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jshell
4,999 posts
74 months
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Ug_lee said: jshell said: If it's me head-on into a car/truck, or the guy closing the gap going into the scenery, then he's gone, no qualms, no question. That or a trip into the scenery, however the book would probably be thrown at me as I was the one who dared to overtake people in the queue. Also not sure how a MR2 would have faired against a big 4x4 from what I recall. Despite making safe overtakes it was turned into something that could have turned very nasty because of someones direct actions to close a gap that was originally there. It's a whole set of variables maybe I should have taken into account when starting the maneuvre, but I wasn't aware people were prepared to go to the lengths they do when been overtaken. Something I now have in the back of my mind for every overtake! You really were lucky. I worked offshore with a guy back in the late 80's who was killed in exactly this way on his journey back down to the NE of England after a crew-change. He overtook some young guys in a car and they kept beside him till he had a head-on. Was a really decent guy.
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matchmaker
3,266 posts
69 months
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As has already been commented, what is needed is more of a mobile police presence on the road - driving on it and tugging the more serious offenders. Not sitting in laybys eating doughnuts and targeting the menaces who may have hit 60.1 mph when using an overtaking lane!
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AML
167 posts
99 months
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Craigie said: One person's overtaking gap is another person's safe braking distance.
I have no problem with overtakers, but when they overtake you, cut in front of you and then brake as they run the risk of running into the vehicle in front, forcing the whole line of vehicles who were happily driving along at same speed to all brake, then I have a problem with that. Maybe leave a bigger gap- then it's not a problem? The problem I have is with professional drivers who create huge queues of traffic behind them and then don't pull off the road to allow them to clear. There is no doubt that this situation causes frustration and no doubt contributes to many unnecessary accidents. Fortunately many commercial vehicle drivers are extremely courteous and either do pull over or facilitate safe overtakes and their actions are to be commended. Perhaps introducing a law where ANY vehicle causing a tailback of 5 or more vehicles must pull over would help- is this not the case in ?Canada.
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Humper
407 posts
31 months
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Having spent some time holding people up on this road pulling trailer loads of MFI furniture up to just outside Inverness i love the way people think the wagon doing the speed limit set out should pull over.
I had around a 20 minute leeway on my hours to get to the drop, do you reckon i'm going to either risk my licence by running over my hours or spend a night in the cab so that other folk can get somewhere 5 mins earlier?
The road should've been dualled when it was built, building a dual carraigeway was obviously on the cards on some bits when bypassing bits, you can see clearly on some sections where the groundwork was done.
I drive on single carraigeways a lot in the wagon, i regularly get people zip up behind me then sit up my arse as opportunity after opportunity passes and they don't, waiting till it's risky. People don't seem to know how anymore?
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AML
167 posts
99 months
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Frankly Humper I agree with you. There is nothing more galling than coming up behind a queue of dawdling cars that seem to have forgotten how to overtake. Their poor driving makes everything that bit more dangerous.
BUT...... What is your being 20 mins late compared with a fatal accident?
Pull over.
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militantmandy
2,906 posts
55 months
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Have seen some crazy driving up that way. Coming to the end of a DC section, guy in Randrover booting it past a guy a in Jag. Jag man decides no thanks and the two of them start racing towards an ever decreasing gap. I followed these guys for about 2-3 miles as they tailgated and overtook each other in a spectacularly dangerous way. Indicative of what the frustration of this road can cause already hot headed drivers to behave like.
Best effort ever though was going over a bridge. Round a blind corner there was a layby hidden by the bridge abutment. Guy had been pulled over by the cops. He then pulled out right in front of me from a standstill causing me to have to swerve onto the chevrons separating each side of the bridge. Cue the cop nailing out and pulling the guy over again!
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paulqv
2,385 posts
64 months
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Craigie said: One person's overtaking gap is another person's safe braking distance.
