Middle Lane Hogging - North/South divide..

wba31

theatretony wrote: »

Hi all,

Is it just me or am I noticing a trend here...

I travel to my office in the London area on a regular basis and I have noticed that on the M25 and the M1 up to the Buckinghamshire area that more people hog the middle lane than further up in the North, I get really annoyed that people will make a 3/4 lane motorway into a 2 lane as you cannot undertake them 'legally'.

And don't get me started on the managed motorway section near Luton - when it is open hardly anyone uses it!!

Rant over.....

No, these idiots are everywhere...

poppasmurf_bewdley

Double_V wrote: »

I use middle lane most of the time.
Whoever wants to overtake me can use the far right lane.
I don't see any problems.

On your first lane you got these big trucks, then 2nd lane you have these slow movers, under 70. And then us middle laners on third lane.

I don't see anything wrong with it.

Offcourse when its all empty you stay as far left lane as possible.
Like when i travel 2am M25 is dead. And I love it.
Cruise control set on 73. Nice music and i am home in no time.

I doubt the police will accept that excuse when they book you for causing an obstruction. Which is what they will be doing a lot more of now.

bazster

dktreesea wrote: »

Not sure about straight line roads like the M1 but I think I know why people prefer the middle lanes on the M25. There's so much traffic coming onto and getting off the M25 at any one junction, it's safer to travel in the middle lanes, to avoid impeding the arrivals and departures progress. Plus sometimes on that particular motorway it's the right lane, not the left lane, that runs out. All the more reason to try to stay in the middle, well away from the outer and inner lanes.

Or you could simply plan ahead and change lanes in good time. Seems to work for me. I don't really understand why so many people find changing lanes such a chore. Thinking ahead and trying to exercise good lane discipline keeps you alert and awake, unlike the dozy somnambulists hogging the middle lane.

EdGasket

poppasmurf_bewdley wrote: »

I doubt the police will accept that excuse when they book you for causing an obstruction. Which is what they will be doing a lot more of now.

Yes indeed, instead of doing something useful like catching criminals!

theatretony

bazster wrote: »

Thinking ahead and trying to exercise good lane discipline keeps you alert and awake, unlike the dozy somnambulists hogging the middle lane.

I totally agree with this - the lane changing keeps me awake when driving for 4 hours on a regular basis and that is after doing a days training for clients!!

The issue I get is that if you are caught undertaking - you would get done for it and not the person who is sat in the middle lane!

bazster

EdGasket wrote: »

Yes indeed, instead of doing something useful like catching criminals!

Ensuring that our expensively-built and economically-essential motorways revert to the three or four lanes they were designed with instead of the two or three lanes the CLOC reduces them to would be an extremely worthwhile use of police time.

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

The M25 is a good example where around Heathrow it really does make sense to treat it as left lanes for entry and exit and then right lanes for through traffic.

However, what you find is that as the traffic flow frees up as you pass the A3/A30 junctions and you are in quiet 4 lane traffic with infrequent junctions, there are often 2 empty lanes, and even the lorries seem reluctant to stay left because in 5 miles time they will have to move out of the lane.

The big difference with the Variable Speed Limit and active lane management systems is that traffic does generally stick to the limits through those sections now - you will rarely see traffic racing along the M42 and often you will be passing traffic steadily driving at 70 in the outside lane. Always worth ducking onto the hard shoulder on heavy traffic - nobody understands the arrangement at J5 southbound where you can drive through the junction on the hard shoulder - sometimes.

Of course you can pass on the left in heavy traffic, you just need both to be careful and not weave in and out so you are moving in lanes not undertaking.

mchale

Double_V wrote: »

I don't see anything wrong with it.

That's because your a bad driver.

dannyrst

Just back from a two week holiday in Cornwall (400 miles each way) and the number of people who cannot use motorways is staggering. So many people overtook me and then just sat in the middle lane, with no other vehicles visible in front of them.

reeac

There are certain sections of road eg. the North Circular between the M11 junction and Wood Green where the left hand lane is better regarded as an entry/exit lane. I use that road quite a bit and stay in the second lane of three in order not to obstruct other traffic.