Joining a road

[Racing roadkill]

[QUOTE 4703050, member: 9609"]yes there is - when you are overtaking someone you are going faster than they are, the second and third lanes on a motorway are for driving faster in.[/QUOTE]
I do hope you're joking.

http://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/motorways---lane-discipline-264-to-266.html

Number 5.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

[QUOTE 4703050, member: 9609"]yes there is - when you are overtaking someone you are going faster than they are,[/QUOTE]

And what are you supposed to do once your overtake is completed?

 

[glasgowcyclist]

[QUOTE 4703109, member: 9609"]keep it flat to the mat[/QUOTE]

As someone said recently... [QUOTE 4703100, member: 9609"]These muppets should have an instant ban[/QUOTE]

 

[mjr]

[QUOTE 4702839, member: 76"]Yes it's this one.

MiniUser76 is learning to drive, he asked me how he should indicate here. I suggested that if he was going to indicate it should be right, as he is joining a road. His instructor said don't indicate as his intention would be obvious, but that he should indicate when joining a motorway or dual carriageway, in which situation I think his intention is even more obvious [/QUOTE]
I agree with the instructor although that's a rubbish junction onto a rubbish railway-stealing bit of road, so any indication wouldn't surprise me.

On most slip roads, you're crossing a lane-like marking, so I'd indicate right. I don't think we have any like US interstates, where the slip road is marked as merging with the edgemost lane and no signal is needed, do we?

 

[Dirk]

[QUOTE 4703100, member: 9609"]what are you doing when you are overtaking another vehicle, or it is obvious you are about to overtake other vehicle. ?

And even more dangerous than the tit who drives slower in a faster lane is the farkwit who has read 'number 5' misinterpreted it and then keeps swerving all over the place - look at me I'm a good driver I keep going from lane 1 to lane 3 and back to lane 1 then out again to 3 all within quarter of a mile. These muppets should have an instant ban[/QUOTE]
A lot of people don't seem to understand the first rule of the road.

 

[Drago]

Indicating when going a motorway is usually sensible, providing as it does a visual marker to the half asleep and myopic drivers already on the motorway and belting down it at illegal speeds.

However, join the motorway at 3am, you've done your obs drills, there's no one in sight, don't indicate. It'd be a pointless thing to do. Problem is, at 3am most drivers would lazily indicate instead of looking properly.

 

[mjr]

However, join the motorway at 3am, you've done your obs drills, there's no one in sight, don't indicate. It'd be a pointless thing to do.

Only pointless to indicate out of slip roads if you believe both that you're infallible and that everyone else is obeying the laws and correctly lit and so on... and I think there's an argument that anyone believing both of those should have their driving licence revoked!

 

[Drago]

The drills are infallible if you've done them properly. Its far safer that doing what most drivers do, indicate without any thought and without any real attempt to look. Indicators are a poor substitution for looking.

It's a significant foundation of every single advanced road driving system, and I did it professionally for four years. In the example I cite above, if a driver can't see a car on an otherwise empty motorway you probably shouldn't be on the road at all, irrespective of the lighting equipment fitted to their car.

And in daylight we've all seen them. They come down the slip road, make no attempt to match their speed with the traffic flow, steadily start to run out of slip road and have to brake, making their predicament even worse as their relative velocity drops even further. Indicators do these drivers zero favours - proper obs, anticipation and roadcraft is what they lack, not orange flashing lights.

 

[mjr]

The drills are infallible if you've done them properly.

The drills may be infallible. The drivers ain't.

Its far safer that doing what most drivers do, indicate without any thought and without any real attempt to look.

Yes but is there reliable evidence that most indicate but don't look?

Indicators are a poor substitution for looking.

It's a significant foundation of every single advanced road driving system, and I did it professionally for four years.

And as a professional, you should know it's irresponsible to advocate not indicating to ordinary drivers who haven't taken such courses. They'll look but fail to see and then the lack of indication will give any approaching drivers less warning that they're about to do something very foolish.

 

[mjr]

[QUOTE 4703161, member: 9609"]can fail your hgv for over indicating, and a police course that I done the instructor spoke against using indicators when there was not good reason (although i thought he was a bit ott on that one)[/QUOTE]
Isn't that an urban myth? It certainly seems to be for the ordinary driving test, as it doesn't appear in the cat B standard and several "tips" websites say that it isn't generally a failure, but there are some situations where you shouldn't indicate because you're stopped and have time to check until you're very confident no-one else is around.

I suppose an examiner could take safety indication as evidence of insufficient observation but if that was the only thing I failed on, I'd probably appeal, assuming that test HGVs these days have cab cameras and it wouldn't only be my word against the examiner's.

[QUOTE 4703161, member: 9609"]I always think over indicating is a sign of incompetence[/QUOTE]
I feel it's more an acceptance that if we've become incompetent, we're probably not going to be the first one to notice it!

I always think not indicating is a sign of incompetence, maybe arising from an inability to work the required controls in time (possibly due to taking a junction at a dangerously high speed), a contempt for non-motorised users - or ownership of a Panzerwagen which apparently don't have functioning indicator controls but seem to have multiple ones wired up to flash the headlights.

[QUOTE 4703161, member: 9609"] - for instance the one who will overtake you when you are on the bike, then indicate to come back in - what's that all about? check mirrors, check mobile phone, wobble a bit, check mirrors again, indicate, count to 10 then move left (or swerve out of way of on coming wagon)[/QUOTE]
Apart from the check phone and wobble, it's up to them IMO. As long as they give me five feet, I don't care.

 

[ufkacbln]

[QUOTE 4703063, member: 76"]The correct junction is in post number 3. 2 Give Ways, no hatched area for turning left.[/QUOTE]

Thanks

 

[ufkacbln]

 

[Racing roadkill]

[QUOTE 4703100, member: 9609"]what are you doing when you are overtaking another vehicle, or it is obvious you are about to overtake other vehicle. ?

And even more dangerous than the tit who drives slower in a faster lane is the farkwit who has read 'number 5' misinterpreted it and then keeps swerving all over the place - look at me I'm a good driver I keep going from lane 1 to lane 3 and back to lane 1 then out again to 3 all within quarter of a mile. These muppets should have an instant ban[/QUOTE]

 

[DaveReading]

While I always do as I was taught (a long time ago) and indicate when joining a motorway or DC, I have no problem with those who don't.

Regardless of indicators, some of my worst encounters have been on the A3 where the A309 from Esher joins just before the Hook underpass.

Apparently maintaining a steady 45mph to 50mph (the limit there) with a 50m gap in front of and behind you still isn't giving enough room to allow drivers to join without broadsiding you.

 

[Mr Celine]

However, join the motorway at 3am, you've done your obs drills, there's no one in sight, don't indicate. It'd be a pointless thing to do. Problem is, at 3am most drivers would lazily indicate instead of looking properly.

Only pointless to indicate out of slip roads if you believe both that you're infallible and that everyone else is obeying the laws and correctly lit and so on... and I think there's an argument that anyone believing both of those should have their driving licence revoked!

Or to put it another way, absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.