Middle lane

davyjose

Has anyone noticed how, on the new 3 lane section of the M50, the bulk of traffic drives on the middle lane? Now I have driven in a few different countries, but Ireland is, so far, the only country who does this. Are we really that stupid a nation that we are unable to drive on a big road?

/Rant

ga2re2t

Which countries? When I was passing my California driving license, the rules of the road specifically stated that when on a 3 or more (or maybe it was 4 or more ) lane motorway that drivers should stay on the second lane where possible to allow traffic coming onto the motorway to merge freely. Then again, California driving rules followed a quite different logic to European driving rules and in many ways not in a good way, in my opinion.

Here in France, where I now live, the slow lane, on the 3-lane motorway I use, is mainly occupied by trucks so most drivers stay in the middle lane.

On the M50, the relatively short distance in between junctions makes driving in the slow lane probably not the safest choice. The M50 is not really a motorway in the typical sense anyhows - it's better described as a multilane ring-road with motorway restrictions.

lynchie

davyjose wrote: »

Has anyone noticed how, on the new 3 lane section of the M50, the bulk of traffic drives on the middle lane? Now I have driven in a few different countries, but Ireland is, so far, the only country who does this. Are we really that stupid a nation that we are unable to drive on a big road?

/Rant

Sure they have been doing that on the N7 since it went three lanes a few years back!!!

corktina

Note to middle lane owners club members...

"drive in the middle lane all the time ....advertise your incompetence....make the roads safer once we know to keep an eye on you"

PRND

There is no "slow lane". The speed limit is the same in all three. Keep in the leftmost lane unless you are overtaking another road user.

L1011

Problem the 3 lane roads raises for me is - which is worse, weaving like a looney or hogging the middle lane? N7 in the mornings you'll be in and out of of the inside lane like someone on a slalom course if you keep leftmost, but the other option is lanehog.

You'll still end up undertaking someone doing 65kmh in the outside lane either way, this being Ireland!

ga2re2t

ga2re2t wrote: »

Which countries? When I was passing my California driving license, the rules of the road specifically stated that when on a 3 or more (or maybe it was 4 or more ) lane motorway that drivers should stay on the second lane where possible to allow traffic coming onto the motorway to merge freely. Then again, California driving rules followed a quite different logic to European driving rules and in many ways not in a good way, in my opinion.

Moving out of the left lane as you approach merges is a sensible option (ensuring you don't cut up someone already there), otherwise you should stay in the left lane. On busy motorways in the UK the left lane is considered the lorry lane and the middle the car one with rh lane overtaking only.
But the rule of keep left except overtaking still applies it's just that you can't as it's full of lorries or if you did get in you'd be out again a few hundred metres down the road!

HydeRoad

It's very simple. If there are lorries in the left lane, use the centre lane to pass. If there aren't, move to the left. What is the big deal? I fail to understand this flawed logic, 'I ALWAYS use the middle lane, because...' Circumstances for circumstances. Changing lanes is the barest, imperceptible glance to the left and flick of the wrist. It's not turning an oil tanker.

What do you do, if, like with me the other night, you drive at 100kph in the left lane, and a car arrives from the distance behind, in the centre lane, doing 102kph. The car takes about quarter of a mile to pass safely, leaving me no option to change lanes if I need to. Then, when the other car passes, it starts to gradually slow down, remaining in the centre lane. Now it slows to 80kph, the driver merrily bumbling along in a complete daze.

Now, if I don't slow down to 80kph too, I technically break the law. So do I slow down, change across two lanes, overtake, change back two lanes, only to see Ms. Bumble speeding up behind me in the centre lane again?

The answer as I see it, for pathetic uneducated Irish motorists, is for repeater signs over every bridge and gantry, advising drivers to Keep Left. Unfortunately, the pace of the many is dictated by the incompetence of the few.

corktina

HydeRoad wrote: »

It's very simple. If there are lorries in the left lane, use the centre lane to pass. If there aren't, move to the left. What is the big deal? I fail to understand this flawed logic, 'I ALWAYS use the middle lane, because...' Circumstances for circumstances. Changing lanes is the barest, imperceptible glance to the left and flick of the wrist. It's not turning an oil tanker.

What do you do, if, like with me the other night, you drive at 100kph in the left lane, and a car arrives from the distance behind, in the centre lane, doing 102kph. The car takes about quarter of a mile to pass safely, leaving me no option to change lanes if I need to. Then, when the other car passes, it starts to gradually slow down, remaining in the centre lane. Now it slows to 80kph, the driver merrily bumbling along in a complete daze.

Now, if I don't slow down to 80kph too, I technically break the law. So do I slow down, change across two lanes, overtake, change back two lanes, only to see Ms. Bumble speeding up behind me in the centre lane again?

