Solving the “middle lane hoggers” problem.

_Kaiser_

blue note wrote: »

A two lane issue, but what really annoys me is when I'm in the driving lane on a motorway doing 120 and I meet some ar$ehole doing 100 in the overtaking lane. So I slow down so that I don't undertake him, but if someone has gone behind him I can't go into the overtaking behind the 100 driver. I'll leave him room to come back in in front of me, but it usually takes forever for him to do so. Eventually they usually feel the pressure of the person behind them, but it can take forever.

What are people's views on flashing the lights at people to ask them to move in? I think it makes sense, but i know some people don't like it.

The answer there is to read the road and pull into the overtaking lane on approach (and before the hypothetical other car gets there). Wait a few seconds to see if the dawdler gets the point, and if not, a flash of the lights with a flick of the right indicator normally gets the message across.

If they don't like it, then they shouldn't be dawdling in the outside lane at 20 km/h below the limit.

I'm a firm believer that if someone won't or can't drive at the limit or speed of surrounding traffic on a motorway when there's no reason not to, then they should stick to the secondary roads.

If you find yourself regularly being overtaken by 90% of other drivers, or trucks and coaches (for whom overtaking on a motorway is a far more involved affair) then you're doing it wrong!

tuxy

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

The answer there is to read the road and pull into the overtaking lane on approach (and before the hypothetical other car gets there). Wait a few seconds to see if the dawdler gets the point, and if not, a flash of the lights with a flick of the right indicator normally gets the message across.

And the same for people hogging a middle overtaking lane?
I can't use the indicator as that would imply I want to mover to the right lane.
Do you think flashing the lights would be sufficient?

Millionaire only not

tuxy wrote: »

It sounds like your doing your bit for the environment by not driving very far

Were usually 20 years behind Dublin down here south as Leo and company spend it all up there !

_Kaiser_

tuxy wrote: »

And the same for people hogging a middle overtaking lane?
I can't use the indicator as that would imply I want to mover to the right lane.
Do you think flashing the lights would be sufficient?

For middle lane dwellers, I just overtake and forget them to be honest. The only thing that would prevent that is if there was heavy traffic in lane 3 in which case you might be as well staying put anyway.

tuxy

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

For middle lane dwellers, I just overtake and forget them to be honest. The only thing that would prevent that is if there was heavy traffic in lane 3 in which case you might be as well staying put anyway.

This usually leaves the driving lane empty, should it continue to be ignored by Irish drivers?

_Kaiser_

tuxy wrote: »

This usually leaves the driving lane empty, should it continue to be ignored by Irish drivers?

The only time that the driving lane would be empty is off peak at night or early morning, in which case as I said they're not causing an obstruction anyway. One can get annoyed about it or just overtake and leave them at it.

During heavier traffic all lanes become driving lanes in reality. In those conditions I usually stay in lane 3 until approaching my exit - only one lane of traffic to worry about as opposed to both sides or merging/exit lanes.

I really don't see the problem for the reasons above.

Quantum Erasure

tuxy wrote: »

This is fair enough, the M50 is so far beyond capacity at rush hour that you can not drive like you normally should..

It wouldn't be at rush-hour that I'd be driving it, mostly, but still busy enough that there'd be constant traffic, albeit travelling at or around 100.

on a quieter motorway/ dual carraigeway I'd have no problem undertaking a lane hogger, i'd just be extra vigilant for any sign they'd pull out infront of me

s7ryf3925pivug

https://www.theaa.ie/blog/how-to-drive-on-a-motorway/

The middle lane isn't for overtaking only. You can drive in it if the leftmost lane is full. It can be used as an overflow lane for the driving lane.

pablo128

Quantum Erasure wrote: »

It wouldn't be at rush-hour that I'd be driving it, mostly, but still busy enough that there'd be constant traffic, albeit travelling at or around 100.

on a quieter motorway/ dual carraigeway I'd have no problem undertaking a lane hogger, i'd just be extra vigilant for any sign they'd pull out infront of me

If they pull into your lane on top of you they are 100% at fault. It's up to the person changing lane to ensure they do it safely. Get a dash cam if you are concerned they would try to blame you.

sameoldname

tuxy wrote: »

This usually leaves the driving lane empty, should it continue to be ignored by Irish drivers?

