slip roads and right of way

[mr burslem]

Genuine question here:

 

You see some very discourteous driving when you join, for example, the A500 from a slip road. Some drivers in the first lane will actually accelerate in order to prevent vehicles joining the first lane in front of them.

 

When I'm in the first lane, if I can't pull over into the second (which often happens, at busy times), I treat the slip road as having temporary priority, insofar as I let them in.

 

I was wondering if anyone feels that the law should be changed, in order to give slip road traffic the priority anyway.

 

Opinions, please?

[Badboybubba]

I concur with you Mr Burslem

[Howjy04]

You drive correctly Tim.My other gripe is at traffic lights.Whatever happened to overlapping when you and oncoming cars both want to turn right?

[TheSage]

I tend to agree.

 

But some of the slip roads are far too short (ie northbound by the incinerator) and many drivers drive down slip roads at 60 mph and have no intention of fitting in sensibly. It's amazing there aren't more accidents when the road is busy and, as you say, you can't get over into the overtaking lane.

 

I do find drivers these days more selfish and less considerate.

 

Blocking junctions/roundabouts for the sake of moving forward another 5 metres bugs me.

[davidatpreston]

Genuine question here:

 

You see some very discourteous driving when you join, for example, the A500 from a slip road. Some drivers in the first lane will actually accelerate in order to prevent vehicles joining the first lane in front of them.

 

When I'm in the first lane, if I can't pull over into the second (which often happens, at busy times), I treat the slip road as having temporary priority, insofar as I let them in.

 

I was wondering if anyone feels that the law should be changed, in order to give slip road traffic the priority anyway.

 

Opinions, please?

 

Would changing the law change the habits of selfish inconsiderate people though ? Cameras at all junctions and roundabouts that could generate automatic tickets similar to speeding tickets when people break lane changing rules would make it possible, do we want that, not sure yet.

[whotobeakiller]

Genuine question here:

 

You see some very discourteous driving when you join, for example, the A500 from a slip road. Some drivers in the first lane will actually accelerate in order to prevent vehicles joining the first lane in front of them.

 

When I'm in the first lane, if I can't pull over into the second (which often happens, at busy times), I treat the slip road as having temporary priority, insofar as I let them in.

 

I was wondering if anyone feels that the law should be changed, in order to give slip road traffic the priority anyway.

 

Opinions, please?

 

I happen to think that most drivers in the local area are discourteous. The reasons being that most are selfish and arrogant. The few drivers that are kind to you and let you go are in a very very small minority

[DaneValiant]

I tend to agree.

 

But some of the slip roads are far too short (ie northbound by the incinerator) and many drivers drive down slip roads at 60 mph and have no intention of fitting in sensibly. It's amazing there aren't more accidents when the road is busy and, as you say, you can't get over into the overtaking lane.

 

I do find drivers these days more selfish and less considerate.

 

Blocking junctions/roundabouts for the sake of moving forward another 5 metres bugs me.

 

It's the ones who drive down motorway/dual carriageway slip roads at about 40mph that get me. Everything else already on the road can legally be doing 70 and these people try and join it at nearly half this speed.

[TheSage]

It's the ones who drive down motorway/dual carriageway slip roads at about 40mph that get me. Everything else already on the road can legally be doing 70 and these people try and join it at nearly half this speed.

 

But for much of the A500 the limit is 50 mph - and that's the problem.

It's 50 all the way from the M6 up to Asda, yet folk still drive like lunatics.

That's why there's a camera van on the bridge by the incinerator for 50% of the week.

[rsb]

But for much of the A500 the limit is 50 mph - and that's the problem.

It's 50 all the way from the M6 up to Asda, yet folk still drive like lunatics.

That's why there's a camera van on the bridge by the incinerator for 50% of the week.

 

put a camera there permanent and the van can be used else ware what gets me is the artics that are doing over 50 in stead of 40 on a duel carriageway in the outside lane then cross over three lane's to get onto the a50 towards longton there's a local company between the talke roundabout and milehouse r/d whose drivers think they own the d/road how they drive.

[Paul6754]

Genuine question here:

 

You see some very discourteous driving when you join, for example, the A500 from a slip road. Some drivers in the first lane will actually accelerate in order to prevent vehicles joining the first lane in front of them.

