Lane discipline RIP?
Author
Discussion

MC Bodge

Original Poster:

29,628 posts

204 months

Thursday 26th December 2024
quotequote all
Boxing Day 2024. The day that motorway lane discipline finally died?

M60-M62-M6 and the reverse.

At almost any given time I could see cars driving along in lane 3 of 4 ("smart" motorways), and occasionally even lane 4, with nothing to their left.

People appeared to move across to lanes to their right for no apparent reason.

It did appear that a large proportion of the driving population have either no clue what they are supposed to do, or no longer care. Smart motorways must confuse, so some people just do what they always do: Stay in the lane one to the left of the right-most lane.

Maintaining one's position in lane 1 or lane 2 allowed a driver to continue on their journey to the left of the people hanging out in the rightward lanes, and very few moved across having realised what had happened.

Ps. I was, however, shocked to see a minicab driving in lane 1 of a motorway, a SMART motorway at that yikes (the driver must have been new to the job/country).

Pps. Fog lights. Aggghhh. They are not required when the cars are visible from 150m away......

the-norseman

15,753 posts

200 months

Thursday 26th December 2024
quotequote all
it died about 10 years ago.

Hoofy

80,035 posts

311 months

Thursday 26th December 2024
quotequote all
Yep. Died in towns and cities years ago. I must wreak havoc around Kingston's one way system by sticking rigidly between the lines all the way round!

EricMcN-II

219 posts

22 months

Thursday 26th December 2024
quotequote all
Lane discipline ended in England a long long time ago, now it’s all about me me me me - motorists don’t give a **** about anyone but themselves and are quite happy to sit on the outside lane driving at 60mph because it’s what they do - they are not speeding and within the law right? Just as you get people doing 40mph on A roads because its good enough for them and you dare try and overtake them and hell will be unleashed upon your soul at that very moment you indicate.

You need to blot out all this nonsense when you get out on your car and forget what is happening around you, it’s full of nutcases, people high on drugs, people uninsured, no tax, alcoholics and idiots with no idea about discipline – life is too short, nothing to see here crack on

the-norseman

15,753 posts

200 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
the "its not a target brigade"

CoolHands

23,407 posts

224 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Smart motorway, speed controlled? Not sure what we expect, what does it matter what lane people are in - everyone is being treated as automatons so that’s what we get. I love it best when you can’t get back into lane one for an exit as you get stuck with everyone driving at the same speed and you can’t get across - it’s much safer

Box Fresh

18,084 posts

229 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
They’re just brain-out fodder.
Easy to get around. If you’re in the wrong lane, I’m undertaking, simple as that.

Tim the pool man

5,974 posts

246 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
This is a very unexpected thing to read... I absolutely LOVE driving in England because the lane discipline is EXCELLENT! I'm generally there every 2nd year, most recently in September. I drove extensively over the 4 weeks as always, and didn't see a single example of poor lane discipline.

I can only assume that it's so good that you take it for granted, and when the odd person doesn't comply it's glaringly obvious?

Whatever you do, don't come to Perth WA, traffic on out single "freeway" travels in clumps of 30 or more cars, all being corralled by 3 abreast in formation at the front, all traveling 10KPH below the limit. I travelled the length of Mitchell Freeway from the far Northern suburbs where I live, to the city (approx 60Km) over Christmas, with a POLICE car sat in the RH lane the entire way, and nobody prepared to pass it, and an empty road as far as you could see in front of it!

g3org3y

22,458 posts

220 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
M25 Lane Rules for the last number of years:

Lane 1: Trucks
Lane 2: Trucks overtaking trucks in Lane 1
Lane 3: 'Normal' drivers
Lane 4: Maniacs/speeders.

fflump

3,490 posts

67 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Box Fresh said:
They’re just brain-out fodder.
Easy to get around. If you’re in the wrong lane, I’m undertaking, simple as that.
Maybe I’m an old fart but that is just responding to one type of bad driving with another type of bad driving.

Ifinishposts

1,630 posts

166 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
It depends what you class as 'undertaking'.

If another vehicle is in a certain lane and the lane to their left is clear for a good distance there is no way I am going to change two or three lanes just to get past them, I will just carry on in the lane I am in.

Edited by Ifinishposts on Friday 27th December 07:47

MC Bodge

Original Poster:

29,628 posts

204 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Tim the pool man said:
This is a very unexpected thing to read... I absolutely LOVE driving in England because the lane discipline is EXCELLENT! I'm generally there every 2nd year, most recently in September. I drove extensively over the 4 weeks as always, and didn't see a single example of poor lane discipline.

I can only assume that it's so good that you take it for granted, and when the odd person doesn't comply it's glaringly obvious?
You are obviously always too giddy with excitement at being in the UK to notice it.


DaveyBoyWonder

3,868 posts

203 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Not just motorways. Drove a few miles through York centre yesterday and despite the roads being quiet had:
- a woman in a massive X7 (I think) swing out onto my side of the road to take a left turn.
- someone in an A6 do the same to negotiate a weird traffic island thing where there's absolutely no need to do so

People are brain dead

Tim the pool man

5,974 posts

246 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Regarding "undertaking", it's not even a rule here, in fact as most Perth drivers enter the freeway and immediately migrate to the far right lane (only leaving it 100M before their exit!) passing on the left is far more common than on their right. If they're in lane 2 of 3 and the road is fairly empty I'll move from lane 1 to 3 to pass them then back to lane 1, but expecting a Perth driver to even notice, let alone react, is a lost cause.

The government here has done a "great" job of convincing most that 100KPH is a terribly dangerous speed and anyone exceeding it should be jailed and their car crushed! rolleyes

otolith

68,731 posts

233 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Drop Google Maps streetview anywhere on a UK motorway and the chances are you'll see more cars in the middle lane than the left lane.

Hol

9,316 posts

229 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
A total lack of indication when changing lanes annoys me. Especially when I am already five indicator flashes and already half way across the dotted line into a planned lane change that would have resulted in an impact, if I didn’t abort.



Edited by Hol on Friday 27th December 08:45

4.7AMV8

2,381 posts

195 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
otolith said:
Drop Google Maps streetview anywhere on a UK motorway and the chances are you'll see more cars in the middle lane than the left lane.
Had to do it…….

steveo3002

11,201 posts

203 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
vip lane innit , dont mix with the lower class in the other lanes

markymarkthree

3,611 posts

200 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Sovious init. Yous get on t mway ta git somewhers quik soes ya git in the fast lane. Yous muppets.

dreamcracker

3,331 posts

246 months

Friday 27th December 2024
quotequote all
Too many idiots on the roads think we drive on the right in this country, on any road with multiple lanes.

I give people a chance to move over, but more often than not I pass them on the nearside lane, and let them got on with their own little world.