Overtaking, Roundabouts and "Professional Drivers"
Discussion
Three things that have really started to aggravate me of late on the road, and it seems to be happening more than ever recently so I am either, 1 the cause, 2 getting old...
The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
You maniac! How dare you overtake?! Children! Lives at risk! - Overtaking is going the way of speeding and drunk driving and for some drivers calling it out as socially unacceptable.
And professional drivers - after visiting Vikingette1 in Birmingham, I now refuse to help any Uber/Taxi driver in any way shape or form. They can sit and wait at junctions I witnessed an Uber driver get his wing mirror kicked off by an irate biker on the M25 after the Uber driver closed the door on the biker filtering in near stationary traffic. The Uber driver got out and picked his mirror up looking around for sympathy.
And professional drivers - after visiting Vikingette1 in Birmingham, I now refuse to help any Uber/Taxi driver in any way shape or form. They can sit and wait at junctions I witnessed an Uber driver get his wing mirror kicked off by an irate biker on the M25 after the Uber driver closed the door on the biker filtering in near stationary traffic. The Uber driver got out and picked his mirror up looking around for sympathy.
In 90% of cases the presence of a large motorised vehicle should be enough to tell people that you are there.
The other annoyance I’ve encountered is the ones that simply block your progress, when roads open out into 2 lanes at roundabouts with a filter after the roundabout. It seems to be becoming more prevalent.
The other annoyance I’ve encountered is the ones that simply block your progress, when roads open out into 2 lanes at roundabouts with a filter after the roundabout. It seems to be becoming more prevalent.
On point 2 I think this is just the standards of driving these days sadly. I have seen this so, so often. My solution is simply to hang back a little so I am never on the inside of someone who might drift into me. I've seen enough gaps disappear just in front of me as the left lane driver takes something approaching the racing line 
I never seem to have these issues. Make your intent clear, execute it swiftly and unobtrusive to the other road-user.
The overtake should be swift, short; and stay clearly visible before and during it, without appearing a threat or a challenge.
On roundabouts you should have that ‘safety bubble’ around you. They are places where people are likely to get lost or mis-position their vehicle.
The only time I have been flashed in the last few years, was as a warning of a speed check ahead, I thus moderated my projected terminal velocity.
The overtake should be swift, short; and stay clearly visible before and during it, without appearing a threat or a challenge.
On roundabouts you should have that ‘safety bubble’ around you. They are places where people are likely to get lost or mis-position their vehicle.
The only time I have been flashed in the last few years, was as a warning of a speed check ahead, I thus moderated my projected terminal velocity.
Pica-Pica said:
I never seem to have these issues. Make your intent clear, execute it swiftly and unobtrusive to the other road-user.
The overtake should be swift, short; and stay clearly visible before and during it, without appearing a threat or a challenge.
On roundabouts you should have that ‘safety bubble’ around you. They are places where people are likely to get lost or mis-position their vehicle.
The only time I have been flashed in the last few years, was as a warning of a speed check ahead, I thus moderated my projected terminal velocity.
100% couldn't agree more and I make sure of this. Yet doesn't stop the people being over taken have issues with either of itThe overtake should be swift, short; and stay clearly visible before and during it, without appearing a threat or a challenge.
On roundabouts you should have that ‘safety bubble’ around you. They are places where people are likely to get lost or mis-position their vehicle.
The only time I have been flashed in the last few years, was as a warning of a speed check ahead, I thus moderated my projected terminal velocity.
As far as overtaking goes, there seem to be lots of people who think they're doing the only appropriate speed for the road. Anyone doing less is a poor driver, anyone going faster is reckless. You'll never win this fight.
It's a rule of mine to never drive next to anyone on a roundabout. 80% of the time they end up in my lane to some degree. Yes, any insurance claim should go my way but it's better overall to not deal with that.
I reckon it's boredom for professional drivers. Even if you're doing something you love, doing it for at least 6 hours a day delivering parcels is going to grate on you after a while. After you become disenchanted with it, you'll stop paying attention and that when bad habits creep in.
It's a rule of mine to never drive next to anyone on a roundabout. 80% of the time they end up in my lane to some degree. Yes, any insurance claim should go my way but it's better overall to not deal with that.
