County lanes AIBU

[Talkingtomyhouseplants]

Roads are a nightmare at the moment - roadworks everywhere and google maps likes to send you down back routes to avoid it. I do a lot of driving in unfamiliar places so I don’t necessarily choose this although it’s usually fine as I drive normal sized cars and am confident and competent.

Today myself and I counted about 8 other cars ended up having to reverse for about half a mile because two Luton Vans had tried to pass each other on a single dirt track and got stuck. When our 8 cars turned around in wider hit to face the right way, there were a further 10 behind us then also had to reverse up to a clearing to leave the way the came in, including a flipping Sainsbury’s Van that still couldn’t really get through! It took me about 25 minutes to get out of it, I was late, and it was extremely stressful.

Then they have the cheek to look at you like you are causing the problem, like EXCUSE ME you are the one who has driven down an inappropriate road for your size of vehicle.

And don’t even get me started on people in Teslas on PCP that won’t MOVE OVER lest a branch brushes against their passenger door.

AIBU to say that vans and Lorries need to bugger off out of country lanes and if you are precious about your paintwork maybe you should do the same?

Edit: Country lanes!!

I thought you were going to write about drugs...
Fully agree except that I'm grateful the Sainsbury's van comes to me down my country lane and since it's always the same guy he has a routine of reversing down so he can get out easily.

People's sat navs send them in odd directions, especially when there are roadworks and diversions. I live in a city, on a long, narrow, two-way road which has street parking on one side or other pretty much its entire length (because the steep terrain means houses don't have drives, because they're steeply above or below the road). Gigantic lorries and foreign tourbuses periodically get sent along our road, because it looks like an obvious way to skirt the city centre, and get stuck. There was a two-hour tailback last week because a lorry got wedged with a big line of traffic behind him. Police ended up having to tow legally-parked cars whose owners weren't at home out of the way.

How are people who live down country lanes supposed to get large items delivered if all the vans and lorries stop going down them?

I realise it's frustrating, but I think YABU!

My late partner and I had a Luton van-sized motorhome for several years, and we never caused a traffic or access problem despite driving down some very narrow lanes in it. Sometimes an oncoming vehicle might have to wait while we reversed into a passing place, but not often.

If it annoys you follow the official diversions or just wait in the queue - they have as much right to try and get somewhere fast as you have

Near us there is a huge logistics warehouse with umpteen lorries going in and out every day. It's in a tiny village and the only roads in and out are narrow country lanes. I appreciate that it's on a former airfield, presumably for the space, but the access is appalling
ETA but I think YABU because sometimes deliveries have to be made to villages etc

They don’t when they don’t fit!

I think sometimes it is less about them being there and more about the way they choose to drive their vehicles. This morning’s incident could have been avoided if one of them had waited somewhere rather than trying to squeeze through. People drive too fast and don’t anticipate that their might be oncoming traffic

Wait till you see the size of some farm machinery that use country lanes or the lorries used for transporting livestock or crops such a barley, wheat, sugar beet ect.

It’s the people that drive in the middle of the road really fast, and refuse to reverse or put their car in the hedge so others can get past. I grew up in a village so know how to drive on country roads.

My MIL is someone who only drives in the middle of the road incase a leaf touches her car. But she also parks a foot away from a kerb so….

They do fit - there are very few roads where a tractor can’t fit and Iif the tractor can most others can

roads with length or weight restrictions round here are labelled clearly

I was driving down a single track road recently which was so narrow I was touching the hedge on both sides at the same time.

I was definitely driving in the middle of the road, but very slowly and was extremely grateful that I didn’t meet anything coming in the opposite direction as there were no passing spaces for about a mile.

Yanbu

The problem is that the google maps function tells you this route will be quicker because it assumes you will barrel along at 60mph. The googlemaps algorithm needs to be uodated to show an average speed of 20mph on these roads (to allow for all the reversing) and then the route calculations will keep the bastards on main roads.

They do fit. Two don't fit, but one does. What are they supposed to do? Never go down a narrow road just in case they meet something equally large coming the other way?

