Motorway driving

L1011 · 14-12-2009 11:30pm

R.O.R wrote: »

"Drogheda 19
Dundalk 25" (GAA Scores??? :P)

Tsk, you can tell the Englishman not understanding how GAA scores work

testarossa40 · 14-12-2009 11:41pm

Paulj wrote: »

Couldn't those new electonic signs that you see on some motorways (eg. m50) be used to occasionally display reminder messages such as: "Keep to left lane unless overtaking" or something to that effect??

Or else just put up some regular stationary signs on motors that says the same thing. I really believe for most people they just don't understand the way its meant to work. And because the vast majority of people seem to be in that category it breeds ignorance in new drivers. After all, its not tested in the driving test. It may come up in a theory question but even then new drivers may not understand how it's meant to work in practice.

Of course it should be introduced in a the driving test too ...

I too made this very suggestion over on a thread over on the Commuting & Transport forum & suggested we start a campaign. Since then I've emailed the RSA (researchdept@rsa.ie; info@rsa.ie), AA (publicaffairs@aaireland.ie) & NRA M50 (coz that's my daily commute - https://www.nratraffic.ie/m50/pages/feedback.asp?schemename=n4ballymount).

No reply as yet from the NRA, and, the AA & RSA replied with "Yeah whatever, now PFO"-type scripted responses :mad:.

Maybe if more of us did the same they might bother doing something useful for a change?

Paulj · 14-12-2009 11:50pm

very good, i just sent RSA a mail there also. Will send a few more tomorrow!

corktina · 15-12-2009 8:57am

MYOB wrote: »

Tsk, you can tell the Englishman not understanding how GAA scores work

we dont care how they work either...:D

celticbest · 15-12-2009 9:36am

rohatch wrote: »

Its crazy. If they do go on a motorway unaccompanied .. and have an accident the are still covered by their insurance. Thats the 1st problem.2nd problem is we need the Gardai to enforce the laws that we have already, and the 3rd problem is we need to speed up the court process.

My sister-in-law was hit by a provisional driver coming off the M1 last year(on a slip road), the insurance company paid for the damage to my sister-in-laws car but did not pay out on the provisional driver.

The Gardai were following up on the provisional driver as they were on a motorway with only a provisional licence, as far as I know they were pressing charges against her on a few technicalities eg, driving on a motorway, driving unaccompanied, I'd say a few penalty points and having to pay for the damage to her own car thought her a lesson and I'd say her insurance would have gone through the roof !

twistyj · 15-12-2009 3:46pm

what gets me is people driving at about 100k in the overtaking and staying there!

Pedro K · 15-12-2009 4:18pm

twistyj wrote: »

what gets me is people driving at about 100k in the overtaking and staying there!

Or worse, the poeple doing 120 in the overtaking lane...

"I'm doing the speed limit so you can wait behind me"

Get the **** out of the overtaking lane if you aint overtaking!

wyrn · 15-12-2009 5:08pm

Pedro K wrote: »

Or worse, the poeple doing 120 in the overtaking lane...

"I'm doing the speed limit so you can wait behind me"

Get the **** out of the overtaking lane if you aint overtaking!

What's wrong with people doing the speed limit in the overtaking lane? (as long as the move back in at the earliest opportunity)
There seems to be an increase garda checks on the motorways at the moment.

What gets me is that I follow the speed limit in the left lane and occasional I overtake a vehicle that's doing less than ~105 km/h and then someone booting it up the right lane gets impatient while I overtake. Now I try to judge if those people who stick in the right lane and speeding so I'll let them pass before overtaking. The sheer amount of impatience of drivers towards the drivers who are following the rules of the road (not talking about drivers who drivers at 60 km/h on the motorway).

Stark · 15-12-2009 5:19pm

wyrn wrote: »

What's wrong with people doing the speed limit in the overtaking lane? (as long as the move back in at the earliest opportunity)

It's fine when you move in when you have a chance. It's the dolts who sit there indefinitely, creating a tailback that traps anyone who tries to use the driving lane correctly and effectively reducing the road to a one-lane road that are the problem.

wyrn · 15-12-2009 5:36pm

Stark wrote: »

It's fine when you move in when you have a chance. It's the dolts who sit there indefinitely, creating a tailback that traps anyone who tries to use the driving lane correctly and effectively reducing the road to a one-lane road that are the problem.

Oh I completely agree with that. It's the ones who think it's their right to drive in the right land >120 km/h the whole way up. They really irk me.

I always move back in as soon as possible after overtaking, but sometimes feel a bit under pressure to speed to move back in so the driver behind can speed away.

