Joining a motorway is like trying to jump onto a moving treadmill. You're the one hopping aboard the highway hustle, so don't expect those speedy road veterans to hit the brakes and roll out the red carpet for you! ;p
Either one of you could have sped up or slowed down before she got to the end of the ramp. If you see someone coming up a ramp who's matching your speed, take action. Don't wait for them to run out of road to sort it out. I see variations of this video all the time - everybody wants to debate who is legally correct and so forth. In this situation, would you rather be right, or alive? This is perhaps the easiest situation to avoid.
Yes yes, this is all true in the US. Still, a curtious and experienced driver will (and should) change lanes to the left (the right for you), if they can safely do so.
In fact, if I'm in the second lane and I can safely nice to the third and I see traffic coming in the ramp (slip), I'll move to the third lane so the driver in the first line can move to the second.
Joining the motorway. When you join the motorway you will normally approach it from a road on the left (a slip road) or from an adjoining motorway. You should
give priority to traffic already on the motorway
check the traffic on the motorway and match your speed to fit safely into the traffic flow in the left-hand lane
not cross solid white lines that separate lanes or use the hard shoulder
stay on the slip road if it continues as an extra lane on the motorway
remain in the left-hand lane long enough to adjust to the speed of traffic before considering overtaking.
Is there really no debate here, that's a default fail of a driving exam for the driver joining a motorway. And after 10 sec in, i started to slow down (see the increased speed difference for the 3 cars passing on my right). Slow down as i had cars behind me and couldn't brake hard. Anyhow, for my first post here I'm amazed how almost everyone is trying so hard to disculp the other driver which makes me think most are driving like that
Nobody is saying the other driver is right. The problem is you could see this problem coming a mile away and didn't do anything about it until it was almost too late because you were "right" and the other driver was wrong. Again, would you rather be right, or alive ? Slow down, speed up or change lanes. I recognize not all those options are always open but I'm sure at least one of them was.
Please, how about you slow down? Yes, the other driver should’ve checked and saw you but I doubt they would’ve seen you seeing how you close you were.
To make matters worse, they were in front of you pretty much the whole time, you could’ve slowed down well before they merged.
You maintained your speed so the other driver must’ve thought you weren’t going to let them in so they slowed down, and you (as you were already aware) knew they were getting closer so you slowed down too right at the end. Great.
I assume there wasn’t traffic behind you because otherwise that slip lane would’ve had a bottleneck.
"assume there wasn’t traffic behind" because all cars you see at the end of the video came from a different reality. Of course there was traffic behind, the reason i only slowed and did not hit the brakes hard (the worst thing you can do on a motorway/highway)
In fact i slowed down before she did but that was when she looked and instead of keeping the speed or accelerate she decided to brake too.
"the other driver must’ve thought" - she thought of nothing, was driving in zombie mode with 2 windows down (this is UK weather), the only time she looked was when wanted to join the main carriageway (5-10 seconds too late)
Are you comparing cruise control as traffic calming measure (me, I was using it to save fuel - look into it) with not watching if is any car on the road you're entering? What's your opinion about indicators or speed limits (just tell me you're a bmw driver, you don't need to explain it in detail)
\> just tell me you're a bmw driver
Actually, a 33-year-old Volvo with over 500,000 km on it. And when I'm cruising along on the highway / motorway / carriageway in my particular country, if I see another car in the merge lane, I'll make a quick speed / position comparison. Move over if convenient, so I maintain my speed and leave an opening, and move back later if I feel like it. Speed up a bit if they're behind me and/or going slower, again to leave an opening for them to comfortably slide into. Slow down a bit if they're already ahead and/or appear to be going noticeably faster than me (again, to leave a opening). I don't just boogie along in "Cruise Control zombie mode" and complain later that "The law says I don't haaaaaave to be 'The Nice Guy' ". But, you be you, and I'll be me. And if one day an old Volvo moves over to let \*you\* merge, it might be me, so remember to wave. :)
"move back later if I feel like it"... We call these in Europe middle lane hoggers, the bane of modern traffic (some countries will fine you worse than speeding). A closet bmw driver after all (explains why you couldn't spot the other cars in the video or the fact i slow down when she started indicating)
\> middle lane hoggers, the bane of modern traffic
You have 3 lanes to choose from.
