To make progress, can I legally.....

[Bayeux]

Move around cars stuck in snow on a motorway using the hard shoulder?

I'm talking about cars which are unable to move.

I don't really want to sit behind a load of cars who have no grip and can't move when I can on my winter tyres.

So, if there is no other clear route, can I use the hardshoulder and then move back over asap?

[Tuvra]

Bayeux said:

Move around cars stuck in snow on a motorway using the hard shoulder?

I'm talking about cars which are unable to move.

I don't really want to sit behind a load of cars who have no grip and can't move when I can on my winter tyres.

So, if there is no other clear route, can I use the hardshoulder and then move back over asap?

Worst "Iv got winter tyred" thread ever

[Mazdarese]

Oooh, winter tyres? Tell us more.

[Dog Star]

If the situation was that chaotic then I think I would.

[Bayeux]

Tuvra said:

Bayeux said:

Move around cars stuck in snow on a motorway using the hard shoulder?

I'm talking about cars which are unable to move.

I don't really want to sit behind a load of cars who have no grip and can't move when I can on my winter tyres.

So, if there is no other clear route, can I use the hardshoulder and then move back over asap?

Worst "Iv got winter tyred" thread ever

No, t'was a serious question.

The trouble is when you do have them, other cars still hold you up.

I came up behind a very slow (30mph) Passat estate this morning, so I moved out into thge outer lane to go around him and was OK on 6" of snow/ice to pass him and then get back in a safe disatnce ahead of him but he decides he wants to speed up and the car behind him had moved right up close so i could not pull back in.

I ended up doing more mph than felt safe because he didn't want me to pass and I had nowhere to go. I eventually slowed right down and dropped back in behind the car behind him. He then dropped back down to 30mph again

[300bhp/ton]

Bayeux said:

Tuvra said:

Bayeux said:

Move around cars stuck in snow on a motorway using the hard shoulder?

I'm talking about cars which are unable to move.

I don't really want to sit behind a load of cars who have no grip and can't move when I can on my winter tyres.

So, if there is no other clear route, can I use the hardshoulder and then move back over asap?

Worst "Iv got winter tyred" thread ever

No, t'was a serious question.

The trouble is when you do have them, other cars still hold you up.

I came up behind a very slow (30mph) Passat estate this morning, so I moved out into thge outer lane to go around him and was OK on 6" of snow/ice to pass him and then get back in a safe disatnce ahead of him but he decides he wants to speed up and the car behind him had moved right up close so i could not pull back in.

I ended up doing more mph than felt safe because he didn't want me to pass and I had nowhere to go. I eventually slowed right down and dropped back in behind the car behind him. He then dropped back down to 30mph again

Liberal use of the horn, headlights and hand gestures I think. If they still don't get the message maybe a nudge....

[Bayeux]

300bhp/ton said:

Bayeux said:

Tuvra said:

Bayeux said:

Move around cars stuck in snow on a motorway using the hard shoulder?

I'm talking about cars which are unable to move.

I don't really want to sit behind a load of cars who have no grip and can't move when I can on my winter tyres.

So, if there is no other clear route, can I use the hardshoulder and then move back over asap?

Worst "Iv got winter tyred" thread ever

No, t'was a serious question.

The trouble is when you do have them, other cars still hold you up.

I came up behind a very slow (30mph) Passat estate this morning, so I moved out into thge outer lane to go around him and was OK on 6" of snow/ice to pass him and then get back in a safe disatnce ahead of him but he decides he wants to speed up and the car behind him had moved right up close so i could not pull back in.

I ended up doing more mph than felt safe because he didn't want me to pass and I had nowhere to go. I eventually slowed right down and dropped back in behind the car behind him. He then dropped back down to 30mph again

Liberal use of the horn, headlights and hand gestures I think. If they still don't get the message maybe a nudge....

He really annoyed me tbh.

I did the right thing, left him loads of room and didn't tailgate him and moved out to pass; the risk was mine and minimal until he speeded up and put us all at risk.

If I'd slid because of him being a pratt I can assure you he would have also suffered some bent metal since he was alongside me doing 50+, him on a wet and sluchy piece of raod and me on snow/ice. I'd only intended to pass at +10mph more than him (max) to keep it all safe. If he'd been driving at a sensible speed instead of 30mph all would have been well, he clearly managed to when he thought his ego would be dented.

Sorry, I have gone off topic!

Back to the hard shoulder question.

As mentioned above, if the m/way is in chaos and not moving it would seem sensible to use the hardshoulder if need be (as long as I don't block it for emergency vehicles) and I'm not talking about mile after mile of prolonged use to complete my 5 hours journey (5 hrs under normal conditions that is). Just nipping out to pass and back in again and safely as possible.

[J4CKO]

Yes, this is the flaw in the winter tyre idea, every other car still on summer tyres and the basic fact that in reality, in most situations, in most weather you can only go as fast as the car in front.

