Aggression towards drivers on motorways and dual carriageways

JizzBeans

Why do certain types of driver think they can beep or flash you out of a lane? On several occasions while driving on said roads, I have encountered agressive drivers who will beep, flash and tailgate until other drivers move out of their way to so they can speed on.

I never move for them as it is obnoxious behaviour and don't want to enable it further. Also on these occasions I was driving the limit so there was no need for me to pull in.

Its generally the same types behaving like this, males, mostly 30's and up, old-ish ice cars.

Does anybody have to deal with this on a regular basis? How do you deal with it? Can you realistically report this type of behaviour?

freddieot

I never move over for aggressive drivers that flash or tailgate me closely either. Normally if I'm in the outside lane, I'm timing my chance to move over to the left anyway after passing slower traffic on the left. I don't let others interfere with my driving decisions.

However, that also means, not continuing to hog the OVERTAKING lane out of spite, and I see a lot doing that as well.

galvo_clare

You shouldn’t be driving in the outside lane if not overtaking. Pull in to the left and drive on.
Happened today with a gobshite hogging the outside lane of a motorway. Wouldn’t move in even after three cars undertook him.
He was driving an ICE so nothing to do with EVs. Just drive on the left as you’re supposed to.

Cdemess

Doesn’t matter what car you drive, some people will still do that.

marathon2022

Stay in the correct lane and you won't be beeped or flashed. I drive an EV and never get flashed

freddieot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567127#Comment_122567127

Yes, Dangerous Driving is always a great solution….

PixelCrafter

You're not supposed to be driving in the overtaking lane.

You over take, you move back in.

In general Irish drivers are extremely tolerant of people hanging in the overtaking lane. Try doing that in the UK or especially in Germany, and you'll be blasted out of it and probably caught on camera and pulled over for driving in the overtaking lane.

Irish drivers just have no concept of how to use motorways or multilane roads. You quite regularly encounter people toddling along at about 100 in the overtaking lane on an empty motorway.

It's nothing to do with EV vs ICE, it's just bad driving.

tom1ie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058367074/aggression-towards-ev-drivers-on-motorways-and-dual-carriageways

Why weren’t you driving in the left hand lane?
Were you overtaking another car?

bmc58

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567127#Comment_122567127

Do you even drive?

JizzBeans

I was driving the limit so overtaking doesn't apply. Anything else is speeding

Larbre34

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058367074/aggression-towards-ev-drivers-on-motorways-and-dual-carriageways

Get the **** out of the overtaking lane.

It is not YOUR job to police other driver's speed/conduct etc etc.

This is nothing to do with EVs or anything else, its just driving.

Motorway driving standards in this Country are poor enough without the likes of you taking the law onto themselves, and contributing to the conditions in which collisions are more likely to occur.

Behaviour like this would get you arrested in Germany or Italy, and rightly so. They have absolutely zero tolerance for lane hogging and road vigilantism. And rightly so.

galvo_clare

That’s nothing to do with you. That’s the job of the Gardaí.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567181#Comment_122567181

You're not meant to stay in the right lane. You were the one at fault.

Whether people go over the speed limit or not is none of your business. You're not the police.

csirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567181#Comment_122567181

But the Rules of the Road do apply. You cant drive in that lane unless you are overtaking.

tom1ie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567181#Comment_122567181

what lane were you in?

JizzBeans

I was driving the limit, overtaking doesn't apply in that situation. There's nowhere else for agressive drivers to go at the limit. I'm referring specifically to the behaviour of car behind

tom1ie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567218#Comment_122567218

You were in the wrong.
Your meant to drive in the LHL.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567218#Comment_122567218

You were in the wrong lane.

If you were in the correct lane none of this would have happened.

Learn to drive correctly.

JizzBeans

This is a contradiction🤷‍♂️ if someone speeds, it's nobody's business. But if some stays in aspecific lane it's an issue???

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567233#Comment_122567233

You're the one on here complaining about other drivers when you're driving incorrectly.

Pot calling the kettle black.

JizzBeans

Incorrectly how?

tom1ie

just stay out of the RHL except when overtaking and there’ll be no issue.
Drive in the LHL.
I mean that’s fairly basic.

allinthehead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567218#Comment_122567218

If you're driving in the right hand lane and are not overtaking a vehicle in the left hand lane, then you're the one in the wrong regardless of the speed you're doing.

It doesn't excuse dangerous, aggressive behaviour though.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567253#Comment_122567253

The right hand lane is not for driving in. It's for overtaking.

You drive in it, which is incorrect.

We know you do this because speeders come up behind you aggressively and you won't move out of the lane you're not meant to be in in the first place.

It's pretty basic stuff.

PixelCrafter

The single biggest danger on a motorway is cars driving too close, tailgating and bunching up traffic.

The reason they're much, much safer roads than any other type is because they have an ability to spread traffic out.

You opting to decide you're a self-appointed traffic cop is causing a hazard on a fast moving road. Cars will build behind you and there's a risk of a pile up that is otherwise extremely unlikely.

Likewise that suggestion of brake checking up further up the thread is an utterly moronic thing to do on a motorway. At 120km/h slamming on could cause a serious accident.

Only two things you need to do on a motorway are:

1. Keep in the left lane unless you're overtaking
2. Keep a comfortable distance between you and the cars ahead of you, which means overtaking when appropriate and not bunching up. Ideally, if your car has it, use adaptive cruise control. It will maintain a nice distance.

galvo_clare

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567218#Comment_122567218

I’m referring specifically to your car. You were in the wrong and in the wrong lane. Your problem, nobody else’s.

