A lesson for queue-jumping drivers.

[flying haggis]

On two occasions now I've been sitting in a queue of, say 8-10 cars, in a narrow-ish single lane road in London waiting for the lights ahead to change when a car has raced past me, fully using the on-coming lane, and stuck its nose in front of the lead car at the lights, at an angle of 45%. Then roared off as soon as the lights turned amber

It was what you usually see pizza delivery bikes doing as they filter down the outside of the traffic, but a car - at speed?

It was so brazen it took my breath away. I mean the sheer arrogance and disrespect of others that such a barefaced bit of driving illustrates just leaves me speechless!

And I thought I couldn't be surprised by anything on the road nowadays...

Robert

I remember being one of the people sitting in a queue like that when a car did or tried to do just as described. The driver of the 32 ton tipper coming the other way had other ideas though and the original queue jumper then had to reverse past all the jumped cars and more! Made me laugh though

 

[Uberwagon]

What people forget is, it is not how long the queue is, but how fast it is moving. I agree that the single queue should not start too early but if traffic pushing in at the front in turn slows the movement of the queue causing slow moving traffic at the back. But then we are all just far to impatient these days.

We need to get away from this idea that people are pushing in, they aren't, people are preventing them from coming in.

if everyone acts as they should, it's the people in the lane being merged into that cause the problem.

Leave a gap, make it clear to those wanting to come in that you have seen them with a hand gesture, obvious increase of the gap etc and most queues will be dramatically reduced.

In Peterborough just before the town centre coming from Werrington it gets especially bad and is easily reduced by plain common decency.

Dave!

 

[E270 Owner]

Get the bloody road works done remove the restriction asap

UK must have the worst record for mindless lane closures with miles of bollards and no actual works going on,
that's whats upsetting..........

 

[219]

We need to get away from this idea that people are pushing in, they aren't, people are preventing them from coming in.

if everyone acts as they should, it's the people in the lane being merged into that cause the problem.

Leave a gap, make it clear to those wanting to come in that you have seen them with a hand gesture, obvious increase of the gap etc and most queues will be dramatically reduced.

In Peterborough just before the town centre coming from Werrington it gets especially bad and is easily reduced by plain common decency.

Dave!

If a selfish driver has passed a line of queuing traffic in order to try to push their way in at the front then that is exactly what they are doing : it is ignorant , selfish and rude .

The place for merging in turn is when you are joining the rear of the line ; remember that in advanced driving selecting and getting on course comes at the beginning of the system .

I always extend courtesy and leave gaps for people who need to join a queue when approaching the back of it ; I will not accommodate morons who think they are more important than everyone else and barge to the front then try to force their way in . A queue is only slowed by people pushing in at the front ; it will flow just fine if everyone merges in turn when they reach it and needn't be long if it is done efficiently .

Barging in at the last moment amounts to DWDCA .

 

[E55BOF]

The place for merging in turn is when you are joining the rear of the line

A queue is only slowed by people pushing in at the front ; it will flow just fine if everyone merges in turn when they reach it and needn't be long if it is done efficiently .

So if you came up behind a half-mile queue, you would happily join the back of it, even if the other lane was empty? You don't see any force in the argument that using two lanes rather than one until nearing the restriction, THEN merging in turn, makes more sense?

I agree that barging in at the last moment is bad manners, but DWDCA? I would have thought that the would-be barger is in fact paying a good deal of attention...

 

[Uberwagon]

Why is a driver selfish for using every available lane?

The selfish ones are those creating needless traffic congestion by queueing far before the road turns into a single, double etc.

This isn't a case of people screaming down the outside and pushing their nose in at the very last minute, this is about people driving down, regulating their speed to merge seemelessly and watching car after car close their gap as they think it will be a smite upon their person for someone to get in front somehow, how sad.

This website explains how it should be done.

Merge In Turn | infinity squared

For what it's worth, when travelling in Germany and the Netherlands they seem able to follow this rule very well and it works just as intended.

Dave!

 

[zipdip]

Without doubt us Brits are among the best drivers in the world,but when it comes to a lane closure we become complete idiots,we all fill up the lane that is left and form a long line,this is nearly always stop start because of the you cannot come into this lane mentality ,in Italy where driving standards are poor they never do this they see it as being able to show how quickly they can get past this lane closure,they use both lanes driving quickly and then when the road closes they go one and one quickly they save themselves time and their blood pressure,we do many things right but this issue we are completely wrong,we even have signs saying use both lanes,it makes no difference we still hog one lane.

