darts_aint_sport

I must admit that unless they are going VERY slowly i.e. 10mph or less than me, I don't bother overtaking as I know as soon as I get 100 yards away I'll be stuck behind a 100-car queue of traffic behind some milk float and it's just not worth the bother, gets me nowhere quicker.

New_scooby_04

iTrader: (4)

No you don't but, as appealing as the argument is, there are a few problems.

Although driving skill is an important factor in owning a performance car, so is attitude- People respond to training in different ways, they're not all as responsible and aware as you are. A theroetically skilled driver who -in practice- has no patience and restraint and uses their IAM training as a licence to drive like a loon would potentially be more of a menace than a less qulaified driver, who repected the performance of the car and drove with restraint, and awareness of the fallability.

Similar comments as above can be made with respect to age. However, I think this is les of an issue as insurance companies generally won't insure teens on a Scooby or similar car and if they did, the price would be astronomical! I'm sure a few will pay, but it's very unlikely to become a significant problem. Uninsured drivers, however, are a problem!!

Also many of the skills to drive a High performance car on the road would be equally beneficial for drivers of low powered cars. As for advanced training that covers track technique etc... that's less relevant for the road as the conditions are very different. With regards to skid training, I think it's particularly imperative that HP car owners have some exposure to this, but again, everyone would benefit from this training- you never know when you might be grateful one rainy night! I do however, feel that you one should not deliberately try and induces a loss of traction on the road, especially in Scoobies and Evos etc.... and training skid control should emphasise that its not a licence to hang the back end out at every opportunity!

Research indicates that around 70% of drivers who passed a DSA test only two years earlier could be expected to fail on a retake! I don't think a pass/fail scenario every five years would be useful. However, an on road evaluation where a DSA examiner gives you feedback on your progress might well be a good idea.

I think it is important to weed out the bad apples though. Driving is a privalege and those who abuse it...particularly those who are reckless and dangerous behind the wheel should be subject to stiffer penalties! I would particular like to see more custodial sentences handed down to people who drive whilst disqualified and those who repeatedly drive without insurance as they're sticking their fingers up at the law and all of us.

Oh, and less Gatsos and Scamera vans and more patrol cars with decent police in them!!

Who's gonna vote for me as next transport secretary then!?!?!

RB5 Paul

And another thing,if you do get stuck behind a 40 in a 60 bell end,why do they continue on at 40mph when they enter a 30mph zone?

Freak

timely thread.

Last night en route to a gig, stuck behind an arctic, with a few cars behind that.
Overtake a few (its a nasty road to find good overtaking spots), with no problems- then encounter this corsa.
Overtake on a perfectly clear and straight bit of road (the sort where you can see the oncoming car about 1/2 mile away but there is sufficient room to overtake) and this muppet of a corsa ACCELERATES as I am overtaking her, and closes the gap i need to pull into to avoid a head on. In the end the mondeo in front of her saw this and moved forward to give me room to pull in.

Not sure if she did it on purpose or was just really really reallystupid

Vonzack

There's far too much agression on the roads today. Nobody wants you to get where your going before them. If they can stop you from passing or hold you up they will, even if it becomes dangerous.

How many of you have been passing other traffic, only to find that some **** shuts the gap your going for or as others have said sees you comming and pulls out in front of you as your passing.

I'm sorry but I have to blame the police, there is far too much attention paid to speed limits and far too little paid to what people are actually doing on the roads.

Nick100

Ah that old chestnut - had the joy of watching some old git do exactly this past a speed camera - result Dawdling along in the 60 with no where to overtake and then 40 past a camera in a 30 limit - priceless. Mind you he then slowed down to 20

I quite enjoy the fact that no-one (nearly) overtakes. It gives me more opportunity to get past a whole load in one go. I have had the odd few pull out, but do look out for it and have managed to avoid getting caught out.

Had a good one a week or so ago - single carriageway, 60 limit. Stream of cars following a Toyota doing about 40-45 with no-one overtaking. I had pulled out from a side road, on to the back of the queue. When safe and clear, I overtook a few and was about 6 cars from the front. I thought I'd seen a police car in the queue and sure enough as I got nearer, there was a police car behind the Toyota. I know the road well and at a good visibility straight, over half a mile long, with nothing coming the other way, I pulled out went up to about 65 and went past everyone No-one else followed

DaveD

iTrader: (2)

Had the 'closing the gap' problem a few years ago in Wales.

Came across a line of half a dozen cars lazily following a flatbed artic, all doing around 40mph. I sat in the queue at a couple of places where there was adequate space to overtake, to see if anyone in front was to make the effort to pull out. No one did.

So at the next couple of straights, I made my way up the queue, always indicating to pull out, and indicating to pull in with time to spare, so there was no harsh braking involved.

Got to behind the last car in the queue, and pulled out to overtake just the car. As I pulled up so the back doors of my car were level with the front of his, I started to indicate left to pull in, and also eased off the gas slightly. He then started to close the gap to the artic!!

