I'm missing something here - perhaps a few hormones ?
I'll merge at some reasonable opportunity - it will very probably be before the bottleneck. Someone will almost certainly pass me and merge later - and I will probably let someone in who merges late.
And so what ? I might get to my destination very slightly later, but it just doesn't matter.
I think the vast majority of drivers treat the bottleneck in a similarly relaxed manner. There will always be drivers who want to make the greatest possible progress through the bottleneck, it's not my role to stop or slow them.
Personally, I like to see both lanes fully used and then merged courteously one for one - and I think this does happen.
Then again, I'm often on two wheels and expect to go to the head of the queue :-)
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Personally, I like to see both lanes fully used and then merged courteously one for one - and I think this does happen.
Which is precisely how it should be.
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I agree with TVM, I don't know how anybody can't, unless they have misunderstood what he said or have no common sense.
If you merger early when the traffic is at a standstill, you help create a log jam, because you wast that roadspace that is the right hand lane.
This causes the queue to extend backwards around roundabouts, across junctions and delays other people who aren't even going the same way.
What's more, merging early invites turds to blast down the right hand lane and pretend to be surprised when they come across some cones, and they then signal and swerve in front of someone to the left.
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Let me clarify
1/ people should zip or merge in turn near the point of constriction, using as much road space of all legitimate available lanes as possible. Where that zip point is is entriely dependednt on circumstances and speed but its not hundreds of yards away from the restriction. It works folks.
2/ My rant is about people who become unoficial "space meisters" who think "I shall stop people using legitimate road spce on the offchance they might get in front of me" You - You people are the target of my rant. And yes you should be in a jobsworth role as befites your "I am in charge" mentality.
3/ Roadsigns. We all know where these bottlenecks are. A MERGE IN TURN sign would be nice please. At least it gives people a merge target point.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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TVM, I agree completely. Zipping is a much better solution, and I *always* let in people who are *reasonably* merging. My point is that the idiots who merge aggressively at the last second completely stop this working. I've never seen a rolling road block that wasn't prompted by the latter situation.
I can't be bothered to respond to point 2.
Point 3, couldn't agree more.
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As I see it, and I stand correction, either system (queueing in one lane or zipping at the point of constriction ) works equally well as long as EVERYONE uses the same system. Problem occurs where there is a long single lane queue AND a (large?) number of people zooming up the outside and then zipping because this can mean that there are sufficient of the latter to cause the tail of the queue to be stationary. Best solution would appear to be that there are signs for some distance saying "use both lanes" and then, at the point of constriction, signs saying "merge in turn". If everyone did that, then frustrations with zippers "should" be removed and it "should" ensure that there are not excessively long single lane queues. Seems to work well at the end of a bypass near us.(I think!!!)
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Phil
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Sorry - I appear to be plagiarising TVM's last post - not intentional - my typing (and brain) is a bit slow!
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Phil
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I agree, again, with Gordon.. I concede, TVM, that your approach SHOULD work, but in reality it doesn't. If I can be so bold (I am scared now), you seem to have a rather black and white attitude to it. People perceive things differently, I don't think the vast majority of people who block people near a merge think they're superior beings, I think they genuinely believe they're doing others a favour. Misguided maybe, but they are getting their point over, as they see it, to the thrusting "execs" in the 3 series brigade.
Can I point out that I do NOT do the roadblock thing... I've only ever done it once at a point actually BY The cones, when I was driving a Bentley Arnage (not mine!). Bloke in a Rover engaged in a class war with me to try and get in... little did he know I actually drive a Skoda not a Bentley.
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I'm with TVM.
If you deliberately cause a rolling roadblock because you assume you know the thought process, circumstances, "class" or attitude of someone else in the right hand lane, possibly in a car you somehow don't approve of, that seems to me to be little better than you driving at 70 in the outside lane of the motorway because you think nobody else should be allowed to go any faster.
Not a good idea. Don't do it.
Personally I'd rather not assume the mantle of traffic policeman. It's not really my business to deliberately provoke by obstruction, and I won't be provoked myself by others passing me in that way, because life is too sweet to spend on such things.
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So we're all agreed....
ZIP = ideal, but reality = self interest = chaos
How to solve it? Educate the "scream up right lane eejits" that they are creating problems.
How? Do it there and then at the point where they are trying it on
In other words, rolling block, gently slowing down to the speed of the inside lane.
