Your bad driving encounters/irritations

[Haggisman]

On the M62 today as I was returning from work, the gantries had lowered the speed limit to 60. I was in lane 3 and I overtook the big lorry in lane 2 and subsequently moved to lane 1. I did this for legal as well as to not annoy people behind who carry on doing 70 until they see a camera.

Speed limit then dropped to 50, and the lorry behind and the one in lane 2 were side by side. The one behind me gets annoyed and flashes lights for no reason. Lorry in lane 2 overtakes me going above and carries on. Lorry behind me however continued to tailgate. Now this guy had ample of chance to move in lane 2 and overtake and go his merry way, but he didn't.

He backed off after failing to scare me with all the tailgating. Lorry took the next exit. And as he passed me on the left went honking and did the w@kr gesture twice to my amusement.

On a fun note at the same stretch a BMW M4 was merging without indicating. He got into the space I had left in between the car ahead for merging. Surprisingly I got the thank you hazard light flash.

Lorries seem to be the worst for this, temporary 50mph zones through roadworks, and they'll sit right up your **** getting all irate even when you're doing dead on 50 on GPS.

If you want to go faster then just overtake me! (which they invariably do about 100m before the return to NSL, after sitting behind you for 3 miles... I swear they do it on purpose!)

Same with people dumbly following others into yellow boxed areas.

Most people don't know what box junctions are for and just think they are there for decoration. The other day I had someone honk at me repeatedly for not entering a box junction with a big queue the other side of it.

A) I'm not risking a fine by entering the junction when I can't clear it (it's across the entrance of the armed police HQ, so plenty of cameras and a good chance of some rather angry AFOs "having a word")
B) Even if I did move up behind the queue of traffic, you are going to get to your destination literally 0 seconds earlier, why are you in such a rush to sit slightly further ahead in the queue for exactly the same amount of time?

Fortunately I had to turn right shortly after, and since it was quite busy at the time, I had to make quadruply sure that the gap in oncoming traffic was definitely 100% big enough for my extremely slow and cautious right turn

Someone definitely wasn't happy...

 

[floatindolphin]

On the roads near Nantwich last night, nice long straight , looked empty….then I just catch sight of something…

Flick full beam on and there’s a black Nissan suv, no lights on dawdling along. Madness!!

I slow behind it, flick my light off and on, no reaction. Safe to overtake and off I go. They had front lights on so assume they were just running front sidelights.

 

[Penfold101]

When you’re late for work, live in a 30 zone but someone only wants to do 20…

…and when you can’t understand why someone would be leaving a gap at a junction and come head on with a truck.

 

[LowEndTorque]

M60 junction 8 was closed this evening, due to a man threatening to jump off the bridge on the carriageway.

Why the above in this thread you ask? Apparently people were queued up for about 3 hours, and I believe 3-4 cars at the end of the queue decided to turn back and go the wrong way. I saw an unmarked police car had stopped them. Initially I thought all were unmarked cars, but the cars behind the unmarked only had their hazard lights on.

 

[Brun]

…and when you can’t understand why someone would be leaving a gap at a junction and come head on with a truck.

I don't understand why you weren't moving forward here. In the first instance, waiting for the van seems unnecessary, and then there's ample time between that and the truck.

It's not difficult to appreciate why the driver behind you was confused about what was going on.

That first one is a complete dick though. Exactly the sort of aggressive impatience that I'd be reporting.

 

[Rroff]

I don't understand why you weren't moving forward here. In the first instance, waiting for the van seems unnecessary, and then there's ample time between that and the truck.

Probably were leaving the junction clear and then the traffic ahead moved up while the white car leaving to the left crossed and then held a moment expecting the other white car waiting to go to clear and they didn't (often the case with drivers who sit well back from the line) and by the time they'd taken that into account the van enter the equation.

 

[Penfold101]

I don't understand why you weren't moving forward here. In the first instance, waiting for the van seems unnecessary, and then there's ample time between that and the truck.

It's not difficult to appreciate why the driver behind you was confused about what was going on.

That first one is a complete dick though. Exactly the sort of aggressive impatience that I'd be reporting.

There’s traffic stopped ahead for the roundabout, traffic wanting to turn in front of me, and traffic queuing to come out - there’s nothing to be confused about, I’m simply letting it flow till there’s a suitable break rather than jumping into any spot that my car vaguely fits into. By the time that van has crossed in front, I can see the Volvo coming in my side mirrors and I’m confused AF about what it’s doing, so I’m obviously not going anywhere.