I tend to find that anything related to driving in this country just leads you to think yourself a crazy person for having the audacity to even attempt to use the roads correctly. I'm genuinely amazed that our road fatalities are as low as they are considering that 50% of drivers seem to have no idea what they're doing and the rest of us sure as hell can't figure it out either.

twowheelsonly

anacc wrote: »

Just last week I got stuck behind a traffic corps car cruising along at 80kph in the middle lane of the N40 while the left lane was empty and the right lane was held up by someone going about 1kph faster than the cop car. Very frustrating when the people who are supposed to police the road don't even know the rules of the road.

95%+ of that road is only two lane ?? Anywhere there's a third lane on that road is leading to a slip road - Bloomfield, Magic Roundabout, Bishopstown ?

The problem with the three lane roads, in particular those in urban areas, is that the junctions and slip roads are fairly close together in most places. I've tried staying on the left on the M50 , M7/M8 but between slow drivers (as in - too slow!!) and drivers cutting in from the too many junctions and slip roads and across the motorway on to the slip road, from one end of the M50 to the other could easily involve 40 or 50 overtaking manoeuvres.
It's fine when the roads are quiet but any volume of traffic at all and it's very frustrating.

_Kaiser_

pablo128 wrote: »

If they pull into your lane on top of you they are 100% at fault. It's up to the person changing lane to ensure they do it safely. Get a dash cam if you are concerned they would try to blame you.

That's all well and good but when you're potentially injured or worse, or dealing with a badly damaged or written off car and the subsequent fun with insurers and valuations, being in the right is little comfort.

It's why I never undertake unless absolutely unavoidable (like being behind a piece of shyte silver boy racer bora I encountered last week that was pumping out enough black smoke that half the car was covered as well as everyone else's).

tuxy

What strategy was employed to try to ensure that all 3 lanes of the extended M7 would be used?
It has failed miserably.
I assume they did expect drivers would use all lanes before they decided to take on the project?

Guy:Incognito

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

The only time that the driving lane would be empty is off peak at night or early morning, in which case as I said they're not causing an obstruction anyway. One can get annoyed about it or just overtake and leave them at it.

During heavier traffic all lanes become driving lanes in reality. In those conditions I usually stay in lane 3 until approaching my exit - only one lane of traffic to worry about as opposed to both sides or merging/exit lanes.

I really don't see the problem for the reasons above.

The problem is you now got you and many others now trying to get across 2 lanes to the exit, while a load of other eejits are merging and trying to get across the driving lanes to the middle or outside lane as fast as they can, all the while no one is leaving gaps for cars to merge ,result is the whole thing slows down.

Peoples inability to merge is the issue as much as anything else. The naas road has nothing to stop traffic pretty much till you drive off the edge of the country, yet it backs up because of bad driving and on to the m50. All the cars coming off the m50 insist on stopping to merge right where the hatch Mark's end , despite there being a clear lane for them to drive in to and use to merge. Cars coming off the naas road to go to the bridge at the Lucas do the same. Idiots the lot of them.

This is the same at each junction on the m50, everyone wants to merge on or off the road in the 50m right as the hatch Mark's end, blocking the mainline and the slip back up, leaving a lovely big slip road empty , creating a concertina on the road that will clear after the junction. Again, idiots.

_Kaiser_

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

The problem is you now got you and many others now trying to get across 2 lanes to the exit, while a load of other eejits are merging and trying to get across the driving lanes to the middle or outside lane as fast as they can, all the while no one is leaving gaps for cars to merge ,result is the whole thing slows down.