I reckon it's boredom for professional drivers. Even if you're doing something you love, doing it for at least 6 hours a day delivering parcels is going to grate on you after a while. After you become disenchanted with it, you'll stop paying attention and that when bad habits creep in.
andy_ran said:
100% couldn't agree more and I make sure of this. Yet doesn't stop the people being over taken have issues with either of it
I can do this same overtake in the M3 (bit noisy) and get the lights or I can do it in our 330e quietly and get no reaction whatsoever - not sure if the noise makes them think "must be going fast" or triggers them some other way to think who does he think he is passing me etcAdd to your list those people who will only drive in lane 2 of a 2 lane expressway with nothing around them, you come up behind them expecting them to see you and move over, few miles later they actually move over then pull back to the 2nd lane with still no one around using lane 1 - WTF is that all about?
ellahges34 said:
Check your mirrors and blind spots to ensure it's safe to overtake. Use your turn signals to indicate your intention to change lanes. Accelerate and move into the overtaking lane or opposite lane, ensuring you have enough space and time to complete the maneuver. Maintain a safe distance from the vehicle you're overtaking. Signal and return to your original lane once you've safely passed the other vehicle. Remember, it's crucial to follow the traffic laws and regulations of your specific jurisdiction when it comes to overtaking.
Where's the bit in the regs about beeping and flashing when you've been successfully overtaken by someone following all the above?andy_ran said:
Three things that have really started to aggravate me of late on the road, and it seems to be happening more than ever recently so I am either, 1 the cause, 2 getting old...
The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
Agree with all of these, see it more and more. I suspect most of us took a 2/3 year break from driving during Covid and have lost the skill, alternatively people are just arrogant idiots so wrapped up in their own world they don't care about yours. The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
To add to point one I have noticed if I am in the van and come across someone doing 40 in a NSL and I go to overtake they speed up, I tuck back in behind them and they slow back down to 40, why???? It's less of a problem in the C63 as the overtake is completed before they get the chance to react.
Another pet peeve is the always 40 driver, 40 in a NSL, 40 in a 50, 40 in a 40, 40 in a 30??
We have a section of unlit NSL locally and some of the locals drive it at 30, its twisty so you have to stay behind, when they get to the village the limit drops to 30 and its lit they speed up to 40???
JagYouAre said:
ellahges34 said:
Check your mirrors and blind spots to ensure it's safe to overtake. Use your turn signals to indicate your intention to change lanes. Accelerate and move into the overtaking lane or opposite lane, ensuring you have enough space and time to complete the maneuver. Maintain a safe distance from the vehicle you're overtaking. Signal and return to your original lane once you've safely passed the other vehicle. Remember, it's crucial to follow the traffic laws and regulations of your specific jurisdiction when it comes to overtaking.
Where's the bit in the regs about beeping and flashing when you've been successfully overtaken by someone following all the above?Since I'm not telepathic I have no way of knowing what other drivers are thinking. However, I'm a good observer so I can usually predict what other drivers are going to do. For that reason alone I don't get alongside anyone on a roundabout if I can avoid it.
Given the number of complaints on here and
about being cut up on roundabouts you have to wonder why more people haven't learned that it's poor driving. The dashcam videos are full of examples of people driving into obvious hazards like that and then having a hissy fit.
Given the number of complaints on here and
about being cut up on roundabouts you have to wonder why more people haven't learned that it's poor driving. The dashcam videos are full of examples of people driving into obvious hazards like that and then having a hissy fit.
It must be stressful getting so wound up by everything that happens around you.
I drive quite frequently abroad (Morocco, Schengen area, sometimes further afield) and you quite quickly realise that the driving standards in the UK are actually pretty bloody good! There is a reason our roads are amongst the safest in the world.
In any case, leave plenty of room, chill out, anticipate as far ahead as you can, make progress when you can and get on with your drive - much more pleasant.
I drive quite frequently abroad (Morocco, Schengen area, sometimes further afield) and you quite quickly realise that the driving standards in the UK are actually pretty bloody good! There is a reason our roads are amongst the safest in the world.
In any case, leave plenty of room, chill out, anticipate as far ahead as you can, make progress when you can and get on with your drive - much more pleasant.
Geoffcapes said:
I could have written this myself!
