An epidemic of insanely slow drivers
Discussion
DonkeyApple said:
If one attended an AA meeting would one not be surprised to in a room full of alcoholics? Is it a shock to find people who have broken the law to be prolific in prisons? 
Speed awareness course are, for the most part, for people who were unaware of the speed limit or their speed so we would probably expect the room to contain a rather high percentage of people with a predilection to being unaware of speed limits.
Only the cosmetics industry is allowed to base their analysis on such rigged environments.
When I have had to attend a Speed Awareness course in every instance I had been very aware of my speed. What I wasn't aware of was the unmarked police car or semi hidden camera van Speed awareness course are, for the most part, for people who were unaware of the speed limit or their speed so we would probably expect the room to contain a rather high percentage of people with a predilection to being unaware of speed limits.
Only the cosmetics industry is allowed to base their analysis on such rigged environments.
I do think that the courses, much improved they would have to be though, would be a great idea for all drivers every 5 years or so.
LennyM1984 said:
I know this is a pointless rant but I am beginning to feel as though I am the only sane person to drive on the roads in Oxfordshire and wanted to see if I was alone in this observation.
In the good old days (I'm 39) most people would drive at a sensible speed. Every now and again you would meet a little old lady driving at 40mph but in general that was the exception rather than the norm. Fast forward to today and the norm is for me to be stuck behind people (of all ages, sex, race, and weight... before anybody tries to go there) doing 30mph in a well sighted 50 or 60. The speed is often dangerously slow and will result in a queue of cars/lorries bumper to tail crawling along (some of the roads are busy enough - like the A40 - to make overtaking opportunities low).
Some of the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are parents at the school where my kids go. They seem like normal people and yet the speeds at which they are driving would imply that they are incapable of rational decision making and/or being in control of a vehicle. Even white van man these days is likely to be doing 35 in a 60 - these guys used to be the fastest human beings on earth and yet here we are today with articulated lorries trying to overtake them.
So what the hell is going on with people??? Am I alone in wanting to get where I am going???
[For context, I do not drive fast on public roads - I have a race license for that - and am not expecting others to break the speed limit or drive beyond a safe speed for the conditions. What I am objecting to is the dangerously slow speed at which almost everybody now wants to try and traverse the roads]
Fellow Oxfordshire dweller here - I'm glad it's not just me that has noticed this over the last couple of years in particular. 40mph everywhere, unless there's a drop of water on the road; then it's 25-30, even in a NSL area. In the good old days (I'm 39) most people would drive at a sensible speed. Every now and again you would meet a little old lady driving at 40mph but in general that was the exception rather than the norm. Fast forward to today and the norm is for me to be stuck behind people (of all ages, sex, race, and weight... before anybody tries to go there) doing 30mph in a well sighted 50 or 60. The speed is often dangerously slow and will result in a queue of cars/lorries bumper to tail crawling along (some of the roads are busy enough - like the A40 - to make overtaking opportunities low).
Some of the perpetrators of these heinous crimes are parents at the school where my kids go. They seem like normal people and yet the speeds at which they are driving would imply that they are incapable of rational decision making and/or being in control of a vehicle. Even white van man these days is likely to be doing 35 in a 60 - these guys used to be the fastest human beings on earth and yet here we are today with articulated lorries trying to overtake them.
So what the hell is going on with people??? Am I alone in wanting to get where I am going???
[For context, I do not drive fast on public roads - I have a race license for that - and am not expecting others to break the speed limit or drive beyond a safe speed for the conditions. What I am objecting to is the dangerously slow speed at which almost everybody now wants to try and traverse the roads]
I've found that when you eventually have an opportunity to overtake, they take offence to it and either sit on your bumper (proving they can in fact drive at the speed limit, and that sitting at 40 was pointless) or flash their lights as you drive off into the distance.
It's the fact that they seem completely oblivious to what's going on around them that gets me.
Youngish chap on the motorway the other day doing 55 in lane 2 whilst traffic was streaming past him in lanes 1 and 3.
Watching him in the rear view and no reaction whatsoever.
Maybe it's due to riding motorcycles since the 70s that my brain and vision works like The Terminator
red outlines of all the vehicles and pedestrians around me and lists underneath of the type of driver, exact model of car, what they are about to do, road surface conditions etc 
Never be surprised is my motto, especially on my motorbike.
But then I remember a mate of mine who only got his licence in his 30s and I asked him how he evaluated the other drivers sharing his road.
It's just colours....was his reply.
Youngish chap on the motorway the other day doing 55 in lane 2 whilst traffic was streaming past him in lanes 1 and 3.
Watching him in the rear view and no reaction whatsoever.
Maybe it's due to riding motorcycles since the 70s that my brain and vision works like The Terminator
red outlines of all the vehicles and pedestrians around me and lists underneath of the type of driver, exact model of car, what they are about to do, road surface conditions etc Never be surprised is my motto, especially on my motorbike.
