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AIBU?

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Original poster

Is it you driving in the middle lane of the motorway or outside lane on a dual carriage way?

251 replies

muchalover · 13/09/2023 19:46

Nobody is a perfect driver, including me.

But, why do people drive in the middle lane when they could easily pull in and stop the chaos they are causing behind them? Or pull in instead of driving in the outside lane of a dual carriageway when there is a large gap. On the M25 much of seems to be a fancy dual carriageway with 3 empty inside lanes. Why?

It's like advertising you're a crap driver and not willing to pay attention.

Or am I being unreasonable?

OP posts:
Sirzy · 16/09/2023 12:08

Teddleshon · 16/09/2023 11:57

I don’t understand why so many seem to find lane discipline confusing. The Highway Code is crystal clear, keep in the left lane unless overtaking. If you are overtaking you should return to the left when it is safe to do so.

People seem to think the rules don’t apply to them.

if they have so much trouble changing lanes safely then I worry about them being on the road at all

Socksey · 16/09/2023 12:21

They're fully paid up members of the Middle Lane Owners Club and it's their key right as part of that membership. Their driving and safety are more important than that of all other road users.
🙄🤔

Teddleshon · 16/09/2023 12:50

@Luckydip1 One person’s idea of common sense doesn’t overrule the law. Unless you are overtaking you should be in the inside lane. By sitting in the middle lane whilst not overtaking you are potentially obstructing those who are correctly using the inside lane and those who are overtaking in the outside lane.

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 12:57

@Teddleshon you are also breaking the law if you go over 70, would you agree drivers shouldn't do that too?

Silverdogblue · 16/09/2023 13:00

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 12:57

@Teddleshon you are also breaking the law if you go over 70, would you agree drivers shouldn't do that too?

Middle lane hogging is always dangerous and always slows the motorway down. Exceeding the speed limit by 10% isn’t always dangerous. Even ACPO agree on that. Stop making excuses for your poor driving, whataboutery doesn’t make it less selfish and incompetent.

Fightyouforthatpie · 16/09/2023 13:03

Ariela · 14/09/2023 14:50

I must confess if the motorway is relatively quiet (ie very few other cars about just the odd speedster at 100mph) to playing donuts with the lone car in the middle lane. Overtake without exceeding the speed limit in the outside lane, indicate, move over, indicate move to inside, slow without braking, until the middle lane car has gone past, then repeat until the middle lane errant gets the hint.

Why the hell would anyone waste time doing this?

Fightyouforthatpie · 16/09/2023 13:04

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 12:02

It's not that they are not aware of the Highway Code, they are just using common sense, why risk getting stuck behind a lorry in the slow lane and not being able to get back into the middle lane due to the traffic, when the the third lane is free, if other drivers want to overtake, your unlikely to get a ticket for being in the middle lane.

There is no slow lane and you won't get stuck in any lane if you drive properly.

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 13:08

@Silverdogblue you can't preach about middle laners breaking the Highway Code when you're breaking it yourself!

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 13:10

@Fightyouforthatpie if there is a stream of cars in the middle lane and you keep moving in to the slow lane and getting stuck behind a robin reliant gong at 40mph, it can be difficult getting back into the middle lane as they are doing 70. You are more likely to have an accident going back and forth between the first and second lanes than staying in the second lane and cruising at 70 with everyone else.

Medusaismyhero · 16/09/2023 13:12

As my DH always says, 90% of people couldn't drive their finger up their arse (let alone drive a vehicle on the road).

SamW98 · 16/09/2023 13:13

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 12:02

It's not that they are not aware of the Highway Code, they are just using common sense, why risk getting stuck behind a lorry in the slow lane and not being able to get back into the middle lane due to the traffic, when the the third lane is free, if other drivers want to overtake, your unlikely to get a ticket for being in the middle lane.

So your idea of common sense is reducing a motorway to a dual carriageway because you don’t have the awareness to use lanes correctly?

Zero common sense there that I can see

Shade17 · 16/09/2023 13:15

So your idea of common sense is reducing a motorway to a dual carriageway because you don’t have the awareness to use lanes correctly?

But ALL motorways ARE dual carriageways, albeit with a special set of rules.

SamW98 · 16/09/2023 13:19

Shade17 · 16/09/2023 13:15

So your idea of common sense is reducing a motorway to a dual carriageway because you don’t have the awareness to use lanes correctly?

But ALL motorways ARE dual carriageways, albeit with a special set of rules.

Edited

I mean reducing a 3/4 lane motorway down to 2/3 lanes

Shade17 · 16/09/2023 13:22

I mean reducing a 3/4 lane motorway down to 2/3 lanes

Yeah, well that’s not what “dual carriageway” means.

Hanlonsamazer · 16/09/2023 13:28

This reply has been withdrawn

This message has been withdrawn at the poster's request

SamW98 · 16/09/2023 13:32

Shade17 · 16/09/2023 13:22

I mean reducing a 3/4 lane motorway down to 2/3 lanes

Yeah, well that’s not what “dual carriageway” means.