I managed to muscle my way in, but was a bit too close to the corner we were approaching for my liking No idea what he was trying to prove, but seconds later I was off past the lorry and never saw them again!

Nicci

I overtook a learner driver on a country road on my way in to work this morning.

No problems in this, I left plenty of space when pulling back in.

As I had almost finished overtaking I spotted an approaching car in the distance.
The driver flashed me even though they had no need to brake or taking avoiding action as they were nowhere near me.

I would say there was easily space for a few more cars to overtake.

Do some people get scared or angry when they see a car on their side of the road even when there is a huge distance between the 2?

BTW, Reckless overtaking annoys me.

DazW

iTrader: (1)

Agree that driving standards are dropping thru the floor & that re-testing every three years would be an answer ...fail & you get 3 months of grace to get that pass in, after that you're back to provisional ...should sort out the Maureens of this world & those who got their 'mates' to pass their test for them! ...oh & you should need a valid eye test cert to get your tax!

As for the flashing/gesturing brigade when you overtake them ...try this!

1. get a good distance
2. perform 'handbrake turn'!
3. continue in opposite direction ...preferably with main beam
4. pass previous 'gesturer' whilst 'gesturing'
5. repeat point 2.
6. re-overtake 'gesturer'

repeat this procedure until bored/road runs out/fuel runs low ...or handbrake goes soggy!

matchmaker

And of course the opposite - 40 in a 30, continuing at 40 in a 60

dexter

Nothing to do with driving IMO, as people these days are just generally more selfish and ignorant than in times-gone-by.

The fact that they then get into their car doesn`t make them any less of the above.

Diesel

Just wait till you get laser zapped for overtaking safely & 'in a quick manner' as Highway code and all common sense indicates. It seems you are meant to amble past these days to avoid persecution

Sprint Chief

I've also noticed the majority of drivers seem to throw toys out of pram after being overtaken. My personal take is it related to UK "queuing" mentality - I reckon people perceive you as "jumping the queue" by overtaking, not realising that actually you are not slowing them down any by doing it.

My main concern now is that these people (who are actually suffering from a form of road rage) will use the "anti-social driving" rules against people who overtake them... which means the police will have to follow the lead up and you will have to prove that you performed the overtaking manoeuvre safely. I suspect having an IAM badge at that point may actually be beneficial!

I also agree with extended driver training, although rather than retests, require refresher courses and try to encourage further development beyond the basic skills required to pass the current test.

Jap2Scrap

The scenario you describe particulary worries me with respect to filter lanes. There's one where you come off the M62 to Pontefract and the wazzocks sit around the outside of the roundabout and stream slowly off of it. If you take the middle lane round the roundabout you're filtered off alongside them and then have to merge about 100 yds along the road. Hardly anyone does this so you can effectively jump about 50 cars by doing it. The thing is, you're not really queue jumping because it's a legitimate manouevre along a clearly marked filter lane. The ones who've sat in the long queue hate it though and will do anything to prevent you merging, to the point that they force you out into oncoming traffic. I once fought with a coach in my saxo for the right to pull in and when I finally managed it I parked in the middle of the road and went and had a mild word with him. I was very polite and just pointed out the filter signs on the road and the Highway Code rules on giving way to overtaking vehicles. He was threatening me in front of his passengers and they were cheering him on.

Now I'd be more worried that some aggrieved tosser would just phone the law and suggest I'd bullied my way in front of them aggressively. I wouldn't do that and now I sit and wait for someone to physically stop and wave me in (takes awhile I can tell you).

Leslie

Might be a good idea to get rid of those filter lanes and make the traffic get into a single lane before the roundabout then. Generally easier to get into a single lane earlier on, the later merging just causes hold ups anyway.

Les

Scoob99

iTrader: (1)

Well had this last W/E the road into Bedford from where I live is a 60mph limit and as it has been said people just sit behind one another, well I don't dropped Scooby into 3rd and gone and what do I get a Guy coming the other way no where near me flashing his lights and a hand gesture, so I gave him 2 fingers, what was more annoying I'd overtaken the car and pulled back in
Cheers
Colin

Jap2Scrap

Lane merging doesn't cause hold ups if people actually merge like they're supposed to though. It's selfish drivers who cause the hold ups. Besides, in the instance I describe, surely two short queues merging are better than one long queue trailing round the roundabout stopping drivers getting on and off at the various other exits. The traffic is often virtually stationary all the way up the hill to the town where the lanes split once more so the merging isn't the problem, it's just the sheer volume of traffic at peak times.

Don't even get me started on when there is horse racing on at the race track. The police direct the traffic then and it's basically, "Screw anyone trying to get home. You're only important if you're going into the race course, the rest of you can manage less than a mile in an hour."

RB5 Paul

I've also had the oncoming drivers half a mile down the road flashing and swearing at me,i just smile at them and wave

I'm glad it's not just me that suffers these incidents for perfectly safe overtaking,when i started this thread i wasn't sure whether i'd get told off for overtaking or whether other people had suffered the same abuse for perfectly legal and safe manouvres.

I had been beginning to wonder if the law had changed or something or if someone had written "please abuse driver" on the back of my car. Seems i was wrong on both counts and my initial feelings that i was doing nothing wrong and it was selfish arrogant fellow motorists that for some reason or other can't handle being overtaken

03-CTR

cheeses me off completely all this bad feeling on the roads.

i've had many incidents where people are happy to do 40 or 50 in a 60mph limit but then speed up when you try to overtake (with oncomming traffic ). also why don't people on the other side of the road slow down when they can see an overtaking manouvre going a bit pear shaped. its like people want the person overtaking to have a near death experience or something.

CrisPDuk

I'm ashamed to say that my mother is one of these For years she would self righteously lecture both my sister & me about driving too fast, generally anything over 50

Getting Gatso'd doing 45 in a 30 past a school shut her the **** up sharpish though We'll be taking the mick mercilessy for a few years yet

New_scooby_04

iTrader: (4)

I recall one incident coming back from xtreme on a stretch of road with a 50mph limit. An old chap in front was doing 35 in his Rover 214i...impressive acheivement in one of those, but a bit to slow for my liking. I overtook him very easily (obviously) no-one had to take any kind of avoiding action, there was no on-coming traffic. I used my indicators and gave him lots of space

I can't repeat what he shouted at me....

No, really I can't: My H&S exhaust was drowning him out...and in about 3 seconds he was a distant memory....I did however see him giving me the (ahem) 'Self love' gesticulation and flashing his lights and hitting his horn (not that kind of horn)

All becuse I wanted to get past him and was likely to get somewhere before him....if he was in so much of a hurry wsy was he doing 15mph under the limit on a quiet road in excellent conditions!?! What a plum!!

NS04

Leslie

That was my point J2S, you are right of course, no one seems to be prepared to merge properly on a one for one basis any more, so removing the lane merging where the traffic is bunched side by side might help towards removing the basic problem. If people are told to merge earlier then it should ease the problem in a fairer manner- it still would not be perfect of course! It would be fairer on those who were responsible enough to form a single line earlier on.

Les

03-CTR

<makes mental note to buy loud **** exhaust> lol

rgv_stu

i always find they try to close the gap and ride your bumper when your overtaking just a single car in a line of traffic, does my 'ead in. what they cant make the gap bigger is beyond me? if the dont want to overtake then why make it harder for soeone who does ??. i allways move out the way for bikers and anyone who wants to get past me.

NewLabour

That's right reduce the capacity of the road in order to pander to the pathetic mentality of the "I like to queue" d1ckhead Brits.

On the other hand perhaps we could all use the available roadspace in it's entirety, cut down on jams and politely let others filter in like civilised human beings just like they do in the better parts of Europe.

Jap2Scrap

Bloody hell.

I agree

If someone wants to sit all the way around a roundabout (nevermind the law that says you shouldn't enter a roundabout unless your route off is clear) then let them. There's a filter lane there and I don't see why it shouldn't be used. To do away with all filter lanes would mean the whole UK being single lane traffic eventually.

Sprint Chief

I have to admit to being a bit naughty once when this happened...

On an single carriageway A-road, overtook someone with a car in the oncoming lane about a mile away (v long straight)... away in the distance started flashing lights at me!

I pulled back on to my side of the road as normal after the overtake, and to make a point, pulled back on to his side, flashed a few times, before pulling back on to my side of the road with ooh... about three quarters of a mile to go before *impact*!

I know I shouldn't have (and obviously wouldn't do it again officer ) but... it just made me think of that Steamroller bit in Austin Powers with the henchman waving his hands saying noooo noooo and the steamroller inching towards him...

Diesel

Ahha! Maybe I sense the type of British driver who merges somewhat after the 200yd sign on any motorway lane closure - rather than the one who merges unobtrusively shortly after the 800 yd lane closure marker? Get past as many slowcoaches as you can I say (and sometimes do)!!!

Lets face it - we dont do 'zip merging'. We are much more polite (sometimes)!

Comper100

Well said that man!!! I drive between Bromesgrove and kidderminster alot and it happens all the time, since when was the speed limit 45MPH ANYWHERE! Its so anoying, there the same people who put the lights on full beam at night when you've passed them suggesting your the dangerous one!

Ahh well i know those roads very well so it doesnt take me that long to find a gap to overtake

Jonty

WTF..?! My highway code's a little rusty (and can't go and get it because my 11 week old daughter is asleep on me and I can't move) but I thought that if you were being overtaken then you had to give way to the approaching vehicle(s) behind you, i.e. back off the gas so you can be passed easily and the other vehicle pull in if need be..?

I dunno... why worry about the planet/environment when society is going down the toilet.

Ditch Europe and "Vote for common sense!"

Jonts.

PS: It's taken me 10 mins to type this, one finger at a time