Peoples inability to merge is the issue as much as anything else. The naas road has nothing to stop traffic pretty much till you drive off the edge of the country, yet it backs up because of bad driving and on to the m50. All the cars coming off the m50 insist on stopping to merge right where the hatch Mark's end , despite there being a clear lane for them to drive in to and use to merge. Cars coming off the naas road to go to the bridge at the Lucas do the same. Idiots the lot of them.

Again, unless it's heavy or stop/start traffic where things are moving slower anyway there's not a problem.

Just watch what's going on around you, signal in good time, and don't leave it till the last minute to get into the lane you want and there's no issue.

I'm not being smart with the above. I do over 1000km a week of mostly motorway driving and it's really not that hard if you learn to read the traffic and plan your manoeuvre in advance of doing anything.

tom1ie

Sadb wrote: »

The problem with middle lane driving is that you are often forced to “undertake”. It happens to me almost every single time I drive on a road near me. 3 lanes so I’m driving in the left lane at 100km, some eejit in the middle lane driving at 80km (because they are always driving slower- every- single- time). What do I do? Slow down and drive at 75km so I don’t undertake them? Move out across 2 lanes of traffic to overtake them even though they are in the wrong lane anyway?
How do people think it’s acceptable?

This right here is the problem.
The thing is I don’t think the “edgit” in the middle lane doing 80kph, has any idea he/she is in the wrong.
That’s why I’m putting forward the idea of actually telling them they are in the wrong by putting the paint on the tarmac, or to a lesser extent the use of overhead gantrys.

The J Stands for Jay

Alun wrote: »

The one drives the other though, i.e. a lot of people avoid lane 1 precisely because most drivers don't have a frigging clue as to how to merge properly so end up just barging on at a snail's pace under the mistaken impression that traffic on the mainline has to give way to them.

They believe that the indicator gives right of way. That's why they pull into the side of your car despite the lane being empty behind you.

tom1ie

Deleted User wrote: »

This x100000000000
The time, effort, inconvenience and money that went into expanding M7 to a 3 lane motorway, and only 2 lanes are ever used. It’s mind boggling the culture we have here. You’re in the minority if you use the driving lane.

To legally overtake you have to do 4 lane changes. Why did they bother expanding it. At least expand it and include signs that say keep left

Yes plus paint on the road. I find people pay more attention to a message on the road than road signs.

tom1ie

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

That would be the reality of how the lane is used, as well as by traffic dawdling at 20+ km/h lower than surrounding traffic/the limit for no reason.

Add in merges and exits within close proximity on the M50 and cars constantly joining and leaving the road.

Result : unless you want to be constantly changing lanes, it's easier and safer to just continue at a constant speed matching the other traffic in the outer lanes.

Me, unless it's quiet (in which case it really makes no difference anyway) I cruise between lanes 3 and 2 on the M50/7 and avoid the situation entirely. I don't lane weave, I don't change lanes without looking and indicating first, I watch the surrounding traffic, and I don't dawdle.

Much easier and less stressful.

So you break the rules of the road.
Drive on the left, is the overriding rule.
Lane 2 and 3 are overtaking lanes.
Traffic merging onto the motorway must match their speed with the speed of traffic on the motorway, not the other way around.

beauf

tom1ie wrote: »

This right here is the problem.
The thing is I don’t think the “edgit” in the middle lane doing 80kph, has any idea he/she is in the wrong.
That’s why I’m putting forward the idea of actually telling them they are in the wrong by putting the paint on the tarmac, or to a lesser extent the use ofoverhead gantrys.

The standard of driving is brutal in this country. All day long you see bad driving. Why you cherry pick this?

One of the least annoying things is middle lane hoggers. You can simply overtake them. End of.

tom1ie

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Has landmines been suggested?

If not, I suggest landmines.