TestTransmission · 15-12-2009 5:55pm

Fcukface wrote: »

Good idea, and another way for the government to make money

Now you're thinking

Pedro K · 15-12-2009 6:11pm

wyrn wrote: »

Oh I completely agree with that. It's the ones who think it's their right to drive in the right land >120 km/h the whole way up. They really irk me.

That's what I meant.

Hence my comment, Get out of the overtaking lane if you aren't overtaking.

rohatch · 16-12-2009 6:20pm

Pedro K wrote: »

Get out of the overtaking lane if you aren't overtaking.

Someone should make this as a banner and hang it off the bridges

celticbest · 14-01-2010 10:40am

dolanbaker wrote: »

This section is still two lanes, but this muppet tried to open up a third one. (M50 Edmondstown)

Hows about this bit of driving as posted on a different thread by dolanbaker.:eek:

munchkin_utd · 14-01-2010 12:30pm

The best i saw was a lad doing the 120kmh on the busy section of the M7 leaving Dublin with a small trailer attached bouncing all over the place.

On the continent every trailer has to have its own version of the NCT and even then 80 is the max unless you have a specially designed trailer that is fit for 100!
When I first heard this I though its german bureauracy gone wrong.

Thing is though, if that trailer for any reason hops off its coupling on the motorway, it stops DEAD pretty much on the spot, and the person behind hits it at full motorway speed possibly causing a motorway pileup.
How does the lad know that his suspension in the trailer is fit for 120 before bouncing violently (or 100 or 140 or what is it actually fit for???? Maybe warp speed is the official design limit!!).
How can he guarantee that his trailer WONT hop off at 120kmh, or is the plan to have a go and find out the hard way?

Of course, untested, uncertified trailers dont hop off their coupling in Ireland so hurtling down the road at 120 with a rickety trailer is perfectly safe and ok.

I think theres going to have to be accidents and deaths before Ireland actually clamps down on stupidity on the motorways, rickety trailers at colossal speeds being one point to sort out.

Del2005 · 14-01-2010 1:03pm

munchkin_utd wrote: »

The best i saw was a lad doing the 120kmh on the busy section of the M7 leaving Dublin with a small trailer attached bouncing all over the place.

On the continent every trailer has to have its own version of the NCT and even then 80 is the max unless you have a specially designed trailer that is fit for 100!
When I first heard this I though its german bureauracy gone wrong.

Any vehicle towing a trailer here is restricted to 80km/h.

Thing is though, if that trailer for any reason hops off its coupling on the motorway, it stops DEAD pretty much on the spot, and the person behind hits it at full motorway speed possibly causing a motorway pileup.
How does the lad know that his suspension in the trailer is fit for 120 before bouncing violently (or 100 or 140 or what is it actually fit for???? Maybe warp speed is the official design limit!!).
How can he guarantee that his trailer WONT hop off at 120kmh, or is the plan to have a go and find out the hard way?

Of course, untested, uncertified trailers dont hop off their coupling in Ireland so hurtling down the road at 120 with a rickety trailer is perfectly safe and ok.

I think theres going to have to be accidents and deaths before Ireland actually clamps down on stupidity on the motorways, rickety trailers at colossal speeds being one point to sort out.

There are currently no tests for car trailers here but our DOE for HGV trailers isn't up to scratch anyway. It took the UK police to tell us our HGV's where dangerous.

Don't forget that if the person behind hits the trailer then it's partially their fault, you shouldn't be driving so close, what would happen if a car ahead suddenly stopped dead in the road?

Mc Love · 15-01-2010 11:29pm

Was on the N7 just before you come to M7 heading south and there was an absolute dick driving a Honda Accord. Was behind me since red cow and then when passed Bewleys you could see him trying to get past going from the rhl to the middle lane to the lhl and back again, in and out like a fecking yo yo.

He even tried following a boy racer but that wasnt good enough. So stuck behind a truck in the middle lane and trying to get in rhl he put on his indicator and practically pushed his way in front of me, there wasnt even any space, just went over the white lines (knew he was going to do it) and i fecking blew him out of it. I never have had to use my car horn with so much force before, even turned on my full beams - yer man couldnt give a crap - just kept going!

Never seen the like of it ever before!

Stark · 15-01-2010 11:57pm

People wouldn't have to do that to make progress if everyone else bothered to keep left. What's a truck doing in the middle lane for instance?

Mc Love · 15-01-2010 11:59pm

Heavy traffic, and yeah a truck shouldnt be in the middle

Del2005 · 16-01-2010 8:27am

Mc Love wrote: »

Heavy traffic, and yeah a truck shouldnt be in the middle

The truck has as much right to be in the middle lane as anyone else on the road. The only place they can't go is the outer lane of a 120km/h motorway.

