Tonight I had the audacity to....
Discussion
Overtake a car (X reg A4 avant) on a slip road joining the A19 as it was going pretty slow and keeping well to the left hand lane, unlike most cars which seem to either immediately move into the right hand lane of the slip road or simply drive down the middle of the two lanes, thus preventing any thoughts of overtaking.
Anyway it was an easy pass and as I headed down the slip road you see the traffic was barely moving on the A19 - not unusual for rush hour, so I eased off towards the bottom of the slip road and indicated to join the main carriageway and waited until I was past the chevrons inbetween the main carriageway and the slip road and found a safe gap to move into the inside lane of the A19. At this point the traffic on the A19 was moving albeit fairly slowly and a short while later just as the slip road ends who should I see on my near side (ie the slip road) but the self same Audi intent on 'forcing' his way out right in front of me. There was no sufficient gap for it to safely emerge and had I not stopped completely we would have made contact (me being completely in the inside lane of the dual carriageway and having been there for some time and the Audi attempting to join the carriageway but still partially on the slip road) but he was clearly annoyed with me and needed to get back in front! I must admit I'd not done anything apart from overtake the Audi on the slip road.
Shortly afterwards the traffic started to flow a bit better so I pulled into the outside lane when it was safe to do so and a couple of minutes later passed the Audi, with caution, half expecting it might swerve out in front of me at the last minute but it didn't and although I couldn't really see the driver I could tell that they were visibly fuming and gesticulating wildly at me. After that the Audi seemed content to pootle along in the inside lane meanwhile the traffic eased a bit so the outside lane sped up to usual speeds and he disappeared out of sight. Fast forward 10 miles or so and the traffic slowed down again (the usual concertina effect of. The outside lane) and who should reappear but irate Audi man 'giving me the bird'! At this point both lanes were travelling at similar speed so I did look over (for the first time I was able to notice that the driver was an overweight middle aged guy with what looked like his wife sat in the passenger seat) and lower my passenger window, genuinely intrigued to know if he reacted like that everytime someone overtook him, but he didn't want to make eye contact, just continued to hold up the finger and soon after the Audi pulled off the A19.
No wonder the UK is the worst country in the world for road rage - part of me still regrets not following him to ask him what his problem was but the other part of me thinks it would have been incredibly stupid to do so. I know overtaking seems to becoming socially unacceptable but on a dual carriageway (slip road) in a completely safe manner when the other car was simply dawdling along...
Anyway it was an easy pass and as I headed down the slip road you see the traffic was barely moving on the A19 - not unusual for rush hour, so I eased off towards the bottom of the slip road and indicated to join the main carriageway and waited until I was past the chevrons inbetween the main carriageway and the slip road and found a safe gap to move into the inside lane of the A19. At this point the traffic on the A19 was moving albeit fairly slowly and a short while later just as the slip road ends who should I see on my near side (ie the slip road) but the self same Audi intent on 'forcing' his way out right in front of me. There was no sufficient gap for it to safely emerge and had I not stopped completely we would have made contact (me being completely in the inside lane of the dual carriageway and having been there for some time and the Audi attempting to join the carriageway but still partially on the slip road) but he was clearly annoyed with me and needed to get back in front! I must admit I'd not done anything apart from overtake the Audi on the slip road.
Shortly afterwards the traffic started to flow a bit better so I pulled into the outside lane when it was safe to do so and a couple of minutes later passed the Audi, with caution, half expecting it might swerve out in front of me at the last minute but it didn't and although I couldn't really see the driver I could tell that they were visibly fuming and gesticulating wildly at me. After that the Audi seemed content to pootle along in the inside lane meanwhile the traffic eased a bit so the outside lane sped up to usual speeds and he disappeared out of sight. Fast forward 10 miles or so and the traffic slowed down again (the usual concertina effect of. The outside lane) and who should reappear but irate Audi man 'giving me the bird'! At this point both lanes were travelling at similar speed so I did look over (for the first time I was able to notice that the driver was an overweight middle aged guy with what looked like his wife sat in the passenger seat) and lower my passenger window, genuinely intrigued to know if he reacted like that everytime someone overtook him, but he didn't want to make eye contact, just continued to hold up the finger and soon after the Audi pulled off the A19.
No wonder the UK is the worst country in the world for road rage - part of me still regrets not following him to ask him what his problem was but the other part of me thinks it would have been incredibly stupid to do so. I know overtaking seems to becoming socially unacceptable but on a dual carriageway (slip road) in a completely safe manner when the other car was simply dawdling along...
cslwannabe said:
just as the slip road ends who should I see on my near side (ie the slip road) but the self same Audi intent on 'forcing' his way out right in front of me. There was no sufficient gap for it to safely emerge and had I not stopped completely we would have made contact
I wasn't there and didn't see the incident but your description above points to the possible reason for the incident occuring.You say that the Audi was "forcing" his way out in front of you. Or was he simply trying to merge in to the lane 1 traffic from the slip road, as is usual in such situations.
