whats the best way to make a slow driver go faster?

interstellaflyer

Strider590 wrote: »

What is adequate time?

Let's say for example you work a morning shift, your up at 5am to start work at 6am. You get up at this ungodly hour, you get yourself dressed, you make some lunch and you leave yourself 30mins to do a 9 mile journey (which on a good day takes 10mins at 60mph NSL). You then run into captain slow (and his mates) and your journey takes 45mins. Your late for work, your up for disciplinary action and all because some tw4t can't drive.... Boss (who starts work at 9:30am) comes out with "leave earlier".

Leave earlier? Yeah because that's possible when your fighting to get kids into bed before midnight, sometimes with drama continuing until 1am. How long before your next shift pattern change? 3 weeks?
3 weeks of 4 hours sleep each night, what's more dangerous behind the wheel? tiredness or being drunk?

It drives me mad when people come out with this stuff, they have no comprehension of what other peoples lives are like.

Well, I leave home so I allow at least half an hour before I star work, if I get held up by captain slow, it may mean it takes me 10 mins longer to get to work, however, either way I have time to chill and have a brew before I start. And by the way I get up at 06:00 yet I don't start work untill 1pm. BTW your maths doesn't add up, you would it would take you more than 10 mins to do 9 miles without breaking any speed limits, you are not allowing for junctions, rounabouts, speed limits (other than NSL) and Captain slow would really need to be crawling along to make a vast difference in traveling time over such a short distace, you are assuming you are stuck behind him the whole journey, with no chance to overtake.

Lum

Strider590 wrote: »

It drives me mad when people come out with this stuff, they have no comprehension of what other peoples lives are like.

So very much this. I'm a carer for an adult who has, amongst other things, needs to use a wheelchair both indoors and outdoors (but we live in a house that is unsuitable for wheelchair use) and has ME, fibromyalgia and possibly MS. Despite all this she still works, and is in fact the main earner in our household, but we need my income too as we could not survive on one.

When I leave the house is determined entirely by how long it takes to get her up and dressed and into her car, since she can't manage these things on our own.

My work have been fairly understanding, but I still get grief if I turn up after 10PM, which can happen anyway if she's having a bad day, but usually we can be out of the door by 9:30.

Leaving earlier is simply not an option. People who think it is are generally those privileged enough to not have to deal with disabilites, chronic illnesses or any of the hundreds of other things that I can't even imagine that blight people's lives on a daily basis.

Strider590

interstellaflyer wrote: »

you are assuming you are stuck behind him the whole journey, with no chance to overtake.

On the road im talking about, that's exactly what happens. 9 miles with no chance to overtake.
Any safe overtaking spot has been reduced to 40mph and hatch markings means that queues build up for no reason at all. Since this "traffic calming", the road is full of a mix of slow drivers and angry nut-cases, with the normal Joe public sandwiched in the middle.

mikey72 wrote: »

Why is it the only time you get stealth overtakers is when you're first in the queue behind the tractor, they're second or third in the queue, and as soon as you get a clear stretch, they think it's fine to try to be first out? Many's the time I indicate, check the mirror, and find a stealth overtaker thinking because they've attempted to pull out I should pull back in again? Even though I've been sitting on the white line, making it as clear as possble to those behind. Then cue the numpty desperate to pull around me in a double overtake if he does manage to follow me past.

Idiots are everywhere, what you describe is not a "stealth overtake".
It's true when people say that it's the second vehicle causing the problem, often when stuck behind a tractor it's not a problem, BUT sometimes you get one person who WILL NOT overtake, combine this with some arrogant w4nkstain in a large German saloon 5 cars back and it's an accident waiting to happen.

Mister_aaa

Anybody going slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster than you is a maniac. ~ George Carlin.

Lum

Wheras my approach to it is:

Anyone going slower than me probably has some reason (not ruling out incompetence) and I'd like to get past them. They could have an unstable load, a nervous passenger, a space saver fitted, a disability or injury that causes them (or their passenger) physical pain if they go too fast or corner too hard.

Anyone going faster probably than me probably has some reason (still not ruling out incompetence) so just let them past. For all you know they could just have been told that their partner has about 30 minutes to live and they want to get there in time for the last words, they could be on their final warning and facing the sack if they don't get to work on time. They might just want to get home before their child's bedtime for the one opportunity this week they have to actually stay at home rather than an A-road hotel in the middle of nowhere.

If they really are dangerous and incompetent, it's still better to let them past so that they can go and be dangerous 3 miles ahead of you where you can see them and are out of the range of any collateral damage they may create.

Strider590

^^ Where as most drivers seem to want to tangle with them instead.

mikey72

Lum wrote: »

............If they really are dangerous and incompetent, it's still better to let them past so that they can go and be dangerous 3 miles ahead of you where you can see them and are out of the range of any collateral damage they may create.

Same with the slow ones. If they're that bad, I'd rather they stayed in front as well, if I'm in no great hurry. If I pass them, it'll be me they'll hit.

wba31

I can understand the frustration of being late for work, but this guy was late for dinner? I have been described as a fatty in my time, but I have never flashed lights and gestured at people for making me late for dinner.
Unfortunately Sunday drivers now seem to be out, ignoring the speed limits 7 days a week, and most the time in my way.

I dont go for the stealth overtake, I just overtake, and bring on changing of car for something that will make overtaking easier (by having a bit more torque and power to get me past).

But behaving like a nob cuz you're late for dinner? If it was me in front and I knew that's why you were getting agressive, I'd slow down a little bit more while i enjoyed a sandwich. get a grip (and some patience if you cant overtake!)

Lum

mikey72 wrote: »

Same with the slow ones. If they're that bad, I'd rather they stayed in front as well, if I'm in no great hurry. If I pass them, it'll be me they'll hit.

If you're in no hurry then that's fine, though it's generally courteous to leave a bit of a gap in front so that people who are in a hurry don't have to do a double overtake.

If you do that too then you are awesome.

wba31 wrote: »

But behaving like a nob cuz you're late for dinner? If it was me in front and I knew that's why you were getting agressive, I'd slow down a little bit more while i enjoyed a sandwich. get a grip (and some patience if you cant overtake!)

That is a bit silly, but I do remember a time period in my life where this was actually necessary.

I was in a job that paid really crap money, but gave me a company car and fuel + hotel cards and had me out on the road 4 nights a week. I tended to build up a lot of expenses in the form of meals and purchasing equipment and it played havoc with my cash flow.

Far too often it would be getting toward the end of the month and I'd have literally zero cash. The day's job would overrun and I wouldn't get off site until 6PM and I'd still have a 4 hour drive to the hotel near to tomorrow's job.

Problem was, while Premier Inn will let you buy food on the hotel card, they generally stop serving food at 9:45 and by that point in the month I was in a situation where if I didn't get to the hotel before they stop serving food I'd literally have nothing to eat that night.

So yeah, I'd want to overtake slow people because I was late for dinner.

I quit that job over two years ago and I'm still suffering from long term health problems because of it.

[Deleted User]

Driving to work in the mornings for a 6am start I always seem to be behind someone driving really slow. Doing 25 on a 30 road and slowing down to 20 every time they pass a car. I'm sure they are drink driver types who has had a few the night before and hoping any passing plod don't notice them.

This is the only time I'd do an overtake on a 30 road.