Calling in slow/elderly drivers
Discussion
I'm all for calling 999 if I spot anybody driving in an erratic manner, usually associated with drink driving, but what to do about the person in front driving 25mph & causing tailbacks? I was stuck behind a Jaguar earlier in the rush hour for several miles. I'm guessing elderly person with limited eyesight who, IMO, shouldn't be behind the wheel in the dark.
Any point in reporting this sort of thing? Would anything come of it?
Oh, & it was in a 50mph zone
Any point in reporting this sort of thing? Would anything come of it?
Oh, & it was in a 50mph zone
Biker 1 said:
I'm all for calling 999 if I spot anybody driving in an erratic manner, usually associated with drink driving, but what to do about the person in front driving 25mph & causing tailbacks? I was stuck behind a Jaguar earlier in the rush hour for several miles. I'm guessing elderly person with limited eyesight who, IMO, shouldn't be behind the wheel in the dark.
Any point in reporting this sort of thing? Would anything come of it?
Oh, & it was in a 50mph zone
We have a team who do elderly driver assessments following reports of poor driving by elderly drivers (poor driving by other ages get assessed by another department). Any point in reporting this sort of thing? Would anything come of it?
Oh, & it was in a 50mph zone
Part of that assessment is an eyesight test.
Personally I wouldn't be calling 999 for a slow driver alone. If there was more to it (all over the road, possible drink/drug driving etc).
999 for purely driving slowly? No. There is no immediate danger to life or property. Maybe a note of the reg and a call to 101 later would be more appropriate.
Now if that slow driving also involved some element of danger (Veering out of lane, sailing through red lights etc) then that would be more like a 999.
Now if that slow driving also involved some element of danger (Veering out of lane, sailing through red lights etc) then that would be more like a 999.
LosingGrip said:
We have a team who do elderly driver assessments following reports of poor driving by elderly drivers (poor driving by other ages get assessed by another department).
Part of that assessment is an eyesight test.
Personally I wouldn't be calling 999 for a slow driver alone. If there was more to it (all over the road, possible drink/drug driving etc).
Fair enough. I'm curious as to how these things are dealt with - my old man is borderline safe in the dark & at some point I'm going to have to confront him. The last thing I want is that he mows down a pedestrian at night....Part of that assessment is an eyesight test.
Personally I wouldn't be calling 999 for a slow driver alone. If there was more to it (all over the road, possible drink/drug driving etc).
As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
Biker 1 said:
Fair enough. I'm curious as to how these things are dealt with - my old man is borderline safe in the dark & at some point I'm going to have to confront him. The last thing I want is that he mows down a pedestrian at night....
As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
Best get reporting all those cyclists and horse riders in that case As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
Biker 1 said:
Fair enough. I'm curious as to how these things are dealt with - my old man is borderline safe in the dark & at some point I'm going to have to confront him. The last thing I want is that he mows down a pedestrian at night....
As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
That would be the fault of the overtaking car. As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
Biker 1 said:
As for the ridiculously slow driving observed earlier: whilst perhaps not directly dangerous, another driver could become seriously impatient & attempt an overtake in a daft position.
Those are the people you should be calling the police about. Inpatient buggers should just leave earlier. Whilst holidaying in New Zealand in a campervan, SWMBO was being cautious & making sure she kept below the speed limit (especially as it was in kph, so unfamiliar numbers).
Unfortunately, she didn't appreciate that the limits were variable, and had a slower speed in the vicinity of traffic lights. She didn't speed up again once clear of the lights, and got pulled by local plod for driving too slow. He argued that it could make drivers behind impatient & attempt an unsafe overtake (he also did licence & breath checks. Both OK).
I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
For the record, the officer in question was very polite & got his message across well. We've now got the holiday story of being pulled for driving too slow!
Unfortunately, she didn't appreciate that the limits were variable, and had a slower speed in the vicinity of traffic lights. She didn't speed up again once clear of the lights, and got pulled by local plod for driving too slow. He argued that it could make drivers behind impatient & attempt an unsafe overtake (he also did licence & breath checks. Both OK).
I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
For the record, the officer in question was very polite & got his message across well. We've now got the holiday story of being pulled for driving too slow!
Keypad said:
Whilst holidaying in New Zealand in a campervan, SWMBO was being cautious & making sure she kept below the speed limit (especially as it was in kph, so unfamiliar numbers).
Unfortunately, she didn't appreciate that the limits were variable, and had a slower speed in the vicinity of traffic lights. She didn't speed up again once clear of the lights, and got pulled by local plod for driving too slow. He argued that it could make drivers behind impatient & attempt an unsafe overtake (he also did licence & breath checks. Both OK).
I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
For the record, the officer in question was very polite & got his message across well. We've now got the holiday story of being pulled for driving too slow!
Wasn’t this thread about driving too slow on motorway? https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...Unfortunately, she didn't appreciate that the limits were variable, and had a slower speed in the vicinity of traffic lights. She didn't speed up again once clear of the lights, and got pulled by local plod for driving too slow. He argued that it could make drivers behind impatient & attempt an unsafe overtake (he also did licence & breath checks. Both OK).
I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
For the record, the officer in question was very polite & got his message across well. We've now got the holiday story of being pulled for driving too slow!
If they're travelling that much slower relative to the traffic in front, surely there's a massive gap you can safely overtake and pull into. If you lack the power to complete this manoeuvre against a vehicle traveling half the speed of the limit on the road, perhaps you should be content to just take a deep breath, accept that you left later than you ought to have, and just get there safely.
Keypad said:
He argued that it could make drivers behind impatient & attempt an unsafe overtake (he also did licence & breath checks. Both OK).
I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
It sounds daft to me. People have to be responsible for their own actions. If I attempt an unsafe overtake, that's down to me. It's not the fault of the person I'm overtaking, regardless of how slow they were driving. They never made me impatient, I was impatient. If I was patient, I would have waited for a safe overtaking opportunity. I've never heard of anything similar happening in the UK. His argument does appear sound to me.
That could be my mother or father, they have a Jaguar.
They find driving in the dark very intimidating and try to avoid it, mainly due to the ridiculously bright modern LEDs, and pressure impatient drivers.
Sadly, needs must sometimes, for example travelling between a hospital visit, or simply trying to get home in the mid afternoon in the winter.
What to do?
Maybe deep breathing exercises
Listen to some good music or an interesting podcast
Probably not call 999, not sure a 5 minute delay counts as an emergency.
It will be you one day…
They find driving in the dark very intimidating and try to avoid it, mainly due to the ridiculously bright modern LEDs, and pressure impatient drivers.
Sadly, needs must sometimes, for example travelling between a hospital visit, or simply trying to get home in the mid afternoon in the winter.
What to do?
Maybe deep breathing exercises
Listen to some good music or an interesting podcast
Probably not call 999, not sure a 5 minute delay counts as an emergency.
It will be you one day…
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