Motorway Driving Question

unforeseen

Manxman_in_exile wrote: »

Mercdriver - but if the OP was in the lane you suggest (second from the right, third from the left) then the other drivers would not have needed to undertake. They could have just used the fourth lane on the left and overtaken normally.


I assume (perhaps wrongly) that the OP was in the fourth lane themselves.

As has been said a few times, the road that you are talking about is not the road the OP was on so the argument is totally pointless.

There were only two lanes. At some point along them they turned to filter lanes for different roads. The question really is whether OP decided to treat them as a filter road BEFORE they became that, hence holding up traffic by being in the incorrect lane resulting in people overtaking on the left or they were in the right lane at or after the filter point and they were still holding people up due to the slow speed but were in the correct lane

Manxman_in_exile

Ah - sorry - my error

esuhl

It's incredible how many people get upset at losing a few seconds of their time on a motorway... that they will then spend hours debating the issue on a forum!

PasturesNew wrote: »

If you wanted to be in that lane you should at least have "created a clump" with those in front of you, so anybody coming up behind you might think "Ah, even if that a-hole moves out of my way, there are 3 other a-holes in front of him".

So... three wrongs makes a right?!

How do you "create a clump", anyway? How can you create something out of cars in front of you that are driven by people you don't have any control over? Bizarre.

takman

esuhl wrote: »

It's incredible how many people get upset at losing a few seconds of their time on a motorway... that they will then spend hours debating the issue on a forum!

But it's not just a few seconds it's a lot more time when you go so slow that HGV's have to overtake and everyone has to move into the third lane. Then it only take a few seconds for lots of cars to catch up to the slow vehicles. This then leads to people having to brake because there is too much traffic for just the third lane. Which can then lead to a 5 minute plus delay for the cars at the back.

It sounds like you don't travel much on the Motorway but if your doing a long journey on a relatively busy day you will encounter many of these hold ups which can add hours to the journey all together.
This is why on managed motorways they reduce all traffic to 50Mph so that everyone going at this speed makes it a lot less likely for the situation I have described to occur.

unforeseen

takman wrote: »

But it's not just a few seconds it's a lot more time when you go so slow that HGV's have to overtake and everyone has to move into the third lane. Then it only take a few seconds for lots of cars to catch up to the slow vehicles. This then leads to people having to brake because there is too much traffic for just the third lane. Which can then lead to a 5 minute plus delay for the cars at the back.

It sounds like you don't travel much on the Motorway but if your doing a long journey on a relatively busy day you will encounter many of these hold ups which can add hours to the journey all together.
This is why on managed motorways they reduce all traffic to 50Mph so that everyone going at this speed makes it a lot less likely for the situation I have described to occur.

My record because of this effect is 2.5 hours to get from Stafford to Warrington - 40 miles

martinsurrey

Manxman_in_exile wrote: »

Ah - sorry - my error

here is the correct road and the positions marked on, with the OPS distance marked on.

Pull out to split is 800m, 36seconds at 50mph

AdrianC

That certainly shows it clearly...

unforeseen

If the OP did follow

From the East Lancs A580

Use the left hand lane to take the M61 Slip Road to M6 North/Preston/Wigan/Bolton
This I do

Keep right at the fork, follow the signs for A666 and merge on to M61

Then the distance from the A580 off slip to the hatched area is in the region of 1.6 miles

Mercdriver

I've had a look at all the google earth images (had an issue with my computer and was unable to access it for some reason) and the signs above the carriageway are indeed saying left lane for M61 and right lane for (A666) for Bolton. This is really a 1mile warning sign and the lanes haven't divided yet. As there aren't hatchings until 100m before the junction (sorry Adrian C and co, as I was unable to look properly at google earth wasn't able to check) personally I would wait until probably 400m before coming across but to ensure that you are matching your speed t o the flow.

The motorway isn't really divided at all, though the signs above the carriageway aren't all that helpful. The hatched area should really be a bit further rather than just the last 100m. Had the OP been driving a more realistic speed based on the actual conditions rather than the expected conditions and been driving at 65/70mph, it wouldn't have been much of an issue.

marleyboy

I am sure each and every one of us were learners at one stage. I remember my first drive on the Motorway, it was terrifying, whether or not I made the approach too slow I dont know, I was too busy filling my pants at the sheer speed of the traffic at the time.

I have no doubt OP will learn (as we all did) and eventually gain confidence and experience of Motorway driving.

Maybe the standard driving test should include a Motorway drive but it doesn't.

When I passed I had zero experience in Motorway driving, Night time driving, driving in Fog, Snow or torrential rain. The kind of hazards every driver eventually has to confront, a beginner is inevitably going to slow down and feel nervous about confronting such hazards, over time their confidence will grow with experience.

I was surprised to discover that Motorway driving is much safer than urban driving in the long run, but that did not stop me feeling nervous about driving on the Motorway for the first time.