On the M50, 90% of the time I'll be going faster than the middle lane, without breaking the speed limit.

In what lane?

beauf

tom1ie wrote: »

In what lane?

In any lane lol

tom1ie

ldeayton wrote: »

I drive in the UK where most of the motorways are 3 lane, and people hogging the middle lane effectively reduces the motorway to 2 lanes and causes significant bottlenecks in the flow of traffic. If the left lane is empty drive in it and particularly if a driver wishes to drive slower than the flow of traffic they should move over. Motorways can be disconcerting for many drivers and I appreciate that constantly over taking slow trucks is annoying but that doesn’t warrant the right to drive in the middle lane. Unlike the US we can only overtake to the right and not the kerbside, save for limited circumstances.

The only solution is Highway Police but they can’t be monitoring all drivers at all times. Motorway driving needs to be a compulsory part of the driving test or learner syllabus.

Also we should let people know they are in the wrong by telling them via paint on the tarmac.

tom1ie

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

The only time that the driving lane would be empty is off peak at night or early morning, in which case as I said they're not causing an obstruction anyway. One can get annoyed about it or just overtake and leave them at it.

During heavier traffic all lanes become driving lanes in reality. In those conditions I usually stay in lane 3 until approaching my exit - only one lane of traffic to worry about as opposed to both sides or merging/exit lanes.

I really don't see the problem for the reasons above.

Not so on the n7/m7 where people drive at slow pace in the middle lane and the driving lane is left empty.
It’s not just the m50 we are talking about here.

Sleeper12

tom1ie wrote:

So as the title of this thread suggests I’m putting forward an idea to maybe help with the problem of people driving in the middle lane of a 3 lane motorway when there is no traffic in the left hand driving lane of that motorway. Paint road markings on the middle lane and the outside lane that say “please merge into lane 1 for driving lane. Overtaking lane only.†I’m sure this could be shortened. It should be accompanied by a merge arrow. Would this work? We have a big problem with people not even knowing they are driving incorrectly on 3 lane motorway, so why don’t we tell them when they are on the actual motorway by using the paint coupled with overhead gantrys. Please discuss and tell me why it’s a terrible idea and destined not to work

I don't venture too far out of Dublin but I do a lot of driving for work. I don't see this as a huge problem. I don't imagine we have too many three lane motorways outside of Dublin.

beauf

tom1ie wrote: »

Also we should let people know they are in the wrong by telling them via paint on the tarmac.

Just put an ad on TV and/or Netflix ...

beauf

tom1ie wrote: »

Not so on the n7/m7 where people drive at slow pace in the middle lane and the driving lane is left empty.
It’s not just the m50 we are talking about here.

Why not just overtake them?

Maybe you're not allowed in the overtaking lane is that the issue?

blackbox

People complain about changing lanes, but it is the people who don't change lanes are the problem?
How hard is it?
Mirror, indicate, mirror, manoeuvre.
Some vehicles have to go slower - e.g. vehicles with trailers limited to 80.
Just overtake them - it's not that hard.

Unless, of course, you're using your phone or using the mirror to do your make up.

blue note

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

The answer there is to read the road and pull into the overtaking lane on approach (and before the hypothetical other car gets there). Wait a few seconds to see if the dawdler gets the point, and if not, a flash of the lights with a flick of the right indicator normally gets the message across.

If they don't like it, then they shouldn't be dawdling in the outside lane at 20 km/h below the limit.

I'm a firm believer that if someone won't or can't drive at the limit or speed of surrounding traffic on a motorway when there's no reason not to, then they should stick to the secondary roads.

If you find yourself regularly being overtaken by 90% of other drivers, or trucks and coaches (for whom overtaking on a motorway is a far more involved affair) then you're doing it wrong!

I'll obviously go into the overtaking lane early if there's room, but there's often someone speeding in it and I can't very well pull out in front of them.

stoneill

A lot of you should learn the subtle difference between overtaking and passing.