Of course for the van driver I saw on the M6 on Weds who drove through the gravel on the central res to get past someone daring to impeed his progress towards the cones 100 yards ahead of him, only a frontal lobotomy will do.
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I'm with TVM too.
The more of us that use both lanes until near the narrowing (in accordance with the Highway Code),
the less advantage there will be for those in the right lane
and so the less the self righteous will feel the need to block others.
So I'm doing my bit to reduce road rage, though I'm sure not everyone see it that way ;-)
Dan
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So surely I'm just doing exactly what TVM says? I pull out into the right hand lane and drive in it making use of the available road space. The difference is that I drive within the speed limit and merge back in at a sensible point further up the road. What I dont do is pull out, race at 80mph (in a 40 limit) to the end and cut someone up to get back in the lane.
If you was to see the road in question and drive on it I think you would see my point of view.
TVM - everyone has a view, I'm happy to accept your point of veiw without resorting to insults :)
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If you drive in the emptier lane at the speed limit (or any reaonable speed) you are doing nothing wrong.
It's those who drive at a crawl to avoid passing the nearside lane who are creating an unofficial road block.
Dan
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Forgot to say in the earlier post that I would never obstruct the traffic. Its about everyone getting where they need to go, we all want to get home (in one peice). It's the agressive drivers that this rant is aimed at, you know, the ones who think they can tell others what job they should do....
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Last years, someone (god bless the ground he walks on) put some roadworks in on the A1. Special signs preceeding the road works had pictures of cars "zipping" with a sign saying merge in turn. They were every 50 yards. 50 yards before the roadworks a sign said MERGE NOW.
It worked like a charm 99% of the time.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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And that is precisely how it should be - It would be such a simple way to make everyone's life better. There used to be a similar, albeit permanent, system by J11 of the M40 coming into Banbury. They seem to have abandoned it now in favour of one large lane where the agressive push past.
And with that, I'm going to do a reality check, stop arguing with people I don't know about something I don't particulary have strong feelings about, and get back to doing something work related. This interweb forum stuff can't be healthy, I cannot conceive of ever having this argument in the real world. :-)
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Ah but there the rub. If we did have this chat int he real world, everyone would appreciate the situation and how we feel, these problems would not crop up and I would have no excuse to vent my Friday spleen at todays target of choice.
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
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Wow!
Stirred up some emotions with this post :)
To clarify the road situation I was referring to, it is a 70mph dual carriageway that changes to 40mph (dual lane) for about a mile then merges to one 40mph lane (right into left).
At busy times there is ALWAYS a long queue in the left hand lane not far after the 40mph signs and NO cars at all in the right hand lane. I guess in this instance I am guilty of 'blasting' down the right hand lane (albeit at no more than the speed limit).
I don't do it to be arrogant or 'get there first'. Simply if there is a lane to be used I use it rather than the cause the queue to get longer and longer.
The point is the queue can get long enough to not only block a crossing in the dual carriageway, but has on the odd ocassion got dangerously close to the 70mph section.
I agree that in reality what I did/do is/can be seen as aggressive and pushy but it would make sense if more cars did it then zipped.
Strange thing is, where there are 'use both lanes' signs they seem to work well!
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I would dearly love to zip down the right hand lane and merge in the turn, but I'm not brave enough. :(
Best way to do it would be to have both lanes merge into one, rather than arbitarily closing one off.
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Wow! Stirred up some emotions with this post :) To clarify the road situation I was referring to, it is a 70mph dual carriageway that changes to 40mph (dual lane) for about a mile then merges to one 40mph lane (right into left).
I wish I'd known sooner. It tends to make my "from two lanes at traffic lights to one lane after 100 yards on a 30 mph limit road" experience irrelevant in this context.
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L\'escargot.
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In reply to Dipstick's message above, can I just point out that during the incident I mentioned, the Rover driver called me a "posh expletive deleted" who thought I "was better than him cos I had a flash car". Completely untrue. I thought he was being an arrogant idiot by forcing his way into a line of traffic at the very end of an OBVIOUS lane merge. Apologies to anyone who feels I've insulted them (TVM and Dipstick), and no, I am not engaged in a class war, hence my comment about the Rover driver not knowing I actually own a Skoda! It does make sense to "zip" in the instance that andy76 used, but makes less sense on a motorway. IMHO! You will NEVER convince me that people who srive RIGHT TO THE END and then cut in are anything less than thrusting types who would love to be the "alpha male" type or its female equivalent.
And that's hopefully the last word from me on this subject.
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