Yes!

But the farming boys and girls normally are very good at knowing where they can or cannot go. They are used to the roads, and know them like the back of their hands.

It's the large artics or transporters trying to fit places that vans or large cars struggle because they think it's a shortcut that are the problem. It's not unusual for a road to be closed off for several hours while a lorry gets unwedged round our way. And there are rarely easy diversions, so the whole area is jammed up.

During the recent floods kids were stranded at our local secondary school for hours because lorries got wedged in the roads that weren't flooded!

I'm with you OP!

Generally It’s not the size of the vehicle, it’s that people can’t reverse. I was taught to use my wing mirrors for reversing, it’s not difficult and I can reverse for miles, but it’s so frustrating when I get someone behind me who refuses to reverse back, so then I can’t move! General rule of thumb who ever is driving uphill reverses back down, as it’s not so hard on the engine, obviously though if you’re coming down a hill and only need to reverse a few meters then it makes sense you go back.

Omg when there is a passing place a few metres begin them and they literally just stare and blink at you

It’s all the people who blindly follow each other when there’s clearly nowhere to go that’s gets me. Just wait in th passing place until it’s clear!

I live on a single track road and drive on many more. The issue is not the size of vehicles but some people's lack of driving skill, particularly anticipation, and basic common courtesy. In many places where two vans can't pass, nor could two smaller cars.
Problems occur when drivers fail to anticipate the possible presence of other road users, drive too fast for the distance that they can see, too close together and without giving any thought to passing places whether they are official ones or just wider parts of the road, gateways etc.
Road closures cause particular problems because people who don't normally use minor roads end up on them and all seem to think that their journey is the most important. Drivers who are used to the roads are usually pretty good at looking ahead and adjusting their speed, stopping or reversing so that they pass at a suitable place. It's when you get two convoys of cars glued to each others bumpers and all determined to get through that it is chaos. Our road is hardly ever an official diversion but does get used a lot when the nearest main road has roadworks because people think it will be quicker than the proper diversions. It is infuriating, not just because it makes life difficult for those of us who live here but also because the verges all get churned up and there's lots of damage to plants and wildlife as drivers push their way past each other regardless of what they run over.
The answer is not to ban larger vehicles. As a PP said, they're needed to get stuff in and out of the area - we have absolutely massive logging lorries here who seem to be able to negotiate single track roads and forest tracks successfully. The answer is for people not to drive like arseholes and preferably stick to official diversions when roads are closed.

I always think Google should add a 'avoid single track roads' option, like you can select to avoid motorways or toll roads.

I did too. What’s causing so many problems in my neck of the woods are potholes, really bad ones and lots of them. People are having to drive on the wrong side of the road and go so carefully. Damned councils are doing nothing.

I’ve just had to buy a new car because I fucked my old one so badly on potholes. It was a small car which is the worst for them and round me sometimes you literally can’t avoid them - they are on both sides of the road and there are double parked cars, or it is dark/raining and you can’t see them, or the choice is drive through a pothole or drive into a parked car

Everyone using the country lanes as a cut through need to fuck off back to the main roads.

Since the uptake of sat nav, our lane is no longer quiet.
The only saving grace for us is that we are well off the road so can't hear the traffic, sadly our closest neighbours aren't so lucky.

I drive at a speed appropriate to the road, much to the disgust of those who are using it as a cut through who just want to floor it.
One day a man coming towards me hit a deer, it somersaulted in front of my car and landed on the verge on my side. He never even stopped.
I did and called my horse/large animal vet who came out to treat it. As long as he got to where he was going, damned the consequences of his speeding.

It’s really not right is it. It ruins a nice drive making you anxious.

It's just part of country living - today I was sent on a diversion down a single track lane with no passing places without having to reverse back round blind bends - the main road was dug up and there was literally no other way to go.

Luckily I managed to see a car approaching a way away and pulled in to wait, but she couldn't see me due to the hedges and was very grateful to see I'd pulled in to wait.