Advised to drive dangerously (in writing) by the Police.
Discussion
Marcellus said:
We're only getting one side of the story here guys, the letter does remind the OP that they have an "obligation to check sufficiently for other vehicles before manoeuvring" to me that reads that once on the roundabout there was a van on the inner lane and a car on the outer lane and the van tried to exit the roundabout without sufficient room to do so.
When I pulled out to join the roundabout there was no obvious danger. The first I knew that I'd apparently upset someone was when I heard a horn and looked in my nearside mirror to see a car extremely close to the rear of my vehicle straddling the red area marked with white lines.There was no lane changing on the roundabout and the only place there may have been insufficient room upon exiting the roundabout was the distance between the rear of my vehicle and the one that I'd apparently cut up causing me to say to the passenger 'I think I'm about to be on the receiving end of some road rage' as I was followed to the cafe at the dead end.
Antony Moxey said:
Indeed. I wonder if a similar letter was sent to the officers, who given their training should be even more aware of their obligations and the potential for possible driving mistakes from members of the public than your average motorist.
This obviously passed them by completely so they decided the best way to deal with the situation was to wade in two footed with aggression and confrontation. Poor form from plod, they could have handled it much better.
What mistake did I make? This obviously passed them by completely so they decided the best way to deal with the situation was to wade in two footed with aggression and confrontation. Poor form from plod, they could have handled it much better.
JNW1 said:
The OP said he was at the front of the right lane waiting to enter the roundabout with the police car in the left lane; that being the case I don't see how the police car can ever have been in front of the OP on the roundabout?
Given the road layout the OP has presumably joined the roundabout and then moved to the left once beyond the exit to the A27 because he wanted to leave at the next exit. Now perhaps he hasn't checked his mirrors to make sure nothing was on his inside - in which case his mistake - but the police car shouldn't have been there because from the lane it was in approaching the roundabout it should have turned left.
This pretty much sums it up. I didn't check my mirror for a couple of seconds after pulling out as I was positioning myself on the roundabout and thought looking where I was going was a slightly better idea. Given the road layout the OP has presumably joined the roundabout and then moved to the left once beyond the exit to the A27 because he wanted to leave at the next exit. Now perhaps he hasn't checked his mirrors to make sure nothing was on his inside - in which case his mistake - but the police car shouldn't have been there because from the lane it was in approaching the roundabout it should have turned left.
Shuvi McTupya said:
Indeed. I imagine if a cop saw you going straight on from the obviously marked left hand turn lane, he would have something to say about it..
According to the traffic officer I spoke to (who is stationed about 1/2mile from the roundabout) that advised me to throw the letter in the bin he would pull someone over and have a chat with them if he saw them driving in the manner of the officers. What a shame he wasn't behind me when the incident occured.Marcellus said:
All the OP has to do to discount this possibility is answer the question!
as for why do I put it as a possibility, because I happen to think that we are only getting one side of a situation..... a senior police officer has reviewed, undoubtedly spoken to the officers and got the other side and written to the OP and I happen to believe that a senior police officer wouldn't actually lie.
Also I don't think anyone involved would have deliberately driven as a cock so trying to understand what actually happened and why the policeman who is probably more qualified to drive than any of us may have thought that the OP has!
as for why do I put it as a possibility, because I happen to think that we are only getting one side of a situation..... a senior police officer has reviewed, undoubtedly spoken to the officers and got the other side and written to the OP and I happen to believe that a senior police officer wouldn't actually lie.
Also I don't think anyone involved would have deliberately driven as a cock so trying to understand what actually happened and why the policeman who is probably more qualified to drive than any of us may have thought that the OP has!
There was no overtaking anywhere to my knowledge. It was rush hour and there where vehicles in both lanes. When I got to the front of my lane the officers were obviously at the front of the left lane. Who drove past the sign first, who knows?
The Ap/s that I spoke to had no interest in what happened as they were chatting on their radio for most of the interview. He also told me 'we all like to think we're the best drivers in the world' which at that point made it pretty obvious nothing would be done.
The reason I put in a complaint was because of the way I was spoken to/ ranted at despite my first words upon them pulling up alongside me and her yelling out the window 'next time you cut someone up you want to make sure it's not a couple of police officers' being, 'I'm really sorry but I think you may have been in the wrong lane'. She continued to be confrontational and make accusations about me nearly causing an accident until I asked for their details as I would like to email them a picture of the junction at which point they told me I was lucky they were on their way to training so would let me off. The details I was given were not their full details and I was initially informed they were untraceable.
One side of the story,yes, an accurate account, I'd like to think so.
I guess others would have handled it differently as the chap in the van with me said 'I'd have just told them to f off and walked away'.
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