I suspect if you continue like that you will be making contact with the armco, they improve grip but arent not immune to physics.

[DIW35]

If it's not legal to use the hard shoulder in normal conditions when the road is blocked for whatever reason, why would it be legal to use it if the road is blocked due to snow?

[Pints]

Provided the car in front of you hasn't come to a complete standstill, I don't think winter tyres are meant to used to allow you to make progress more rapid progress than a Passat. You'll have fitted them to give you more grip than the Passat, and thereby improving safety.

[ceriw]

J4CKO said:

Yes, this is the flaw in the winter tyre idea, every other car still on summer tyres and the basic fact that in reality, in most situations, in most weather you can only go as fast as the car in front.

I suspect if you continue like that you will be making contact with the armco, they improve grip but arent not immune to physics.

in munich a couple of years ago i stopped over with friends. in the morning there was a good 4 inches of snow.
my early start was enjoyable with little traffic and a clear sky.
noted the germans tend to have their winter tyres on without exception. insurance reasons.
the opel in front certainly did. still it managed to drift off the road down a ditch whilst trying to take a left onto the autobahn slip road.
my semi slicks (standard spec on the motorsport) were fine. or should i say, my driving was fine.

winter tyres or not, if you can't drive well they won't save you. a false dawn etc

[ZOLLAR]

Wasn't this thread just locked?

[Bayeux]

DIW35 said:

If it's not legal to use the hard shoulder in normal conditions when the road is blocked for whatever reason, why would it be legal to use it if the road is blocked due to snow?

That is why I'm asking, I also don't know if you can use it in any other circumstances.

Thanks for clearing that up.

[Bayeux]

ZOLLAR said:

Wasn't this thread just locked?

It's not a winter tyre thread, It is asking about use of the hard shoulder.

I don't see why it is illegal tbh, as long it is never blocked and used for a minimum duration.

[Bayeux]

Pints said:

Provided the car in front of you hasn't come to a complete standstill, I don't think winter tyres are meant to used to allow you to make progress more rapid progress than a Passat. You'll have fitted them to give you more grip than the Passat, and thereby improving safety.

There was no good reason why he was driving at less than 30 on a dual carriageway. Indeed, he found the gumption to do 50+ when I was passing him and he then passed me up the inside so probably got up to about 60 and then dropped back to 30 again.

[The Moose]

I don't know the answer to your question but I imagine as long as you're not being a total cock then you would probably be fine.

I travelled from Folkstone (channel tunnel) to Slough last night (arrived in Folkstone at 22:00ish) and on the way back, tbh, I couldn't tell if I was on the hard shoulder or otherwise at points.

I'm sure bits of the carriage way are not as wide as they appeared to be but I think the snow had built to a point where you couldn't really see the difference.

Anyway - an 'interesting' journey in the '5 without winter/snow tyres!

Cheers

The Moose

[VladD]

Bayeux said:

ZOLLAR said:

Wasn't this thread just locked?

It's not a winter tyre thread, It is asking about use of the hard shoulder.

I don't see why it is illegal tbh, as long it is never blocked and used for a minimum duration.

I suppose theoretically you could pull onto the hard shoulder and then have a problem and get stuck there and thus block it for emergency vehicles. However, if I were in your situation and I was pretty sure I'd be OK, then I'd probably use it. Better to keep going than to add to the problem.

[Bayeux]

VladD said:

Bayeux said:

ZOLLAR said:

Wasn't this thread just locked?

It's not a winter tyre thread, It is asking about use of the hard shoulder.

I don't see why it is illegal tbh, as long it is never blocked and used for a minimum duration.

I suppose theoretically you could pull onto the hard shoulder and then have a problem and get stuck there and thus block it for emergency vehicles. However, if I were in your situation and I was pretty sure I'd be OK, then I'd probably use it. Better to keep going than to add to the problem.

My thoughts too but the law is an ass, as they say

PS
This thread opens & closes more than a hookers purse!

[Evil.soup]

The Moose said:

I don't know the answer to your question but I imagine as long as you're not being a total cock then you would probably be fine.

I travelled from Folkstone (channel tunnel) to Slough last night (arrived in Folkstone at 22:00ish) and on the way back, tbh, I couldn't tell if I was on the hard shoulder or otherwise at points.

I'm sure bits of the carriage way are not as wide as they appeared to be but I think the snow had built to a point where you couldn't really see the difference.

Anyway - an 'interesting' journey in the '5 without winter/snow tyres!

Cheers

The Moose

Thats an important point. All lanes are obscured generally in heavy snow so everything is a little bit of a guess. Driving home last week in heavy snow on a duel and many cars were stradling lanes. The guy behind me was half on half off the hard shoulder. If you pass people on the shoulder that are stranded, personally i dont see it as a problem, all the rules seem to go out of the window in heavy snow!

[Prof Prolapse]

I don't think it's legal to use the hard shoulder just because poor weather means the car in front is moving very slowly.