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AIBU?

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Original poster

To overtake on the inside?

172 replies

MerryMarigold · 19/12/2023 22:36

There I am driving down the M11. I overtake a lorry so I'm in the middle lane but there is no one in the left lane so I move back over. I'm driving about 65 but there are so many people hogging the middle lane that they are going slower than the far left lane and so I overtake them on the inside. I felt bad but WIBU?

OP posts:
macaronicheezepleeze · 21/12/2023 07:43

naughtynine · 21/12/2023 06:02

shouldn’t rather & I have seen plenty of near misses where someone has indicated to go left but a car on the left has appeared. Tbh most driving these days is shit, don’t start me on lack of indicators.

The car to the left didn't "appear", the tube indicating left isn't using their mirrors correctly if the think cars are just suddenly appearing round about them.

macaronicheezepleeze · 21/12/2023 07:46

The only time when moving from the left hand lane to overtake a middle lane hogger is appropriate is when the motorway is near empty and you can see well ahead that they are driving that way. Any other time is just overthinking the situation.

Goodlard · 21/12/2023 07:46

CanIExtend · 19/12/2023 23:07

You’re not “overtaking” as you haven’t pulled out to overtake them. You’re just driving in your lane at (what I assume to be) a constant speed. There just happens to be someone who doesn’t know how to drive properly on a part of the road near you.

They're undertaking which isn't legal.

Flickersy · 21/12/2023 07:48

Goodlard · 21/12/2023 07:46

They're undertaking which isn't legal.

Show quote history

<for the third time>

Undertaking is not illegal. It is not an offence.

This is because there are many legitimate situations where you might need to pass slower or stationary traffic on the left.

It can constitute dangerous driving. But it is not in itself illegal.

Doingmybest12 · 21/12/2023 07:57

Can't bear the people who do an obvious manoeuvre to shame others to move over. Just drive safely , get past who you need to get past and drive on in your correct lane. Yes some people are annoying but you weaving in and out, pulling in quickly, watching what they are up to in stead of concentrating on your own driving isn't going to help matters.

DewHopper · 21/12/2023 08:01

WhichOneGoes · 21/12/2023 01:22

Oh dear god... some of these replies are scary.

Sitting in lane 2 when lane 1 is free is idiotic but 'undertaking' in the lane 1 in normal traffic is really stupid. That idiot who is sitting in lane 2 has already shown they aren't the best of drivers so what makes people think they would check for someone undertaking if they were to decide to switch lanes. This isn't just a legal issue it's a trying to minimize the risk of getting yourself killed issue.

The Highway code is clear that you should only overtake on the right on a motorway. It's scary that posters think it's ok to do.
"Do not overtake unless you are sure it is safe and legal to do so. Overtake only on the right" "Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake" Highway Code on Motorways
Yes, there is an exception to that where the traffic is congested and you end up passing the cars in lane 2 or 3 but the fact there may be an idiot sitting in the middle lane is never an exception.

If you don't understand this then you shouldn't be driving on motorways.

This. This thread explains why there are so many stupid, selfish and dangerous drivers on motorways.

DewHopper · 21/12/2023 08:01

Doingmybest12 · 21/12/2023 07:57

Can't bear the people who do an obvious manoeuvre to shame others to move over. Just drive safely , get past who you need to get past and drive on in your correct lane. Yes some people are annoying but you weaving in and out, pulling in quickly, watching what they are up to in stead of concentrating on your own driving isn't going to help matters.

Yes it's pathetic.

DewHopper · 21/12/2023 08:04

WhichOneGoes · 21/12/2023 01:36

I drive a Lot on busy motorways and apart from when there is very slow congested traffic I NEVER have the need to undertake. What is it that's so difficult about overtaking to the right of a middle lane hogger. What exactly is it that people have difficulty with? Sometimes you have to wait until a safe opportunity arises but it always does.

