Follow the tail-lights out of the city

[venta]

One of these days I am going to get round to rigging up some LEDs in my rear windscreen so I can spell "BACK OFF" to the person driving way too close behind me.

I hate tailgaters :(

(Today's finally passed me when I was in the middle lane, pulling onto a roundabout to go straight on. He turned right, from the left hand lane, straight across my bows without a signal.)

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/_corpse_/]

There are a few extra signals that cars could do with. I propose the following:

Mostly for motorway driving, this addition would be for those moments when you're behind someone moving slower than you, and someone else is approaching from behind in the lane outside you.. but they hesitate in case you're going to pull out like so many nutjobs do. It would basically signal "I'm not a mental-case, so please pass me quickly so I can then overtake in due course."

"Thanks, and I mean that sincerely" and a "Sorry, and I mean that sincerely" indicators might also be useful, as long as they detected the level of sincerity in the driver and fined te driver a thousand pounds for insincere use.

Oh, and a "Get the fuck out of the middle lane, you middle lane hogging spanner... you're supposed to keep left unless overtaking, and you're not overtaking anything, and now a whole stream of other cars have to pull out two lanes to overtake you, you selfish pillock!" indicator would also be handy.

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

For the last of those, I frequently just adopt the policy of overtaking on the inside. This frequently gets the message across and they pull left shortly afterwards.

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

Mmm. What sort of frequency? Apart from it being illegal to pass on the left, whenever I've seen it done the middle-lane tosswads tend to carry on blindly, or flash me them irritably. Rarely do they take the point that they're not going to overtake that lorry for another 10 minutes.

[venta.livejournal.com]

I've always been a bit unclear on the passing on the left issues. It's definitely illegal to undertake - ie deliberately pull left, go round someone, pull right again.

But it isn't illegal to pass left if that's what the traffic is doing - for example if traffic is heavy, and all lanes are doing 40ish, you are expected to keep up with the flow even if that involves passing vehicles in a rightermost lane.

So, if I'm pottering along at 70 in the inside lane, and some dozy muppet is parked in the middle lane at 65, and I pass them, is that illegal ? I'm not sure.

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

According to the Highway Code (I didn't know this existed 5 minutes ago!) you can't overtake on the left unless you're in congested conditions. However, it doesn't have any of those big red letters, so I suspect that it's only a rule, not enforcable by a law.

[venta.livejournal.com]

You didn't know the Highway Code existed until five minutes ago ? How long have you been driving ?

:)

[nalsa.livejournal.com]

*raspberry*

[http://users.livejournal.com/_corpse_/]

I suspect that it's only a rule, not enforcable by a law

I reckon the filth lovely policemen¹ would be able to do you for dangerous driving if they wanted to... so it's indirectly enforcible by law.

[1] - you never know when the chaps at GCHQ will add blogs to the list of things they scan.

[wimble.livejournal.com]

GCHQ monitor secret encrypted or encoded messages detailing hostage or terrorist activities, especially in planning phases.


(That ought to set 'em off!)

[http://users.livejournal.com/_corpse_/]

Dunno about illegal, but definitely a contravention of the Highway Code:

   "241. ...Overtake only on the right... "

and

   "242 Do not overtake on the left or
   move to a lane on your left to overtake.
   In congested conditions, where adjacent
   lanes of traffic are moving at similar
   speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may
   sometimes be moving faster than traffic
   to the right. In these conditions you
   may keep up with the traffic in your
   lane even if this means passing traffic
   in the lane to your right... "

[broadmeadow.livejournal.com]

You are allowed to pass a car on the left if it is waiting to turn right. But as we're talking about motorways, that's probably irrelevant here!

[waistcoatmark.livejournal.com]

There is a reason (well two reasons I suppose, but only one of them is safety-relevant) why that's called undertaking...

And if they do pull over into the lane they're meant to be in while you're undertaking them, then the balance of blame is going to be leaning heavily towards you.

Undertaking? Only possible in a hearse...

[grumblesmurf.livejournal.com]

Never found much use in overtaking on the inside. Yes, sometimes it's the most expedient approach, but the bumbling fools (most probably in a Volvo, wearing a flat cap or similar headgear - Why, ffs? Not as though it's going to rain inside the car is it? - has a caravan, and is probably called Gerald) don't even notice that they're doing anything wrong or at least inconsiderate to other road users. Some of them probably even tut at the youth of today doing so.

No, far better IME is to follow them in the inside lane, then when it's all clear and safe to do so, pull out around them, pass them in the outside lane, all the while indicating clearly what you're doing, and then cut back in front of them back to the inside lane once you're past. Had a great deal of success with that tactic - the 'Geralds' seem to wake up and realise that there *is* an inside lane after all and pull in at that point.

Of course, this doesn't work with anyone driving a German car - they all come with the bit of paper giving them all rights to the road.

[venta.livejournal.com]

They'd all be useful. I've noticed since driving more that while there are plenty of gestures which are handy for suggesting you blame the other driver for whatever happened, there really isn't a hand gesture for "sorry, my fault".

Incidentally, there is also a smell of handcream around J10 or J11 of the M40. I'm wondering if it's some flowery sort of crop that's in season around now ?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_corpse_/]

there really isn't a hand gesture for "sorry, my fault"

Well, there's the two hands off the wheel held up in a placating manner, combined with a shrug and facial indication of contrition, but I'm pretty sure that isn't in the Highway Code.

[nevecat.livejournal.com]

I rather suspect driving without hands on the wheel *is* in the Highway Code, just not as a Good Thing ;)

[smiorgan.livejournal.com]

Incidentally, there is also a smell of handcream around J10 or J11 of the M40. I'm wondering if it's some flowery sort of crop that's in season around now ?

And there's a smell of piss all through Abingdon.

[onebyone.livejournal.com]

a "Sorry, and I mean that sincerely" indicator

Even having this indicator on your car would probably double your insurance premiums.

[jiggery-pokery.livejournal.com]

detected the level of sincerity in the driver and fined te driver a thousand pounds for insincere use.

You've just bankrupted the late, dearly departed, Bob Monkhouse.

Bastard.