JizzBeans

Yes, I was passing the slower traffic in the LHL and adhering to the speed limit. I'm not sure you have a point. S

pah

You have no idea why somebody might need to overtake you and potentially break the speed limit. Get out of the way. If you are not overtaking another car then move out of the overtaking lane.

Run a poll on this and 95% of people will agree with me. The other 5% will be just as wrong as you.

PixelCrafter

There are a few things that baffle me about motorway driving in Ireland and they keep coming up.

1. The overtaking lane hogging. A lot to the time it's just like they're oblivious to what the purpose of the lane is.
2. Inability to merge. People seem to drive out into motorway traffic as if it were a T-junction and don't match their speed to the traffic, which must be actually quite a scary way of driving. If you match the speed it's rather comfortable and easy. If you don't you're going to be trying to find a gap in fast moving whizzing traffic.
3. Total lack of any notion how 3-lane roads work. They all just go in the middle lane and ignore lane 1 as if it's not there, significantly reducing the capacity of the motorway / dual carriage way and they're only ever in places that have significant traffic issues, so it renders the whole project pointless.

JizzBeans

There is an unbelievable obsession with "overtaking" in these comments. There is a little thing call a speed limit don't they know?

yoke

This has absolutely nothing to do with EVs and everything to do with your **** driving.

I drive both EVs and ICE vehicles and this never happens to me.

Rules of the road might not be law (aren’t they?), but if you break them you can expect other drivers to get angry and flash/beep the **** out of you, and rightfully so.

If you cut in front of someone at a roundabout and they beeped you, would you also be as surprised?

As a side point, are you even sure you’re dead on the speed limit at all times? Car speedometers are notoriously inaccurate.

Anyway - stick to the left lane in future please if you’re not overtaking, and you’ll be fine 😀

JizzBeans

Yeah it's a bizarre argument isn't it?completely contradictory, speeding okay but driving in the RHL causes outrage. Unfortunately there will always be those who sit on the lower end of the IQ distribution curve

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567338#Comment_122567338

Nobody said speeding is okay. If the speeder were here, we'd be telling him he's wrong for speeding.

He's not, but we do have someone who doesn't know how to use lanes correctly.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567287#Comment_122567287

Nobody said that. Read the thread correctly.

Sarn

No need to put yourself down. Once you’ve completed your overtaking manoeuvre move back to the left and there shouldn’t be an issue.
If you’re in the middle of an overtaking manoeuvre and someone starts flashing and beeping, ignore them (unless they’re gardai).

allinthehead

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567338#Comment_122567338

I once had to get my son to the hospital in an emergency, you have no idea, you're not the police and nobody here is saying it's okay to speed. Get out of the way.

JizzBeans

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567363#Comment_122567363

How am i not using the lane correctly? I was overtaking cars driving less than the limit but obeying the speed limit. Still not seeing you point, if I'm driving the limit then there's no issue. Speeding is illegal

blingrhino

This must be trolling.OP cant really be serious

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567383#Comment_122567383

I find it hard to believe that the exact moment you are 'overtaking' cars in the left lane is the exact moment 'speeders' start being aggressive to you for driving your EV in the right lane.

The only reason speeders are aggressive to people in the right lane is because they're not using it correctly by moving out of it after they've completed their overtake manoeuvre.

The speeders are wrong for speeding. And you are wrong for staying in their way in the right lane.

None of you know how to drive, apparently.

freddieot

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567338#Comment_122567338

The only one I can see so far that has actually suggested breaking the rules is okay is you, (except one idiot that suggests jamming on brakes is a perfect solution).

I see people similar to the OP all the time. 118 or less in the overtaking lane, not another car in sight but refusing to move over. If its raining of course they slow down to 100, (for 'everyone's safety') but keep that overtaking lane blocked as they believe it's their personal space, all the way to wherever they're going.

Not made with hands

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567378#Comment_122567378

Call an ambulance.

JizzBeans

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567403#Comment_122567403

What rule did I suggest breaking? And part of driving the limit did you not catch?

Ezeoul

Anyone else have déjà vu here?

I swear I've read this exact same thread before…

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567413#Comment_122567413

Man dies from asthma attack waiting for an ambulance

https://www.thejournal.ie/life-and-death-ambulance-delays-6463798-Aug2024/#:~:text=THE%20MORNING%20LEAD-,Father%2Dof%2Dthree%20dies%20from%20suspected%20asthma%20attack%20during%20two,response%20system%2C%20Noteworthy%20can%20reveal.

Larbre34

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567218#Comment_122567218

Find the Christmas Cracker you got your driving licence in.

Bring it, and the licence itself back to an NDLS office, ask to speak to someone, then hand them both items with a hand written note, apologising and explaining that you had no idea what you were thinking going anywhere near the road.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567414#Comment_122567414

Incorrectly staying in the overtaking lane.

freshpopcorn

Looks like Bryn has upgraded the Picasso !

sonic85

I've done a lot of driving on dual carriageways and motorways over the last couple of years and the amount of drivers that have no problem sitting in the overtaking lane (with nothing in the left hand lane) at 110kmph or even 100kmph is insane. And they will just sit there even with a car behind them. I absolutely hate undertaking but sometimes you just have no choice. These people are either the height of ignorant or just genuinely can't drive

pah

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567413#Comment_122567413

Wow that's an ignorant comment. I'll probably get a ban for this but **** you and **** your ambulance. If I need to get my child to hospital in an emergency and I ca't rely on an ambulance then I'll break every speed limit there is on the way and you better get the **** out of my way.

Jim_Hodge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122567110#Comment_122567110

This has to be wind up. You're advocating extremely dangerous behaviour.

JizzBeans

I'd like to hear from people who have had to experience these aggressive drivers. All the "get out of the way" folk have said their bit🙄