Reffro

People who cruise past a queue in the outside lane get on my ****. Why not just join the queue like everyone else, or match speed like the trucks do. That way when you have to merge you are all travelling at the same speed. Because the usual scenario is for the guy in the outside lane to dive in at the last moment, whilst on the brakes sheeding speed to stop him hittng the car in front, forcing the cars behind to brake, and hence the concertina effect until the traffic comes to a dead stop....

tiggers, rather than assuming a gap was being left for you, for it to be abruptly closed, why didn't you wait until someone signalled you to pull in? I'll not defend them moving you into the cones, that wasn't needed, but had the gap been left by the car to give them safe braking distance? Why do you assume you can zoom into it and stand on your brakes to match the car's infront speed, causing the cars behind to brake, concertina etc etc.

fatherpierre

If everyone pulled into the left you leave the right lane clear which is a waste of road and makes the queue longer.

Are the words 'merge in turn' so hard to understand?

tiggers

Which part of the 20mph and 25mph speeds of my post did you miss? The reason I couldn't get in was because people closed the door on every opportunity I had or at least tried to in the case of Mr. SUV/4x4.

tiggers.

Drunken Bungle Whore

Nah - I wave my arm out the window and indicate that they may prefer to satisfy themselves sexually.

It was my windscreen that was fcuked by the BMW careering over 3 lanes of traffic last night - worse part was he was too far away to see my friendly wave!

tiggers

I think that is what I said above in my reply to Diablo isn't it?

Regards,

tiggers.

tiggers

I think this thread is beginning to illustrate that they are

davegtt

Tiggers, how far up the queue did u go though before reducing your speed to 20-25mph. if there is half a mile of traffic in the lane behind me and a car comes past indicating I'll get a little miffed about it since theyve took half a mile worth of traffic before deciding to "merge" should have been done much earlier

I aint looking for an argument (its too late on a friday for that) but just giving my thoughts since Im on the other end of your point....

agree about swerving into you etc is way too extreme, no need

tiggers

Well the queue was about 3/4 mile and I was at 25mph well before the 800yd marker. I had "decided to merge" when I reduced my speed, but as stated above several people decided they didn't want me to hence how I ended up at the cones.

tiggers.

fatherpierre

All lanes should be filled up right until the place that the lane is blocked where you all merge in turn.

No wonder there are such long queues with this sort of mentality.

tiggers

Couldn't agree more, trouble is if I'm going to get the sort of treatment I got this morning then I will simply have to join the back of the queue as I really don't need the hassle.

Half thought of calling the police to be honest, but Mr. SUV/4x4 would only give a different side to the story even if they bothered to take any notice anyway. I think I shall just chalk it up to experience and if I end up in the same situation again stop my car in the outside lane, get out and erect a sign pleading for someone to show mercy on me for being so evil as to use an empty lane and begging for them to let me in

tiggers.

skiddus_markus

This thread is amusing-the people who are defending their right to stop "queue jumpers" are missing the point.It's not a queue,just 2 lanes of traffic merging into one.If both lanes were used proeprly then the "queue" would be a lot shorter and the traffic move more freely.

I get annoyed behind the wheel and find it easier on my heart if I just let people in.That way I get a nice warm feeling from doing a good deed rather than the cold sharp stress induced rage from them cutting me up.

I agree about British drivers risking an accident if they think they are in the right.I was travelling down a country road and rounded a bend at 50mph(NSL).An Escort pulled straight out in front of from a layby on the bend giving me very little time to brake.It upset the balance of the van I was driving(white) and forced me to drastically change my line and cross the spaced white lines in the middle of the road.I nearly ran into the back of him and to prove a point he then drove at about 25mph.
He turned off the road after 100yards or so so I followed him to give him a peice of my mind.When I asked him why he couldn't wait for 10 seconds until I'd passed as it was a 60mph road and I was heading towards him at 50mph his reply was"You shouldn't have been speeding".I pointed out I wasn't speeding and nearly ran into the back of him and it would have been his fault.He was admanat"No you were speeding,it would have been your fault".He then informed me that I had "crossed the white lines because I was doing 60mph".I told him that I'd had to cross the lines because he'd forced me too and the van wasn't capable of doing 60mph round that bend.
How he measured my speed whilst driving in front of me I have no idea.He had no grasp of the Highway code or that fact he'd pulled out of a layby with a give way marker on the road.I left before I got annoyed.

davegtt

well Ive never EVER had to get closer than 600yds to the cones and never had too much trouble getting into the correct lane so anyone who is having a problem getting into that lane and getting anywhere near the cones is doing something wrong IMO. if we all merged at a reasonable distance and time then the traffic would keep on flowing

ozzy

Why should he wait until signalled to pull in? everyone should be leave sufficient gaps to allow merging. As stated already it's not a queue.

The same cr@p happens in rush hour with everyone sitting in the outside lane. I pootle along (maybe only doing 50) in the inside and still pass most people. Then I come up behind a truck (or some other vehicle doing 40mph uphill) and when I indicate to pull out (only to get past the truck mind) ******* accelerate to close any gaps.

If I do get out before them, they sit on my @rse until I pass the truck and pull back in.

You'd think I had a big neon sign questioning blokes ***** size or asking women if it's their time of the month.

There really are some to$$ers on the roads these days

tiggers

OK, and I am only asking as I am genuinely interested, what, in your opinion, did I do wrong given the content of the initial post?

tiggers.

fatherpierre

You posted it

tiggers

Ain't that the truth? Sorry, I just want to learn how my ****ty driving can be improved now I realise there are so many experts on here

OllyK

Not wanting to point fingers, but...

There is a thing called "local knowledge", now that may apply to knowing that the local high street is busy at 3.30 and so you avoid it or it may apply to a wider context such that you know in general in the UK most people driving are in their own self centered little world and that the UK has an abnormal queue culture. To try and work a European system in this context is gonna get your *** reamed, now you know, don't do it again

davegtt

lol @ FP

to be honest not much, not having a dig either, but I am genuinely suprised that if you was doing approx 25mph from where the signs starting at what 800yds? and you managed to get to the front of the queue you didnt manage to switch lanes, only thing I could consider is if you actually matched the speed of the alne and slowed right down to make more of an effort to the left hand laners saying hey, Im not trying to queue jump otherwise Id be right down there getting to the front and be patient someone will let you in.

not saying Im an expert, not saying Im any better driver than anyone else for that matter (took me 4 attempts to pass my driving test...lol) just giving you the other side, hell what did u expect 3 pages of a thread of people agreeing with everything you post? you must have expected some sort of opposition

ajm

Let's all throw rotting fruit and vegetables at tiggers!!! Boooo!!!!

RJMS

iTrader: (2)

According to some people you should just join the inside lane at the first oportunity - be it 800 yards, 2 miles (as I have seen happen) or even further from the restriction and then get pissed off at all the "queue jumpers" using the (now empty) outside lane.

Alternatively we could all just "merge in turn" as suggested by the Institute of Advanced Motorists http://www.iam.org.uk/Pressroom/New...ive/nr0115.html this has surely got to be the best way

Brendan Hughes

Only plebs throw fruit

tiggers

Can't argue with that. I guess the gist of it is that we as a nation will just never be as sensible as our European or for that matter American cousins.

tiggers

No, but equally I expect that if someone says that in their opinion I must have been doing something wrong then they should be able to suggest what it was. Not having a go just entering into the spirit of debate.

Suresh

Well said that man.
If we had a "post of the day" icon it would belong right here --->

Suresh

tiggers

Agreed, but the problem here is the word 'advanced'. That term can not be applied to most people on the roads in Britain.

OllyK

The IAM article makes a key point IMO:
People are not taught this as part of their test. People "think" people are pushing in and slowing things down. It's like so many driving issues, we need to educate drivers and encourage them to take a pride in their driving and promote it as a skill rather than producing the camera watching automotons that we seem to be doing at the moment.

OllyK

But rather than promoting complacency, would we not be better to promote excellence such that the standards set for the IAM test become the norm?

FB Tuning

iTrader: (30)

I think that's more to do with what you lot are smoking

But, I agree...There's too many impatient d1ckheads on the British roads.

tiggers

Funny you should say that. I was just talking the other day about public information films and how we don't have them any more. I'm sure they made a difference - some ad campaigns on lane discipline and motorway driving in general wouldn't go amiss. I might even learn something eh?

OllyK

Now you're getting somewhere

Paul Smith on the safespeed web site speaks a lot of sense and is very pro education and promotion of higher standards. He also makes the point that the Police driving school in Hendon used to actively promote the skills externally which influenced general standards of driving.

All this has stopped in the persuit of revenue generation and trying to further reduce the average speed in the UK such that it is slower than the days of horse and carriage. In the last 10 years it has achieved nothing, it's time to try something else or go back to the old ways that were working.