[Hurri]

On Saturday I was driving through the ever present Oxford ring road road works. At various points on the road (A40) this goes from single file traffic to dual carriageway and back again. As a result of the roadworks, there was a massive queue at one point in the left hand lane of the dual carriageway as the road switched from dual to single carriageway. The right hand lane was empty so allowed the usual procession of important people in a hurry to overtake everyone else. However, suddenly the flow of traffic overtaking on the right stopped, and looking back I could see a car about half a mile back that had decided to keep pace with the left hand lane and drive with a huge gap in front of it, preventing all the important people in a hurry from overtaking the massive queue in the left lane.

I've seen this behaviour on the road a number of times, in one case leading to a fight breaking out on the motorway. I'm not even sure what you call it, so I thought I'd ask here!

I'm also not sure what I think about this.. do you think people who do this are w**nkers or are they saints? I'm indifferent, but this seems to get everyone very hot under the collar... never seen an Alfa driver do it for some reason :byebye:

 

[Nickhoughton567]

Hmm.

Steadfast obeying of the highway code?
9 points on their licence paranoia?
Common sense fail?

 

[100th_Idiot]

The car that stopped is being an idiot and should be fined. Everyone cueing in the left hand lane is contributing to a longer tailback. Both lanes should be used such that the physical length of the cue is shorter then zip merge at the roadworks.

 

[Headgasket14]

I see many Artic drivers doing that.

 

[rgwm]

I call this a debate that is raised periodically.......

Having experienced just this issue today with some roadworks I had the battle with my conscience, as I was in the lane that continued, and found a couple of trucks that I was about to overtake indicating to move into "my" lane - so assuming that we were at the merge I let them in, only to find we were some 800 yards from the actual merge point. I know I could have dived into the now empty lane, asserting my moral superiority as I proceeded to the merge point and then accepted the grateful waves from all the people I'd passed as I then "merged like a zip" without issue........but as I wasn't in any great hurry, and don't like to be an arrogant prat, I didn't. Ideally everyone would do the zip thing, but when they don't, I accept it with (relatively) good grace.

I guess all the lane blocker described above is doing is temporarily relocating the merge point.........

 

[100th_Idiot]

But by moving the merge point the cue may block an on ramp causing more congestion. No point in getting wound up about it though.

 

[Hurri]

I call this a debate that is raised periodically.......

I guess all the lane blocker described above is doing is temporarily relocating the merge point.........

I bet it is raised often... just like lane hogging. The moral dilemma is ... if you do find yourself in the big queue, do you then pull out and skip to the front in the empty lane and overtake in order to do the merge 'properly' like a zip. This is probably a question and dilemma that only applies in the UK as we love a good orderly queue here :biglaugh: - probably one for the citizenship test.

 

[alfabeat]

I have no problem in overtaking and merging at the last moment. That's what the two lanes are for. As mentioned above, if you don't use both lanes the tail back gets even longer and causes more problems.

In theory both lanes should be moving at the same speed if used correctly so the "****" pulling out and slowing down the traffic won't be needed....

 

[keithyboy]

Once there is a queue, driving down the outside of it is queue jumping. You aren't helping anyone's situation except your own. The already slow traffic has to stop to let you in which isn't helping anyone behind in the slightest.

The theory of zip-merging is an excellent one and really should be the answer but it'll never work. It'll never work for the same reason as people can't do mini-roundabouts, if there are three cars, instead of all going at the same time they all sit there looking gormless. It'll never work because people on motorways can't anticipate that trucks will be doing 56mph so they approach the back of them, slow down to 56, then lurch into the next lane in front of someone doing 75. It'll never work because of those people who drive down slip roads at 40mph, realise the traffic is doing 70, and brake to a crawl. The chances of these people being able to judge speed and distance sufficiently to merge with other moving cars are nil.

It'll also never work because people drive far too close to each other so there will be no room to zip. and it'll never work because people in Audis who consider themselves to be terribly important will overtake the zipper in front and barge in in front of him.

As for the person blocking the lane, I have mixed feelings. They do move the merge point which means the traffic ahead of them moves a bit quicker at the expense of the traffic behind. They also really **** off the terribly important Audi people behind them, which is quite funny. However, their actions probably don't really make any difference so are probably a bit misguided.

 

[duemila]

Sorry using a Lane which is empty is not queue jumping, but I understand why people think it is

 

[keithyboy]

I've just been to Tesco where there was a single long queue for three working tills. There was easily room for two shorter queues so I decided to form a second one myself. After the resulting scuffle, I got chucked out by a security guard and now I haven't got any dinner.