Middle lane joggers are really annoying but why choose to overtake on the 'wrong side' (lane 1) when there is an overtaking lane (lane 3) right there.

Because they are crap drivers and I suspect many of them are not confident enough to overtake correctly (and should not be on the motorway in the first place).

Doingmybest12 · 21/12/2023 08:16

I've been trapped on the middle lane before and harrassed by the man behind to move over. It was a junction which became about 6 lanes and I knew I should try and move over one. But he was so close behind me in a truck I couldn't see if anything was coming up on the left or might pull out late from the other lanes on the left if they realised they didn't want that junction. It was very stressful and I felt unsafe to make a decision to move across. So I stayed. People just need to stay patient when they are driving please so we can all get to our destinations in one piece.

twistandfart · 21/12/2023 08:31

If there is one, maybe two cars driving in the middle lane at 55-60 but it's clear in front, should a car approaching them in the left lane driving at the speed limit (or maybe just under)then pull all the way over to the right to go past them before moving back over to the left?
Genuine question, not trying to be goady.

BIossomtoes · 21/12/2023 08:46

twistandfart · 21/12/2023 08:31

If there is one, maybe two cars driving in the middle lane at 55-60 but it's clear in front, should a car approaching them in the left lane driving at the speed limit (or maybe just under)then pull all the way over to the right to go past them before moving back over to the left?
Genuine question, not trying to be goady.

Yes. I always do it in the hope the idiots in the middle lane will notice and move over but they inevitably carry on merrily without pulling over while I disappear from sight in the left hand lane. Fucking idiots.

enchantedsquirrelwood · 21/12/2023 08:46

GenghisCalm · 20/12/2023 18:57

@AmethystSparkles no one would undertake you if you drove in the correct lane.

I do love that you even checked how slow you are able to legally drive like a twat on a motorway.

But they do, I've given some examples of where it can happen:

You move over to let someone onto the motorway and then they undertake instead of giving you time to move back over and then overtake.

The motorway merges and you join the new motorway in the middle/outside lane.

You have moved over because the inside lane will become a slip road.

You have moved over because the middle/outside lane will become a slip road, and you want it!

They are one of those people who likes to drive right up to the bottom of the person in front, pull out at the last minute and then move back in, rather than overtaking safely, and giving themselves time. As I said above, pulling out sooner to overtake because you've seen vehicles in the inside lane ahead is not middle lane sitting, it is thinking ahead and planning your movements accordingly.

Cosyblankets · 21/12/2023 08:48

Plsdiscuss · 19/12/2023 22:53

Depends if you were weaving in and out or not.

From West Yorkshire police website

"ON MOTORWAYS
Rule 268 of the Highway Code states – do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake."

I've always understood this to be when there's heavy traffic

ElevenSeven · 21/12/2023 08:52

Doingmybest12 · 21/12/2023 07:57

Can't bear the people who do an obvious manoeuvre to shame others to move over. Just drive safely , get past who you need to get past and drive on in your correct lane. Yes some people are annoying but you weaving in and out, pulling in quickly, watching what they are up to in stead of concentrating on your own driving isn't going to help matters.

What about the people who should move over? Why aren’t they moving over? It’s one of life’s mysteries.

Driving slowly in the middle lane isn’t sensible either

I only really see undertaking when there’s only two lanes though. Then there’s no way to get past the slow ones.

ArticWillow · 21/12/2023 08:53

Question to all those justifying undertaking in a dangerous way (no hold ups or slow moving traffic...)
Why not just use the outside lane to overtake?

WithIcePlease · 21/12/2023 08:58

On a 4 lane motorway, I'm not going to move to 4th lane to overtake idiots in lane 3 when both lanes 1and 2 are empty so I go past them in the empty lane 1. This happens not infrequently on the smart motorway I use regularly.
The tailbacks these idiots cause are so dangerous

curaçao · 21/12/2023 09:04

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DRS1970 · 21/12/2023 09:08

As previous people have intimated, as long as you did not change lanes to undertake you have not broken the law. Under the circumstances you describe, it merely means that your lane was moving faster than the one to your right.

WhichOneGoes · 21/12/2023 09:09

twistandfart · 21/12/2023 08:31

If there is one, maybe two cars driving in the middle lane at 55-60 but it's clear in front, should a car approaching them in the left lane driving at the speed limit (or maybe just under)then pull all the way over to the right to go past them before moving back over to the left?
Genuine question, not trying to be goady.

Yes. As it CLEARLY says in the Highway Code

SomethingFun · 21/12/2023 09:25

I think people’s driving has got worse since covid because there seems to be an imperfect storm of people who didn’t leave the house for a year and are now terrified of driving and people who got used to empty roads and don’t drive to the now much busier conditions. Instead of undertaking or mid lane hogging, maybe drive defensively instead and give yourself an extra ten minutes to get where you’re going on a longer journey 😁

BIossomtoes · 21/12/2023 09:28

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macaronicheezepleeze · 21/12/2023 09:37

DRS1970 · 21/12/2023 09:08

As previous people have intimated, as long as you did not change lanes to undertake you have not broken the law. Under the circumstances you describe, it merely means that your lane was moving faster than the one to your right.

100% this. Some posters are really over complicating this.

Gettingcolder · 21/12/2023 10:13

AmethystSparkles · 20/12/2023 18:49

Haha I’m not smug at all….I’m not a great driver! Never said I was..,,I’m an inexperienced motorway driver trying my best to drive as safely as possible. I’ve never caused an accident. Why do the people doing 60mph get all the blame? If everyone else was driving at the speed limit (that’s 70mph) then 60mph wouldn’t be particularly slow would it? But they’re not are they? They’re mostly doing 80mph.

I stand by what I said….undertaking on a four lane motorway is very dangerous (and it’s illegal).

Show quote history

If you are driving at 60mph on a motorway, unless you are in a traffic jam, there is absolutely no need to move into the middle lane at junctions. This is what causes accidents and on many European motorways is considered dangerous driving and is therefore prohibited - there are road markings intended to stop the practice.

At 60mph there it is easy enough for drivers to join from a slip road providing you have left sufficent space between you and the vehicle in front.

WhichOneGoes · 21/12/2023 10:19

@macaronicheezepleeze

DRS1970
"As previous people have intimated, as long as you did not change lanes to undertake you have not broken the law. Under the circumstances you describe, it merely means that your lane was moving faster than the one to your right."

"100% this. Some posters are really over complicating this."

You are both wrong. The highway code is clear and it's clear for a reason. Yes there are SOME exceptions but it's clear "Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake" and just in case that was too complicated for you it also say "Overtake only on the right

The OP explained that when she undertakes it's not because of congested traffic or roadworks or whatever. It's because she is a dangerous driver and doesn't understand why passing on the left hand side in normal driving conditions is dangerous.

Shodan · 21/12/2023 10:22

Sitting in lane 2 when lane 1 is free is idiotic Actually, it's illegal. It's called middle lane hogging, and it's an offence under the broader term of 'careless driving', which can attract a fine and 3 points on your licence.

If there is one, maybe two cars driving in the middle lane at 55-60 but it's clear in front, should a car approaching them in the left lane driving at the speed limit (or maybe just under)then pull all the way over to the right to go past them before moving back over to the left?

No. You should not encourage poor drivers who are committing a traffic offence. You continue in your own lane.

It really worries me that a lot of people don't know what overtaking actually means.

If OP had been driving in the middle lane behind the cars she mentions, and then pulled into the inside lane to overtake them on their left before moving out again to the middle lane, that is overtaking on the left (or undertaking, in common parlance).

That is NOT what she did. She pulled over, correctly, to the inside lane, after overtaking a lorry and then continued in her lane, driving at 5mph under the national speed limit. She was driving correctly. It was those in the middle lane who were driving inconsiderately and, potentially, illegally.