Rules of the road interpretation - bus lane end / merging.

Popoutman

I have a question that is not specifically defined in the RotR as far as I can gather.
In this location here (https://goo.gl/maps/fmPZACFcNTM2) on the old Dublin Road inbound in Castletroy, there exists a 24hr/7day bus lane inbound, that comes up to a traffic light junction where the bus lane ends and the inbound traffic lane diverges into the same space.

In rush hour traffic times, I have seen motorists pull into the bus lane when traffic is stationary in the left lane at the lights, and the knock on effect can mean that there are over a hundred cars in the permanent bus lane back to behind here with a clear main traffic lane up to the lane divergence.

My question is: Is the correct driving behaviour to maintain position within the non-buslane inbound traffic lane until the split in the traffic lanes just prior to the traffic lights, or is it considered correct to enter the bus lane in anticipation of the future lane split?

Then, who has the actual right of way at that lane split at the end of the bus lane?

1. Is it traffic that has maintained the correct lane position until the split then taking the left lane with a correct indicator?
2. Is it any legitimate bus lane traffic such as a bus or marked taxi in use as an SPSV that has the right of way to enter the left lane of the split?
3. Is it any traffic that has incorrectly entered the bus lane?

My interpretation is that it is traffic coming from the main non-buslane traffic lane that would have the right of way through the lane divergence prior to the traffic lights. To my reading, any traffic that is not a bus or taxi while in the permanent bus lane cannot be considered to be in the flow of traffic, ans as such cannot be considered to have any right of way through that lane divergence. I would also consider that legitimate traffic in the bus lane would be considered to be leaving a bus lans and re-entering the normal traffic lane, ans as such would have to give way to the traffic coming from their right in the main traffic lane. It would be better to have the bus lane traffic with right of way there, but it's not clearly marked as such on the road.

Opinions and thoughts please.

(I know that the bus lane is defined under "S.I. No. 332/2012 - Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2012" , and that the road markings are canon in the situation, it's just a little bit ambiguous to me)

The broken line means Yield. At the end of the bus lane merging traffics from the right have priority

grogi

Popoutman wrote: »

I have a question that is not specifically defined in the RotR as far as I can gather.
In this location here (https://goo.gl/maps/fmPZACFcNTM2) on the old Dublin Road inbound in Castletroy, there exists a 24hr/7day bus lane inbound, that comes up to a traffic light junction where the bus lane ends and the inbound traffic lane diverges into the same space.

In rush hour traffic times, I have seen motorists pull into the bus lane when traffic is stationary in the left lane at the lights, and the knock on effect can mean that there are over a hundred cars in the permanent bus lane back to behind here with a clear main traffic lane up to the lane divergence.

My question is: Is the correct driving behaviour to maintain position within the non-buslane inbound traffic lane until the split in the traffic lanes just prior to the traffic lights, or is it considered correct to enter the bus lane in anticipation of the future lane split?

If the bus lane is active, you cannot enter it. Unless you are doing a turn and need to cross it. But remember to give way to the traffic in the bus lane.

Popoutman wrote: »

Then, who has the actual right of way at that lane split at the end of the bus lane?

1. Is it traffic that has maintained the correct lane position until the split then taking the left lane with a correct indicator?
2. Is it any legitimate bus lane traffic such as a bus or marked taxi in use as an SPSV that has the right of way to enter the left lane of the split?
3. Is it any traffic that has incorrectly entered the bus lane?

Gate number 1. But it is common sense to let the "legal" vehicles in the bus lane in.

Isambard

if the bus lane is live then traffic should stick ot the right lane. If it isn't, then the left lane may be used, but I can't see why you couldn't continue to use the right lane and the left lane would have to YIELD at the dashed line. (zip merge recomended though

Popoutman

In this situation, the bus lane is permanently live - there is no time at which ordinary traffic can use that portion of the road. It's Monday 00:00 through Sunday 23:59.

Agreed as well that it makes sense to let the legitimate bus lane traffic into the main lane, especially when there is another permanently-live bus lane after the traffic lights, so there is no loss to anyone letting a taxi or bus through that junction.

I would really love to see a Garda some morning at 8.30 to 9.00, handing out points and fines like sweeties to cars that abuse the bus lane at this point and time. The Garda could easily just walk up along the footpath taking the registrations and dealing with the paperwork later on..

carbonceiling

Popoutman wrote: »

I would really love to see a Garda some morning at 8.30 to 9.00, handing out points and fines like sweeties to cars that abuse the bus lane at this point and time. The Garda could easily just walk up along the footpath taking the registrations and dealing with the paperwork later on..

I saw the Gardai do exactly that a few months ago. I didn't see any cars in the bus lane for a few days after that, but the effect was short-lived.

pm1977x

Interesting, there's a similar junction in Deansgrange

https://www.google.ie/maps/@53.2779467,-6.1647957,3a,75y,26.12h,68.02t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1skkKBzWlmm7uRU6yyxQyO-A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

where cars pile into the end of the bus lane to go straight or left to avoid being stuck behind right turning traffic at the lights ahead, causes major tailbacks into the bus lane as anyone with 'local knowledge' knows to avoid the right lane. I've never seen cops there or cars in bus lane yielding at the merge point.