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AIBU?

To not want to be intimidated by an HGV driver on a busy motorway.

237 replies

EdwiniasRevenge · 30/09/2013 23:49

I was on the motorway today. Fairly busy but fluid and freely flowing traffic.

I was travelling at about 55-65mph in the slow lane. I wasn't in a hurry and found myself approaching a car +caravan in lane 2.

As I was doing an acceptable and safe motorway speed and I was in no hurry I decided that I wwasn't going to weavve out to lane 3 to overtake and I wasn't going to break the law by 'undertaking'. I was also approaching my junction. I sat behind the caravan in my lane (ie ensuring I wasn't in the caravan blind spot).

An HGV approached from behind, and continued to drive in my estimation, less than 2 car lengths behind me. It was so close that all I could see in my mirror was the radiator grill. I literally could not see his winscreen. I could not see the number plate.

I touched my brakes gently couple of times to indicate that he was uncomfortably close.

A couple of minutes late rhe was using his horn to tell me to move.

As it was a 4 lane motorway it would have been legal for the lorry to move out to lane 3 if he was tgat desperate. Meanwhile I felt intimidated and unsafe.

OP posts:

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BrianTheMole · 30/09/2013 23:54

If you had to go slow behind the van anyway, and didn't want to move to lane 3, why didn't you just move to lane 1 and maintain the lower speed there?

Buttercup4 · 30/09/2013 23:58

Sorry, OP but YABU. It is illegal to hover in the middle lane like that. You should be on the inside land unless you are overtaking. Moving back into the correct lane would not be viewed as 'undertaking'

You were forcing the van into the fast lane.

Nombrechanger · 30/09/2013 23:59

That's happened to me a few times when I was probably a little over the limit not under it.

I can see how it's infuriating for a driver to be sat behind someone going up to 15 mph below the speed limit, but he shouldn't have tailgated like that or used his horn.

He could have moved into the third lane and buggered off. The twat.

YANBU

Ablababla · 01/10/2013 00:02

No op was in inside lane but not wanting to undertake some numpty sat in the middle lane or move out to lane three. I can understand the lorry driver's frustration as he was trapped but you were not anything wrong and he should not mmthreaten you like that.

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:03

I was in lane 1.

The caravan was hovering in lane 2 at a slow (er) speed.

OP posts:

FutTheShuckUp · 01/10/2013 00:04

You can get fined for middle lane hogging. Either drive at the correct speed for a motorway or get back into the first lane

Bumpotato · 01/10/2013 00:05

I have a wee rule that I don't argue with HGVs on the road. Have you seen the size of them?

You should have overtaken the caravan rather than being the person on the motorway "not making normal progress". Just because the caravaner was driving terribly didn't mean you had to as well.

If you're unsure about motorway driving, or are nervous of the outside lane, either avoid the motorway or take motorway lessons or an advanced driving course. Next time you could cause an accident.

FutTheShuckUp · 01/10/2013 00:07

Apologies assumed you were in lane two. In that case the lorry driver is being impatient and is in the wrong. But you should still try to maintain the correct speed but lorry drivers shouldn't drive so dangerously they are essentially in charge of a killing machine

Doodledumdums · 01/10/2013 00:07

OP wasn't hovering in the middle lane tho was she, the caravan was? Or have I read that wrong?

I don't think yabu OP, I hate being intimidated on the roads. Why should you have been forced to move over to the faster lanes just because the caravan was a middle lane hogger, especially as your junction was coming up. Like you say, on a four lane motorway, the HGV driver could have moved over if he was desparate.

MrsTerryPratchett · 01/10/2013 00:08

The caravan was really U, you were a tiny bit for creating, albeit by default, a rolling roadblock for the lorry. If you were doing 55-65 (a massive difference there) then I imagine the caravan was doing 50 so the lorry must have been pretty delayed. Fuel to speed up again really costs them so the driver must have been pretty annoyed.

Why was everyone doing 50 on a motorway? It does really affect traffic flow.

LessMissAbs · 01/10/2013 00:08

You were driving correctly in theory but more advanced driving involves taking consideration of other drivers and acting in advance, so it would have been slightly better if you had overtaken the caravan using lane 3.