 

[Happy Man]

The car that stopped is being an idiot and should be fined. Everyone cueing in the left hand lane is contributing to a longer tailback. Both lanes should be used such that the physical length of the cue is shorter then zip merge at the roadworks.

This :thumbup:

 

[Nickhoughton567]

I've just been to Tesco where there was a single long queue for three working tills. There was easily room for two shorter queues so I decided to form a second one myself. After the resulting scuffle, I got chucked out by a security guard and now I haven't got any dinner.

LMAO


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[TheGrimJeeper]

Sorry using a Lane which is empty is not queue jumping, but I understand why people think it is

... you're kidding yourself if you think the people
steaming up the inside lane and barging back in
at the very last moment don't have queue
jumping on their minds.

 

[MalcQV]

The car that stopped is being an idiot and should be fined. Everyone cueing in the left hand lane is contributing to a longer tailback. Both lanes should be used such that the physical length of the cue is shorter then zip merge at the roadworks.

Many years ago I saw a car straddling lane two and three to stop sensible folk using up all the available space (known as queue jumpers in the UK but most other EU countries I have driven in, it's called common sense, which it is) and a lorry in lane three came up behind the car who at the time was just ahead of me. He or she (probably he) I'm guessing was a smug as hell. The lorry driver backed off about 200 yards and then gunned it. You had to be there to see smuggy move over very quickly :lol:

Once there is a queue, driving down the outside of it is queue jumping. You aren't helping anyone's situation except your own. The already slow traffic has to stop to let you in which isn't helping anyone behind in the slightest.

The theory of zip-merging is an excellent one and really should be the answer but it'll never work. It'll never work for the same reason as people can't do mini-roundabouts, if there are three cars, instead of all going at the same time they all sit there looking gormless. It'll never work because people on motorways can't anticipate that trucks will be doing 56mph so they approach the back of them, slow down to 56, then lurch into the next lane in front of someone doing 75. It'll never work because of those people who drive down slip roads at 40mph, realise the traffic is doing 70, and brake to a crawl. The chances of these people being able to judge speed and distance sufficiently to merge with other moving cars are nil.

It'll also never work because people drive far too close to each other so there will be no room to zip. and it'll never work because people in Audis who consider themselves to be terribly important will overtake the zipper in front and barge in in front of him.

As for the person blocking the lane, I have mixed feelings. They do move the merge point which means the traffic ahead of them moves a bit quicker at the expense of the traffic behind. They also really **** off the terribly important Audi people behind them, which is quite funny. However, their actions probably don't really make any difference so are probably a bit misguided.

It does work KB. Just not in the UK because 98% of UK drivers believe queueing in one lane ages before the reduction is being British, which it is stupidly British.

If we all zip merged it would indeed work but we can't get past the "I'm British and I'm queueing for Britain" :lol: The fact we don't we can't.

... you're kidding yourself if you think the people
steaming up the inside lane and barging back in
at the very last moment don't have queue
jumping on their minds.

In the UK, I'm sure where you reside like the rest of Europe they fill up all available space?

Anyway folks you all know the way we do it is madness, it makes the time to pass through the restriction longer, tempers are frayed further.
That said I now join the zombie drivers and queue 57,567 miles before the restriction because I'm British. :irked:

 

[Michael Woolfor]

Rule 134 of the highway code recommends merging in turn at slow speed. Quite frankly, it annoys me that people sit in one lane and hold everyone else up further down the queue. Sure you get the German car driving muppets that force their way in, but if you approach considerably then I don't see it as pushing in. Why would I choose to sit in a long line of cars when there's a big empty space to the right? Slowing down and indicating early is always helpful I find. In fact, some of the road signs even state 'merge in turn' yet people still complain. So, as long as it is done considerately, I see no reason to complain. Unless you're ignorant or simply misinformed then there's really no cause for complaint if the above is followed.

 

[keithyboy]

How do you approach the business end of a queue of stationary cars considerately? Who are you being considerate to?

 

[duemila]

This thread will go on forever, either people understand the highway code and merging in turn, or we queue for miles for no reason,

 

[MalcQV]

How do you approach the business end of a queue of stationary cars considerately? Who are you being considerate to?

It takes a group effort. It is in the Highway Code. We're British and we will queue. As mentioned below it will be debated infinitum and has been.
You actually do it in many instances. The East Lancs is a case in point where three lanes reduce to two after a set of traffic lights. Everybody arrives at the lights filling all three lanes. You get the odd numpty but mostly everyone merges in-turn.

Keith, why start queuing 1000 yards prior to the lane reduction? Why not three or four miles before? We're mad for it :lol: to the point it's totally unnecessary.

This thread will go on forever, either people understand the highway code and merging in turn, or we queue for miles for no reason,