You say that there was no sufficient gap in front you, yet you are in control of the space in front of you in that situation. Whatever gap was required to be made, was down to you to make.
Maybe the Audi driver did take exception to your earlier overtake, or maybe he did not, but your blocking his merge might have been sufficient in itself for him to take umbrage.
First rule of the highway code (which no-one reads anyway) is:
[i]No matter what happens, no matter what another driver does, it's an intentional slight to you. They meant to belittle you; to beat you; to win the race. How dare they? How very dare they?
So therefore you must always, always react with aggression.
You've been wronged! Who does that idiot think he is? Therefore you must get red-faced apoplectic and gesture wildly at him. Swearing - whether the other person can hear you or not - is also advised.[/i]
Good luck out there.
[i]No matter what happens, no matter what another driver does, it's an intentional slight to you. They meant to belittle you; to beat you; to win the race. How dare they? How very dare they?
So therefore you must always, always react with aggression.
You've been wronged! Who does that idiot think he is? Therefore you must get red-faced apoplectic and gesture wildly at him. Swearing - whether the other person can hear you or not - is also advised.[/i]
Good luck out there.
I do that. Not the swearing & arm waving but certainly the going towards the end of a slip road and MERGING IN TURN. Seems an alien concept to many, but I do believe that if I'm matching the main carriageway speed at the point of gap, it's not too much to ask for someone to ease off a bit & let me in (I always will when roles are reversed) and if they only have to let one in, it's no real inconvenience is it? You do get the odd w**##r who insists on aggressively 'shutting the door' as if they're on a track and in that case, I will be a bit assertive if safe.
Maybe in his mind you were the stroker. Not condemning you, I wasn't there, but it's possibly what lit his fuse
Maybe in his mind you were the stroker. Not condemning you, I wasn't there, but it's possibly what lit his fuse
Sorry op, but it sounds to me that you did what many do these days. Merge in then bunch up to the car in front in order to prevent anybody else merging in front of you.
Have you considered, that if everybody merged into the main carriageway, then made it a priority to ensure the safe and easy merging of everybody else on the slip. the whole road/motorway network would run smoother and safer?
Have you considered, that if everybody merged into the main carriageway, then made it a priority to ensure the safe and easy merging of everybody else on the slip. the whole road/motorway network would run smoother and safer?
Every morning on the busiest slip roads joining the A19 I see some cars trying to join the main carriageway after the chevrons as would seem the obvious thing to do but when it's really busy and traffic is completely stationary others choose to proceed down the slip road at speed keeping to the extreme left, passing the other cars attempting to join the dual carriageway while gleefully managing to pass a few more cars before they 'barge their way out' just before the slip road ends.
I'd joined the A19 tonight, not pulling out early and driving over the hatched area because I'd spotted a gap to charge into, similarly not attempting to stay on the slip road to the last moment passing as many cars as possible on the slow moving main carriageway. I have no doubt the Audi wouldn't have pulled such an aggressive manoeuvre on another car - he clearly spotted the car which had annoyed him by overtaking him on the slip road and decided to follow the approach outlined above - i was in slow moving traffic and felt no need to leave huge gap to the vehicle in front as I expected others to attempt to join the carriageway as I had. When both the slip road and main carriageway are stationary I would always expect to merge in turn one car at a time whether I was on the main road or attempting to join it - I wouldn't continue to barge my way out of it was clear there wasn't a gap or someone didn't want to abide by the one for one arrangement nor would I blatantly blast past other cars on the extreme left of the slip road which are attempting to join in order to gain a few more yards on them...
I'd joined the A19 tonight, not pulling out early and driving over the hatched area because I'd spotted a gap to charge into, similarly not attempting to stay on the slip road to the last moment passing as many cars as possible on the slow moving main carriageway. I have no doubt the Audi wouldn't have pulled such an aggressive manoeuvre on another car - he clearly spotted the car which had annoyed him by overtaking him on the slip road and decided to follow the approach outlined above - i was in slow moving traffic and felt no need to leave huge gap to the vehicle in front as I expected others to attempt to join the carriageway as I had. When both the slip road and main carriageway are stationary I would always expect to merge in turn one car at a time whether I was on the main road or attempting to join it - I wouldn't continue to barge my way out of it was clear there wasn't a gap or someone didn't want to abide by the one for one arrangement nor would I blatantly blast past other cars on the extreme left of the slip road which are attempting to join in order to gain a few more yards on them...