I have no problem with overtakers, but when they overtake you, cut in front of you and then brake as they run the risk of running into the vehicle in front, forcing the whole line of vehicles who were happily driving along at same speed to all brake, then I have a problem with that. ????? Run this by me again! You leave a braking gap; clearly sufficient for you to brake; you have a fixed distance between you and the car in front; Otherwise you would be proceeding to overtake them? Someone overtakes you you anticipate that they will need to use that gap they brake to pull into that gap why would you need to brake? Unless the car in front of the overtaking car brakes or slows down Hence what has this got to do with the overtaking car? The highway code suggests we leave overtaking and braking distances between vehicles in front. The problem is most people dont leave adequate ones and as other posters have stated then seek to close these up which is dangerous driving I have had this happen often in particular on the A9, where one often finds convoys of cars doing 40-50mph without any intention of overtaking. On one occasion I came up behind a Vectra doing about 50mph. I pulled over to overtake and the guy floored it to stop me overtaking him, I had a choice of severe braking with the possibility the idiot would do the same leaving me possibly exposed in the face of oncoming traffic or continue to accelerate. I had to go up to 110mph to pass and then brake down to 60mph. Luckily i was driving a powerful car The guy then tailgated me flashing his lights! I could have done the stupid thing , eg overtaken and then pulled sharply across him and braked severely or concluded a safe overtake.
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Humper
407 posts
31 months
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AML said: BUT...... What is your being 20 mins late compared with a fatal accident?
Pull over. You miss the point, i wouldn't be 20 mins late, i'd be a day late. Out of driving hours? 9 hours min break. Would YOU do it?
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AML
167 posts
99 months
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Yeah - flat pack furniture ain't worth a life!
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KB_S1
5,938 posts
98 months
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Ug_lee said: I decided to overtake the car in front leaving me behind the truck, as I did this the car in front closed the gap and the car behind me closed the gap made from where I came from. The few moments it took to realise I had absolutely no where to go meant I had to give the car absolute death to overtake a truck I had no intention of overtaking. Needless to say it was very close and still have flashbacks to that moment.
I was angry at myself initially for what nearly happened but the more I thought about it the more I realised those 2 drivers would rather have seen me have a massive head on than take 'their space' in the queue of traffic. It's a mentality I just cannot understand and one that is probably responsible for quite a few big ones on the A9. Happened to me on the A82 heading to Glencoe once. Very similar scenario, I was in my Saxo VTS which had just enough pace to see me through. I was also furious with the drivers that did it, and myself. Lesson learned that there are some utter idiots on the road.
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s2kjock
141 posts
16 months
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I've been up and down the A9 all my life (40 odd years now) and while I do witness some daft stuff, it seems no worse than on other roads. I have never seen an RTC actually happen in front of me on the road, nor even a very close run thing. That said, my trips are predominantly friday evening and sunday afternoon, so presumbly all these nutters only come out for weekdays?
I don't think there is anything fundamentally wrong with the road, but when you mix the variety of traffic types on it from foreign tourists, commercial travellers, haulage etc etc etc sharing the same single carriageway for so long when there are no alternative routes is always asking for trouble.
If the road is very congested I generally just sit and don't even consider "making progress" unless there is a very clear opportunity - as noted by someone above, you frequently catch up with the cars that pressed on with questionable manouevres 50 miles later on anyway.
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A.J.M
3,307 posts
55 months
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Have had people try to close the door on overtakes on the A9 before, perfectly safe overtake with a clear sight of the road, was slowly leapfrogging the massive queue of non over takers to get closer to Mr Tesco.
Guy in a mondeo took offence for no reason and tried to shut me off. He was the 3rd car i was passing as the gap was that large for the bucket to get going.
The 3 series infront of him then tried the same and with a corner coming i took the line of, Bucket>mondeo/3 series and made a space for myself.
Not big or clever but i was not wanting to be left stranded and you can't be sure that dropping back a car length to tuck in behind the mondeo would happen as that driver may also not let you in.
Thankfully i have not had to drive that road this year so far so don't have to worry about it.
With age and experience i would now not attempt to take that many in one go, as you never know if it will happen again.
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Craigie
686 posts
48 months
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AML said: Frankly Humper I agree with you. There is nothing more galling than coming up behind a queue of dawdling cars that seem to have forgotten how to overtake. Their poor driving makes everything that bit more dangerous.
BUT...... What is your being 20 mins late compared with a fatal accident?
Pull over. So, in other words, would everyone please get off the road to let me drive it myself? All you minions of workers just going about your business?? What a stupid statement. To all these overtakers, yes feel free to overtake, enjoy the drive but those cars that are in your way may a. not be in a hurry b. not have a predefined time that they must arrive at the destination c. may be aware of how dangerous this road is so just want to take it easy d. might be a relatively new driver and not confident of overtaking e. or any one of a million other reasons why they are happy to drive along at the speed that they are. Remember we do not have minimum speed limits.
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Craigie
686 posts
48 months
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paulqv said: Craigie said: One person's overtaking gap is another person's safe braking distance.
