What is it with poeple not overtaking Tractors?

[adolf hamster]

Thing is, some of this stuff needs either particular circumstances, and/or special training environments... which costs money and hikes the prices of lessons up even further. For example, we grind to a halt when it snows just a little bit because, even if we know the theory, we mostly have no actual experience of driving effectively in it and there's nowhere we can go with snow on demand to practice.

i get your point, i lucked out in a sense as i learned to drive in a vary bad winter, so had to deal with snow/ice right from the start. something which has served me well later on (as it's a regular enough occurrence in sunny rainy northern ireland)

as for the money argument, whilst i understand it, i think it would still be a worthwhile investment.

even something as simple as requiring a minimum number of lessons per season (to prevent people learning then passing in summer only to go straight into solo driving in winter) would help a little, as obviously the amount of snow driving needed for cornwall is going to differ from northern scotland. and a few tweaks to the actual lesson structure (particularly for the braking aspect).

 

[MissChief]

The main issue I feel is that lessons teach you to pass the test, not how to drive effectively.

 

[413x]

Might not have been in a rush, why risk an overtake at all.

This

 

[chaparral]

From 20 seconds in

 

[Finglonga]

Tonight yet another numpty but this one up the chuff positioning while the road was clear and decided for the double whites were approaching to look and commit....

 

[Flack88]

Tonight yet another numpty but this one up the chuff positioning while the road was clear and decided for the double whites were approaching to look and commit....

Crazy mofo!

 

[jpaul]

the oncoming vehicle did not seem to have to take too much evasory action, or even try to flash idiot him to push him back,
maybe margin was greater than it appeared, would have though oncoming might have braked to standstill.
(Do police have higher quality/resolution cameras to have maybe caught his registration plates.)

 

[Flack88]

the oncoming vehicle did not seem to have to take too much evasory action, or even try to flash idiot him to push him back,
maybe margin was greater than it appeared, would have though oncoming might have braked to standstill.
(Do police have higher quality/resolution cameras to have maybe caught his registration plates.)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-40684273

An ex-police officer who filmed people having sex using his force's helicopter was known by colleagues as the "team deviant", a court has heard

Seems that way

 

[Orionaut]

the oncoming vehicle did not seem to have to take too much evasion action, or even try to flash idiot him to push him back,
maybe margin was greater than it appeared, would have though oncoming might have braked to standstill.
(Do police have higher quality/resolution cameras to have maybe caught his registration plates.)

That one always gets me too.

The standard response seems to be..

"Oh look, there is somebody heading right towards me on my side of the road, I guess I will just keep going and maybe honk or flash my lights to express my disapproval"

Am I really the only person who thinks that "Brake, Hard!" might be a better course of action??

 

[Finglonga]

the oncoming vehicle did not seem to have to take too much evasory action, or even try to flash idiot him to push him back,
maybe margin was greater than it appeared, would have though oncoming might have braked to standstill.
(Do police have higher quality/resolution cameras to have maybe caught his registration plates.)

He did brake hard and was right up the verge, however if the fiesta had simply braked and dropped in behind the tractor he would be fine. Luckily he was not travelling too fast due to the conditions.

As for the camera the police use mostly 1080p ones at the moment, mine is a 1440p but with spray you would be hard pressed to get any number off it at that distance.

Oh and the AMG badged Merc didn't pass the tractor at all he waited for it to turn off.

 

[jpaul]

Am I really the only person who thinks that "Brake, Hard!" might be a better course of action??

Because situation is so unfamiliar ? (every couple of years, but I do sub 10k) I think instinct to brake, as opposed to indignation (get off my road), is not there,
shocked me to see last time, that car behind me braked faster than me (although some people digitally apply brakes), does current in-car radar help, for oncoming ?

How many head-on's fatalities a year from this scenario.

About cameras - yes, as you say under those conditions difficult, police would need an automatically steerable APNR camera with fancy optics. (like the hcopter pods)

 

[Vern1961]

A couple of times on the few straight stretches of road in Wiltshire I've been faced by an oncoming overtaker with no heed for his or anyone else's safety. Instinct is to brake and start looking on the verge/shoulder if there's anywhere to go.

As regards whether or not to overtake tractors, if it is safe I will do so but there are a few factors which should be borne in mind when criticising those who hold back. First, not everyone is an impatient fool driving a bloomin' supercharged Audi or BMW, just an average family hack loaded with family and kids. May not have the acceleration to do it quickly and safely. Second, round here at least tractors seem to move a bit faster than they used to do. It becomes far more challenging to overtake a large unstable vehicle possibly with tines etc. overhanging that's shifting at 25 to 30 MPH as opposed to 15 MPH. Finally should we be criticising those who prefer to err on the side of safety and arrive a few minutes later than expected, than risk doing something stupid and ending up killing themselves and others in an oncoming collision?

 

[radar19]

The A15 between the north of Lincoln and the M180 is deadly. I've had many an idiot try and overtake at the last minute. Not bothered by it myself as I will always be the one who would survive in a head-on as I'm normally driving a Volvo FH. Some businessmen's Audi isn't going to stand a chance against 44ton.

 

[Gaygle]

Two of the main things i see every day are:

- Cars getting right up behind someone slower and looking like they obviously want to overtake....but don't. They just sit there right on the bumper of the car in front, 2ft from their rear quarter, despite there being a clear, straight road ahead of them. Or they take so long to decide if they want to overtake that it gets to the end of the straight bit and they're into dangerous territory, but they go anyway.

Tonight yet another numpty but this one up the chuff positioning while the road was clear and decided for the double whites were approaching to look and commit....

Called it!

 

[MichaelAwkward]

The major annoyance lately for me is just other drivers... slowness. I don't know if it's just me but almost every other driver on the road seems to have the reaction times of a pensioner, taking an absolute age to adapt to the current driving conditions.

That and a complete lack of situational awareness.

One of my coworkers (middle aged lady) said she's just on autopilot on her morning commute and I suspect that's the case for most drivers in the U.K. They're just insulated and not involved where as people who actually like cars and driving are but sadly in a minority.