Motorway Driving Question

cubegame

If you had done this on a three or four lane dual carriageway during your test you would have failed without question.


My suggestion would be that you avoid motorways totally until you have the confidence to travel at speeds of 70mph plus.

Silver-Surfer_2

Noble_Viking wrote: »

I get your point, you have made it loud and clear, but please don't judge me on not being confident of getting in a car because I am more than confident to get behind the wheel of a car and drive on everyday roads that I may incur (this for me does not include motorways!) I am NOT yet confident on motorways on my own and as I have stated time and time again in several posts on this thread, this was my first time driving on my own on a motorway.

I have experienced driving at 70mph on a motorway at least 8 times since passing my test less than 5 months ago (or to be exact 150 days ago!) I question how confident were you on your first solo drive on a motorway? I think everyone has different experiences of their first time on a motorway on their own, I even know people who have held licences for 20+ years and they won't even attempt motorway driving.

I have more than discussed this with people on this thread and I have accepted I was wrong to drive so slow on this particular stretch of road for which I apologise. I have also said I will gain more solo experience on the motorway by doing some dry runs to different places. Finally, I hope with time, practice and the IAM Skills for Life course I will become a better, safer driver.

I really cannot say much more than that.

Look, you've accepted you've made a mistake. Learn from it and more on.

No need to beat yourself up over it.

DKLS

esuhl wrote: »

It's just one big p***ing contest for some. They think that travelling fast makes them more important and generally a "better person". Sad, really.

Your not wrong there, I thought I was doing well on the autobahn doing 186 mph, until a Brabus whizzed past me followed by a couple of GT3s and bizarrely a battered VW Polo in beige that went like the clappers.

spadoosh

If your going to drive like a novice, i would expect people to respond and treat you as such. I imagine some quarter wouldve been given had you attached your 'P' plates.

Whilst you are within the rules of the road as youve accurately quoted from the highway code you will also find that you probably also broke those rules (or at least, could be interpreted as such).

People think there is right and wrong with driving. When in reality there isnt. There are things that are expected or your supposed to do but go on the assumption than anyone can and will do anything they want at any given moment.

Think cause and effect. You where the cause of 3 people getting annoyed and undertaking you (a dangerous maneuver). Ok so you didnt do anything 'wrong' but you could easily be dead if one rear ended you, cut back in too early or a plane dropped out of the sky. From that i would take that i dont want to be in front of people going faster than me (ie would try my very best to stay out of their way) this will reduce the risk of 1) getting shouted at and being upset and 2) more importantly, would reduce the risk of me dying.

Right and wrong doesnt matter on the roads, your main concern should be getting home alive. A drunk driver doesnt give a monkeys about rights and wrong on the roads, best not to worry about it and make sure you're completely happy and confident with the responsibility of your vehicle before even thinking about others and theirs.

megaginge

50mph in the overtaking lane of a motorway that is clearly flowing is unforgivable whatever the excuses.

Whilst the drivers behind you were rude, I don't blame them and might have done the same thing, especially when with 800m to travel it would have taken you as mentioned 35seconds longer before you needed to be in that lane.. You'd have come across as either obstinate, ignorant or doing it deliberately (something I come across a lot, people trying to police the motorway by refusing to move out of overtaking lanes 'because they're going fast enough' ...

megaginge

ps. OP - I see you've pretty much completely accepted you were, if not in the wrong, certainly not quite in the right. At this point - it might be best to allow the thread to die off rather than continuing to respond, because otherwise people like me will keep replying back making the same point

spadoosh

In case you dont frequent forums regularly, they are very similar to the roads.

If you cant deal with criticisms, you're probably best avoiding both.

Alternatively, apathy is your friend.

takman

Noble_Viking wrote: »

Trust me, I noticed... :eek: (and not just you...)

I tried to make post #48 my last reply, then again with #61... I also messaged a member of the MSE Admin Team this afternoon to ask for this thread to be closed but as of yet it is still open. I've explained what I feel I need to and made my apologies and I certainly won't be replying to anyone else who wishes to criticise me.

Ciao folks! :j

But your forum signature says:

It is better to stand and fight. If you run, you’ll only die tired.

So you have to stay in this thread and reply to every post that criticises you! lol.


But seriously there is no reason that this thread needs to close. Alot of the replies are not directed towards you, i and a few other people have been replying to other posters points of view on the subject. If you don't want to take part in the discussion then simply don't reply! .

Dclutterchique

Noble_Viking wrote: »

I had not even got the opportunity to speed up to say 60mph.

Noble_Viking wrote: »

I am afraid I disagree. Having come from a 40mph road (East Lancs) in which I was doing approx. 35mph because of the traffic build up, as I approached the M61 I was beginning to increase my speed before the three idiots behind me clearly coming from the same road decided to act the way they did. There was zero traffic behind me as I entered the M61!

So the question I ask is what mph where they doing on the East Lancs? My guess is they were not sticking to the speed limit restrictions. I guess driving with a mobile phone in one hand is a good idea as well when driving at speed on a motorway.

I'm going to highlight a fact that no one else has raised: The speed limit on a slip road is the same as the faster road that it joins/leaves, unless the signage says otherwise, eg temporary speed restrictions. So, it can be argued that there is plenty of time to get up to speed on that particular slip road and that the other drivers could have been doing 35/40 mph when they left the East Lancs Road and promptly reached 70mph once they were on the slip road. If you were 40/50mph while still on the slip road they soon would have caught up with you. I do agree that holding a mobile phone and/or using hand signals not laid down in the highway code hardly makes the other motorists 'driver of the year' material.


As a slight off topic, has anyone else looked at the pictures of that stretch of the M61 and though "that's not a Motorway, that's an 'A' Road with delusions of grandeur"?

Iceweasel

Dclutterchique wrote: »

As a slight off topic, has anyone else looked at the pictures of that stretch of the M61 and though "that's not a Motorway, that's an 'A' Road with delusions of grandeur"?

Quite right - there are many examples of stupid little stretches of 'motorway' all over the UK

I'll repeat my link from an earlier post in case you missed it:

http://pathetic.org.uk/secretive/a666m/