Which is why I clarified

BeingATwatItsABingThing · 16/09/2023 13:37

WildAlphabet · 16/09/2023 09:49

If you present it like that with those metrics. It’s kind of meaningless though in reality.
In and out every 30 seconds or so in a 2 or 3 hour drive, if everyone did that in would actually impede traffic flow and increase the collision risk. There’s a balance with common sense, if you are consistently at a speed passing every vehicle you can see in the lane to your left you are travelling with the traffic flow in the next lane. Presuming the conditions are reasonably congested but lanes are flowing, as is typical on the m25 or other major motorways in rush hour. Braking and accelerating constantly in and out the slower flow isn’t sensible. Anyone travelling faster than the flow in the middle lane can stay right and go with the flow in that lane, moving in if there are faster vehicles approaching behind or if they are not already looking to overtake vehicles in sight to the left. Obviously outside rush hour traffic or on minor motorways, particularly two lane stretches you drive differently. If you have 4-6 lanes you aren’t going to be going across all 4-6 lanes constantly, you should use the flow of traffic to guide you a bit and use common sense.

Show quote history

30 seconds to move over and continue at the same speed obviously. I’m not moving over, slamming on the breaks and then zooming out again. 🙄 I only move and break if there are blue lights going past or an aggressive arsehole who it’s better to let go rather than be stubborn.

If you are able to move over for 30 seconds without changing speed, you should.

Teddleshon · 16/09/2023 13:41

@Luckydip1 Most police forces have a stated tolerance of 10% above the speed limit plus 2 mph. But in any event I don’t see why one motorist’s decision to break the speed limit gives another motorist the right to also break the law.

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 14:03

@Teddleshon I'm just saying that all these people getting on their high horse about people driving in the middle lane saying they shouldn't break the Highway Code are probably breaking the Highway Code themselves by speeding!

CherryMaDeara · 16/09/2023 14:05

Hufflemuff · 13/09/2023 21:39

Flame away... I like the middle lane on a dual carriageway with 3 lanes.

I go 70-75mph in the middle lane. The drips that want to poodle along at 50mph can stay in the slow lane and the ones that want to barrel along at 80-100mph hog the fast lane anyhow. If you want to get around me then you'd need to do 80-85+ to do it comfortably and then are you really a BETTER driver than me for sitting in the middle lane, already doing the speed limit.

I see no issues? If I was to go in the slow lane I'd be overtaking cars every few minutes, which is surely more of an accident risk?

You are a terrible driver.

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 14:06

Presumably all these drivers who want to overtake in the middle lane don't want the inconvenience of going into the third lane!

Luckydip1 · 16/09/2023 14:09

Hufflemuff · 13/09/2023 21:39

Flame away... I like the middle lane on a dual carriageway with 3 lanes.

I go 70-75mph in the middle lane. The drips that want to poodle along at 50mph can stay in the slow lane and the ones that want to barrel along at 80-100mph hog the fast lane anyhow. If you want to get around me then you'd need to do 80-85+ to do it comfortably and then are you really a BETTER driver than me for sitting in the middle lane, already doing the speed limit.

I see no issues? If I was to go in the slow lane I'd be overtaking cars every few minutes, which is surely more of an accident risk?

At last, someone with common sense!

Fink · 16/09/2023 14:38

I frequently drive quite long distances. As I did a few hundred miles of motorway driving yesterday, with this thread in my head, one thing I noticed that hadn't struck me before is the huge amount of people who move into the middle lane automatically when approaching a junction (some of them have been on this thread justifying it as a reason to stay in the overtaking lane). Why?! With very few exceptions (e.g. parts of the M11 with no lighting on a cloudy night, parts of the M6), motorways are very deliberately designed so that you can see if there's something coming down the slip road and move over as necessary, you don't need to move out as a precaution just because there's a junction on the horizon. 🤔

MaybeSmaller · 16/09/2023 14:48

Ashley Neal (driving instructor) has some good videos on this on his YT channel. As PPs have said, people think that in the left lane they are going to get stuck behind a 50mph lorry and no-one will let them out. If legit middle lane users were more willing to let left lane users out to overtake slower vehicles (either by creating a gap or moving right), then there would be fewer middle lane hogs generally.

paradoxically2 · 16/09/2023 14:51

icallitasplodge · 13/09/2023 20:44

Everyone undertakes these days, it’s seriously dangerous. You move from the middle to the outside lane and find someone doing 90 up your bum. You look obviously but there should only ever be slower moving traffic to your left.

Nope. In busy motorway traffic often a random lane will slow dramatically due to a sudden issue up ahead. And if you are in the left hand lane approaching a turn off, you will frequently end up going faster than the lane to the right of you as they are slow to crawling whilst the lane that will be turning off in 500m is fairly empty.

If I am in the left hand lane and going within the speed limit, it's not my job to drop my speed to go slower than people on my right. If they are going slower than me, they are in the wrong lane.