New 4 lane motorway lane discipline.

[Eggs]

It’s not classed as undertaking in most instances. The traffic in the left lane is just moving faster than one to it’s right. If however you were in lane three and moved over to lane one in order to pass that is undertaking.

Yep, passing on the left is not illegal, I do it and cover the horn in case 'stupid' decides to pull over to the left for no apparent reason.

 

[1ten]

I drive on two motorways including the M25 every week day to get to work and am amazed how poor peoples lane choice can be. The worst seem to be taxi drivers going back into London form Stansted, it’s very common for the to be travelling at 50 mph in the outside lane with the other two lanes completely empty.
The people that really amaze me are the ones that suddenly pull over to let you past as the other lanes are empty only to pull straight back out again even though there is nothing in any other lanes.
At least once a week you see a cer that has been hit by a left hand drive lorry! It’s also terrifying watch lorry drivers of all nationalities tail gating cars.

 

[Derbyshire wanderer]

The rule of the road is....DRIVE ON THE LEFT! Unless overtaking, and it is safe to do so.

Craig

As Michael Caine said

 

[138go]

They get fed up of pulling out to overtake lorries that are now hogging the first two lanes of the smart motorways where lanes 1 and 2 are for lorries and everyone else uses 3 and 4 except Audi and BMW drivers who only ever use lane 4 even when exiting the motorway in the next few seconds. The idiots that stay in lane 3 doing 50 mph are the same ones that used to do the same in lane 2.

We were undertaken the other day on the M3. Were were happily motoring along in quiet heady traffic in lane 1 when someone used the hard shoulder to get by. He must have been late for his funeral the speed he was travelling.

 

[Ivory55]

You want to be in Norfolk all the motorways are clogged up all the time.

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[buttons]

Have just driven back around a busy M25 clockwise from the M3 to Junction 19.
Very busy but mostly moving with variable speed signs between 40 and 70.
Must confess that this included a fair bit of undertaking, overtaking and lane changing with a few deep breaths from my passenger but compared to many other drivers I am a complete saint.

 

[buttons]

You want to be in Norfolk all the motorways are clogged up all the time.

Motorways in Norfolk.....?

 

[138go]

Perhaps he means Norfolk in another country. Norfolk UK is one of the few Counties without a Motorway.

 

[Ivory55]

Perhaps he means Norfolk in another country. Norfolk UK is one of the few Counties without a Motorway.

Now you tell me , haha

 

[Ivory55]

A couple of blokes I know in our village drive a lorry every day and never ever drive on a motorway and only rarely on dual carriageway.

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[Wee Bold Davy]

We were averaging 20mph from Manchester to Lancaster.

Look at the positive side of it ........... 142 MPG

 

[suavecarve]

how can you be forced to break the law undertaking is illegal your supposed to go round them

To the best of my knowledge undertaking is not illegal.
I am yet to see any RTA that states it

 

[Guigsy]

For the smart motorways (M6 and M42?) where the hard shoulder gets opened as a running lane, lots of people don't use the lane because you've got no idea if it's going to disappear at the next junction. Some junctions can run the hard shoulder through, some can't and some it seems to depend a dice roll. And around Birmingham, most of the junctions are pretty close together so using the hard shoulder can mean quite a lot of lane changes. I get why people are reluctant to use it. Maybe if 'freeway' rules were applied and you could actively pass in that lane, it'd get better use?

For the motorways where the hard shoulder has been re-purposed to make a proper extra lane (I think they are all going this way now), there's less excuse for not using lane 1. You see plenty of car snakes in lanes 2 and 3 with lane 1 empty.

 

[gus-lopez]

Coming home from Chester I kept trying to stay in the inside lane on a so called “not so smart motorway” only to find it was the lane for the next turn off, hence constantly shuffling into lane two

yes , that's how the M25 was originally constructed. Whoever thought it up, just a money saving exercise, should be taken out & kneecapped .

**to be honest the 'smart' bit is just a killing lane if you break down or even if you are driving in it & someone else stops.

 

[Guigsy]

yes , that's how the M25 was originally constructed. Whoever thought it up, just a money saving exercise, should be taken out & kneecapped .

The bit that causes the most traffic jams on a motorway is merging traffic at an on-slip. By having a lane gain instead of a merge, it massively increases the throughput of a junction. And if a large proportion of people leave at that junction, what's wrong with a lane drop? And it has the added bonus that it's cheaper because your junction overbridges don't need to be as long.

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[tonyidle]

how can you be forced to break the law undertaking is illegal your supposed to go round them

'Undertaking' is the practice of overtaking a slower moving vehicle on its left-hand side (kerb side). While it's not strictly illegal to undertake on a motorway or dual carriageway in the UK, it can be extremely dangerous, and punishable if deemed to be careless driving.

 

[Eggs]

The bit that causes the most traffic jams on a motorway is merging traffic at an on-slip. By having a lane gain instead of a merge, it massively increases the throughput of a junction. And if a large proportion of people leave at that junction, what's wrong with a lane drop? And it has the added bonus that it's cheaper because your junction overbridges don't need to be as long.

You worked in road construction, Guigsy?

