Motorbike motorway behaviour

Golfgorfield

So this morning i was travelling northbound on the N7, murky so everyone had lights on.
I was in the left lane and decided to move into the overtaking lane, i looked to see there was a gap and indicated, as i moved into the gap i heard beeps and looked to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me.

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear, he pulled up beside me going mental shaking his fist and giving me the finger.

I have no idea if i am in the wrong here, are motorbikes entitled to split the traffic and fly up between the 2 lanes of traffic?

Toyotafanboi

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I have no idea if i am in the wrong here, are motorbikes entitled to split the traffic and fly up between the 2 lanes of traffic?

i often wonder this as it does seem like risky business, whether it be legal or not, there are a lot of situations where is seems they are taking huge risks to their own life even if technically they could be in the right, but i guess that's the joy of riding a bike. my own opinion, knowing nothing about riding a bike is that if they are overtaking they should be in the overtaking lane, in keeping with the rest of the road users as flying up the right hand white line of the left lane doesn't appear to be very good practise.

As you say, all it can take is one guy to not see you. he could go to court buy you could be in the ground.

Jesus.

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear

That's a good example of people driving with full dips on when there's no need. If everything is lit up like a Christmas tree smaller objects can become less visible.

Seth Brundle

Golfgorfield wrote: »

So this morning i was travelling northbound on the N7, murky so everyone had lights on.
I was in the left lane and decided to move into the overtaking lane, i looked to see there was a gap and indicated, as i moved into the gap i heard beeps and looked to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me.

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear, he pulled up beside me going mental shaking his fist and giving me the finger.

I have no idea if i am in the wrong here, are motorbikes entitled to split the traffic and fly up between the 2 lanes of traffic?

You looked, then signalled and then manoeuvred.
However, he still had to brake hard as you were manoeuvring?
From what you have told us, you pulled out in front of him. The fact that he was driving through traffic is not relevant. You didn't look properly before moving!

gizmo555

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I was in the left lane and decided to move into the overtaking lane, i looked to see there was a gap and indicated, as i moved into the gap i heard beeps and looked to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me.

Unless he was actually on the dividing line, he wasn't "between the lanes". He was in the lane you were trying to move into and the gap you thought you saw wasn't really there.

Golfgorfield

kbannon wrote: »

You looked, then signalled and then manoeuvred.
However, he still had to brake hard as you were manoeuvring?
From what you have told us, you pulled out in front of him. The fact that he was driving through traffic is not relevant. You didn't look properly before moving!

I looked in my mirrors, looked right and seen a gap plenty big so indicated to go right, in the meantime the motorbike was driving between 2 lanes of moving traffic and came up behind me as i changed lanes.

I cant see how i didn't look properly, short of sticking my head out the sunroof i don't know what more i could do?

Cuddlesworth

Golfgorfield wrote: »

So this morning i was travelling northbound on the N7, murky so everyone had lights on.
I was in the left lane and decided to move into the overtaking lane, i looked to see there was a gap and indicated, as i moved into the gap i heard beeps and looked to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me.

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear, he pulled up beside me going mental shaking his fist and giving me the finger.

I have no idea if i am in the wrong here, are motorbikes entitled to split the traffic and fly up between the 2 lanes of traffic?

Biker here, I'd do two things myself. Remind myself that regardless of the fact, I should have taken the time to be able to see him. And that he is also a moron. You don't filter in moving traffic, the amount of time you save versus the risk is insane. There are a lot of motorcyclists on the road with a serious attitude problem, it's always the other guys fault and never theirs.

Seth Brundle

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I looked in my mirrors, looked right and seen a gap plenty big so indicated to go right, in the meantime the motorbike was driving between 2 lanes of moving traffic and came up behind me as i changed lanes.

I cant see how i didn't look properly, short of sticking my head out the sunroof i don't know what more i could do?

Hey, I'm just reading what you typed.
You did not see the motorbike. Like it or not, that's your fault, not mine!

Edit: actually from the sound of your second post, you appear to have seen the bike but still changed lane!

Golfgorfield

kbannon wrote: »

Hey, I'm just reading what you typed.
You did not see the motorbike. Like it or not, that's your fault, not mine!

Edit: actually from the sound of your second post, you appear to have seen the bike but still changed lane!

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic? Jesus himself couldn't have seen that if that's the case.

you are obviously a biker

gizmo555

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

Biker here, I'd do two things myself. Remind myself that regardless of the fact, I should have taken the time to be able to see him. And that he is also a moron. You don't filter in moving traffic, the amount of time you save versus the risk is insane. There are a lot of motorcyclists on the road with a serious attitude problem, it's always the other guys fault and never theirs.

Biker here. He might have been filtering to reach the point where the OP pulled out in front of him (and yes, that's very risky in itself), but by definition, he wasn't at the time the OP tried to change lanes.

A habit I've transferred from biking to car driving is always to take a "lifesaver check" backward glance over my right shoulder to be sure there's nothing in my blind spot before manoeuvring to overtake or change into the r/h lane.

jimgoose

Splitting lanes is known as filtering and should only be done at low speeds. It sounds to me like the motorcycle was going too fast and appearing out of a gap that most civilians would never expect. Alas it is textbook stuff. Be careful out there, kids.

Toyotafanboi

gizmo555 wrote: »

Unless he was actually on the dividing line, he wasn't "between the lanes". He was in the lane you were trying to move into and the gap you thought you saw wasn't really there.

sounds to me like he was on the dividing line, because that's the thing they put between two lanes.

Golfgorfield wrote: »

...to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me...

Seth Brundle

Golfgorfield wrote: »

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic? Jesus himself couldn't have seen that if that's the case.

you are obviously a biker

I'm not a biker.
However, you appeared to know where the bike was despite saying earlier that you couldn't see him because of the lights.
Are you seriously saying that the bike just drove up to you and then pulled the brakes or that he was going so fast through moving traffic that you couldn't see him (although you saw him)?

Your story has changed over the course of this thread in terms of whether you saw the bike or not.

Toyotafanboi

Golfgorfield wrote: »

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic?

very possible, yes.

doesn't make for a good roasting of a new poster on a chat forum though.

come on, give us more bait, were you on the phone at the time? what brand tyres are on your car? is it a dacia?

gizmo555

Toyotafanboi wrote: »

sounds to me like he was on the dividing line, because that's the thing they put between two lanes.

The OP says he was "between the lanes", but then he would, wouldn't he? Sounds to me like he's trying to rationalise his failure to properly observe before changing lane.

jimgoose

gizmo555 wrote: »

The OP says he was "between the lanes", but then he would, wouldn't he? Sounds to me like he's trying to rationalise his failure to properly observe before changing lane.

Filtering is dangerous. Filtering in fast-ish traffic, on a crappy November morning, is particularly dangerous. Car drivers don't expect you to be there and have no idea how fast you're moving relative to themselves and the rest of the "normal" traffic. If you're going to do that, and I wouldn't recommend it, you need to be a fierce wide oul' dag indeed, and be at least twice as sharp as anyone else on the road.

Golfgorfield

kbannon wrote: »

I'm not a biker.
However, you appeared to know where the bike was despite saying earlier that you couldn't see him because of the lights.
Are you seriously saying that the bike just drove up to you and then pulled the brakes or that he was going so fast through moving traffic that you couldn't see him (although you saw him)?

Your story has changed over the course of this thread in terms of whether you saw the bike or not.

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear, he pulled up beside me going mental shaking his fist and giving me the finger.

I looked in my mirrors, looked right and seen a gap plenty big so indicated to go right, in the meantime the motorbike was driving between 2 lanes of moving traffic and came up behind me as i changed lanes

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic? Jesus himself couldn't have seen that if that's the case.


See above, i obviously manoeuvred as i didn't see any bike, the fact he was upon the back of me obviously means he was coming up between lanes, how he got there i don't know, as i said also there were lights on all the cars so i may not have seen his single light amid the glare of the car lights.

i don't know why your questioning my posts, i didn't come on to have each of my posts dissected and analysed.

b318isp

The biker is technically overtaking, and has the better visibility by virtue of the fact that he is looking ahead - and so must anticipate circumstance ahead and be prepared to react to them. If the speed difference is high, then they are also not driving with due care.

On the other hand, the OP is changing lanes and must yield to traffic in the lane they are moving to. The bike may or may not have a right of way, depending on position. A "life saver" glance over the shoulder can help see bikes that may be in blind spots - a good habit that few have.

jimgoose

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I didn't see him at all...

I didn't think you did, no. And it doesn't surprise me. Biker here by the way.

positron

I am a biker. And I filter / lane spit on M1 and M50. I know the dangers, and I am taking a calculated risk. I filter thru stopped and slow moving traffic. And I can understand how a car driver could fail to see me, especially when all other cars have their headlights on - rear view mirror is usually a sea of headlights.

OP, I would have thought you will check your mirrors and over the shoulder before AND AFTER indicating your intention to change lane. That's what they teach you at driving schools. You check your mirrors and blind spot, indicate, check again, move. It sounded like you didn't do the second check, and perhaps that's why you didn't see the biker? Or if you did do the second check, and if the biker got there in those few seconds, he was probably going too fast. Anyway, I am glad no one was hurt. Stay safe!

I am also really thankful to those handful of car drivers, and most truck drivers, who notice me filtering up well in advance, and move to the far edge of their lane respective lanes to make room for me. There are good people out there.

Toyotafanboi

gizmo555 wrote: »

The OP says he was "between the lanes", but then he would, wouldn't he? Sounds to me like he's trying to rationalise his failure to properly observe before changing lane.

sounds to me like he's telling the truth, why would he come here and start a thread to try and post rationalise what was essentially a non event. more likely he knows what went on and came on here to rant about a biker who had sh1t lane discipline.

in my experience, the vast majority of times when a biker overtakes me, it's on the dividing line, not firmly in the overtaking lane, so it stands to reason that it's happened to this guy here.

gizmo555

jimgoose wrote: »

Filtering is dangerous. Filtering in fast-ish traffic, on a crappy November morning, is particularly dangerous.

Agreed. But even if he was filtering (i.e., riding between two lines of cars), by definition he wasn't when the OP changed lane, because there was no car on his right:

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I looked in my mirrors, looked right and seen a gap plenty big so indicated to go right . . .

Golfgorfield wrote: »

i don't know why your questioning my posts, i didn't come on to have each of my posts dissected and analysed.

No, you came on looking for sympathy at the nasty way the nasty biker reacted to you and are aggrieved to have it pointed out that there's more to it than that.

Ant695

b318isp wrote: »

A "life saver" glance over the shoulder can help see bikes that may be in blind spots - a good habit that few have.

Isn't this standard practice? Was when I was learning to drive checking mirrors and blindspot before changing lanes was a big thing.

But often times bikers take risks they shouldn't because they can get threw the gap and also often times drivers aren't as aware as they should be of what's around them including other cars, bikes, cyclists etc... No idea who's in the right here but if the op was at fault at least he's trying to understand it not just saying **** all bikers.

Seth Brundle

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I didn't see him at all, possibly as i looked in the mirror and i seen the lights of the cars his light wasn't clear, he pulled up beside me going mental shaking his fist and giving me the finger.

OK you didn't see him. People make mistakes and thankfully in this case, nobody was hurt.

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I looked in my mirrors, looked right and seen a gap plenty big so indicated to go right, in the meantime the motorbike was driving between 2 lanes of moving traffic and came up behind me as i changed lanes

So you saw the bike? But I thought that you didn't?

Golfgorfield wrote: »

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic? Jesus himself couldn't have seen that if that's the case.

I'm not going to speculate on where the bike was.
However, the bike wasn't going at 100 miles an hour whilst filtering so, he didn't suddenly appear out of nowhere and jam on his brakes.

Golfgorfield wrote: »

See above, i obviously manoeuvred as i didn't see any bike, the fact he was upon the back of me obviously means he was coming up between lanes, how he got there i don't know, as i said also there were lights on all the cars so i may not have seen his single light amid the glare of the car lights.

You didn't see him because you weren't looking for him. Get over it.
He should not have been filtering in moving traffic. Nonetheless you pulled out in front of him.
As I said, nobody was hurt (apart maybe from your ego).
Chalk it down to experience and hopefully next time you will see him.

Golfgorfield wrote: »

i don't know why your questioning my posts, i didn't come on to have each of my posts dissected and analysed.

You're on a discussion forum where people post items and others respond. If you're looking for people to take your side without question and maybe throw in a few likes, then go to Facebook!

jimgoose

gizmo555 wrote: »

Agreed. But even if he was filtering (i.e., riding between two lines of cars), by definition he wasn't when the OP changed lane, because there was no car on his right:...

There was no car on the OP's right. Not that that matters an acre a' shít anyway. :pac:

Toyotafanboi

kbannon wrote: »

I'm not going to speculate on where the bike was.
However, the bike wasn't going at 100 miles an hour whilst filtering so, he didn't suddenly appear out of nowhere and jam on his brakes.

you're not going to speculate on his lane position but you're going to tell us for sure what speed he wasn't doing :rolleyes:

if we are talking the N7 and the OP was going for an overtake, we could probably assume the OP could be doing 70+ mph, so if a bike appeared rather sharpish behind him, 100mph wouldn't be to out of the question imo.

in which case, particularly if the OP was coming around a left hand curve for example, the bike could literally appear out of nowhere pretty damned quick. but don't let logic get in the way of your roasting.

gizmo555

jimgoose wrote: »

There was no car on the OP's right. Not that that matters an acre a' shít anyway. :pac:

The point I made is that there was no car on the biker's right at the time of the OP changed lane, so the biker was not filtering at that time.

Anyway, no-one's hurt, and hopefully both parties have learned something they can use to stay safer in future.

listermint

Golfgorfield wrote: »

Is it not possible that when i looked he was behind a car, and as i moved he came out and headed forward between the 2 lanes of traffic? Jesus himself couldn't have seen that if that's the case.

you are obviously a biker

I am a motorist of over 17 years, I am also a recent convert to Motorcycles. have full license in both and own both. Including cycling.

I can tell you in full that doing Motorcycle IBT training 100% in fact made me a better Car driver too.

Why ?

It makes me more aware of my surroundings /dangers / what to look out for and other drivers instincts.

1 thing that motorcyclist are thought is a 'lifesafer look' that is a glance or look over ones shoulder before beginning a manoeuvre(either direction)

form what you have posted (and solely what you posted) you didnt give the shoulder glance and then mirror when moving out.

If everyone did this there would be less mess on the M50 daily. Drivers would get to work quicker and people would probably be more happier in their commute. Im probably exaggeration the peaceful aspect this would bring but the point stands that it is there to save lifes.

Know your surroundings you are driving a 2 ton mechanically propelled machine.

Id love if all drivers had to actually do tests on multiple vehicles to be considered ok for the roads, it may actually give people an insight into everyone elses shoes.

Id consider myself smug as i get to participate and see it from all sides, including walking (i do that too).

Knowledge is power baby!

jimgoose

gizmo555 wrote: »

The point I made is that there was no car on the biker's right at the time of the OP changed lane, so the biker was not filtering at that time...

The point I made was that all we actually know is that there was no car on the OP's right at the time the OP changed lane. I have no idea what was to the right of the motorcycle at that time, and I don't believe anyone else, including the OP, does either.

Jesus.

positron wrote: »

And I can understand how a car driver could fail to see me, especially when all other cars have their headlights on - rear view mirror is usually a sea of headlights.

It is undoubtedly a problem. People think that by lighting up fully at every spit of rain or grey sky is a good thing when I actually don't believe it is.

Golfgorfield

listermint wrote: »

I am a motorist of over 17 years, I am also a recent convert to Motorcycles. have full license in both and own both. Including cycling.

I can tell you in full that doing Motorcycle IBT training 100% in fact made me a better Car driver too.

Why ?

It makes me more aware of my surroundings /dangers / what to look out for and other drivers instincts.

1 thing that motorcyclist are thought is a 'lifesafer look' that is a glance or look over ones shoulder before beginning a manoeuvre(either direction)

form what you have posted (and solely what you posted) you didnt give the shoulder glance and then mirror when moving out.

If everyone did this there would be less mess on the M50 daily. Drivers would get to work quicker and people would probably be more happier in their commute. Im probably exaggeration the peaceful aspect this would bring but the point stands that it is there to save lifes.

Know your surroundings you are driving a 2 ton mechanically propelled machine.

Id love if all drivers had to actually do tests on multiple vehicles to be considered ok for the roads, it may actually give people an insight into everyone elses shoes.

Id consider myself smug as i get to participate and see it from all sides, including walking (i do that too).

Knowledge is power baby!

If you read my posts correctly i did say i looked in the mirrors, looked right ans then indicated to make the manoeuvre, a motorcyclist doesn't have things in his way when looking over his shoulder like window frames, headrests etc.. and remember im trying to spot a bike here not a big wide car.

jimgoose

listermint wrote: »

...Id consider myself smug as i get to participate and see it from all sides, including walking (i do that too).

Knowledge is power baby!

Quite so indeed. Spending a few years on a motorcycle makes you a better driver of everything from space-hoppers to aircraft carriers until the end of your days.

rolion

I'll post dashcams shots of absolutely insane crazy bikers making a mess of rules,flying between lanes,cars and traffic,heading faster than a car stopped in traffic to maybe suicide act.

If I'll get a bike/biker between me and left or right car(s) filtering lanes like mad...you biker we'll look under my van.
No sympathy for them when I see / hear tragic accidents...i call it calculated suiciding aware bravery acts...

My advice to bikers:stay in your lane,respect the big cars and other drivers.And away from me,I'm more crazy than you...

Seth Brundle

Toyotafanboi wrote: »

you're not going to speculate on his lane position but you're going to tell us for sure what speed he wasn't doing :rolleyes:

Point taken.
However, whilst the bike could have been anywhere (as the OP claims not to have seen them), the bike is highly *unlikely* to have been doing 100mph on the N7 whilst passing between two cars (assuming it was passing through two cars - we don't know because the OP didn't see the bike approach).

Also, I've driven along the M7 at over 100mph. You still don't suddenly appear out of nowhere to another car. You appear out of nowhere to an unobservant driver!

listermint

Golfgorfield wrote: »

If you read my posts correctly i did say i looked in the mirrors, looked right ans then indicated to make the manoeuvre, a motorcyclist doesn't have things in his way when looking over his shoulder like window frames, headrests etc.. and remember im trying to spot a bike here not a big wide car.

Looking right is not looking over your shoulder,
Looking right is not the manoeuvre you would have been thought by a driving instructor (if you were he was terrible)
You have to be able to see cyclists or other vehicles coming from behind or just in your blind spot. Looking right shows you what is next to you. It does not give you the blind spot neither does the mirror.


Knowledge can save lives, (seriously)

positron

rolion wrote: »

If I'll get a bike/biker between me and left or right car(s) filtering lanes like mad...you biker we'll look under my van.
No sympathy for them when I see / hear tragic accidents...i call it calculated suiciding aware bravery acts...

You are off my Christmas card list mate. :rolleyes:

Golfgorfield

listermint wrote: »

Looking right is not looking over your shoulder,
Looking right is not the manoeuvre you would have been thought by a driving instructor (if you were he was terrible)
You have to be able to see cyclists or other vehicles coming from behind or just in your blind spot. Looking right shows you what is next to you. It does not give you the blind spot neither does the mirror.


Knowledge can save lives, (seriously)

I never looked left, i was in the left lane, i looked right, and in my mirrors, what is so hard about reading peoples posts properly?

listermint

rolion wrote: »

I'll post dashcams shots of absolutely insane crazy bikers making a mess of rules,flying between lanes,cars and traffic,heading faster than a car stopped in traffic to maybe suicide act.

If I'll get a bike/biker between me and left or right car(s) filtering lanes like mad...you biker we'll look under my van.
No sympathy for them when I see / hear tragic accidents...i call it calculated suiciding aware bravery acts...

My advice to bikers:stay in your lane,respect the big cars and other drivers.And away from me,I'm more crazy than you...

I hope you enjoy prison, the likes of yourself should not have a license.

listermint

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I never looked left, i was in the left lane, i looked right, and in my mirrors, what is so hard about reading peoples posts properly?

I updated all that to right, see your own post.

Do you even realise the point im trying to make or do you firmly believe what you did allowed you to see the blind spot ?

jimgoose

rolion wrote: »

I'll post dashcams shots of absolutely insane crazy bikers making a mess of rules,flying between lanes,cars and traffic,heading faster than a car stopped in traffic to maybe suicide act.

If I'll get a bike/biker between me and left or right car(s) filtering lanes like mad...you biker we'll look under my van.
No sympathy for them when I see / hear tragic accidents...i call it calculated suiciding aware bravery acts...

My advice to bikers:stay in your lane,respect the big cars and other drivers.And away from me,I'm more crazy than you...

I think you might be in the wrong country. You may be a White Van Man called Fackin' Mental Gary Annat Innit from Essex. :pac:

Golfgorfield

listermint wrote: »

I updated all that to right, see your own post.

Do you even realise the point im trying to make or do you firmly believe what you did allowed you to see the blind spot ?

What i did was change lanes by checking my surroundings, indicating when i seen it was safe to change lane.

I didn't bank on an angry biker coming up behind me as i was moving into the free lane tbh.

listermint

Golfgorfield wrote: »

What i did was change lanes by checking my surroundings, indicating when i seen it was safe to change lane.

I didn't bank on an angry biker coming up behind me as i was moving into the free lane tbh.

Right, so your one of those people that cant take advice on better driving skills.
One of the problems with the Irish system.

You did not check your surroundings because you omitted the blind spot, you said that 3 times in your posts. You would not have been thought to 'just look right' to check the blind spot. It requires a sweeping shoulder turn with a glance over the shoulder at the end (that is the way in which people are thought) and completing in a mirror check whilst indicating throughout.

There was not 'angry' biker here it was just a motorist who thought they were in the right.

There is nothing to lose by gaining more skills, Nobody on the roads is a perfect driver, I am always learning every single day.

take the advice on board , check your blind spots. And move on with your life with an additional skill.

positron

listermint got it all in one. Learn and move on.

Golfgorfield

listermint wrote: »

Right, so your one of those people that cant take advice on better driving skills.
One of the problems with the Irish system.

You did not check your surroundings because you omitted the blind spot, you said that 3 times in your posts. You would not have been thought to 'just look right' to check the blind spot. It requires a sweeping shoulder turn with a glance over the shoulder at the end (that is the way in which people are thought) and completing in a mirror check whilst indicating throughout.

There was not 'angry' biker here it was just a motorist who thought they were in the right.

There is nothing to lose by gaining more skills, Nobody on the roads is a perfect driver, I am always learning every single day.

take the advice on board , check your blind spots. And move on with your life with an additional skill.

I don't agree that a "sweeping shoulder turn" at speed on a busy motorway is a wise move, at 70mph i would travel a considerable distance while looking over my shoulder scanning for blind spots, if im doing speed on a motorway i surely am entitled to ascertain that 1 there is a gap for me to move into and 2 that a car isn't approaching at speed in the right lane?

At no point can i expect a biker to appear between the lanes of traffic as i move over?

I do feel i did all the necessary things to change lanes, i simply wonder are bikers allowed to use this part of the motorway as a lane of their own?


If i drove one of the small smart cars would that entitle me to drive through the middle of 2 lanes of traffic???

Ant695

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I don't agree that a "sweeping shoulder turn" at speed on a busy motorway is a wise move, at 70mph i would travel a considerable distance while looking over my shoulder scanning for blind spots, if im doing speed on a motorway i surely am entitled to ascertain that 1 there is a gap for me to move into and 2 that a car isn't approaching at speed in the right lane?

At no point can i expect a biker to appear between the lanes of traffic as i move over?

I do feel i did all the necessary things to change lanes, i simply wonder are bikers allowed to use this part of the motorway as a lane of their own?


If i drove one of the small smart cars would that entitle me to drive through the middle of 2 lanes of traffic???

Looking over your shoulder to check blind spot is a standard part of driving if you are going to change lanes regardless.

And part of driving is always being alert and aware which is why using a phone etc... is illegal as it's a distraction. You need to be aware at any time on any road that a biker could be coming up beside you or another car just like you need to be prepared in an estate etc... that a ball could come over a wall and a child could coming running after it. A motorbike overtaking on a motorway is a standard thing to expect whether he should be doing it or not.

looksee

If the motorbike was going fast enough to go between two lanes of traffic, should he not have been to the right of the right-hand lane, ie overtaking? Ah, no you can't overtake on the outside lane, and you should not be undertaking the outside lane by driving between the traffic. So then what? Stay in lane like everyone else?

listermint

Golfgorfield wrote: »

I don't agree that a "sweeping shoulder turn" at speed on a busy motorway is a wise move, at 70mph i would travel a considerable distance while looking over my shoulder scanning for blind spots, if im doing speed on a motorway i surely am entitled to ascertain that 1 there is a gap for me to move into and 2 that a car isn't approaching at speed in the right lane?

At no point can i expect a biker to appear between the lanes of traffic as i move over?

I do feel i did all the necessary things to change lanes, i simply wonder are bikers allowed to use this part of the motorway as a lane of their own?