The second one I did report - because there’s no middle line on the road the overtake wasn’t illegal, just very ill advised and they couldn’t be certain the car mounted the kerb. I know it did, but there we go.

Edit: what I didn’t add was the rear camera view showing a van directly behind me that the Volvo also decided to pass along with me.

 

[theone8181]

Lorries seem to be the worst for this, temporary 50mph zones through roadworks, and they'll sit right up your **** getting all irate even when you're doing dead on 50 on GPS.

If you want to go faster then just overtake me! (which they invariably do about 100m before the return to NSL, after sitting behind you for 3 miles... I swear they do it on purpose!)



Most people don't know what box junctions are for and just think they are there for decoration. The other day I had someone honk at me repeatedly for not entering a box junction with a big queue the other side of it.

A) I'm not risking a fine by entering the junction when I can't clear it (it's across the entrance of the armed police HQ, so plenty of cameras and a good chance of some rather angry AFOs "having a word")
B) Even if I did move up behind the queue of traffic, you are going to get to your destination literally 0 seconds earlier, why are you in such a rush to sit slightly further ahead in the queue for exactly the same amount of time?

Fortunately I had to turn right shortly after, and since it was quite busy at the time, I had to make quadruply sure that the gap in oncoming traffic was definitely 100% big enough for my extremely slow and cautious right turn

Someone definitely wasn't happy...

There's a box junction near me in the middle of Beverley in front of a fire station. While I've never been crossing it when they've needed to be out I always leave it clear, most other people seem too thick to do that.

 

[Resident]

I appreciate there are not many coppers out on motorways but FFS, they need to start enforcing the lane discipline rules much more harshly. It's as if people have a phobia or fear of some allergic reaction from moving left after overtaking

Give me 1 week with the powers to do pull them over and ticket them and I would have a field day

Drove from South Yorkshire to Barry and back this weekend and there were MANY middle lane hoggers.

However, total distance driven over the weekend, ~450 miles, 90% motorway & ZERO marked units seen on the road

On a sidenote, I can see why the Welsh government moved from 30 to 20 as a default speed limit. The Welsh are **** drivers.

Lorries seem to be the worst for this, temporary 50mph zones through roadworks, and they'll sit right up your **** getting all irate even when you're doing dead on 50 on GPS.

If you want to go faster then just overtake me! (which they invariably do about 100m before the return to NSL, after sitting behind you for 3 miles... I swear they do it on purpose!)

It's the TTT syndrome IMO, Tiny Todger Trucker. Bullying other road users with a large vehicle is the only way they feel big.

With respect to Rroff & Scania, proving it's not all of them, most truckers seem to be in the smooth brain category & believe they won't get a ticket because of the 10% + 2 thing, being 57 in a 50 and they're limited to 56.

 

[bigmike20vt]

dont forget on any long journey you will likely pass 100s of lorries. it is only the ones who drive like plonkers you will notice...

unfortunately even if it is only 1% who are asshats.................... that is 1% of truck drivers who are driving a very deadly weapon if something goes wrong.

I have a bias against motorcylists.... in my mind all i see is them dangerously weaving inbetween traffic even when moving at significant speed, or dangerously overtaking****.

but again in reality am sure that is a minority who do this as well.


**** as a side thought ...... given car drivers are expected to give cyclists (and therefore presumably motorcyclists?) a minimum amount of space when overtaking (isnt it around 1.5m now)

does that not mean they should make sure that gap is that large when they are overtaking / undertaking you as well?

 

[Resident]

**** as a side thought ...... given car drivers are expected to give cyclists (and therefore presumably motorcyclists?) a minimum amount of space when overtaking (isnt it around 1.5m now)

does that not mean they should make sure that gap is that large when they are overtaking / undertaking you as well?

It's one of the many cyclist hypocrisies, along with the demand to share the infrastructure & demanding everyone follow RTA/HWC to the letter when they're seemingly unwilling.

 

[LuckyBenski]

**** as a side thought ...... given car drivers are expected to give cyclists (and therefore presumably motorcyclists?) a minimum amount of space when overtaking (isnt it around 1.5m now)

does that not mean they should make sure that gap is that large when they are overtaking / undertaking you as well?

I would argue a motorcycle is a motor vehicle not a bicycle and gets different treatment, namely that I'd not overtake them nearly as often.

But the question of passing distance is a good one when the cyclist is overtaking/filtering past you. I guess they take their own choice and, implicitly with pushbikes, you should be borderline stationary if they're passing you. So the risk assessment is slightly different as it's implied you're tucked into traffic.

