A cautionary tale

"Give Way" can be marked by a single broken line at roundabouts.



https://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/road-markings.html

 

It is a Give Way line. If you cannot merge safely before the slip road ends then you have to stop and wait until it is safe to join.

It was a congested motorway and I'd already given way to the car in the front of the Audi. After attempting to force me over knowing I had nowhere to go leaving me Hobson's choice of braking I sounded my horn. He wasn't happy with this and shot off to abuse and cut up somebody else. Somehow he ended up behind me and as he overtook me he sounded his horn and acted very aggressively - I just laughed.

 

One group of road users being increasingly squeezed by motor vehicles, cycles, e-bikes, e scooters and mobility scooters.. are 'yer average' pedestrians. I'd agree that we also have our fair share of twats, but as wheeled vehicles of all kinds squeeze us inter ever smaller spaces.. and make even sidewalks/pavements/footpaths dangerous places to be..we WILL become increasingly agitated..and may well fight back....

 

Pedestrians are not road users, they have footpaths I use them all the time

I do a far amount of walking, rarely encounter cyclists but I no longer mountain bike as I don’t like shared paths like the ‘trans pennine trail’; can be quite hazardous.

Personally I really hate pavement parking & think it is a real scourge.

 

we walk in and around London alot, cyclists, scooters, etc on pavements alot, very dangerous. Only pavement parking we see is abandoned hire cycles. Oh and the cyclists jumping red lights - don't get me started.

 

Ultimately...yes they HAVE to stop if there is no clear and safe access to the road

A: Vehicles already using the motorway have the right of way, so you shouldn't brake or slow down as you approach a slip road - it can be dangerous to do so.

If you're in the first lane, it's a much better idea to look well ahead and move over if you can see traffic that wants to join the motorway.

Don't move over if this would force other motorway drivers to change their speed or position, however.

Ultimately, it is up to the vehicle joining the motorway to give way, if necessary, and filter on without causing any trouble.

The Highway Code says that traffic joining the motorway should 'give priority to traffic already on the motorway' and 'adjust speed to fit safely into the traffic flow in the left-hand lane'.

 

Agreed, we need to see TV adverts etc on safe overtaking and sharing the roads.
I would guess that the 20% who passed too close was composed mainly of people who didn't know they were doing something wrong.
IME deliberate near passes are less than 1 in 10.

 

I suppose we will never know what they were thinking. Obvious 'punishment passes' are far rarer IME, unfortunately the outcome can be the same.

 

London is really different, parking enforcement is probably far better policed. Pavement parking is quite a thing near me, especially when a football match is on.

I get that red light jumping is more of a thing in London, I don't approve. At least you have really good public transport options in the capital, really at a disadvantage up north in terms of spend.

 

OK, I concede the point, and in reality it has to be that the motorway traffic has priority, but I remain convinced that there are subtle differences between the conventional give way lines at junctions, and that between slip road and motorway. Best illustrated by the second line of mynaim’s post, where users with the right of way are expected to give access to joining traffic, where possible.

 

I had my own cautionary tale incident yesterday, which I am prepared to offer up for PFM judgment (harsher than any court in N Korea )...

I was cycling up a path (unclear if it's a shared use path, until a few yards further on. But almost never any pedestrians using it) at the side of the Leeds ring road. I am approaching a roundabout on the right hand path at "6 o'clock". I cross to the refuge in the middle of the road and there is a white car on the roadabout that has come from "9 o'clock" approaching quite slowly. I decide I have time to cross and go for it. Suddenly I am aware of a black Audi (quelle surprise!) in front of the white car approaching me FAST, it was too late to abort the crossing so I legged it. The Audi braked which caused the white car to have to brake. I raised an arm to apologise for crossing. It wasn't that close but I was concerned as to why I put myself at some risk.

As I rode up the cycle path, I was trying to work out how I could have not seen the Audi.
With hindsight I think the Audi approached the roundabout fast from the 12 o'clock position and cut in front of the white car. Fortunately he was alert because he was driving in "Audi-mode".

So, who was at fault?
a) IdiotonanMTB
b) CockinanAudi



Old link, but still good:
https://www.portsmouthctc.org.uk/a-fighter-pilots-guide-to-surviving-on-the-roads/

 

Probably the people who designed the road thus putting you in that position.

We have loads of crossings right on the exits to roundabouts at a point where drivers already have plenty to concentrate on, not a place to be driving fast either.

Just had a new roundabout built on the A120 here and the cycle / horse crossing is about 50 metres from the roundabout with loads of protection for the refuge.

 

Regardless of other people's faults you can't be objective as long as you continue to group and identify drivers by the make of vehicle they are driving.

 

i think it's pretty fair when it comes to Audi drivers

 

Was it two lanes? I suppose the Audi could have overtaken the white car at excessive speed? Not always easy to judge speed of oncoming traffic. I pass no judgement either way.

 

Two lanes on the ring road 6 and 12 o'clock, but one lane where I was crossing.

 

The only bit I care about objectivity is with regard to safety.


From a purely subjective viewpoint, my neighbour says it is a totally different experience driving his wife's black BMW in busy traffic compared to driving his Passat. Nobody lets him out of junctions in the BMW.
Seems I'm not alone in judging people by their cars.

 

My sister used to moan about people tailgating her in her Renault 5 (it was a long while ago), I laughed and said it was because she was bumbling along.
Then I had to use her car for work one day and it was a totally different experience to being in the Granada!

I had to eat humble pie.

 

No you are not alone, but it's not a rational position, nor one that could possibly be supported by any evidence. I drive three different makes of car, not including when I use hire cars which will be different again. I don't notice any difference in the way other drivers react to my driving. Probably because I'm the same driver, driving in much the same style. In other words, the driver is typically the critical variant, not the car.

 

It's just different types of confirmation bias, hardly akin to evidence.