But then I remember a mate of mine who only got his licence in his 30s and I asked him how he evaluated the other drivers sharing his road.
It's just colours....was his reply.
Think the problem these days is everybody is stuck in a "routine" which results in people just dawdling along whether it be driving or walking, people aren't aware of their surroundings, people walking into each other, people walking into lamp posts or signs because they aren't looking where they are going.
A lot of people must be hanging on for dear life when they do their tests doing 55-60 on roads because as soon as they pass they drop to 40-45.
A lot of people must be hanging on for dear life when they do their tests doing 55-60 on roads because as soon as they pass they drop to 40-45.
DonkeyApple said:
Speed awareness course are, for the most part, for people who were unaware of the speed limit or their speed so we would probably expect the room to contain a rather high percentage of people with a predilection to being unaware of speed limits.
All my SACs are down to the fact that i enjoy motorcycling a bit too much. 
croyde said:
When I have had to attend a Speed Awareness course in every instance I had been very aware of my speed. What I wasn't aware of was the unmarked police car or semi hidden camera van
I do think that the courses, much improved they would have to be though, would be a great idea for all drivers every 5 years or so.
Which is why I wrote 'for the most part'. Any good PHer, if at one of those course, should be there for the same reason as you. I do think that the courses, much improved they would have to be though, would be a great idea for all drivers every 5 years or so.
LennyM1984 said:
I know this is a pointless rant but I am beginning to feel as though I am the only sane person to drive on the roads in Oxfordshire and wanted to see if I was alone in this observation.
In the good old days (I'm 39) most people would drive at a sensible speed.
So what the hell is going on with people??? Am I alone in wanting to get where I am going???
[For context, I do not drive fast on public roads - I have a race license for that - and am not expecting others to break the speed limit or drive beyond a safe speed for the conditions. What I am objecting to is the dangerously slow speed at which almost everybody now wants to try and traverse the roads]
It is a truth universally acknowledged that as you approach 40 (as much of the PH demographic is, I suspect ) you start to hark back to a halcyon era of empty roads , populated by lovely cars driven fast and well by their owners. I was your age in 1993 and was tempted to think the same about the roads of my youth scantly populated by briskly driven Elans, Minis and Lotus Cortinas , with even Anglias and Minors getting a move on. In the good old days (I'm 39) most people would drive at a sensible speed.
So what the hell is going on with people??? Am I alone in wanting to get where I am going???
[For context, I do not drive fast on public roads - I have a race license for that - and am not expecting others to break the speed limit or drive beyond a safe speed for the conditions. What I am objecting to is the dangerously slow speed at which almost everybody now wants to try and traverse the roads]
But then I thought harder , reread the magazines from back then and guess what ? You hit 40 and you start to reminisce about a past which is rooted more in rosy tint than reality. Fact is , the roads have always had slow drivers and mimsers - we just notice them more as you mature. Really !
J1990 said:
It's certainly frustrating but at least someone doing 30 in a 60 is (normally) relatively easy to overtake, it's when they're doing 45 in a 60 that's perfectly straight and safe to do the full speed but too busy in the other direction to be able to overtake them... I don't know why it frustrates me so much, especially given that I'm not normally in a particular hurry to get anywhere.
I have a long straight 60 road near me that I do every day. Almost every day someone is doing 40 on it, even a taxi last night and it’s annoying because overtaking opportunities are rare due to oncoming traffic and hidden dips. I may be on the other side of the fence here.
I’m Rospa Gold and IAM Masters, so I stick to the speed limits, but by doing so I usually find myself at the head of a line of traffic. Probably several behind me in the queue are frustrated, but that’s their problem.
I know the OP didn’t mean this scenario, just putting another point of view. When following a slow car I try to calm myself by thinking they could have a mechanical problem, they could have an elderly passenger, they could be transporting a sick animal to the vets (as I have to do as a cattery owner).
But I do agree, that it is annoying when some speed up as you try to overtake.
I’m Rospa Gold and IAM Masters, so I stick to the speed limits, but by doing so I usually find myself at the head of a line of traffic. Probably several behind me in the queue are frustrated, but that’s their problem.
I know the OP didn’t mean this scenario, just putting another point of view. When following a slow car I try to calm myself by thinking they could have a mechanical problem, they could have an elderly passenger, they could be transporting a sick animal to the vets (as I have to do as a cattery owner).
But I do agree, that it is annoying when some speed up as you try to overtake.
7 5 7 said:
Cost of living, i.e cost of fuel - if you drive at a slower pace below <70mph you noticeably get better mpg, I definitely think this something to do with it.
That's my suspicion. The current increase was manifest post Covid but that also corresponds to the big spike in fuel cost which while abated now is arguably still a factor due to the rise of other costs. RichA35 said:
simon_harris said:
I put these morons in the same group as those who go into lane 2 at traffic lights and then make zero attempt to pull away quicker than the car in lane 1 and as often as not have multiple cars pass them on the inside.