Ditto - general driving standards are in some form of structural decline. I'm not sure if it's the general tedium of plodding along in modern, anesthetized motors (on heavily monitored roads) or just a symptom of general rising moronism, but both the standard of driving, and the attitude of the driver, are increasingly dismal. I also agree on the 'professional' driver crawling along in the wrong lane or at a dangerously tardy pace. I am now officially a grumpy old man and have begun to (gently) remonstrate with uber drivers on their motorway etiquette. The best instance so far resulted in me taking over the driving! andy_ran said:
Three things that have really started to aggravate me of late on the road, and it seems to be happening more than ever recently so I am either, 1 the cause, 2 getting old...
The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
Surely a professional driver is someone who has taken an extended test and holds a CPC card, yodel, uber and taxi drivers just drive on a standard driving licence often exchanged from what ever EU country they took it in on their way here... The first one that really I don't understand is when someone flashes their lights and uses the car horn when they have been overtaken.
Example, I was driving home yesterday, following a car doing 40-42mph down a 60 A/B road, road was wide and visibility good, so we come around a corner and I stay back, indicate and over take, but the time I have gone past and back to the correct side of the road they are flashing lights and pressing the horn like a toddler with a bell for the first time. You could see a good 1/4 mile down the road, it was clear, straight and safe to overtake...
I cant for the life of me understand why they do this!!??
The second one - Being cut up at a roundabout but someone in the left lane not using mirrors, drifting over to the centre of the roundabout and back to their left lane, and when you have to take evasive action to avoid them and give them a toot for good reason they are the ones with the hump... They haven't looked in the mirror and are completely unaware of other road users. This happens all to often - I have a few times had people say sorry and they have clearly been quite shaken up by their mistake and not looking, but thats not the norm.
And the third, the worst examples of poor road etiquette such as above or middle lane hogs, even worse 3rd land hogs on a 4 lane motorway at 60mph!! The WORST example of these drivers are so call "professional drivers" in such, people who make the living by driving, be a taxi driver, yodel drivers, etc etc... These people rack up more miles than most, yet seem to be the most oblivious to how we should be observant to others....
Rant over!! Who else has the same frustrations, or what are your pet peeves ??
On point 2 - getting cut up on roundabouts.
As others have said, this is one area where defensive driving should be used.
If at all possible, and it normally is, I never drive beside someone on a roundabout, always either hang back and let them get on with whatever they are going to do, or make sure I'm far enough in front so they can see me. 99 times out of a 100 it is the first option as I would have been looking ahead and picking how/where/what to do on the roundabout as I approach.
I'm quite lucky in that where I live, traffic is not that heavy, so it's quite easy to drive defensively like this.
P.S. I'm no driving god, but I always, always pay special attention on roundabouts and simply stay away from other cars on them.
As others have said, this is one area where defensive driving should be used.
If at all possible, and it normally is, I never drive beside someone on a roundabout, always either hang back and let them get on with whatever they are going to do, or make sure I'm far enough in front so they can see me. 99 times out of a 100 it is the first option as I would have been looking ahead and picking how/where/what to do on the roundabout as I approach.
I'm quite lucky in that where I live, traffic is not that heavy, so it's quite easy to drive defensively like this.
P.S. I'm no driving god, but I always, always pay special attention on roundabouts and simply stay away from other cars on them.
I think you do have to have your defensive driving level switched up to 10 on roundabouts, as mentioned theres so many people who dart across lanes without indication, use the wrong lanes for exits, aim for the apex etc.
I've posted this before but here goes, there is a motorway junction near where I live that I use on the way to work. It is a two lane slip road onto the motorway, once I had a young girl in a Fiat 500 doing 30 down the slip road, I move into the 2nd lane and accelerated up to 70. For some reason she took offense to this by flashing her lights and giving me the middle finger (kinky).
The next occasion was on the exact same slip road, exact same situation but a man in a white transit, doing 30 ish down the slip road. I overtake safely up to 70mph so the van then floors it to catch me up and sits right on my bumper flashing his lights. I didn't realise you weren't allowed to overtake white transit vans but I at least I know now.
I've posted this before but here goes, there is a motorway junction near where I live that I use on the way to work. It is a two lane slip road onto the motorway, once I had a young girl in a Fiat 500 doing 30 down the slip road, I move into the 2nd lane and accelerated up to 70. For some reason she took offense to this by flashing her lights and giving me the middle finger (kinky).
The next occasion was on the exact same slip road, exact same situation but a man in a white transit, doing 30 ish down the slip road. I overtake safely up to 70mph so the van then floors it to catch me up and sits right on my bumper flashing his lights. I didn't realise you weren't allowed to overtake white transit vans but I at least I know now.
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