 

When I'm in the first lane, if I can't pull over into the second (which often happens, at busy times), I treat the slip road as having temporary priority, insofar as I let them in.

 

I was wondering if anyone feels that the law should be changed, in order to give slip road traffic the priority anyway.

 

Opinions, please?

 

I judge the situation and the majority of times slow down to let a car in or if that's not the best thing to do then occaisionaly I accelerate so the car has room to pull in behind me, I always drive with ample distance between me and the car in front. I try and not change lanes as changing lanes can be a risky manouvre.

 

It's tricky on the D-road 'cause some on the slip roads are short and there's no "feed lane" on the D-road. Defensive driving every time for me.

[Jacko51]

I tend to agree.

 

But some of the slip roads are far too short (ie northbound by the incinerator) and many drivers drive down slip roads at 60 mph and have no intention of fitting in sensibly. It's amazing there aren't more accidents when the road is busy and, as you say, you can't get over into the overtaking lane.

 

I do find drivers these days more selfish and less considerate.

 

Blocking junctions/roundabouts for the sake of moving forward another 5 metres bugs me.

 

And blocking box junctions is a real pain - especially the one at the end of Jenkins Street when coming away from Vale.

[The French Connection]

I usually behave as per Mr Burslem. Don't see the point in changing the law, not really enforceable.

 

This is a good one for a simple 'public information style' advert, which could quickly and easily show best practice and how to drive safely and sensibly. They don't seem to do them any more, unfortunately.

[Fosse69]

Even on the modern motorway slip roads where the inside lane becomes the slip roads, people are impatient to join the middle lane straight away or leave it late in exiting direct from the middle lane.

[SourceOfTheTrent]

I read an interesting article a while ago about people's behaviour on the roads which referenced an experiment whereby there was a system of tubes connecting nesting areas and feeding areas for rodents. The system was observed with firstly a small population of rodents (rats, I think) and then more and more animals were added slowly to see if their behaviour changed, which it did. At first the rodents moved around quite smoothly and were 'courteous' to eachother as they passed but this behaviour deteriorated as the population / density of traffic increased until they reached a point where they became aggressive toward one another and the 'efficiency' of moving around was significantly reduced.

 

Basically, this is what's happened on our roads and driving standards have gone south with it. There's just too great a density of traffic for our road network and people have become more selfish and aggressive in their behaviour. Quite a few people feel co****ed in their cars and are far more rude and aggressive than they would be in a shop or a pub, or even walking down the pavement where their rudeness would be more likely challenged.

 

Add to that the fact there are a significant number of cretins driving around who don't seem to have any idea what the Highway Code is or just choose to ignore it and chaos ensues. A good indicator of this is mini roundabouts where a very noticeable number of drivers don't have a clue who's right of way it is and either pull out in front of cars approaching from the right or stop to give way to cars approaching the roundabout on the left. How did they pass their tests?

 

The answer to all this is either lots more roads (?) or a lot less drivers, which is the likely approach governments will take as they can price people off the road through taxation whilst spending nothing on road building. So, we'll probably be stuck with over populated roads whilst getting taxed to death for the privilege.

 

EDIT - I'm surprised the filter blanked out 'c o c o o n e d' as the potential racist reference is buried within a common English word!

[Vital Spark]

Genuine question here:

 

You see some very discourteous driving when you join, for example, the A500 from a slip road. Some drivers in the first lane will actually accelerate in order to prevent vehicles joining the first lane in front of them.

 

When I'm in the first lane, if I can't pull over into the second (which often happens, at busy times), I treat the slip road as having temporary priority, insofar as I let them in.

 

I was wondering if anyone feels that the law should be changed, in order to give slip road traffic the priority anyway.

 

Opinions, please?

 

Have you ever thought that the drivers already on the A500 aren't simply accelerating to move themselves out of blind-spots and into the vision of drivers trying to force their way onto the carriageway - sensible and defensive driving when no other option is available. Too may people try to force their way onto the A500, firmly believing they have right-of-way over vehicles already on the road. The main issues are lack of patience and slip roads that have poor visibility and are simply too short.