I have no problem with overtakers, but when they overtake you, cut in front of you and then brake as they run the risk of running into the vehicle in front, forcing the whole line of vehicles who were happily driving along at same speed to all brake, then I have a problem with that. ????? Run this by me again! You leave a braking gap; clearly sufficient for you to brake; you have a fixed distance between you and the car in front; Otherwise you would be proceeding to overtake them? Someone overtakes you you anticipate that they will need to use that gap they brake to pull into that gap why would you need to brake? Very simply because may overtakers do not plan their overtake well and at some point, as mentioned on this thread, they are faced with the dilemma of pushing it to get past the next vehicle on time or slamming on their anchors and pulling in to the gap. This then causes the concertina effect.
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KB_S1
5,938 posts
98 months
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Craigie said: Very simply because may overtakers do not plan their overtake well and at some point, as mentioned on this thread, they are faced with the dilemma of pushing it to get past the next vehicle on time or slamming on their anchors and pulling in to the gap.
This then causes the concertina effect. The examples given in this thread were not so much down to poor planning but deliberate (or perhaps zombie drivers) closing of existing gaps. I have seen this happen to me, and others on several occasions. That action is dangerous driving, pure and simple. I have no problem with people wanting to drive slowly but, if you are doing 20-30 below the limit and have no interest in overtaking then leave proper gaps. If you are the one causing a multi vehicle queue then consider using laybys as prescribed in the Highway Code.
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craig-A
377 posts
89 months
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KB_S1 said: The examples given in this thread were not so much down to poor planning but deliberate (or perhaps zombie drivers) closing of existing gaps.
I have seen this happen to me, and others on several occasions.
That action is dangerous driving, pure and simple.
I have no problem with people wanting to drive slowly but, if you are doing 20-30 below the limit and have no interest in overtaking then leave proper gaps. If you are the one causing a multi vehicle queue then consider using laybys as prescribed in the Highway Code. +1 I know the A9 very well, it's not a bad road, just not a very good one, unfortunately it's made worse by poor driving.
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Spitfire2
1,224 posts
55 months
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craig-A said: KB_S1 said: The examples given in this thread were not so much down to poor planning but deliberate (or perhaps zombie drivers) closing of existing gaps.
I have seen this happen to me, and others on several occasions.
That action is dangerous driving, pure and simple.
I have no problem with people wanting to drive slowly but, if you are doing 20-30 below the limit and have no interest in overtaking then leave proper gaps. If you are the one causing a multi vehicle queue then consider using laybys as prescribed in the Highway Code. +1 I know the A9 very well, it's not a bad road, just not a very good one, unfortunately it's made worse by poor driving. And another. I'm debating whether to travel the full length of A9 next week in the Spitfire on way to Ullapool but so far the Glen Coe road is winning.
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FastNReliable
161 posts
48 months
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I think I might be alone here but I really like the A9, I love driving it from Perth to Latheron in many respects it's an epic driving road and I think when it's eventually dualled we will have lost one of the best roads in the country.
There are some awful drivers out there though and the A9 seems more able than most at pushing them beyond their limit. As for allowing safe overtaking I've not personally had any bother with people closing gaps but even with the signs asking slow vehicles to pull over I've only ever witnessed it happen once and that was a lorry after someone nearly wiped out overtaking it.
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Terminator X
2,136 posts
73 months
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ViperPict said: The A9 needs to duelled the for it's entire length asap Not likeley given length of it & location  glad to hear you're ok though. Tis a dangerous road in places ... My uncle had to go "offroad" at speed to avoid an oncoming car, hit a rock causing his car to sumersault over a fence ending in a field! Lived to tell the tale. TX.
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AML
167 posts
99 months
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Craigie said: So, in other words, would everyone please get off the road to let me drive it myself? All you minions of workers just going about your business??
What a stupid statement.
To all these overtakers, yes feel free to overtake, enjoy the drive but those cars that are in your way may
a. not be in a hurry
b. not have a predefined time that they must arrive at the destination
c. may be aware of how dangerous this road is so just want to take it easy
d. might be a relatively new driver and not confident of overtaking
e. or any one of a million other reasons why they are happy to drive along at the speed that they are. Remember we do not have minimum speed limits. Not aware that I had made a stupid statement and certainly didn't request that "minions of workers" got off the road. I have absolutely no problem whatsoever with categories A, B, C, D, E or indeed any other that you may fall into. Just try not to tail gate eh...there's a good chap. If you are a dawdler leave space for those that aren't. Really really don't want to have to deal with any more unnecessary carnage in my dept- thank you very much.
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