Safe Speed Forums

Why DO Drivers Do That???

There must be times when the behavious of other drivers leaves you completely bemused as to what they must be thinking in order to do some of the odd things that you see now and then.

Why, for example, does the driver of a car or other smaller vehicle on a motorway, appear perfectly happy to sit behind, say, a truck or something UNTIL they see you approaching in L2 or 3. They then seem to find an immediate need to pass the vehicle ahead of them and will pull into your lane just as you are closing in on them. OK, no problem, we should anticipate this anyway but still...

And today I was following a truck in L2 passing another truck in L1 (the M54 is a 2 laner) with a Focus a safe distance behind. When the truck I was waiting for returned to L1 I eased passed accelerating up to about 82 mph indicated whilst pulling into L1. The Focus driver felt the need to pass me as well before dropping back to a speed that was just lower than my own so, without changing speed, I found myself catching him as soon as he returned to L1 Why pass me if its obvious I'm going faster than he really intends to go at and am going to end up re-passing him anyway:?

Sheesh

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Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.

Because most male drivers act like pack animals and willy wave on a regular basis. We all like to think that we're above animal urges and instincts but in reality most people aren't. Just watch a bunch of average men near a woman in a short skirt...or a Ferrari.

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Smokebelching,CO2 making,child murdering planet raping,granny mugging,politically incorrect globally warming (or is it climate changing now it's getting colder?)thug.
That's what the government want you to believe of me. If they get back in I'm emigrating.

As if that's not bad enough, most of them then show extreme reluctance to move out of L3 for the next 20 miles or so

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Only when ideology, prejudice and dogma are set aside does the truth emerge - Kepler

I had an interesting one the other week.
Someone in a van was behind me. He'd been there for quite a while along the A350 or somewhere like that.Obviously wanted to get past so whenever there was a bit of road he could overtake on I'd try to make sure there was a gap in front of me. Eventually after a few larger stretches he decided to overtake. I was a bit confused as to why he'd chosen this not-so-large piece of road when it became apparent that he was going to overtake the car in front of me too.
If I was him I wouldn't have done it because of the headlights I could see coming the other way around the bend, but nevertheless he continued.
So there he was between the car and the lorry in front of it having just got out of the way in time, and about to go round the bend.
And he decided that this is a good time to overtake the lorry. Yes, on the bend.

I slow down expecting a sideways lorry with a car in its side to suddenly appear in front of me. Fortunately it doesn't.

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Andrew.

I think I've worked out recently why some drivers end up sticking their noses out at junctions.

I thought they were aiming to stop over the give way line, but I realise now they were not aiming to stop at all.

When people do this I figure they approach the junction with every intention of just driving straight though it, and only stop if they see something coming down the road, hence coming to rest over the edge of the give way lines.

I think humans are programmed to find somebody passing them them very offensive.

Or, even match their speed. Ever tried to pace somebody when walking whio you're not actually walking with? They will slow down or speed up simply so there's not somebody next to them going at the same speed.

I also think we are programmed to think we are going slower than everybody else when moving in a group.

Both good responses when being chased down by an angry animal whilst out hunting with a group of people, but not so constructive on a motorway.

Perhaps they inch out beyond the junction because of the SMIDSY bollard or the muppet who parked his car within 10 metres of the junction or actually on the corner

Not sure what the other post ist about ..

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Nicht ganz im Lot!
Ich setze mich immer wieder in die Nesseln! Der Mad Doc ist mein Mann! Und ich benutzte seinen PC!

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Because they do not look in their mirrors. Plan or even COAST. They also perhaps afraid of going that bit faster because they told it "dangerous to do so".


Or.. maybe they too close to said truck und have eased back a bit for a better view down each side to see what gap lie in front

(I do try to see the other's pysche if possible und this what we are trying to work out so that we can further develop our skills here )






Ach He realise he 82 mph und in ping danger here .. but he does not have the gap to pull in behind you .. so he decide to pass you und then ease off back to bubble under limit in case blokey on the bridge ahead look like he drying his stubble und goatee beard


Either that or he swallow the speed myth to irrational extent und sees SPECS everywhere.

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Nicht ganz im Lot!
Ich setze mich immer wieder in die Nesseln! Der Mad Doc ist mein Mann! Und ich benutzte seinen PC!

UND OUR SMILEYS? Smile ... und the the world smiles with you.
Smiley guy seen when you read
Fine me for Safe Speed
(& other good causes..)

