Motorways, "middle lane hoggers" ?

[DT Ralge]

Are you one of those people who trundles down the sliproad at 45mph to join a motorway with big artics hammering along at 70mph in the inside lane?

 

Big arctics (and anything over 3.5 tonnes gvw) are limited to 56mph, though.

[Longcol]

Big arctics (and anything over 3.5 tonnes gvw) are limited to 56mph, though.

 

In theory.

[Mr_Squirrel]

The middle lane should have speed bumps every mile, as if you haven't overtaken in that distance you probably should have stayed in the nearside lane.

 

Lorry drivers are the worst for this, they take over two hours to overtake to gain a lorry length.

 

I will excuse your exaggeration Re 2 hours but i know what you mean.

 

However, when one is limited to a set maximum speed and are overtaking a vehicle with the same set maximum speed, extended lengths of time needed to complete the manoeuvre can and should be expected.

However, the lorry being overtaken is the guilty party in my book. When you have seen a truck in your mirror gradually creep up on you over several miles, it is inevitable that he will eventually pass you so why the need to keep the power on for the entire time it takes him to pass is just sheer arrogance.

Just ease off for 2 or three seconds... The overtaking lorry gets past and on his way, he is not holding you (The lorry being overtaken) or anybody else using the 2nd lane up. It isnt rocket science.

[anywebsite]

When they're both restricted to the same speed, what is the point in overtaking at all? Possibly if the one in front is in the wrong gear for an incline or something & they can get past, but usually they just block the motorway up for miles doing exactly the same speed. The guy being overtaken isn't really to blame, he can't slow down to let the other past or it'd take a while to speed up again & everyone behind him has to slow too. I put the blame on the overtaker, when he knows he can't go fast enough to overtake.

Edited August 27, 2013 by anywebsite

[megalithic]

When they're both restricted to the same speed, what is the point in overtaking at all?

 

Hammer strikes nail head centrally.

I'm sure they do it to relieve boredom, or wazz each other off.

[tinfoilhat]

When they're both restricted to the same speed, what is the point in overtaking at all?

 

Just because they are allowed to do 56mph doesn't mean they can actually do 56mph. I've never seen a one of those crane lorry things do much over 45 down hill with a following wind. Lorries with heavy loads will slow down on inclines (none of this is a revelation to anyone is it?) so everything will just go at the slowest speed. Throw in an abnormal load and you're down to 30, for every single hgv on that stretch of motorway.

[anywebsite]

Even more annoying when they do a two hour long overtake on a two lane motorway or A road, like on parts of the A1, so the whole road is restricted to 55.5 & 56mph.

[tinfoilhat]

Even more annoying when they do a two hour long overtake on a two lane motorway or A road, like on parts of the A1, so the whole road is restricted to 55.5 & 56mph.

 

That is annoying. On stretches of the a42 (and others I'm sure) they restricted that sort of thing between certain hours.

[Mr_Squirrel]

When they're both restricted to the same speed, what is the point in overtaking at all? Possibly if the one in front is in the wrong gear for an incline or something & they can get past, but usually they just block the motorway up for miles doing exactly the same speed. The guy being overtaken isn't really to blame, he can't slow down to let the other past or it'd take a while to speed up again & everyone behind him has to slow too. I put the blame on the overtaker, when he knows he can't go fast enough to overtake.

 

 

Hammer strikes nail head centrally.

I'm sure they do it to relieve boredom, or wazz each other off.

 

2 excellent posts there by 2 people who clearly know nothing about driving HGV's (megalithic's post corrected )

I dont know anything about piloting 747's therefore i decline to pass judgement on the pilots ability of piloting 747's and the planes performance.

 

The maximum speed that HGV's are restricted to is in theory 56mph. Many factors come into play of how that speed is delivered to the road, Speedometer calibration, tyre wear, horsepower, aerodynamics, weight and momentum as well as road contour (inclines/declines) and driver input can all have a differing effect on 2 vehicles with an identical limited top speed. Indeed, if 2 HGV's with the same limited top speed cannot catch up with each other over a few miles, how do they end up overtaking each other?

 

As for this...

he can't slow down to let the other past or it'd take a while to speed up again & everyone behind him has to slow too.

 

Wrong! Even at maximum weight, unless travelling uphill when keeping power on all the time is essential to maintain speed and momentum, easing off the power for 3 or 4 seconds makes a massive difference to a vehicle struggling to pass by and you only drop 2 or 3 mph for a few seconds which in turn, unless going uphill, only takes a second or two to regain. Vehicles travelling behind do not have to slow down unless they are travelling too close to begin with and if you have to ease off a dozen times over a 3 hour journey, the difference it makes to the overall journey time is so negligible, it is not worth noting.

As somebody who drives a 44tonner at maximum weight for around 90% of my working day, i can speak from experience on this.

 

Try an experiment the next time you embark on a long motorway journey.

Set your cruise control at exactly 56mph and do not exceed it at any time. Imagine that it is your vehicles maximum speed.

Before long, you will come up behind a HGV travelling slightly slower than yourself. When this happens, try sitting behind it for mile upon mile knowing that it is hampering your progress. You will become frustrated and move to overtake. When you do overtake, do not exceed your pretend maximum speed of 56mph. I guarantee that as you pass by, painfully inch by inch and see the line of vehicles growing in your mirror, you will ask yourself "Why will this GIT not ease off a bit and let me pass and get out of everybodys way a bit quicker?"

When you have done this, you may empathise a bit more with what HGV's have to deal with all the time.

 

On the subject, Mere car drivers frequently ask the question of why HGV's take ages to overtake and imply that it is done with disregard for car drivers and to simply annoy them.

If i can ask why car drivers think it is somehow so important to overtake a HGV and then pull back in front only to brake hard? (Usually in heavy traffic)

Is this to try and annoy us or is it out of ignorance and sheer stupidity?

If it is the latter, then you ought to get some brains as well as some driving lessons. If it is the former, then well done! It is annoying but it isnt nearly as mortally dangerous for us as it is for you.

When you break your necks to get past and pull into our breaking space and then hit the anchors, do you think that a 44tonne truck pulverizing your crummy little car will only be an 'annoyance'? It may be for us when we have to fill in loads of paperwork and maybe be a bit late home for our tea but do you think it will be a mere annoyance for your family having to choose your coffin? It may even be a bigger annoyance for your family when the insurance refuses to pay out after seeing the virtual suicide you committed from the evidence recorded on my dashboard camera.

[Andy]

The M1 is usually busy when I drive through Bedfordshire.

 

Do you drive late at night?

 

No. I go north early (about 6:30) ans south in the evening (about 7:00). The motorway is quite busy but the Hard Shoulder (which is open as a lane) is empty. The slow drivers still chug along in lane 1 instead of moving over, which defeats the point of the Highways Agency spending millions on the Active Traffic Management system. Those people should be fined and given a 12 month driving ban - that would soon sort the congestion out!