However the lorry driver has the HGV license and should be capable of overtaking a caravan or taking avoiding action without harassing other road users.

There is no such thing as a "slow lane". Your speed is generally rather low for a motorway.

BrianTheMole · 01/10/2013 00:09

Sorry, I read your op wrong. Apologies. Yes, he was a twat.

honey86 · 01/10/2013 00:11

good point but beside the point too. its intimidating and dangerous to tailgate, and highway code states you only use the horn to make people aware of your presence. he/she was doing it to express annoyance. if the hgv driver was that desperate then there was a lane to overtake. plus a caravan being in front at a similar speed to op, would mean it wouldnt make a difference to the hgv's position if op had moved.
its a tad obnoxious to expect all other drivers to get out of his way just cos he has a big vehicle and he cant be bothered to simply overtake.

StickEmUp · 01/10/2013 00:11

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:15

I shoukd point out that I am confident on the motorway.

I typically use all lanes as appropriate and use the speeds...yes including 70+ that go with them.

I didn't today because when I first approached the slow vehicle in lane 2 it was not safe for me to pull out to overtake. Then I was approaching my junction, although I probably had time to make the maneuvere.

My only other option to move past was to undertake - which is illegal.

It was the presence of the slower moving caravan which forced me to moderate my speed. Not my choice per se.

15mph is below the speed limit is perfectly safe or vehicles wouldn't have 56mph speed limiters fitted.

OP posts:

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:18

And I only described it ss the slow lane to make it clear which lanes I was talking about.

OP posts:

Buttercup4 · 01/10/2013 00:20

Ok, apologies OP. I read it that you were in lane 2.

The caravan was being very unreasonable. The lorry driver shouldn't have taken his frustration out on you.

Your speed for the motorway was very low, and I think YABU to drive in a certain way just because you aren't in a rush, equally you should never drive as if you are in a rush.

Ablababla · 01/10/2013 00:26

And the irony is mr caravan driver will be oblivious to the difficulty he's caused from other road users.

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:28

Thats ok.

I wouldn't have driven that slow if I hadn't been forced to by the caravan.

But seeing as the caravan was blocking my progress, I wasn't in a rush to overtake in the senario abovd (heavier traffic behing caravan, junctoon approaching).

OP posts:

Dominodonkey · 01/10/2013 00:28

Surely it is not illegal to undertake in that situation. It's not like you moved into the inside lane with the purpose of overtaking the lorry. If the inside lane is going quicker than the middle one I am sure it is acceptable to pass.

EagleNebula · 01/10/2013 00:35

It wouldn't necessarily have been illegal for you to undertake in this situation. You can undertake in congested conditions, how busy was it? Also how near to your junction were you?

That said, the actions of the HGV driver were intimidating, but I drive on the motorway every single day and do my utmost to get out of the way of HGVs and do as little as possible to piss them off. The caravan was at fault here but I think you should have clocked it sooner and moved to lane 3 in time to overtake before your junction, it sounds like your driving was too laid back for the situation.

GobbySadcase · 01/10/2013 00:42

Travelling at the speed of your lane isn't undertaking. If there is traffic going slower in other lanes and you happen to pass on the inside then it's not undertaking.

Undertaking would be if you were in lane 2 then went to lane 1 to pass on the inside. Maintaining your existing speed and staying in lane is perfectly legal.

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EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:43

It wasn't congested. The traffic (apart from Mr Caravan) was flowing freely.

I was on the motorway for less than 4 miles total. I think the caravan was within view from the time I joined the motorway, but I could not move out because of traffic to the right of me on the sliproad which was merging with lane 2, causinv a bit of a buikd up behind the caravan. I could not move to lane 2 because of this build up.

OP posts:

GobbySadcase · 01/10/2013 00:44

EdwiniasRevenge · 01/10/2013 00:48

But it wasn't congested. There was nothing in sight in front of me or caravan.

Rule 163 makes specific reference to it onky being allowed if the caravan was moving slowly (it wasn't) and in queuing traffic (it wasnt).

OP posts:

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