 

[John]

It's the British "queuing thing" that has transcended into car lanes...

 

[219]

So if you came up behind a half-mile queue, you would happily join the back of it, even if the other lane was empty? You don't see any force in the argument that using two lanes rather than one until nearing the restriction, THEN merging in turn, makes more sense?

I agree that barging in at the last moment is bad manners, but DWDCA? I would have thought that the would-be barger is in fact paying a good deal of attention...

No - those who fly down to the front instead of waiting in turn behind those who were ahead of them are just plain self centred and typical of the me , ME , ME attitude that is so prevalent in modern society ; people who seem to think that they or their journey is more important that everyone else's - you wouldn't do it in a queue at the post office so why do it in a tin box ?

In many cases the bargers don't pay any attention and just try to muscle in - often drivers of rep mobiles , vans or other vehicles they haven't paid for with their own money .

 

[219]

Why is a driver selfish for using every available lane?

The selfish ones are those creating needless traffic congestion by queueing far before the road turns into a single, double etc.

This isn't a case of people screaming down the outside and pushing their nose in at the very last minute, this is about people driving down, regulating their speed to merge seemelessly and watching car after car close their gap as they think it will be a smite upon their person for someone to get in front somehow, how sad.

This website explains how it should be done.

Merge In Turn | infinity squared

For what it's worth, when travelling in Germany and the Netherlands they seem able to follow this rule very well and it works just as intended.

Dave!

They aren't selfish because of which lane they use : they are selfish because they are too impatient to queue in turn and , instead of merging smoothly while traffic is still flowing steadily with gaps near the back of the queue , they do scream down the outside and push in forcibly at the front , causing a compression wave of braking amongst people who will already have got themselves smoothly into the correct lane and exercised a little bit of patience , and probably some courtesy to others who they may have allowed to merge smoothly in front of them further back .

I repeat that I will extend every courtesy to those who need to merge into my lane in a timeous manner ( remember the lane closures are signed a minimum of 800m ahead with arrows DIRECTING you to get into the correct lane ) and have no problems leaving gaps for those who wish to merge smoothly without inconveniencing others and causing a chain of braking ; the ones I complain about are the selfish morons who barge right down to the point where the cones are tapering across the closed lane and force in at that point .

Getting into the correct lane early does not cause congestion ; people who refuse to merge smoothly and timeously do .

 

[trapperjohn]

Man of my own heart. ^

 

[Deleted member 6183]

It's not personal.

Merge in turn should be communicated better and then this situation becomes an impersonal process, far safer and less stressful for those who suffer from the current indecisive system.

 

[John]

Regardless of which lane I am in (left lane if not in a hurry etc.) I try to follow the zip method regardless. Works fine usually although not everyone decides to follow it.

I also thank people for letting me in as courtesy. It costs nothing...

 

[renault12ts]

It's not personal.

Merge in turn should be communicated better and then this situation becomes an impersonal process, far safer and less stressful for those who suffer from the current indecisive system.

Merge in turn would be facilitated if there were cones laid between the two lanes thus indicating to all involved that lane merger is intended. Otherwise both schools of thought prevail...and both lose.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

Might be an idea to cone it off so the middle of the road becomes the route so that there is no 'it's my lane and you ain't getting in' mentality.

 

[renault12ts]

Might be an idea to cone it off so the middle of the road becomes the route so that there is no 'it's my lane and you ain't getting in' mentality.

Great minds and all that Lee!!

 

[E55BOF]

Might be an idea to cone it off so the middle of the road becomes the route so that there is no 'it's my lane and you ain't getting in' mentality.

How far back do you cone it off into one lane? How do you arrange the merging into that single lane? I suggest you would just be moving the merge point, and the congestion there, further back from whatever the obstruction was...

 

[renault12ts]

How far back do you cone it off into one lane? How do you arrange the merging into that single lane? I suggest you would just be moving the merge point, and the congestion there, further back from whatever the obstruction was...

Ah yes...I see the problem here. So...back to my idea...put cones down and then everyone must merge where the cones indicate.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Merge in turn would be facilitated if there were cones laid between the two lanes thus indicating to all involved that lane merger is intended. Otherwise both schools of thought prevail...and both lose.

Agree entirely.

By putting a known process in place you take the emotion out of the exercise. Left lane, right lane? Who cares?

 

[NDFR]

if the road is clear use it and merge at the cones, seems right to me. Merging a mile further back means nothing, Brits sure like to queue.