That really annoys me and I will never understand it.Yeah this is definitely getting more noticeable.
On my commute nothing strikes pure deflation into the heart as the site of the local farmer in his L200/Hilux/DMax or Berlingo van. These guys are always, without exception, doing about half the given limit. I thought farmers had a lot on their plate! Obviously not if they can afford to spend so much time just moving about.
Corsa or 206/20/208 are usually the other culprits that have you looking for a swift overtake or an exit to a different route. Ironically it's these same vehicles which you'll find poking out of a hedge or a ditch whenever there's been an off.
On my commute nothing strikes pure deflation into the heart as the site of the local farmer in his L200/Hilux/DMax or Berlingo van. These guys are always, without exception, doing about half the given limit. I thought farmers had a lot on their plate! Obviously not if they can afford to spend so much time just moving about.
Corsa or 206/20/208 are usually the other culprits that have you looking for a swift overtake or an exit to a different route. Ironically it's these same vehicles which you'll find poking out of a hedge or a ditch whenever there's been an off.
The fear of getting a ticket for speeding has seriously dented my driving enjoyment on A roads. Instead of getting a crack or going at generally the 60mph limit I don’t want to risk it and be watching the speedo in case I creep over and get snapped by some copper hiding in a hedge. I just stick to 45-50 now and enjoy the view.
Yeah, Oxfordshire also ... and yes defo getting worse. I don't think the widespread use of 50mph helped, and now 20's in most "through" villages, mean drivers have to think, which I'm not sure they're capable of.
At least the pootlers on the A34 can be overtaken... but on the A338 it's quite tricky most of the time.
And yes, as said, the state of the roads is shocking but I expect that to get worse not better.
At least the pootlers on the A34 can be overtaken... but on the A338 it's quite tricky most of the time.
And yes, as said, the state of the roads is shocking but I expect that to get worse not better.
Catmando10 said:
I may be on the other side of the fence here.
I’m Rospa Gold and IAM Masters, so I stick to the speed limits, but by doing so I usually find myself at the head of a line of traffic. Probably several behind me in the queue are frustrated, but that’s their problem.
I know the OP didn’t mean this scenario, just putting another point of view. When following a slow car I try to calm myself by thinking they could have a mechanical problem, they could have an elderly passenger, they could be transporting a sick animal to the vets (as I have to do as a cattery owner).
But I do agree, that it is annoying when some speed up as you try to overtake.
I agree on this point. While I do see some individuals with bad lane discipline, usually on motorways, going way too slow in an overtaking lane in clear conditions, I seem to see way more people who seem to want to do double the speed limit in 30 limits and getting right up your arse. I'm seeing this more and more now. It's one thing to be going a bit quicker in higher speed environments, but in heavily pedestrianised areas, no chance. I even notice people doing risky overtaking maneuvers to get pretty much no further towards their destination than they would have done originally.I’m Rospa Gold and IAM Masters, so I stick to the speed limits, but by doing so I usually find myself at the head of a line of traffic. Probably several behind me in the queue are frustrated, but that’s their problem.
I know the OP didn’t mean this scenario, just putting another point of view. When following a slow car I try to calm myself by thinking they could have a mechanical problem, they could have an elderly passenger, they could be transporting a sick animal to the vets (as I have to do as a cattery owner).
But I do agree, that it is annoying when some speed up as you try to overtake.
I find England a very frustrating place to drive and make any sort of progress, there is always someone holding up a queue of traffic, people don't drive to the conditions, they won't use bus lanes when they aren't in use, will dawdle in the wrong lanes on duel carriageways etc etc.
However on the few occasions I've been, I thought Scotland quite a refreshing place to drive. The roads were quieter, but even in a line of traffic It was nice that they would generally all be driving to the national speed limit or even a few mph more, so decent progress could be made, and a lot less stressful.
However on the few occasions I've been, I thought Scotland quite a refreshing place to drive. The roads were quieter, but even in a line of traffic It was nice that they would generally all be driving to the national speed limit or even a few mph more, so decent progress could be made, and a lot less stressful.
Retro.74 said:
I find England a very frustrating place to drive and make any sort of progress, there is always someone holding up a queue of traffic, people don't drive to the conditions, they won't use bus lanes when they aren't in use, will dawdle in the wrong lanes on duel carriageways etc etc.
However on the few occasions I've been, I thought Scotland quite a refreshing place to drive. The roads were quieter, but even in a line of traffic It was nice that they would generally all be driving to the national speed limit or even a few mph more, so decent progress could be made, and a lot less stressful.
The 50mph-on-the-motorway-or-dual-carriageway brigade are strong in Fife though. However on the few occasions I've been, I thought Scotland quite a refreshing place to drive. The roads were quieter, but even in a line of traffic It was nice that they would generally all be driving to the national speed limit or even a few mph more, so decent progress could be made, and a lot less stressful.
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