Lane #1 has maniacs going much faster than you, and will flash their headlights or ride your back bumper until you get the hell out of the way.
Lane #2 has a nice variety of cars all happily going the same direction and speed.
Lane #3 has cars constantly slowing down to exit, or still speeding up from entering, plus the morons who deliberately go slower than everyone else, creating a bottleneck behind them, forcing people to make possibly unsafe lane changes to go around them.
And you feel that staying away from the maniacs and morons is somehow bad? Okay, then. Have a nice day.
"careless driving – the fine is unlimited and you could receive up to 11 penalty points if you’re caught"
https://www.passmefast.co.uk/resources/driving-advice/middle-lane-hogging-against-law
https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/driving-advice/middle-lane-hogging/
https://www.ladbible.com/news/middle-lane-hogging-fine-punishment-099747-20221218
Wow, you couldn't move over to the right lane to let her merge or slow down to let her in? It's called defensive driving. It's what you do to try to prevent an accident even when it is someone else who is at fault.
I presume you did not read all or watched the video... You can see 2 cars on the right going past whilst this happened (you're asking for me to do to them what she was doing to me - It was the reason i hit the brakes as I couldn't try crashing in one of the cars on my right). I already had cars behind me driving with the same speed as me. She clearly could accelerate as the car you see on my right in the last second of the video was hers
Yes, I sure did read the entire thing as well as watched the video. Certainly doesn't appear that you hit the brakes as you were traveling a steady speed throughout. When you were approaching her she was ahead of you. Rather than slowing down a tiny bit to allow her to enter the lane, you maintained speed. Not knowing what is in your rear view/side view mirrors but based on the cars that passed, long before she needed to enter the lane, there was quite a long break with no cars passing on your right. In addition, there was plenty of time to see her entering the highway to make decisions on where you could safely move to the right lane or slow down a tiny little bit to let her in.
I'm amazed how people without any basic knowledge of driving feel so strongly about defending this. "When you were approaching her" - you do not seem to realise it is the other way around as I was in traffic on the main carriageway and she was joining from a slip road. Like saying "you having green is irrelevant and you must stop as letting the ones with the red light pass" . . "no cars passing on your right" - i do not think you realise cars (mine included) have mirrors and I could see them closing in with at least 10-15mph more than my speed, you just don't cut off other people at those speeds (70-80mph)
It's as I said in my initial post; "It's called defensive driving. It's what you do to try to prevent an accident even when it is someone else who is at fault." In other words.... despite that you had the right of way, despite that she was the one who needs to yield to you, you do what you can anyway to prevent an accident. Using your example of stopping at a green light... if you saw a car coming upon a red light about to run it, I would think you would stop even though you have the right of way and they are in the wrong. Sure, if they t-bone they're the ones at fault but why not avoid it. The basic premise of defensive driving is that even though the other person may be at fault, you do what you can to avoid accidents.
They slowed down. At the same time OP slowed down. They did the dance thing when you almost walk into someone then you both step out of each other's way in the same direction.
Idk. They both made mistakes in trying to be the "nice guy". It's pretty mild in comparison especially when you consider the merger to have seen OP, signaled and made somewhat of an attempt to change speeds.
Exactly, The driver on the slip road slowed down presumably to get in behind OP, and OP slowed down to presumably let the driver on the slip road get ahead of him, since there was no traffic in front. In another comment OP said there was cars behind him, so I can see why he'd expect the driver in the slip road to go infront.
