To think it's ok to want to travel at 70mph on the motorway...

[JacquesHarlow]

...or am I now completely unreasonable, and the Highway Code is irrelevant?

Hear me out if you will:

I have done a LOT of driving in the past two weeks. M1, A1, A23, M25, M40, M6, you name it.

I am middle aged, F, live in Surrey, for what any of that is worth. I am also it seems one of the stranger folk...in that when I join a motorway, I drive at 70mph on the dot. I also stay in the left lane until overtaking.

AIBU for doing this?

It seems so, judging by the habits of hundreds of road users I encountered, who come onto the motorway and automatically slide into lane 3 of 4, or lane 2 of 3. And sit there for absolutely ages, at around 60 mph.

I kid you not, 60mph.

It's maddening. I am driving at 70mph, in lane 1. It is clear in front of me.

Next to me is someone doing 60 mph. I know this because I am coming up on them quickly. I cannot however undertake them - this is against the Highway Code.

So I indicate, check it's clear, move out to lane 2 behind them. I then look to move to lane 3 to overtake.

Only I can't move over to lane 3, because there is someone doing 60 (or maybe less), right alongside them. Not overtaking, just cruising next to them in their own little lane.

So I indicate again, move out to lane 4. Where of course it takes me 30 seconds or so to overtake, at which point someone is barrelling down on me wanting to do 80mph in their private fast lane. (I'm fine with this, I assert my right to overtake legally etc).

So that's three lane changes to overtake two cars who due to their speed (and the highway code's rules) should be sitting in lane 1.

Why do people do this?

I notice that when I've brought this up years ago on here, or when I've spoken to folk in real life, people often say

"It's more dangerous to do all that 'weaving about' than stay in a lane"
"I'm not going to get trapped in a lorry sandwich"
"People join constantly on motorways and I don't want to have to move over"

OK, great.

So you're going to make me change three lanes, just because you want your own little personal bubble on the motorway, and are happy to be a rolling roadblock?

I think middle lane hoggers are not only selfish, but actually dangerous.

But AIBU?

Oh yeah. The 42 is ridiculous sometimes, goes from no hard shoulder to don’t use hard shoulder randomly. And the ever changing speed limits. I try to avoid it now and do A roads until I can get on the M6 or M40 depending if I’m going north or south.

There needs to be a separate test for motorway driving. First test gets you A roads/city driving, then after 6 months you can take a motorway test. It will ensure that people at least understand how they should drive.

People avoid the left land for all sorts of reasons...the massive lorry's for one. The idiots darting between lanes at 80mph are terrifying.

I drive on motorways a lot and see so many middle lane hoggers - I think it's a confidence thing so they don't have to change lanes - it wouldn't be so much of an issue if they kept up with the traffic but 99% of the time they don't.

I was on the M4 last week, came off the elevated section just before Heston and the car 2 in front of me moved straight into the middle lane and drove at less than 60mph. I overtook and moved straight back into the left lane but when I looked in my mirror, he was causing chaos and cars were overtaking on both side.

I have been known to pass on the left but prefer to move over and overtake if I can. Most of the time they're pootling along, completely oblivious.

Police are supposed to be cracking down on middle lane hoggers but I rarely see a police car.

i have nver driven on a motorway and this thread is making me anxious
dh drives on the motorway and i navigate
but i would rather avoid motorways

This. When space in front of me is clear and I am doing the legal speed (70), it would never occur to me to slow down and move to lanes 2/3 to progress.

Around where I live that doesn’t seem to be an issue though, you rarely get people doing under 70 other than lorries/ vans, at a strict 70 I usually get left behind. I’ve been undertaken doing 70 quite a few times.

A lot of PPs saying lane discipline on motorways isn’t taught - it’s a core feature of the theory test…

🙄

Most of the time it isn’t cruise control with the drivers I encounter on the M62. It’s hilly, and the middle lane hoggers also drop speed on the uphill parts (because they are so unaware they don’t realise they need to press harder on the accelerator to maintain their speed) which of course wouldn’t happen if they were using cruise control.

Have not RTFT, but if your lane is clear you stay where you are. There is no need to move across 2 or 3 lanes of traffic because the car in the lane next to you is going slower than you are... That is not undertaking

There’s an old myth that driving at 56mph is most economical, but I don’t think it was meant to be applied to motorways.

I’m a fairly regular user of the M25 and come across an abundance of 56ers sitting in lane 3 of 4, or 4 of 5, at times when the rest of the road is relatively clear (like Sat evenings). Then you get those who see the M25 not too busy and treat it as an opportunity to hit 85/90mph in the fast lane. In those situations it’s not easy to find a space to drive at 70 and I have little/no confidence in the 56ers to check their blind spot before lane-changing if I’m passing them on the left.

There does need to be more deterrents for lane hogging and speeding, as it shouldn’t be hard to drive legally and safely at the national speed limit.

It is if they are to your right and the road is clear ie not in heavy moving traffic

And it's the same process on dual carriageways which are taught.