 

[tonys]

I would argue a motorcycle is a motor vehicle not a bicycle and gets different treatment, namely that I'd not overtake them nearly as often.

But the question of passing distance is a good one when the cyclist is overtaking/filtering past you. I guess they take their own choice and, implicitly with pushbikes, you should be borderline stationary if they're passing you. So the risk assessment is slightly different as it's implied you're tucked into traffic.

Can pedestrians get the same safe distance from the cyclists aswell then, because they never give me any room on the path?

 

[Uther]

Problem with overtaking motorcyclists dangerously is they can then catch up with you at the next set of lights and rip your wing mirror off.
yours sincerely,
A Motorcyclist.

 

[LuckyBenski]

Can pedestrians get the same safe distance from the cyclists aswell then, because they never give me any room on the path?

I used to think it roughly equated to how far you could fall e.g. 6 feet to pass a pedestrian in case they topple sideways, slightly more for bikes. But that is probably far too logical.

 

[bigmike20vt]

I would argue a motorcycle is a motor vehicle not a bicycle and gets different treatment, namely that I'd not overtake them nearly as often.

am not sure i follow (and it could be me being a bit senile this morning).

but the point was the rule was updated that when overtaking a bike a driver should give the same space as if overtaking a car aka ~1.5m space............ surely this consideration has to be the same with a motorbike as well?

motorcyclists (semi) regularly overtake me on the way too and from work in congested but moving traffic...... but rarely give me that consideration, if the rule is for one it should be for everyone.

with pushbikes in stationary traffic, you make a fair point, much lower speeds maybe they can squeeze up a bit more.... but 1.5m is probably also about car door opening distance so actually even stationary traffic you could argue that a 1.5m gap still may be useful even then.. even more so with lorries with a massive blind spot

 

[Brun]

There's a massive difference between filtering through slowly moving traffic and being close passed by an overtaking vehicle when you're cycling at 20mph.

 

[Rroff]

With respect to Rroff & Scania, proving it's not all of them, most truckers seem to be in the smooth brain category & believe they won't get a ticket because of the 10% + 2 thing, being 57 in a 50 and they're limited to 56.

Though I'm a supervisor on that side of thing at work I am not a HGV driver - don't touch anything bigger than large vans/small trucks myself.

We have a similar problem with people doing van driving at work - assume that doing 56-57 is fine because the vehicle is limited to that :s even when told otherwise.

I could write a small book on this though - the things truckers have to deal with vs their attitude and where it comes down the middle - unfortunately a lot of them don't deal well with members of the public unable to read their minds (due to not understanding the realities of driving these vehicles) and tend to overreact, but I also understand how tedious it gets being on the receiving end of it when people do daft things like squeezing into space you've obviously left so as to be able to manoeuvre, etc.

I do find it amusing when truckers from where I work or agencies we use try to bully me in a car though and I'm sitting there thinking to myself you don't want to do that...

 

[Resident]

Though I'm a supervisor on that side of thing at work I am not a HGV driver - don't touch anything bigger than large vans/small trucks myself.

We have a similar problem with people doing van driving at work - assume that doing 56-57 is fine because the vehicle is limited to that :s even when told otherwise.

I could write a small book on this though - the things truckers have to deal with vs their attitude and where it comes down the middle - unfortunately a lot of them don't deal well with members of the public unable to read their minds (due to not understanding the realities of driving these vehicles) and tend to overreact, but I also understand how tedious it gets being on the receiving end of it when people do daft things like squeezing into space you've obviously left so as to be able to manoeuvre, etc.

I do find it amusing when truckers from where I work or agencies we use try to bully me in a car though and I'm sitting there thinking to myself you don't want to do that...

Fair enough. I do have an industry related question for you, if you don't mind. Just ignore it if you do.

Recently in my area a certain haulage firm has taken to leaving it's trailers, unhitched in laybys heading into the city on the main dual carriageway. These are public laybys & they often fill the entire layby. Is there a reg/law that deals with this?

 

[Rroff]

Fair enough. I do have an industry related question for you, if you don't mind. Just ignore it if you do.

Recently in my area a certain haulage firm has taken to leaving it's trailers, unhitched in laybys heading into the city on the main dual carriageway. These are public laybys & they often fill the entire layby. Is there a reg/law that deals with this?

AFAIK unless there are signs and/or local restrictions which say otherwise there is nothing legally which deals with it. They closed a lot of truck stops and other rest areas for large goods vehicles in recent years which has made the problem worse.