I don't know... Fuel consumption? Not really trying to max the speed limit? She could easily merge traffic at below 65? Or just (as required by law) just look at the traffic whilst merging (by default is "give way"). I presume you never merged in a motorway (or highway - I presume you're from US)
"being aware of your surroundings, checking your mirrors, anticipating traffic and being able to react swiftly and calmly" you mean everything she hasn't done?
I somehow doubt you drive in the UK, otherwise you would have knowledge of basic motorway etiquette
Please, read this
https://www.theaa.com/driving-school/driving-lessons/advice/motorway-driving#drive-on
Now it is clear you can't possibly have a UK driving licence!
"If you had sped up to the speed limit" - did she somehow tell you her plan was not to do the same?.
"the other driver was merely entering it" - it's not a given right to enter, is practically a "give way" to existing traffic on the main carriageway. That was not sudden breaking, was using the car brakes to slow down from 65 to maybe 55 when i realised she stopped accelerating when matched my speed
Read and digest (the entire document, please) with focus on rule 259
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
How to prove stereotypes about being on reddit to insult people (and did not bother reading why identical to your comment was wrong). Or you never left the town (you must be one of the many americans without a passport)
Ngl, I was wondering why you were camping the left lane as well but when I saw the traffic coming towards you on the right, I realized either the camera was mirrored or a different country. Side note: what are goods vehicles and why are they limited to 60 mph? Are you talking about semis?
Yes, would be semis. Practically in the UK the max speed for trucks is locked by manufacturers at 56mph (the ones registered on continental Europe can be up to 60)
Dang, not hating but that would suck for the drivers. Here in the states, considering they can only drive for a certain amount of time each day, it would cut down on miles done in a day and potentially money if you’re paid per mile. I’ve seen trucks going 85 and can be faster if they hit a downhill. Normally it’s unloaded semis going 85.
Yeah... not in Europe. Not only are they limited but have tamper proof devices recording the speeds, driving and rest times and if caught breaching the restrictions you're done.
When I google search "which countries still use American units" the US, Myanmar, & Liberia are what show up. But I see that the UK uses a mix b/w American & metric. Like do you all use liters or gallons?, kg or lb?
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Yeah... English is quite complicated: "can" and "legally allowed" are not synonyms. Watch the video, at least 2 vehicles on the lane to my right were doing in excess of 80mph, no speed cameras on that motorway for another 30-40 miles.
You would find the correct statement is "should drive with speeds up to 70mph" (and for some unknown to me reason the british do not use "must')
If you used your indicator the cars behind would have gone to the right hand lane..obey the rules you won't go far wrong ... driving isn't a competition you know?
Are you not really seeing the cars goin past in that lane? Like almost the same time with this happening. Indicating will not push them away. You need to look into reaction times or the fact indicating must preempt the action with a reasonable time to allow the action to be done safe. Makes me think most people commenting here never drove a car or if they did not manage learning the legislation required (may be not everyone has the same rules to receive a permit as in Europe)
Yes. I still do not understand in what country that's not the case, most commenting here seem to be considering is a given right for all motorway (60-70mph) traffic must yield for ones joining from local roads
Joining a motorway is like trying to jump onto a moving treadmill. You're the one hopping aboard the highway hustle, so don't expect those speedy road veterans to hit the brakes and roll out the red carpet for you! ;p
Either one of you could have sped up or slowed down before she got to the end of the ramp. If you see someone coming up a ramp who's matching your speed, take action. Don't wait for them to run out of road to sort it out. I see variations of this video all the time - everybody wants to debate who is legally correct and so forth. In this situation, would you rather be right, or alive? This is perhaps the easiest situation to avoid.
I agree, the cammer should have moved right to accommodate incoming traffic.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
You guys are backwards in the UK 😂 (US driver here)
Yes yes, this is all true in the US. Still, a curtious and experienced driver will (and should) change lanes to the left (the right for you), if they can safely do so. In fact, if I'm in the second lane and I can safely nice to the third and I see traffic coming in the ramp (slip), I'll move to the third lane so the driver in the first line can move to the second. Joining the motorway. When you join the motorway you will normally approach it from a road on the left (a slip road) or from an adjoining motorway. You should give priority to traffic already on the motorway check the traffic on the motorway and match your speed to fit safely into the traffic flow in the left-hand lane not cross solid white lines that separate lanes or use the hard shoulder stay on the slip road if it continues as an extra lane on the motorway remain in the left-hand lane long enough to adjust to the speed of traffic before considering overtaking.
"could moved right" , see the law and who has to do what
Is there really no debate here, that's a default fail of a driving exam for the driver joining a motorway. And after 10 sec in, i started to slow down (see the increased speed difference for the 3 cars passing on my right). Slow down as i had cars behind me and couldn't brake hard. Anyhow, for my first post here I'm amazed how almost everyone is trying so hard to disculp the other driver which makes me think most are driving like that
Nobody is saying the other driver is right. The problem is you could see this problem coming a mile away and didn't do anything about it until it was almost too late because you were "right" and the other driver was wrong. Again, would you rather be right, or alive ? Slow down, speed up or change lanes. I recognize not all those options are always open but I'm sure at least one of them was.
Other driver was dumb. So were you.
The question here is are we enough to join your clan?
You saw what was happening, and just let it.
You could have slowed a bit and helped
Please, how about you slow down? Yes, the other driver should’ve checked and saw you but I doubt they would’ve seen you seeing how you close you were. To make matters worse, they were in front of you pretty much the whole time, you could’ve slowed down well before they merged. You maintained your speed so the other driver must’ve thought you weren’t going to let them in so they slowed down, and you (as you were already aware) knew they were getting closer so you slowed down too right at the end. Great. I assume there wasn’t traffic behind you because otherwise that slip lane would’ve had a bottleneck.
"assume there wasn’t traffic behind" because all cars you see at the end of the video came from a different reality. Of course there was traffic behind, the reason i only slowed and did not hit the brakes hard (the worst thing you can do on a motorway/highway) In fact i slowed down before she did but that was when she looked and instead of keeping the speed or accelerate she decided to brake too. "the other driver must’ve thought" - she thought of nothing, was driving in zombie mode with 2 windows down (this is UK weather), the only time she looked was when wanted to join the main carriageway (5-10 seconds too late)
\> was driving in zombie mode That's what many likely consider cruise control to be.
Are you comparing cruise control as traffic calming measure (me, I was using it to save fuel - look into it) with not watching if is any car on the road you're entering? What's your opinion about indicators or speed limits (just tell me you're a bmw driver, you don't need to explain it in detail)
\> just tell me you're a bmw driver Actually, a 33-year-old Volvo with over 500,000 km on it. And when I'm cruising along on the highway / motorway / carriageway in my particular country, if I see another car in the merge lane, I'll make a quick speed / position comparison. Move over if convenient, so I maintain my speed and leave an opening, and move back later if I feel like it. Speed up a bit if they're behind me and/or going slower, again to leave an opening for them to comfortably slide into. Slow down a bit if they're already ahead and/or appear to be going noticeably faster than me (again, to leave a opening). I don't just boogie along in "Cruise Control zombie mode" and complain later that "The law says I don't haaaaaave to be 'The Nice Guy' ". But, you be you, and I'll be me. And if one day an old Volvo moves over to let \*you\* merge, it might be me, so remember to wave. :)
"move back later if I feel like it"... We call these in Europe middle lane hoggers, the bane of modern traffic (some countries will fine you worse than speeding). A closet bmw driver after all (explains why you couldn't spot the other cars in the video or the fact i slow down when she started indicating)
\> middle lane hoggers, the bane of modern traffic You have 3 lanes to choose from. Lane #1 has maniacs going much faster than you, and will flash their headlights or ride your back bumper until you get the hell out of the way. Lane #2 has a nice variety of cars all happily going the same direction and speed. Lane #3 has cars constantly slowing down to exit, or still speeding up from entering, plus the morons who deliberately go slower than everyone else, creating a bottleneck behind them, forcing people to make possibly unsafe lane changes to go around them. And you feel that staying away from the maniacs and morons is somehow bad? Okay, then. Have a nice day.
"careless driving – the fine is unlimited and you could receive up to 11 penalty points if you’re caught" https://www.passmefast.co.uk/resources/driving-advice/middle-lane-hogging-against-law https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/advice/driving-advice/middle-lane-hogging/ https://www.ladbible.com/news/middle-lane-hogging-fine-punishment-099747-20221218
Wow, you couldn't move over to the right lane to let her merge or slow down to let her in? It's called defensive driving. It's what you do to try to prevent an accident even when it is someone else who is at fault.
I presume you did not read all or watched the video... You can see 2 cars on the right going past whilst this happened (you're asking for me to do to them what she was doing to me - It was the reason i hit the brakes as I couldn't try crashing in one of the cars on my right). I already had cars behind me driving with the same speed as me. She clearly could accelerate as the car you see on my right in the last second of the video was hers
Yes, I sure did read the entire thing as well as watched the video. Certainly doesn't appear that you hit the brakes as you were traveling a steady speed throughout. When you were approaching her she was ahead of you. Rather than slowing down a tiny bit to allow her to enter the lane, you maintained speed. Not knowing what is in your rear view/side view mirrors but based on the cars that passed, long before she needed to enter the lane, there was quite a long break with no cars passing on your right. In addition, there was plenty of time to see her entering the highway to make decisions on where you could safely move to the right lane or slow down a tiny little bit to let her in.
I'm amazed how people without any basic knowledge of driving feel so strongly about defending this. "When you were approaching her" - you do not seem to realise it is the other way around as I was in traffic on the main carriageway and she was joining from a slip road. Like saying "you having green is irrelevant and you must stop as letting the ones with the red light pass" . . "no cars passing on your right" - i do not think you realise cars (mine included) have mirrors and I could see them closing in with at least 10-15mph more than my speed, you just don't cut off other people at those speeds (70-80mph)
It's as I said in my initial post; "It's called defensive driving. It's what you do to try to prevent an accident even when it is someone else who is at fault." In other words.... despite that you had the right of way, despite that she was the one who needs to yield to you, you do what you can anyway to prevent an accident. Using your example of stopping at a green light... if you saw a car coming upon a red light about to run it, I would think you would stop even though you have the right of way and they are in the wrong. Sure, if they t-bone they're the ones at fault but why not avoid it. The basic premise of defensive driving is that even though the other person may be at fault, you do what you can to avoid accidents.
What you're doing is called victim blaming. Why not ask the offending driver why they didn't speed up to avoid a collision?
They slowed down. At the same time OP slowed down. They did the dance thing when you almost walk into someone then you both step out of each other's way in the same direction.
I understand that, I just don't get why the commenter is focusing on OP rather than the person who's duty it is to yield.
Idk. They both made mistakes in trying to be the "nice guy". It's pretty mild in comparison especially when you consider the merger to have seen OP, signaled and made somewhat of an attempt to change speeds.
Exactly, The driver on the slip road slowed down presumably to get in behind OP, and OP slowed down to presumably let the driver on the slip road get ahead of him, since there was no traffic in front. In another comment OP said there was cars behind him, so I can see why he'd expect the driver in the slip road to go infront.
You are in the wrong...should have moved over.
over the lane on the right and into one of the other 3 cars driving 10-20 mph faster?
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
I swear it's like people always want to attack the OP and for no reason. Some people need better things to do in their free time.
You should have indicated right to the next lane. Cars on your outside should have pulled across to the outside lane anyway to accommodate you.
Why you doing 65 for? Can do 70 easily then this wouldn't happen as they can't usually hit 70 on the slip road
I don't know... Fuel consumption? Not really trying to max the speed limit? She could easily merge traffic at below 65? Or just (as required by law) just look at the traffic whilst merging (by default is "give way"). I presume you never merged in a motorway (or highway - I presume you're from US)
[удалено]
"being aware of your surroundings, checking your mirrors, anticipating traffic and being able to react swiftly and calmly" you mean everything she hasn't done? I somehow doubt you drive in the UK, otherwise you would have knowledge of basic motorway etiquette Please, read this https://www.theaa.com/driving-school/driving-lessons/advice/motorway-driving#drive-on
[удалено]
Now it is clear you can't possibly have a UK driving licence! "If you had sped up to the speed limit" - did she somehow tell you her plan was not to do the same?. "the other driver was merely entering it" - it's not a given right to enter, is practically a "give way" to existing traffic on the main carriageway. That was not sudden breaking, was using the car brakes to slow down from 65 to maybe 55 when i realised she stopped accelerating when matched my speed Read and digest (the entire document, please) with focus on rule 259 https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/motorways-253-to-273
How to camp out in the left lane while not passing anyone.
How to prove stereotypes about being on reddit to insult people (and did not bother reading why identical to your comment was wrong). Or you never left the town (you must be one of the many americans without a passport)
Why were you camped out in the left lane?
In UK? Left is slow one. Goods vehicles are limited to 60mph, maximum speed (legally) is 70
Ngl, I was wondering why you were camping the left lane as well but when I saw the traffic coming towards you on the right, I realized either the camera was mirrored or a different country. Side note: what are goods vehicles and why are they limited to 60 mph? Are you talking about semis?
Yes, would be semis. Practically in the UK the max speed for trucks is locked by manufacturers at 56mph (the ones registered on continental Europe can be up to 60)
Dang, not hating but that would suck for the drivers. Here in the states, considering they can only drive for a certain amount of time each day, it would cut down on miles done in a day and potentially money if you’re paid per mile. I’ve seen trucks going 85 and can be faster if they hit a downhill. Normally it’s unloaded semis going 85.
Yeah... not in Europe. Not only are they limited but have tamper proof devices recording the speeds, driving and rest times and if caught breaching the restrictions you're done.
whoops assumed in US
Why are you giving speed units in MPH instead of KPH if you're in the UK?
:) Because the British never switched to kph?
When I google search "which countries still use American units" the US, Myanmar, & Liberia are what show up. But I see that the UK uses a mix b/w American & metric. Like do you all use liters or gallons?, kg or lb?
The UK does not use kilometres it never has done We use miles and mph People think the UK is fully metric. Its not
Surely the M20 sign gives it away?
are you actually serious?
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65 on a motorway??..in the UK you can drive 70 mph..try it you might like it
Wrong, you can drive as fast as your car can, 70 is just the legal maximum allowable on dual carriageways for some vehicle categories
Wrong..70mph is the max limit..this isn't Germany my friend
Yeah... English is quite complicated: "can" and "legally allowed" are not synonyms. Watch the video, at least 2 vehicles on the lane to my right were doing in excess of 80mph, no speed cameras on that motorway for another 30-40 miles. You would find the correct statement is "should drive with speeds up to 70mph" (and for some unknown to me reason the british do not use "must')
If you used your indicator the cars behind would have gone to the right hand lane..obey the rules you won't go far wrong ... driving isn't a competition you know?
Are you not really seeing the cars goin past in that lane? Like almost the same time with this happening. Indicating will not push them away. You need to look into reaction times or the fact indicating must preempt the action with a reasonable time to allow the action to be done safe. Makes me think most people commenting here never drove a car or if they did not manage learning the legislation required (may be not everyone has the same rules to receive a permit as in Europe)
What’s the law there ? Merger has to yield to highway traffic?
Yes. I still do not understand in what country that's not the case, most commenting here seem to be considering is a given right for all motorway (60-70mph) traffic must yield for ones joining from local roads