Mc Love · 16-01-2010 8:36am

Del2005 wrote: »

The truck has as much right to be in the middle lane as anyone else on the road. The only place they can't go is the outer lane of a 120km/h motorway.

Tell that to the countless amount of artic truck drivers that overtake over artics on the M7!

Del2005 · 16-01-2010 9:53am

Mc Love wrote: »

Tell that to the countless amount of artic truck drivers that overtake over artics on the M7!

That's down to enforcement. It's not only HGV drivers who break the law on motorways.

sesna · 16-01-2010 10:03am

jungleboy wrote: »

It just seems crazy to me that you can get a driving license without having to drive on the motorway, it is after all one of the most dangerous places to drive?

Motorways are the safest roads to drive on due to crash barrier in the middle, no overtaking into oncoming traffic, no pedestrians/cyclists, good quality surface etc.

RiverWilde · 16-01-2010 10:18am

A huge problem I see with driving in Ireland is that the Guards really seem to be there to turn up when there's an accident and their other main job is to hide in the ditch on perfectly good safe stretches of road with a speed gun to catch any suspecting soul who is unlucky enough to be a few mph over the limit.

You never see the Guards patrolling the nastier dangerous roads in Ireland where there are some right lunatics doing the rounds.

Riv

Spiritoftheseventies · 16-01-2010 10:28am

What is annoying is people who cant wait one second for someone in overtaking lane to find a spot to go back into the left lane. Some will literally flash you out the way.

Joey the lips · 16-01-2010 10:36am

Hi folks.

I drive a 97 opel coursa and the wife drives a 1.4 skoda oct 16 valve so both not big cars in the engine sense.

The biggest problem in my opinion and has always been the biggest problem is

If I am overtaking a truck on a motorway. Usually while in the process a lovely heavy litre/engine car rips up behind me and starts flashing like a looney. Now I agree that i am going slow so what do i do.....

Attempt to slow down and pull in behind the truck in which case the car behind me has already filled the space.

Attempt to slow down behind that car as well. Futher infurating the car behind me.

Or which is the most logical.

Keep on going and in a couple of minutes I will be past the truck and pulled in out of the way.

We all have a right on the road and it has been my experience that not many people as being made out hog the fast lane.

Spiritoftheseventies · 16-01-2010 10:42am

Joey the lips wrote: »

Hi folks.

I drive a 97 opel coursa and the wife drives a 1.4 skoda oct 16 valve so both not big cars in the engine sense.

The biggest problem in my opinion and has always been the biggest problem is

If I am overtaking a truck on a motorway. Usually while in the process a lovely heavy litre/engine car rips up behind me and starts flashing like a looney. Now I agree that i am going slow so what do i do.....

Attempt to slow down and pull in behind the truck in which case the car behind me has already filled the space.

Attempt to slow down behind that car as well. Futher infurating the car behind me.

Or which is the most logical.

Keep on going and in a couple of minutes I will be past the truck and pulled in out of the way.

We all have a right on the road and it has been my experience that not many people as being made out hog the fast lane.

I always make sure not to get stuck behind a truck for too long. Trick is not to allow to close a gap to develop there. So where there is a gap on the overtaking gap take it in plenty of time.

Seth Brundle · 16-01-2010 10:44am

Mc Love wrote: »

Tell that to the countless amount of artic truck drivers that overtake over artics on the M7!

The M7 is two lanes - the law applies to motorways with more than two main lanes.

Stark · 16-01-2010 12:07pm

Del2005 wrote: »

The truck has as much right to be in the middle lane as anyone else on the road. The only place they can't go is the outer lane of a 120km/h motorway.

Only if they're actually overtaking someone. Most of the time the left lane is empty on the N7 but you still see buses, trucks and micras cruising along in it.

Stark · 16-01-2010 12:19pm

Joey the lips wrote: »

Hi folks.

I drive a 97 opel coursa and the wife drives a 1.4 skoda oct 16 valve so both not big cars in the engine sense.

The biggest problem in my opinion and has always been the biggest problem is

If I am overtaking a truck on a motorway. Usually while in the process a lovely heavy litre/engine car rips up behind me and starts flashing like a looney. Now I agree that i am going slow so what do i do.....

Attempt to slow down and pull in behind the truck in which case the car behind me has already filled the space.

Attempt to slow down behind that car as well. Futher infurating the car behind me.

Or which is the most logical.

Keep on going and in a couple of minutes I will be past the truck and pulled in out of the way.

We all have a right on the road and it has been my experience that not many people as being made out hog the fast lane.

It doesn't take a few minutes to overtake a truck. Having a 1.4L car is no excuse. There's always 4th gear if the car really has trouble gaining speed.

Motorway driving

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