"Hogging the middle lane"

jlfrs

Without wishing to add any fuel to what appears to be a well-stoked fire, I always thought that motorway lanes were for overtaking but I must admit that "professional overtakers" annoy me as much as middle-lane hoggers do. By this I mean the people who pull out to overtake and then pull back in 1 car at a time. Perhaps they think they're showing everyone how it should be done, to me it seems erratic. Here's another thought. On a busy motorway when all lanes are pretty much full with everyone doing the same speed, should one pull over into the lane on the left because a driver is light-flashing to get out of the way? I don't think so. Why is he or she any more entitled to be in front than I am? Technically though, if it is anything other than the inside lane, it's an overtaking lane, right? I guess the reality is that the rules of the road dictate real-world rules over those in the Highway Code. Talking of which, can someone tell me what the rules are when a two-lane carriageway collapses into a single lane? Do the cars in the inside lane give way to the cars filtering in or as frequently happens to me on the A44 near Oxford, try to ram them out of the way, refuse to let them in and lean on the horn? I'd love to know...then again, I am a BMW driver so I'm probably asking for it....

matttye

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Depends entirely on the situation.

If you have a clear lane to move across to, without inconveniencing others already in that lane and without having to slow because of traffic ahead then, yes you should.

On the other hand if - as is often the case - they're trying to push you to move into someone else's safety gap, or move into traffic that you're going to have to slow significantly before they've passed for you to move out again, then no you shouldn't.

On the other hand, in both of the above cases, the person tailgating should be penalised because driving too close is by far the major cause of accidents on motorways, and the "reason" for doing it don't matter. It's simply unacceptable.

Middle land hogging irritates drivers and gets reactions out of the bad ones. Provoking reactions out of bad tempered drivers is as bad as what the bad tempered drivers are doing.

brat

Many MLHs sit in lane two because they are going more quickly than the HGVs, and they don't like having to routinely pull out to overtake. They are often the more nervous motorway users, and because they get nervous about pulling into lane two to pass an HGV and potentially annoy others who are doing approaching at 85 or 90 in lane two, they find it easier and less nerve wracking to remain in lane two.

The lesson therefore is, if you are one of the 85th percentile who routinely travel at 85 to 90 mph on the motorway, it is important that you recognise closing gaps in lane one and accommodate their move into lane two by an early move from lane two into lane three.
If you drive at those speeds blind to this problem, then you are actively encouraging tailgating.

stator

It's certainly also true that constantly changing lanes is more dangerous than staying in the middle lane. Changing lanes is often the cause of a crash, staying in the middle is never the cause of a crash. Of course you have to draw the line somewhere, you sometimes see someone sat in the middle lane and not even close to overtaking someone.

Gloomendoom

Changing lanes might be a bit less hazardous if everybody used their indicators when they did it.

Maybe failing to do so will be next on the hit list.

Joe_Horner

brat wrote: »

[...] it is important that you recognise closing gaps in lane one and accommodate their move into lane two by an early move from lane two into lane three.
If you drive at those speeds blind to this problem, then you are actively encouraging tailgating.

You're not advocating sense, observation, anticipation, and courtesy at the wheel from the people who want to drive fast, surely? All that only applies to the inconsiderate people who're "holding them up" :rotfl:

brat

Joe_Horner wrote: »

You're not advocating sense, observation, anticipation, and courtesy at the wheel from the people who want to drive fast, surely? All that only applies to the inconsiderate people who're "holding them up" :rotfl:

I often wonder how many drivers recognise that they are often the cause of the problem that frustrates them so much. Speed doesn't need to add risk or inconvenience, but it does need to be used properly.

matttye

brat wrote: »

Many MLHs sit in lane two because they are going more quickly than the HGVs, and they don't like having to routinely pull out to overtake. They are often the more nervous motorway users, and because they get nervous about pulling into lane two to pass an HGV and potentially annoy others who are doing approaching at 85 or 90 in lane two, they find it easier and less nerve wracking to remain in lane two.

The lesson therefore is, if you are one of the 85th percentile who routinely travel at 85 to 90 mph on the motorway, it is important that you recognise closing gaps in lane one and accommodate their move into lane two by an early move from lane two into lane three.
If you drive at those speeds blind to this problem, then you are actively encouraging tailgating.

Most of my motorway driving is on the A1(M) sections between Grantham and Hertfordshire, which are usually always quiet at the times I travel. I must admit it is more difficult to keep pulling out of lane 1 into lane 2 on a busy motorway like the M25. I can see why people are more likely to hog the middle lane on a busy motorway than an empty one.

alderpoint

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Lane hogging = annoying.
Tailgating = dangerous.

Alternatively:
Lane hogging = severe reduction in road capacity and slowing down traffic leading to queues, frustration and risky behaviour.
Tailgating = risky behaviour which might lead to an incident.

Joe_Horner

alderpoint wrote: »

Alternatively:
Lane hogging = severe reduction in road capacity and slowing down traffic leading to queues, frustration and risky behaviour.
Tailgating = risky behaviour which might lead to an incident.

The thing is, tailgating causes far more queues and delays (and therefore frustration and risky behaviour) on motorways than MLMs.

Virtually every time you see traffic slowing suddenly, or even stopping completely, but find nothing to explain it when it gets moving again, it's down to people driving too close and causing cascade braking because of what should have been a minor and completely non-disruptive speed change ahead.

In the absence of accidents, that includes every single time you see "queue after junction" signs as people try to join, people avoid them, and those following behind have to brake too hard.

Even very heavy traffic will continue to flow if you leave enough space to avoid that effect, and it doesn't take much more than the recommended 2 second minimum gap to do so.