To think the majority of England need retraining on how to drive on a motorway

[afternoonwater]

So I've just been on a trip from Dover to the North and back again.
I learnt to drive in England but I have driven more of my life in Europe.
WHY THE HELL DONT PEOPLE MOVE OVER TO SLOWER LANES?!
Honestly, the amount of people that just sit in the middle when the left lane has about 2 miles of nothing in... or are driving slower in one of the middle lanes than the left lane over....
Or just sits in the right most lane for absolutely no real reason other than they can?
It stops people from actually being able to over take safely and just conjests the whole road. No wonder you all have road rage 🤣🤣

I went on a training weekend with a large group and this topic came up.

A lot of people, surprisingly admitted that they did this and when asked why, they said that they were scared to be in the inside (left) lane, due to seeing videos of lorries ploughing into the back of other drivers, so it was a strategy to keep safe in their eyes.

Because the COI was disbanded in 2011 by the Coalition. Yep, another super David Cameron legacy!

Well you solve that problem by travelling faster than 60mph. Lorries, ime will pretty much never exceed this due to tachos.

You also solve that problem by looking in your mirrors every second or two and being aware of what every single driver around you is going to or trying to do. Ie spatial awareness.

Because there are areas in the UK that have no access to motorways such as the Highlands and Islands and it is not compulsory to learn to drive with a professional driving instructor. Learners can only have motorway lessons with a qualified ADI instructor in a dual controlled car so everyone else has to wait until they passed their driving test and then they don’t think they need to pay someone to teach them.

😂😂😂😂😂

It’s overwhelmingly the drivers of large SUVs round the motorways I drive (m25/m3/m27) eg Land/Range rovers, Volvos that think their own personal speed limit is infact 90+mph

Ah - yet another fine piece of decision-making!🙄

I don't think I've ever seen a Volvo exceed a steady 65mph. Didn't know it was possible for them to go faster!

The ones used by the police on the motorways seem to be able to go a good deal faster.

I seems to me that people that drive big cars use them as virtual battering rams to force everyone else out of their way.

If the Police ANPR is able to do this why is the same system doing bugger all about all those middle lane hogger offenders ?

I drive a small cheap car. It suits my circumstances. If I lived somewhere else I’d probably have a big expensive car. It’s not a financial choice but a practical one.

i’m a parking ninja. Years of living in city centre properties with no driveway.

I can parallel park anything. And I hate parking sensors. The ones in my own car are permanently turned off!

And I fucking hate people driving in the middle lane and I find the trend of undertaking to combat it concerning.

Dear god.
Were they not embarrassed to have so little idea about how to drive safely?

If a driver is hogging the middle lane at 65mph and I'm driving at 70 in the inside lane, then I am in the right, they are in the wrong.

What tosh lol. I have a small one for work but mainly drive and outlander otherwise. My drinking is same in both cars. 36 year licence holder with no at fault accident or oints

East anglia also

Just driven from West Country to London on several different motorways today. I was mindful of this thread and tried to observe what was going on a bit more keenly than usual.

Yes, there were middle-lane hoggers and, curses on them!! Plenty of opportunities to pull back into the inside lane, but didn't take it.

But I do see what a pp meant by the great trails of big lorries in the inside lane, all leaving very little space between them. Therefore to overtake you will be sitting in that middle lane for quite some time. (Incidentally, not only am I NOT a MHHogger, I detest the middle lane as a driving position.)

Actually - although MHHogging is a thing, there are also those who sail down the outside lane for ages too. Isn't that just as bad? And when I'm doing 70 in the inside lane, what do they think they're doing?? Surely they're outside lane hoggers.

I was also conscious of the frequency of lane-changing for other reasons than overtaking. This is something comparatively new (not a thing when m/ways were first designed) and of course it's bound to have an effect on people's lane discipline in other ways.

My main bugbear with other drivers though isn't MH Hogging - it's not observing safe distances. Even when they used to have those chevrons, most people were just oblivious. Speed in itself doesn't cause accidents, but proximity does.

We definitely need some of those information/safety films!!

@RubySquid Do you always drink in a car?

😂Ruby - I assume you mean your driving is the same in both cars....or at least, I hope so!

LeaAndDer has made the most childish and ridiculous point on the thread, though.

They are an example of the worst kind of thinking. My daughter drives a very small car (she's a good driver) and I dread to think of her being intimidated by idiots like LeaAndDer on the motorway.

Have these people never driven a small car? Do they not have the imagination to understand that it's a very different experience down there, with huge vehicles on all sides? Or are they just naturally bullies?

Lol oh gosh yeah. No idea where drinking came into it.

That's my attitude too but I am worried as to whether the police would see it in the same light if there were an accident 😁

In my experience people only stay in the outside line while they are constantly overtaking. Some drivers might not like that someone driving at 70 is overtaking and not going over 70 but tough. I have no problem with people going 90 in the outside lane and constantly overtaking. If I’m doing 70 in the outside lane and a Porsche comes up behind me I move in when there is a space.

People tend to sit in the middle lane so they don’t have to constantly switch lanes (more lane switching means more danger) as there is always another entrance/exit coming up. On top of that the middle lane is very very often actually overtaking the lorries on the inside lane so whilst in the 2nd lane they are overtaking too. It’s much better when there are 4 or more lanes.

The worst offenders in my experience are people overtaking when far too close to other cars and “cutting people up”. You should never cause other drivers to have to brake to keep their distance - either cutting in when overtaking or cutting back in too close in front of a car you overtook.

No, they seemed to think it was the only sensible solution. They were, largely, a timid bunch, who didn't like driving on motorways and this seemed to be their way of coping.

Totally agree

Totally agree