The answer as I see it, for pathetic uneducated Irish motorists, is for repeater signs over every bridge and gantry, advising drivers to Keep Left. Unfortunately, the pace of the many is dictated by the incompetence of the few.

oh how often has that happened to me! regretably it seems to be incompetence of the many....

Victor

davyjose wrote: »

Now I have driven in a few different countries, but Ireland is, so far, the only country who does this.

In the Uk they are known as "Middle Lane Morons".

ga2re2t wrote: »

Which countries? When I was passing my California driving license, the rules of the road specifically stated that when on a 3 or more (or maybe it was 4 or more ) lane motorway that drivers should stay on the second lane where possible to allow traffic coming onto the motorway to merge freely. Then again, California driving rules followed a quite different logic to European driving rules and in many ways not in a good way, in my opinion.

The M50 has an auxilliary (4th) lane, so there is no immediate panic to merge and no need to take special measures to facilitate merging.

On the M50, the relatively short distance in between junctions makes driving in the slow lane probably not the safest choice. The M50 is not really a motorway in the typical sense anyhows - it's better described as a multilane ring-road with motorway restrictions.

The auxilliary lane takes care of this.

ga2re2t

I agree with the whole keep left lane thing, I'm just being awkward trying to play devil's advocate. I always try to keep left (well actually, I always try to keep right over here in France) but some drivers take it to the extreme in medium density traffic and start weaving in and out every 10 seconds. Basically, keep left but within reason.

In the States (well, California anyway) the whole 'keep right' rule is only very lightly adhered to. Most drivers weave in and out, passing on both the left and right. Gets pretty crazy sometimes, though the speed limits are lower and Califorina drivers tend not to break the speed limit.

mackerski

davyjose wrote: »

Has anyone noticed how, on the new 3 lane section of the M50, the bulk of traffic drives on the middle lane?

There are 4 lanes. Which one is the middle one?

corktina

sadly probably both of them....:mad:

Guy:Incognito

mackerski wrote: »

There are 4 lanes. Which one is the middle one?

There are 3 driving lanes and 1 aux lane for entering/leaving the motorway. Unless your entering or leaving the motorway treat it like a 24hr buslane .

mackerski

Stekelly wrote: »

There are 3 driving lanes and 1 aux lane for entering/leaving the motorway. Unless your entering or leaving the motorway treat it like a 24hr buslane .

That's overstating things just a tad. All four are driving lanes, and I've never seen any legal notion of "Aux lane" defined. The first one is destined to peel off, possibly not for another 2-3km. It's certainly reasonable not to drop into the weaving lane just because its empty, but we shouldn't suggest that people vacate it as soon as humanly possible. It's there to avoid exactly the problems that kind of driving causes.

corktina

a case in point in Cork on the South Ring where there is a "AUx Lane" for peeling off to Douglas (eastbound)....as a result of knowing that it is there, drivers ( I supect) get into the second lane before the flyover at the previous Airport intersection where clearly they should be in the (usually) empty inside lane and should change to the centre lane on approach to the Douglas turn-off....i've even seen tractors doing this on several occasions....

mikemac

lynchie wrote: »

Sure they have been doing that on the N7 since it went three lanes a few years back!!!

The first time I drove the N7 southbound I stayed in the middle lane. I suppose that makes me lane hogging scum going by the reactions these drivers get in the motors forum especially

But the way the signs were arranged, it seemed very clear that the left lane was if you were turning off on one of the exits.
I thought if I stayed in the left lane I'd be forced down some exit I didn't want.

I'm not the only person who saw this and other posters mentioned it. I think the signs may have changed since then but if not, maybe that's an excuse for some, but not all drivers

micmclo

micmclo wrote: »

I thought if I stayed in the left lane I'd be forced down some exit I didn't want.

Made that mistake on the M25 when it was first built , the section east of the M11 had the left lane for exits only.

L1011

The N7 gantries are, admittedly, terrible for making you think the inside line is for turning off...

Guy:Incognito

mackerski wrote: »

That's overstating things just a tad. All four are driving lanes, and I've never seen any legal notion of "Aux lane" defined. The first one is destined to peel off, possibly not for another 2-3km. It's certainly reasonable not to drop into the weaving lane just because its empty, but we shouldn't suggest that people vacate it as soon as humanly possible. It's there to avoid exactly the problems that kind of driving causes.

Where did I say people should vacate it?I specifically added the "unless your entering/leaving" bit to show that if your not going off at the next exit, then th eaux lane is of no relevance other than that you should make sure your not causeing a blockage to poeople trying to enter the motorway.,

mackerski

Stekelly wrote: »

Where did I say people should vacate it?

If I found myself entering a road by way of a 24-hour bus lane, I'd feel obliged to vacate it immediately. I took the same implication from your analogy.