AIBU to overtake a hearse?

[confusedabouthormones]

So today on the way home from school I had just pulled onto a dual carriageway and there was a hearse with some cars behind it. They were going to a near by crematorium. I pulled into the outside lane and drove past it.

My mother was in the car and she had a right go at me for being disrespectful and how she was embarrassed to be in my car. When I looked in my mirror no one else had passed the hearse.

Is this a thing? In my 30 odd years driving I've never heard this.

Was I being unreasonable to pass the hearse?

It's respectful not to overtake a hearse in any circumstances. If you weren't in an emergency or a desperate rush then your mum was right. Modern life is so rushed and busy I think it's only right to be mindful of the recently deceased and indeed their grieving loved ones.

This is complete nonsense. If you’re on a motorway or dual carriageway, you absolutely should overtake.

On a dual carriageway i do not see the issue - plus once the queue got a certain length no-one at the back would have a clue so you would start overtaking and come up to the hearse to find out it is a funeral

but you're not supposed to overtake on single lane/residential roads anyway (usually there's not enough space to overtake safely given you'd have to drive on the 'wrong side' for several cars width) so of course it applies to dual carriages!

of course you can overtake on single carriageway roads if it’s safe to do so

I am wondering how many of the don't overtake camp are also drivers (on UK dual carriageways). As a few have said, at the time you commit to over take you can't know what the slow vehicle is. Then what happens as you notice the hearse? Drive slowly alongside it? Drive even more slowly so the funeral procession undertakes?
Bonkers.

I would never, but where I live all other traffic pulls over and waits. If that’s not the convention where you are I think it was probably fine on a dual road.

I am wondering how many of the don't overtake camp are also drivers (on UK dual carriageways).

It’s amazing how many UK drivers don’t even know what a DC is!

a) at least where I live it's not practical, particularly on residential roads- people parking either side means it's not doable, plus hard to overtake at 20mph which is the speed limit now
b) even if it's technically do-able (e.g. more of an A road) it's rarely going to be safe to overtake a hearse (already longer and wider than the average car) plus several following cars - that's a long time to be on the 'wrong' side of the road. It's not like funerals are held late at night or in the middle of nowhere - most funeral processions are in built up areas because that's where most people live

I drive on A roads a LOT and have got stuck trawling behind tractors more times than I can count, because the roads are so busy it's very rarely quiet enough to overtake safely these days, particularly if more than 1 car. Also many aren't very straight so you don't have good visibility.

This thread reminded me of when my much loved Grandma died. The memorial service for everyone was in our village, but the burial was in a nearby city, family only. After the service we all drove separately up to the cemetery in the city. At the time my brother drove a clapped out landrover, that struggled to go over 40 miles an hour. As he was driving on the motorway he glanced at the middle lane and realised that he was going so slowly that he was being overtaken by the hearse with Grandma inside! It made us all smile on a very sad day and we all agreed that Grandma would have been tickled pink by it.

Driving with wife to her mother’s ceremony at Crematorium with others in car . Half a mile out and saw mothers hearse ahead of us on inside lane of dual carriageway. Had to overtake to get there before her ! 😂
…are we being unreasonable- no , not on a dual carriageway ( as long as you overtake sedately.)

Can anyone actually explain why as individuals we have to care and disrupt our day for a starnger?
Under the guise they may be disrespected?
Why should we care if someone we will never meet feels a nonimportant feeling?

Why shouldn't they care that I feel disrespected at being held up?

Yes it’s not always practical and can be a complete pain in the arse I agree. But you said you’re not supposed to overtake on those roads, which isn’t the same thing and incorrect.

Funny procession of holier than the pope posts.

Dual is ok

@DavidBeckhamsrightfoot do you get annoyed too if you get held up in traffic because a car has crashed? Or a child hit on the road? Or a road closed because a building is on fire?
Those scenarios will involve strangers.
As established on the thread it's fine to over take on a duel carriageway. So no hold ups there.
The only time a hearse and the following cars go slow is usually at the beginning when the lead undertaker briefly walks infront. They will then get in the car and travel at normal speed.
Obviously if it's horses it will be a bit slower but horse drawn hearses are rare these days.
You will probably be delayed by 5 minutes.

So every car that happens to be in front of a hearse has overtaken it?

She was already in front of it because she had right of way across the junction ! 🤦🏻‍♀️

And you can't notice the difference in your examples?
Do I really have to dumb down that much?
Can you maybe drawn1 difference between the topic and your examples?

I mean yes, people will get frustrated by those delays? It's a normal human emotion, as long as you're not stood there screaming at the people involved it's fine to feel like that?

Sorry OP, not cool.

You absolutely never break the cortege either. It's so disrespectful.

Because they are grieving and you aren't. Pretty simple.

And? They can't greive at a normal speed? Why does their private grieving have to disrupt others day?

Does their grief mean nothing else matters? What I'd I'm having a shot day?

What if I wouldn't have liked the dead person?

@DavidBeckhamsrightfoot no I don't see the difference.
Sometimes car drivers have just got to wait.
Just the other day at the same junction that I witnessed a horse drawn hearse there was an incident where the delivery lorry for the little Tesco tried to turn at a miss judged angle, got stuck and the security guy and a member of staff had to hold up the traffic and assist the lorry driver doing a kind of 16 point turn.
Things happen from time to time.
Not much you can do than just wait for 5 minutes.

The hearse is choosing to go slow.

Your examples are not someone making a choice

It's rude to make a conscious and selfish choice to disrupt others.

@DavidBeckhamsrightfoot they go slow for just a few minutes - not the whole journey.

Not in my experience. And not in the context of this post.
It's to long and uneccessary.

Again, who does the disruption actually benefit.
Get moving and get on with it.

I will always prioritise the safety and laws of the road.
So if I have right of way at a junction or a roundabout the funeral will have to deal with that.