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Honest John Ask Honest John » I agree that overtakers in the outside lane should be fully aware of traffic in other lanes.

I agree that overtakers in the outside lane should be fully aware of traffic in other lanes.

You are very right when stating that the outside lane overtaker should be fully aware. You might have added that the inside laner has the responsibility to also look not only into his mirrors but the blind spot over his shoulder where the mirror will not always show what is happening behind. On any road with three or more carriageways the outside laner and the inside laner could be heading for the same piece of tarmac, as your correspondent describes.

Asked on 29 September 2012 by GM, via email

Answered by Honest John
The fact is that a car or truck overtaking from an inside lane is at an angle. If a car moves from lane three to lane two at the point when the vehicle moving from lane one to lane two is at an angle, the driver of the vehicle from lane one momentarily cannot see the car from lane three. He has to rely on sixth sense instinct. But all this happens in front of the driver from lane three. So if the driver from lane three asserts his position then he actually causes the crash.
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