 

[Happy1]

Just the getting close to the norm of I’m going where I’m going and sod everyone else, they can’t see you under or overtaking due to the blinkers and the constant viewing of social media, just my view mind

 

[Silver-Fox]

Wonder what it’s like being perfect all the time. Haha

It’s hard work at times but I get through it somehow

 

[ambulancekidd]

With the amount of drivers who cant make head nor tail of two or three lane motorways we shouldn't be surprised that four lanes can flummox them completely.

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[Devon Sue]

The way some people drive the rest of us are probably safer if they don't change lanes

 

[Guigsy]

You worked in road construction, Guigsy?

More than I'd like to admit.

 

[steve 6644]

I think they are gearing them up for the driver less cars/brainless driver. They will be able to impose your speed on you remotely and you won't even need to steer. I don't fancy the future much, too many choices and decisions taken out of our hands by technology justified by the fact that people are becoming thicker and only capable of working a smart phone.

I am 67 and so appreciative of the music, humour, manners and common decency I have lived through.

 

[Kannon Fodda]

First rule of driving is to understand that the switch that starts the engine also turns off the driver's brain. Once you expect the other cars can do anything except what they are supposed to do you have a better chance.

If you think driver behaviour over 4 lanes is bad then don't do some of the Western parts of the M25 where there are 5 and even 6 lanes

The inside lane of widened motorways 4 and more lanes, is inevitably the exit lane on the next junction. On nice long stretches that has space to become a running lane, but on many of the frequent exit roads, it is just a long slip road lane. But driver discipline where people have just got to get there yesterday means they aren't happy to lose a few seconds moving to that inside lane in good time.

On many of the variable speed motorways, controlled by changeable signs like parts of the M25, signage encourages you to avoid swapping lanes. It doesn't go as far as to say it, but it would imply undertaking is acceptable, even though it's not. Hence that when the inner lanes aren't that well used you will get some who undertake. That may be reasonable provided their speed isn't excessive, and that they aren't effectively weaving across all lanes to claim that theoretic advantage. Pay attention to your mirrors and you know when the idiots are on their way.

But I haven't accepted smart motorways where there is no hard shoulder. These are potential death traps. It's obvious there is a reluctance of drivers to use them. In many cases to create that inner lane, there will be rigid barriers so you don't have a verge to pull up. It's all well and good saying there are refuge points, but your vehicle will rarely conveniently fail just as one of those is in reach. We are told there is CCTV monitoring that can flash up the lane closure signs, but that still takes time to activate, and the signs are also well spaced. I can well understand drivers staying in lane 2 in such situations, but they should know not to be in lane 3 if 2 is vacant.

Whilst middle lane hoggers are a problem, perhaps too should be those who are in outer lanes and unwilling to allow the slower vehicles to pull out to overtake. Numerous times, if you follow the rules, and are cruising at say 65mph you can see you are catching a vehicle in front and wish to pull out you find yourself baulked, and that is no incentive to do the right thing.

 

[Offagain]

If everybody stays in their lane then undertaking isn't a problem. We should now adopt the US system.

When I learnt to drive in New Zealand we were allowed to pass on both sides on the motor way.
I haven't driven there since 1981 so have no idea if that is still the case.

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[chaser]

ok so you are on a three lane mway with two empty lanes to your right , it suddenly becomes a 4 lane and you can guarantee someone will immediately come up your inside as if to point out you should be there, when they could easily have overtaken you in the other two lanes. crazy

 

[PeteH]

If everybody stays in their lane then undertaking isn't a problem. We should now adopt the US system.

I have done a great deal of driving in the various US states, from the Mexican to the Canadian Borders. and even the American drivers do not appear to know their own "rules". I-10 round Houston, and the associated "beltway" are a classic example, I have seen "Twin Tow" (2 trailer) Trucks cross 4 lanes to exit, Indicator on (sometimes) and then "bang,bang,bang", and off, None (or very little) warning. Swapping lanes is a regular thing too both ways inside and outside. My son no longer drives to work (unless forced). He takes the sensible option of the park and ride and gets to ride the High Occupancy lane, almost like being on a Tram. They have full Wi-Fi so he can even catch up with his e-mails, Takes him 45min. That is quicker by far than trying to drive into down-town.

 

[PeteH]

I would go further than that and say don’t trust anyone with a stupid white hat on their parcel shelf.

That ( in my experience) is the true sign of incompetence.

Oh, poo.. I used to put my M-N hat (White Cover) on the back shelf. It got me onto the docks past the B-T police, with just a wave..

On the plus side, If I forgot it was there, the "tailgater's" seemed to back off?

 

[Silver-Fox]

I used to drive a lot on the Welsh side of the M4 for work. This would be all times of the day.

If there was tailbacks/hold ups or slowing traffic you could guarantee the inside lane would move the quickest

Maybe that where all the professional drivers were

 

[chaser]

I used to drive a lot on the Welsh side of the M4 for work. This would be all times of the day.

If there was tailbacks/hold ups or slowing traffic you could guarantee the inside lane would move the quickest

Maybe that where all the professional drivers were

I used to drive up and down the M6 everyday before it was smart and you could gaurantee the middle lane was always the slowest, seen it loads of times.

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