Greatest love & Greatest Achievements Require Greatest Risk
But if you lose the driving plan - don't lose the COAST lesson.
Me?
Je ne regrette rien!

wow.. weepej actually made some sense

Nope, he had plenty of room to pull in behind me, he just got into a single minded state in which he had decided he was going to pass me fullstop.
I did in fact wonder how fast I could have accelerated to before he gave up trying to pass, if indeed he would have given up
And no, I'm not of a mind to play silly beggars with other drivers just to see how they would react

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Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.

Ahhh, I've always made perfect sense, its that you've only just started realising it

Perfect sense and correctness of standpoint are not always synonymous!

I liked your point about perception of relative motion - perhaps this is a part of animal psyche that decides whether they are tribal/pack animals or herd/flock dwellers. An opposing observation to human behaviour is that of a flock of roosting starlings. Starlings are left-'handed' and take their flight cues from the bird to the left of them which sets up the swirling smoke-like patterns exhibited by the flock, as per:-

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=4DKtj4E_iss&feature=related

Watch in fullscreen mode for best effect - astounding!

Cheers!

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Aquila



Licat volare si super tergum aquila volat...

More fear. If someone is walking up behind you .. pacing you. You will feel "threatened" especially a woman or a child who quite naturally will not feel comfortable if they think a man is following or "stalking"


On motorway.. good idea to slow up to assist the overtake.

Or.. if you are not driving in the normal flow.. to adjust to blend into the flow more fluently.


In Rigger's experience that morning.. he had perhaps the complacent oaf




Some folk sadly have never read or fully understood the Highway Code or COAST requirements. What a pity a nice was not there to him. for a little chat.


I think I would have just eased up .. let him pass and pull in in front and then just calmly overtake again at whatever point I needed to.

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safespeed prospers-smiles all round! !
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Eh Why would you have eased up MM? Do you ease up every time someone passes you on a motorway just in case they decide to move into your lane and then ease up themselves?

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Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.

It reading their behaviour .. anticipating what they might do for me.


Ach.. if they are passing me.. in L2 und it become a bit of "elephant race" as he at same speed as me.. I cannot undertake him as this ist illegal manoeuvre.

So both me und Ted will just ease up that bit so the illogical numpty can pass us. If he then move into L1 und then ease up himself .. but to lower speed und we end up having to overtake him....



Ach there will be a rudey thought passing through feline heads But this time .. provided a quicky glance at the bridge at Shap show no lurking submarinated muppet who ping all in sight regardless without "forming any opinion" .. my "toy boy" und his "young frilly" (both called Jag ) will make sure the muppet get lesson in how to overtake with swiftness und with style


The last time someone did this to us .. we pass und note his apparent burst of speed apparently made him thirsty as he was swigging from bottled water This not far from services either..

_________________
Nicht ganz im Lot!
Ich setze mich immer wieder in die Nesseln! Der Mad Doc ist mein Mann! Und ich benutzte seinen PC!

UND OUR SMILEYS? Smile ... und the the world smiles with you.
Smiley guy seen when you read
Fine me for Safe Speed
(& other good causes..)

Greatest love & Greatest Achievements Require Greatest Risk
But if you lose the driving plan - don't lose the COAST lesson.
Me?
Je ne regrette rien!

Of course. We could talk all day about what we might do in a situation that is different to to the one I described. But that wasn't the way it happened, it never became an 'elephant' race or any other sort of race.

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Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.

No it isn't...

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Andrew.

I drove down a long straight downhill road on Friday night at ~60, and noticed that there was a Nissan Micra sitting at a left side turning at the bottom of the hill. My numpty alarm began ringing as it just sat there despite being positioned to turn left and there being nothing in front of me, so I began to count. I managed to count to twelve and was about 100 yards away THEN the Micra pulled out. Very slowly.

Typically someone was coming the other way so I couldn't immediately pull round them, but when I did the driver looked mortified. I wasn't even annoyed; it was so dumb a manouevre I felt sorry for her in a wierd kind of way.

You've uncovered one of my major predjudices.

When I see a car in the wrong place at the wrong time, or even going the wrong way on a road, it's seems it's quite likely to be a Nissan Micra.

I once saw one stuck on a piece on concrete that divided lanes on the A406 by Brent Cross, with its reverse lights on trying to unbeach itself.

It's gotta be selective reporting on my part though right?

Well that's one thing on which I totally agree with you

And whenever you encounter a long queue on a rural single-carriageway road, odds on at the front will by a Micra.

In terms of dynamics it's no worse than the generality of cars in its class, so the problem must be that its cutesy, cuddly image means it appeals to people who take no interest or pride whatsoever in driving.

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed