Tailgate and speed

Jamie_Carter

Lum wrote: »

On the subject of straightlining corners, here's one I want to throw out there and see what people's thoughts are.

Situation: You're on a single carriageway that is just wide enough for two cars to pass side by side. There are tall hedges either side of the road that would obstruct visibility even for HGVs, there is a long sweeping left hand bend coming up. It is daytime on a clear day.

Do you:

a) Tuck in as tightly to the left as possible
b) Move to the middle of the road, or even closer to the right, to improve visibility.

You can also do the horn thing, but not everyone hears a horn or knows what to do about it. Some people like to beep their horn and then hurtle into the corner expecting everyone to give way. One day they will encounter a deaf person or someone with the radio turned up really loud.

I generally lean towards B. The logic being that while two cars may be able to pass side by side, that may not be true for vans or HGVs. By moving out I increase my visibility and give myself more opportunity to shove my car to the far left of the road and stop if need be. Obviously my speed will be such that I can pull left and stop without any risk of losing control of my car.

If the road is narrower than what I described above, same basic process, but easier to justify.. If there's something coming, only stopping will prevent a head on collision (albiet offset head-on if you keep to the far left) so better visibility = both parties stop sooner.

'b' is what we were taught on blue light training. But as you rightly say, you need to adjust your speed to be able to pull back over to the left, and possibly stop, without terrifying any oncoming drivers.

Jamie_Carter

Strider590 wrote: »

^^ I'd go for visibility every time, even if that means being on the wrong side.
I mean what happens if you round that corner and there's a cyclist or some obstruction?

:T:T

Strider590 wrote: »

On my way home (alternative route 2), there's a similar road, left hand bend, partially fallen tree on the apex. Racing line through there and you'd hit it......

You should only ever drive to what you can see, and the road conditions.

smashingyour...

Lum wrote: »

On the subject of straightlining corners, here's one I want to throw out there and see what people's thoughts are.

Situation: You're on a single carriageway that is just wide enough for two cars to pass side by side. There are tall hedges either side of the road that would obstruct visibility even for HGVs, there is a long sweeping left hand bend coming up. It is daytime on a clear day.

Do you:

a) Tuck in as tightly to the left as possible
b) Move to the middle of the road, or even closer to the right, to improve visibility.

You can also do the horn thing, but not everyone hears a horn or knows what to do about it. Some people like to beep their horn and then hurtle into the corner expecting everyone to give way. One day they will encounter a deaf person or someone with the radio turned up really loud.

I generally lean towards B. The logic being that while two cars may be able to pass side by side, that may not be true for vans or HGVs. By moving out I increase my visibility and give myself more opportunity to shove my car to the far left of the road and stop if need be. Obviously my speed will be such that I can pull left and stop without any risk of losing control of my car.

If the road is narrower than what I described above, same basic process, but easier to justify.. If there's something coming, only stopping will prevent a head on collision (albiet offset head-on if you keep to the far left) so better visibility = both parties stop sooner.

It's not a sweeping bend if it is appropriate to use the horn.

Option c is the way forward. Over the white line and possibly on the other side of the road depending on speed.

smashingyour...

Jamie_Carter wrote: »

'b' is what we were taught on blue light training. But as you rightly say, you need to adjust your speed to be able to pull back over to the left, and possibly stop, without terrifying any oncoming drivers.

Who taught you?

You are taught to drive to a system before any blue light training takes place. Lights an aid and nothing to do with the way you drive on an open road.

CKhalvashi

londonTiger wrote: »

I don't do motorway driving but if I did I would be inclined to retrofit some sort of contraption in my rear to ward people off. It seems that tailgating is very common?

On my golf, it's possible to remove the rear windscreen washer cap and pull out the nozzle - then it squirts straight back rather than direct it onto the rear window. Some people have used that as an anti tailgate device as it squirts washer onto the car behind.

Being MSE, I'd thank you for the free washer

Iceweasel

Option (b) is my normal choice - as alluded to, it's according to the advice in RoadCraft - the police driver 's handbook page 140/141.

It's got nothing to do with blue lights actually.

That's the standard I was trained to, and try to maintain.

If you always drive so as to stop in the distance you can see to be clear there is no need to worry about trees in the road or as my instructor used to say "An elephant having a kip."

In the North of Scotland you won't find any elephants but it's a common occurrence to find sheep or even cattle lying chewing the cud on the tarmac as it's usually drier and warmer that wet grass.

Visitors to the Isle of Skye beware - even on the 'Road to the Isles' on the mainland!

malcumms7898

Lum wrote: »

Do you:

a) Tuck in as tightly to the left as possible
b) Move to the middle of the road, or even closer to the right, to improve visibility.

I would choose A, you don't know what is coming round the corner or how fast, and you being in the middle of the road from choosing option B could cause an accident.

smashingyour...

malcumms7898 wrote: »

I would choose A, you don't know what is coming round the corner or how fast, and you being in the middle of the road from choosing option B could cause an accident.

You'd see anything coming the other way much later driving your way.

Jamie_Carter

malcumms7898 wrote: »

I would choose A, you don't know what is coming round the corner or how fast, and you being in the middle of the road from choosing option B could cause an accident.

The idea is that you get a much better view around the corner, and so have far more time to react.

Obviously you wouldn't do it on a very sharp bend.

smashingyour...

Iceweasel wrote: »

Option (b) is my normal choice - as alluded to, it's according to the advice in RoadCraft - the police driver 's handbook page 140/141.

It's got nothing to do with blue lights actually.

That's the standard I was trained to, and try to maintain.

If you always drive so as to stop in the distance you can see to be clear there is no need to worry about trees in the road or as my instructor used to say "An elephant having a kip."

In the North of Scotland you won't find any elephants but it's a common occurrence to find sheep or even cattle lying chewing the cud on the tarmac as it's usually drier and warmer that wet grass.

Visitors to the Isle of Skye beware - even on the 'Road to the Isles' on the mainland!

Is that the old black and white one or the newer book?

It changed about 95 and included things such as red mist.