened to that person, must have gotten fined and points.

I would bet they are @SausagePourHomme

The worst drivers are the impatient drivers, the tail gaters, the ones who call other drivers 'idiots'.