If everyone goes to the end and merges in turn, nobody would be able to 'queue jump' you, life would be all fluffy and lovely and everyone would get a cosy glow for being a considerate driver.
Sorry mate, but I reckon you're wrong. There's a clear road there, use it.
There are countless others on here that will say the same, just search merge in turn.
Sorry mate, but I reckon you're wrong. There's a clear road there, use it.
There are countless others on here that will say the same, just search merge in turn.
Its down to the car on the slip road to ensure its safe to join the main carriageway.
You see it all the time hear what the OP is describing , as people join the A14 there is a stream of traffic joining to the right of the slip road, when people undertake said stream and drive right to the end of the slip road and then barge their way in just to gain 5 car spaces. I'm all for using the whole slip road, however undertaking a queue of traffic that is clearly waiting to enter the slow moving queue is a bit arrogant.
You see it all the time hear what the OP is describing , as people join the A14 there is a stream of traffic joining to the right of the slip road, when people undertake said stream and drive right to the end of the slip road and then barge their way in just to gain 5 car spaces. I'm all for using the whole slip road, however undertaking a queue of traffic that is clearly waiting to enter the slow moving queue is a bit arrogant.
FeelingLucky said:
Have you considered, that if everybody merged into the main carriageway, then made it a priority to ensure the safe and easy merging of everybody else on the slip. the whole road/motorway network would run smoother and safer?
You appear to be suggesting that if these cars are on a slip road, in this orderA
B
C
D
E
That they should merge into the main road, and, as you say, the car just merged would then allow the next merging car to merge in front of them, so A would merge and then slow down so B could merge in front of A, and then B would wait for C, who would wait for D, who would wait for E.
E, who is last. And who would end up at the front. So the order has reversed completely. And the main road would have come to a complete stop in order for the merging cars to merge in this order.
I'm all for chilling out and leaving gaps, and letting people in a rush (or whatever reason) go ahead, but this suggestion is silly.
https://www.gov.uk/motorways-253-to-273/joining-th...
If the OP was already established on the road, the TP driver should have ceded and, if necessary - stopped.
If the OP was already established on the road, the TP driver should have ceded and, if necessary - stopped.
He sounds like a knob.
It is always worth taking a moment to analyse your own behavior when these things happen and try to view it from the other parties perspective. Maybe he felt you overtaking him when you were both effectively joining a queue was a bit aggressive. i may be wrong and I'm not saying this was your fault. It just helps to think how your actions may have appeared to him.
That said, some people drive around looking for someone to get cross at (some of the bike cam crowd in particular), they will find something to be annoyed by.
It is always worth taking a moment to analyse your own behavior when these things happen and try to view it from the other parties perspective. Maybe he felt you overtaking him when you were both effectively joining a queue was a bit aggressive. i may be wrong and I'm not saying this was your fault. It just helps to think how your actions may have appeared to him.
That said, some people drive around looking for someone to get cross at (some of the bike cam crowd in particular), they will find something to be annoyed by.
fwaggie said:
FeelingLucky said:
Have you considered, that if everybody merged into the main carriageway, then made it a priority to ensure the safe and easy merging of everybody else on the slip. the whole road/motorway network would run smoother and safer?
You appear to be suggesting that if these cars are on a slip road, in this orderA
B
C
D
E
That they should merge into the main road, and, as you say, the car just merged would then allow the next merging car to merge in front of them, so A would merge and then slow down so B could merge in front of A, and then B would wait for C, who would wait for D, who would wait for E.
E, who is last. And who would end up at the front. So the order has reversed completely. And the main road would have come to a complete stop in order for the merging cars to merge in this order.
I'm all for chilling out and leaving gaps, and letting people in a rush (or whatever reason) go ahead, but this suggestion is silly.
I'll keep it short in order for you to gain a better understanding.
Safely merge onto the carriageway, don't bunch up or attempt to prevent anybody else merging.
That's ALL I'm saying, not suggesting specific orders or patterns.
Maybe the op did screw up a bit on the slip road, but that does not warrant or excuse the reported behaviour of the other driver.
Pseasonally I hang back on slip roads if I can to keep a safety bubble in front that I can accelerate into to create room behind and hopeful allow me to slot into a gap on the main carriage way.
Pseasonally I hang back on slip roads if I can to keep a safety bubble in front that I can accelerate into to create room behind and hopeful allow me to slot into a gap on the main carriage way.
cslwannabe said:
Overtake a car (X reg A4 avant) on a slip road joining the A19 as it was going pretty slow and keeping well to the left hand lane, unlike most cars which seem to either immediately move into the right hand lane of the slip road or simply drive down the middle of the two lanes, thus preventing any thoughts of overtaking.
Anyway it was an easy pass and as I headed down the slip road you see the traffic was barely moving on the A19 - not unusual for rush hour, so I eased off towards the bottom of the slip road and indicated to join the main carriageway and waited until I was past the chevrons inbetween the main carriageway and the slip road and found a safe gap to move into the inside lane of the A19. At this point the traffic on the A19 was moving albeit fairly slowly and a short while later just as the slip road ends who should I see on my near side (ie the slip road) but the self same Audi intent on 'forcing' his way out right in front of me. There was no sufficient gap for it to safely emerge and had I not stopped completely we would have made contact (me being completely in the inside lane of the dual carriageway and having been there for some time and the Audi attempting to join the carriageway but still partially on the slip road) but he was clearly annoyed with me and needed to get back in front! I must admit I'd not done anything apart from overtake the Audi on the slip road.
Shortly afterwards the traffic started to flow a bit better so I pulled into the outside lane when it was safe to do so and a couple of minutes later passed the Audi, with caution, half expecting it might swerve out in front of me at the last minute but it didn't and although I couldn't really see the driver I could tell that they were visibly fuming and gesticulating wildly at me. After that the Audi seemed content to pootle along in the inside lane meanwhile the traffic eased a bit so the outside lane sped up to usual speeds and he disappeared out of sight. Fast forward 10 miles or so and the traffic slowed down again (the usual concertina effect of. The outside lane) and who should reappear but irate Audi man 'giving me the bird'! At this point both lanes were travelling at similar speed so I did look over (for the first time I was able to notice that the driver was an overweight middle aged guy with what looked like his wife sat in the passenger seat) and lower my passenger window, genuinely intrigued to know if he reacted like that everytime someone overtook him, but he didn't want to make eye contact, just continued to hold up the finger and soon after the Audi pulled off the A19.
No wonder the UK is the worst country in the world for road rage - part of me still regrets not following him to ask him what his problem was but the other part of me thinks it would have been incredibly stupid to do so. I know overtaking seems to becoming socially unacceptable but on a dual carriageway (slip road) in a completely safe manner when the other car was simply dawdling along...
Cool Story Bro. Did not read lol Anyway it was an easy pass and as I headed down the slip road you see the traffic was barely moving on the A19 - not unusual for rush hour, so I eased off towards the bottom of the slip road and indicated to join the main carriageway and waited until I was past the chevrons inbetween the main carriageway and the slip road and found a safe gap to move into the inside lane of the A19. At this point the traffic on the A19 was moving albeit fairly slowly and a short while later just as the slip road ends who should I see on my near side (ie the slip road) but the self same Audi intent on 'forcing' his way out right in front of me. There was no sufficient gap for it to safely emerge and had I not stopped completely we would have made contact (me being completely in the inside lane of the dual carriageway and having been there for some time and the Audi attempting to join the carriageway but still partially on the slip road) but he was clearly annoyed with me and needed to get back in front! I must admit I'd not done anything apart from overtake the Audi on the slip road.
Shortly afterwards the traffic started to flow a bit better so I pulled into the outside lane when it was safe to do so and a couple of minutes later passed the Audi, with caution, half expecting it might swerve out in front of me at the last minute but it didn't and although I couldn't really see the driver I could tell that they were visibly fuming and gesticulating wildly at me. After that the Audi seemed content to pootle along in the inside lane meanwhile the traffic eased a bit so the outside lane sped up to usual speeds and he disappeared out of sight. Fast forward 10 miles or so and the traffic slowed down again (the usual concertina effect of. The outside lane) and who should reappear but irate Audi man 'giving me the bird'! At this point both lanes were travelling at similar speed so I did look over (for the first time I was able to notice that the driver was an overweight middle aged guy with what looked like his wife sat in the passenger seat) and lower my passenger window, genuinely intrigued to know if he reacted like that everytime someone overtook him, but he didn't want to make eye contact, just continued to hold up the finger and soon after the Audi pulled off the A19.
No wonder the UK is the worst country in the world for road rage - part of me still regrets not following him to ask him what his problem was but the other part of me thinks it would have been incredibly stupid to do so. I know overtaking seems to becoming socially unacceptable but on a dual carriageway (slip road) in a completely safe manner when the other car was simply dawdling along...
cslwannabe said:
Maybe single carriageway slip roads is the answer...
No, they're really not. Nothing worse than being forced into the choice of either merging at 35 mph when the traffic is flowing smoothly or backing the traffic on the roundabout behind up, so you can launch onto the dual carriageway at speed. Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff