Dual-carriageway exits

elbyrneo

On a dual carraigeway where either a hard shoulder or a bus lane turns into an exit off the motorway, noted by diagonal white lines at the point of merging, what do people do when the stretch of the exit is full of slow moving traffic, and cars have instead started building up behind the point of merge in either the hard shoulder or the bus lane....

Are the rules of the road that you should indicate and only enter after the merge point? At which point you will likely have to stop, have cars coming up behind you in the driving lane, as you wait for someone to let you in.

Or does common sense apply and should you be a lemming and join the queue in the hard shoulder/bus lane so you are not a sitting duck stopped in the driving lane of a dual-carriageway?

elbyrneo

elbyrneo wrote: »

On a dual carraigeway where either a hard shoulder or a bus lane turns into an exit off the motorway, noted by diagonal white lines at the point of merging, what do people do when the stretch of the exit is full of slow moving traffic, and cars have instead started building up behind the point of merge in either the hard shoulder or the bus lane....

Are the rules of the road that you should indicate and only enter after the merge point? At which point you will likely have to stop, have cars coming up behind you in the driving lane, as you wait for someone to let you in.

Or does common sense apply and should you be a lemming and join the queue in the hard shoulder/bus lane so you are not a sitting duck stopped in the driving lane of a dual-carriageway?

Find an alternative means of transport, problem solved

Mint Sauce

You slow down/ speed up as appropiate to make the merge, oh and of of course indicate. If you are a BMW or Audi driver, thats usally the stalk left of the steering wheel.

Stanford

Mint Sauce wrote: »

You slow down/ speed up as appropiate to make the merge, oh and of of course indicate. If you are a BMW or Audi driver, thats usally the stalk left of the steering wheel.

So thats what this is for!!!

Wheety

I become a sheep and just join the queue. You'll find if you wait until the broken white line, a lot of drivers won't let you in as you're 'skipping the queue'.

bmc58

elbyrneo wrote: »

On a dual carraigeway where either a hard shoulder or a bus lane turns into an exit off the motorway, noted by diagonal white lines at the point of merging, what do people do when the stretch of the exit is full of slow moving traffic, and cars have instead started building up behind the point of merge in either the hard shoulder or the bus lane....

Are the rules of the road that you should indicate and only enter after the merge point? At which point you will likely have to stop, have cars coming up behind you in the driving lane, as you wait for someone to let you in.

Or does common sense apply and should you be a lemming and join the queue in the hard shoulder/bus lane so you are not a sitting duck stopped in the driving lane of a dual-carriageway?

Get in line like everyone and wait your turn to exit.Lemming like.

SeanW

Deleted User wrote: »

Find an alternative means of transport, problem solved

Riiiiight. It's really that simple :rolleyes:

Del2005

Mint Sauce wrote: »

You slow down/ speed up as appropiate to make the merge, oh and of of course indicate. If you are a BMW or Audi driver, thats usally the stalk left of the steering wheel.

Thing is when everyone else is breaking the law they get annoyed letting people who didn't enter the lane they aren't supposed to be in.

OP it's a no win situation. The law is clear that you are supposed to wait in the driving lane to enter at the broken line. What happens in the real world is different.

pigtown

I'd er on the side of the law
https://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/gardai-fine-21-drivers-limerick-11281458
https://twitter.com/gardatraffic/status/991632966584594432

hardCopy

Del2005 wrote: »

Thing is when everyone else is breaking the law they get annoyed letting people who didn't enter the lane they aren't supposed to be in.

OP it's a no win situation. The law is clear that you are supposed to wait in the driving lane to enter at the broken line. What happens in the real world is different.

The Swords Road at Whitehall Church inbound now has bollards up to the diagonal line to stop (discourage) people from joining the bus lane early. I still see several people brazen enough to just join the bus lane before the bollards start every time I pass through.
Maybe we need bus lane cameras.