Is this bad behavior from lorry drivers?

vertex

Hi

Since the massive rise in fuel prices Ive been keeping at a steady speed of 55mph on the A roads/motorways.

3 times Ive had lorries tailgate me, beep their horns and overtake (which takes them ages to do and causes traffic to form behind them).

Is it me thats in the wrong? If it happened just once then Id assume the lorry driver was being impatient and idiotic. But its happened 3 times so Im starting to doubt myself and think perhaps Im in the wrong? But its hardly as if Im driving 20mph on a motorway!

If it happens again Ill think about reporting it, as having a lorry drive within a couple of metres behind is very scarey, let alone them also beeping and flashing!

Thanks

unforeseen

It's understandable. If you are driving at an indicated 55 then you are probably only doing around 52. This is creating a bottleneck for lorry drivers especially on motorways. 

photome

stick to the speed limit and it won’t happen.

not  saying the lorry driver isn’t in the wrong but they have a job to do under time pressure and as said if you are indicating 55 you are nearly 10 mph under the limit

I know it’s a limit but if conditions allow there is no reason to not drive at that speed, alternatively pull over and let them past

Mildly_Miffed

Are you sticking to lane 1 on multi-lane roads?
If so, why aren't they overtaking you?

Why have you chosen an indicated 55 as a random arbitrary speed to sit at?
As others have said, it's going to be an actual 50ish.

Three times in the nine months or so since prices started to rise?

Emmia

On motorways you're probably 20mph below the legal speed limit, and probably doing substantially less than other vehicles without speed limiters (half their speed?).

Lorry drivers have maximum driving hours, and destinations they need to reach within a certain period - from their perspective you are stopping them doing their work, and potentially (depending on where they are on their weekly hours, journeys and legally mandated rest) forcing them to break the law which places their professional licence and job at risk. Hours of driving and rest are also monitored when driving via tachographs and these are checked.

Driving at 50mph on a motorway in normal clear conditions is also stupid as it places you in danger from other drivers who are going faster and who don't realise how slow you're going until it is too late...

Petriix

HGVs are limited to 56mph and they drive absolutely at their limit. The limiters have subtle variations which is why some lorries creep past others at a difference of 1-2mph.

Even if you're trying to save fuel, driving slower than the HGVs is extremely inconsiderate and creates a hazard for everyone on the road. Forcing them to overtake pushes them into the 70mph traffic and, if it's a dual carriageway, slows all the traffic to 56mph until they've passed you.

You'd save significantly more fuel if you just pick one HGV to follow (at a safe distance) and match its speed. That's likely to be around an indicated 60mph which will be close to a real 56mph. 

Car_54

Petriix said:

HGVs are limited to 56mph and they drive absolutely at their limit. The limiters have subtle variations which is why some lorries creep past others at a difference of 1-2mph.

Even if you're trying to save fuel, driving slower than the HGVs is extremely inconsiderate and creates a hazard for everyone on the road. Forcing them to overtake pushes them into the 70mph traffic and, if it's a dual carriageway, slows all the traffic to 56mph until they've passed you.

That's only true if it's a two-lane DC.

Merlin139

I often drive around the so called 56 mark when I am in no hurry to get down to see my Son and Grandson 200 miles away in Suffolk, Down the A1 and A14 but what I do is set my Cruise Control to a figure normally 59 or 60 which means I am driving faster than most HGV's. (The exception normally being the ones that are empty. Son tramps a fuel tanker round the country and confirms most HGV will go faster when empty.) 

If a faster one is struggling to overtake me I just slow down then resume at my set speed after its past.

Over taking HGV's I put my foot down to increase my speed to pass quickly then Cruise Control resumes. 

I also drive a 7.5 ton flat bed as part of my job using a digital tacho, and also find it very annoying when people drive too slow for the conditions.

I choose to drive at around 60 on duel carriageways and motorways for many reasons. The main one being that I learnt many years ago that driving at around 60 was so less stressful and I would get to where I was going relaxed and chilled out. Just let the world rush past me.

I was young once and used to drive way too fast. Spent many years driving on Unrestricted parts of Autobahns in Germany at 120mph plus so don't need the speed in a car now. If I feel the need for speed I take my 1400CC motorbike out!

 

prowla

55 on a motorway is obstructive and bad manners.

Grumpy_chap

Why not go a bit faster, so the same speed as the HGVs?
Driving slower is dangerous - you may save some fuel at the expense of a life!

sevenhills

prowla said:

55 on a motorway is obstructive and bad manners.

Driving at 55 on a motorway would be a fail in a car, you should set your speed to the road conditions, not your MPG.