I think some depends on where you live/learn though. We're in south London. Most of my DDs lessons were on 20mph roads, with some 30s. We have some 40mph dual carriageway but the chances of being able to go above 25-30 on them is very slim due to congestion.
So she has passed her test, told she can drive on the motorway, with never having driven at more than about 35 mph.

Middle lane hogging is so annoying, I agree. A lot of people go even slower than 60 and just sit there.

Recently in Portugal I noticed they have minimum speeds on some stretches of road, especially for over taking lanes on hills which I think is a great idea. Often there are stretches of single carriage way where it splits into two lanes so you can overtake slow moving vehicles and you get one car who pulls doing the same speed as the lorry who makes no effort to overtake at a speed which would be worth it....meaning the 10 cars behind are unable to overtake by the time it goes back to one lane again.

I think Cruise control just means people switch off and stop paying attention to the road....I've even seen men driving along the motorway way with something playing like a video on their phone. It's so dangerous.

Pass plus is available, I did it with an instructor to cover motorway driving and help my insurance cost when I passed

Learner drivers can now drive on the motorway. The law changed on this in 2018, partly due to some of the issues discussed on this thread re new drivers having no idea how to drive on motorways.

www.billplant.co.uk/blog/motorway-driving-for-learners/

This. I just stay where I am. Sometimes it gives them a wake up call and they move over. Mostly not though - they just carry on oblivious.

I too am happy at 70mph, driving in lane 1 unless I'm overtaking something.

Believe it or not, I'm also a BMW driver and I know how to use my indicators too! There are some good BMW drivers I promise! I've been driving for 28 years, never had an accident, never made an insurance claim (other than a windscreen here and there) and have never had points on my licence.

I am beginning to think I'm a very rare breed indeed!

I saw a video that Surrey Police put out a couple of years back where they pulled someone over for middle lane hogging on the M25, gave him a warning and a chat about how he should be driving, then they let him on his way. He didn't build up speed on the hard shoulder, just pulled straight out onto the motorway and back into lane 2! Needless to say they pulled him over again and gave him a ticket instead.

I know it's not really feasible and i know how annoying being behind a lorry that takes 10 minutes to overtake a slightly slower lorry because he can't go faster is. But I hate those high speeding drivers who think they are king of the road. The black boxes have helped with younger drivers and also the parts of the motorway that have average speed cameras. It's always much calmer along these parts.

You are meant to match the speed of the traffic on the road and fit in with them when you join, if once joined you want to go faster and vehicles to your right are slower you move in behind them (at their speed) and wait for your opportunity to move out and past before pulling back in to the lanes on the left. But yes hoggers are a PITA but at a junction many will automove out a lane as people do join very fast and seemingly without taking into account the traffic already on the road. I get a bit sick of impatient joiners who weave lanes fast and the rest of the traffic has to slow as they are unpredictable therefore impacting what speed everyone can go at. Drivers already on the mway shouldn't have to adjust what they are doing for joiners, joiners should slide in - although again this is hampered by people driving too closely so all in all it seems everyone needs to take a look at their driving and smarten up - me included sometimes

IMO, on a busy motorway, when all lanes of traffic are doing various speeds, the more dangerous manoeuvre is to go all the way round them. If your lane is travelling at a consistent speed then you're just continuing on your journey.

On a quiet motorway where the middle lane hogger is the only one there, I'd drive round them and pull back to lane one, perhaps pointedly.

that's good to know. We're a while away from this so I'd have been doign all the research nearer the time but will keep this in mind.

@mrshoho a lorry being limited is slightly different in that if they're travelling at lower speeds, they have more time to brake anyway. But if you're travelling at 70mp, there are times when it is safer and better to briefly speed up rather than to slam on brakes. And in fact, that's where average speed can be helpful - you can do the quick thing you need to do, but drop back down to a cruising speed of 69 mph or whatever.

I drive an old car 20 plus years old. The number of times I get overtaken dangerously when driving at the speed limit is unbelievable

usually BMWs merch and any form of SUV. I was driving a horrible trusty country road at the weekend late at night doing 45 to 50. Theoretically 60 but loads of villages where it dips to 30 some horrendous bends and some idiot was sitting on my tail dazzling me with lights on full beam. I thought I know this road better than you mate and sure enough even I had to brake hard when a stag and deer jumped out in front of me. Would have hit or if doing 60 If I see someone driving a road like that slowly I don't know I assume they are local and know there's something dodgy ahead so they are slowing and adjust my speed.
But hey they have a newer car so they know better

If you get hit whilst moving up the inside of anything who do you think the insurance company will blame? You are making an unexpected manoeuvre in their blind spot, good luck arguing thats their fault.

Impatient people cause accidents, not inconsiderate drivers.

This is a worringly clueless post. I mean yes, people travelling at 80/90 are definitely driving dangerously

I take issue with this. The 70 limit is arbitrary number. In many countries the limit is just over 80 mph. Are the drivers driving at the limit in those countries driving dangerously too?

You beat me to it

@JacquesHarlow driving faster than the person in the middle lane is not 'undertaking'. You've completely misunderstood the Highway Code.

just stay where you are-youre not speeding they are in the wrong lane going slower