If i drove one of the small smart cars would that entitle me to drive through the middle of 2 lanes of traffic???

You are driving with undue care and attention, Check your blindspots. Including on a motorway

I am not trying to attribute blame here, I am trying to educate.

In short

I don't agree that a "sweeping shoulder turn" at speed on a busy motorway is a wise move, at 70mph i would travel a considerable distance while looking over my shoulder scanning for blind spots,

You are wrong 100%!

And no one suggested scanning or taking an excessive amount of time to look over your shoulder. If you can do this manoeuvre in reasonable time it appears you need to resit your test. Along with various other drivers who dont bother checking their blind spots.

Its called being aware of your surroundings.

listermint

looksee wrote: »

If the motorbike was going fast enough to go between two lanes of traffic, should he not have been to the right of the right-hand lane, ie overtaking? Ah, no you can't overtake on the outside lane, and you should not be undertaking the outside lane by driving between the traffic. So then what? Stay in lane like everyone else?

Where is it to say the motorbike was going between two lanes of traffic ?


Also your username is ironic.


What is also ironic is the number of people who think they are good drivers and point the finger everyone else on the roads.

Everyday driving is an education, There is no such thing as a driver who knows it all.

Keep on learning keep on moving.

listermint

listermint wrote: »

You are driving with undue care and attention, Check your blindspots. Including on a motorway

I am not trying to attribute blame here, I am trying to educate.
with various other drivers who dont bother checking their blind spots.

Its called being aware of your surroundings.

You are being extremly harsh on the op imo, "trying to educate him".

How do you know the biker was in his blind spot? If he was he would probably have been hit imo.

The way I see the situation is that there were two cars side by side behind the op one in the drivng lane and one in the over taking lane. The op judged he was moving faster than both and pulled out to the overtaking lane (with enough space between him and the car behind him in the overtaking lane). However during his move a biker who was hidden either behind the car in the driving lane or overtaking lane accelerated between them and and then came right up behind the op.

This is a situation that happens with bikes taking risks filtering at speed, you simply cannot see them coming and its total rubbish claiming its "poor observation" its absolutely impossible to be prepared for every single eventuality on the road, unless you drive around a 5mph all the time.

If the above is how the situation played out and I was the op the biker would have gotten more abuse and middle fingers back from me than he was giving. The majority of motorcyclists I see on the road drive in a very high risk manner, I'm not at all surprised they crash so often.

looksee

listermint wrote: »

Where is it to say the motorbike was going between two lanes of traffic ?


Also your username is ironic.


What is also ironic is the number of people who think they are good drivers and point the finger everyone else on the roads.

Everyday driving is an education, There is no such thing as a driver who knows it all.

Keep on learning keep on moving.

Maybe I saw it in the OP:

So this morning i was travelling northbound on the N7, murky so everyone had lights on.
I was in the left lane and decided to move into the overtaking lane, i looked to see there was a gap and indicated, as i moved into the gap i heard beeps and looked to my horror there was a motorbike flying up between the lanes flashing his lights and he defo had to hit the brakes not to hit me.

I don't see anything remotely ironic about my username - or even relevant.

Seth Brundle

Alessandro Curved Muzzle wrote: »

How do you know the biker was in his blind spot? If he was he would probably have been hit imo.

To be honest, we have no idea where the bike was. The OP is assuming that the biker passed between two moving cars, yet didn't see the bike.
For all we know, the bike was travelling in the overtaking lane, in front of one of the two cars.

Alessandro Curved Muzzle wrote: »

The way I see the situation is that there were two cars side by side behind the op one in the drivng lane and one in the over taking lane. The op judged he was moving faster than both and pulled out to the overtaking lane (with enough space between him and the car behind him in the overtaking lane). However during his move a biker who was hidden either behind the car in the driving lane or overtaking lane accelerated between them and and then came right up behind the op.

This is just one hypothetical scenario.
Just like the one where the spaceship dropped the bike onto the motorway.

Alessandro Curved Muzzle wrote: »

This is a situation that happens with bikes taking risks filtering at speed, you simply cannot see them coming and its total rubbish claiming its "poor observation" its absolutely impossible to be prepared for every single eventuality on the road, unless you drive around a 5mph all the time.

No but watching in your mirrors should help ensure that you know what traffic is approaching from behind.