Juddian:
The attitudes being voiced here, one can hardly blame the general public for increasingly distrusting lorry drivers in general, if professional drivers can’t manage to negotiate their way around a vehicle travelling slightly slower by choice then we’ve reached a new low point, and by Christ this last week or two has been pretty eye opening.
I’m fast coming to the conclusion that a lot of people behind the wheel in the lorry seat simply aint cut out for the job, and might be much less frustrated if they found alternative work.
Agreed.
What’s so important that all is risked to get it there? Slow down people you are a long time dead.
robroy:
Tbf mate if you are sitting at 50 in your car, and every other car is doing 80/90 (yeh I know it’s breaking the limit but I’m being real here) and trucks are doing minimum 56 ish, it does look a bit of a recipe for disaster tbh.
I don’t tearsarse about either but I do try and keep within the flow of traffic.
I reckon there should be a minimum speed for cars…60 65?
You never see many sticking to 70.
I agree, it is a recipe for disaster by doing that, although sadly the reason why is more often than not the ever more numerous idiots in lorries who seem unable to deal with anything moving slower than them before they are almost within touching distance. Then cue the normal swerve into lane 2, perhaps with an indicator thrown on when halfway through the manoeuvre. Then again, I can also see the opposing view. It’s always odd that some truckers believe that everyone should be out of their way. I imagine that they’re the same dolts who engage in miles-long elephant racing.
Juddian:
The attitudes being voiced here, one can hardly blame the general public for increasingly distrusting lorry drivers in general, if professional drivers can’t manage to negotiate their way around a vehicle travelling slightly slower by choice then we’ve reached a new low point, and by Christ this last week or two has been pretty eye opening.
I’m fast coming to the conclusion that a lot of people behind the wheel in the lorry seat simply aint cut out for the job, and might be much less frustrated if they found alternative work.
Sad, but true. On the very rare occasion that I now use a motorway or a dual carriageway I want to be past any lorry as quickly as possible, because so many are driven by unpredictable half-wits who are liable to do something stupid at any moment.
Adonis.:
Anyone driving a car who is overtaken by a truck under normal conditions deserves their licence taken off them.
A.
+1. To make matters worse, even if they know what their cruise control is they’d certainly never use it as they judge it to be witchcraft so they consequently subconsciously slightly speed up when they see a killer juggernaut beside them forcing you to either sit out in lane 2 until they invariably ease off the gas, or drop in behind them where they’ll immediately ease back off the gas!
Exactly
Oh and to the drama queens - it’s not about driving like an idiot, it’s about being in charge of a 44 ton vehicle on heavily congested roads with some car drivers who haven’t got a clue how to drive on motorways. Then we get other car / lorry drivers getting frustrated with us because it takes us a minute or 2 to overtake the car doing 55
It’s not about doing 90, or 100 - it’s about driving to the road and conditions, and if they can’t drive confidently at the speed limit in good conditions they shouldn’t be driving.
Driving a 44 ton vehicle does not automatically make you a good driver however if you are capable of driving one professionally you can negotiate any car drivers that don’t have a clue quite safely.
Juddian’s last post seems very relevant to me.
Driving a truck is easy but driving one professionally requires a lot of patience anticipation and observation and obeying the rules of the road.Less and less drivers seem equipped with these skills on the roads today.
Juddian:
The attitudes being voiced here, one can hardly blame the general public for increasingly distrusting lorry drivers in general, if professional drivers can’t manage to negotiate their way around a vehicle travelling slightly slower by choice then we’ve reached a new low point, and by Christ this last week or two has been pretty eye opening.
I’m fast coming to the conclusion that a lot of people behind the wheel in the lorry seat simply aint cut out for the job, and might be much less frustrated if they found alternative work.
Agreed.
What’s so important that all is risked to get it there? Slow down people you are a long time dead.
Very rarely that Juddian gets it wrong and instead I agree with Adonis.
But in this case we’ve already ground truck speeds down to stupid levels from the reasonable 65-65 mph regime we had before limiters.Resulting in not only a bunched up dangerous mess among trucks in lane 1 and 2 but also trucks now tripping over bleedin car drivers who think that 50-55 mph on a motorway is reasonable.
So in this idiotic new world what is the point of spending loads of the public’s money on expensive multi lane motorways other than not getting held up by a few roundabouts and traffic lights ?.But with the upside on A and B roads that you’re not going to get caught for hours or more between junctions in unavoidable traffic jams owing to the inevitable crashes caused by the resulting and needless bunching.While running at 55 mph instead of 60-65 mph for trucks and 70-80 mph + in the case of cars won’t make the results of crashes,caused by those who just can’t drive any less catastrophic,as we are seeing almost every day.With the lose lose situation that the resulting bunching will definitely increase the frequency of such crashes.
That and all the other aggro like lane hogging and draconian speed limit enforcement that also actually forces what can often be wrongly construed by many as lane hogging,having long since made motorways generally a pointless expensive white elephant to be avoided wherever possible from my point of view.On the basis that if I’m going to be sharing the roads with muppets who can’t/won’t drive at reasonable speeds with an enforcement regime to match I might as well do it on roads where at least I can easily turn off to take an alternative route when needed.Nor have to drive in the often resulting dangerous bunching situations,on the motorways,which such muppetry has created.
Dr Damon:
Driving a 44 ton vehicle does not automatically make you a good driver however if you are capable of driving one professionally you can negotiate any car drivers that don’t have a clue quite safely.
Juddian’s last post seems very relevant to me.
Driving a truck is easy but driving one professionally requires a lot of patience anticipation and observation and obeying the rules of the road.Less and less drivers seem equipped with these skills on the roads today.
It pains me to say this but I actually agree with what you’ve said ^^.
Dr Damon:
Driving a 44 ton vehicle does not automatically make you a good driver however if you are capable of driving one professionally you can negotiate any car drivers that don’t have a clue quite safely.
Juddian’s last post seems very relevant to me.
Driving a truck is easy but driving one professionally requires a lot of patience anticipation and observation and obeying the rules of the road.Less and less drivers seem equipped with these skills on the roads today.
I agree - and we do cope with the slow drivers. Doesn’t mean they are right to drive at slow speeds.
Sorry fella but some do not cope.
They get angry intimidate and harass drivers that they think should go faster.
They are right to travel at 50 to 55. Just because it does not suit you does not make it wrong.
There is no minimum speed limit for some very good reasons.
Not all drivers feel comfortable traveling at the maximum speed limit.
Dr Damon:
Sorry fella but some do not cope.
They get angry intimidate and harass drivers that they think should go faster.
They are right to travel at 50 to 55. Just because it does not suit you does not make it wrong.
There is no minimum speed limit for some very good reasons.
Not all drivers feel comfortable traveling at the maximum speed limit.
Yes I agree in a way but when my 18 yr daughter passed her test last year I did advise her by saying that if she felt ok about it then 65 to 70 would be a more safer speed to travel at but unfortunately she took it literally and promptly got done done for 68 in a 50 on a managed motorway section but that’s a different story.
I look at it this way, I drive on my limiter if I have the space in front of me and conditions are good, I don’t drive on my limiter if the traffic is all bunching up, I won’t overtake either if I am doing 56 and the vehicle in front is doing 53/54, I will happily drop my speed to keep a decent distance in front of me, I always flash other HGV in and drop back if they are close to me. I see this as normal driving and is far safer than just sit on my limiter taking forever to overtake another vehicle. If everyone adopted their driving in this way we would all arrive at our destinations in one piece and on time. The amount of high speed bunching on motorways I see now leaves little wonder in leaving no reaction time in the event of something going wrong. I see HGV’s sweeping into lane changes far later than they should have done. It all adds up to bad driving and nothing short of a lack of common sense and an understanding of the highway code.
Dr Damon:
Sorry fella but some do not cope.
agree
They get angry intimidate and harass drivers that they think should go faster.
agree
They are right to travel at 50 to 55. Just because it does not suit you does not make it wrong.
disagree
There is no minimum speed limit for some very good reasons.
disagree
Not all drivers feel comfortable traveling at the maximum speed limit.
Failing to make progress is a test failure. If you can’t drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions, you shouldn’t be on the road
Dr Damon:
Sorry fella but some do not cope.
agree
They get angry intimidate and harass drivers that they think should go faster.
agree
They are right to travel at 50 to 55. Just because it does not suit you does not make it wrong.
disagree
There is no minimum speed limit for some very good reasons.
disagree
Not all drivers feel comfortable traveling at the maximum speed limit.
Failing to make progress is a test failure. If you can’t drive at an appropriate speed for the conditions, you shouldn’t be on the road
Fair enough I respect your opinion but why do you think nothing is done to stop these drivers sitting at these speeds.
One reason is because it is not deemed unsafe.
What does make it unsafe is other drivers not adapting their driving to accommodate the slower ones…
Have you ever considered what effect introducing say a minimum speed limit would cause?
I can assure you it would bring other major problems that may even more dangerous.
Yes you are quite correct about failing to make progress during a test but if you mention that then maybe all truck drivers should drive like they were taught and the roads would be far safer place.
Failing to make progress is only applicable if the conditions suit. Just because a sign says 40 doesn’t mean you do 40. Its common sense, the same as crawling along holding traffic up and causing an obstruction. You drive to the conditions and not the road signs.
UKtramp:
Failing to make progress is only applicable if the conditions suit. Just because a sign says 40 doesn’t mean you do 40. Its common sense, the same as crawling along holding traffic up and causing an obstruction. You drive to the conditions and not the road signs.
Makes perfect sense UK tramp.Only problem being some drivers do not have any common sense.
Dr Damon:
Makes perfect sense UK tramp.Only problem being some drivers do not have any common sense.
I always make perfect sense, your right though on both counts, indeed some drivers do not have any common sense and you will be reminded of this if you visit this site for any length of time.
You can be prosecuted for driving too slowly on a motorway fact.
Driving too slowly when not necessary to due to the volume of traffic or adverse conditions is hardly safe or recommended especially bunched in between HGV’s for no good reason. Same as cars that sit at the side of a truck not overtaking. I was taught to drive with the flow of the traffic and not to impede the flow of traffic, and that is the way I will always drive.
If you want to pootle around then use A + B roads whose limits are generally slower and a safer place mostly to drive slower. Motorways were designed for fast moving traffic to get from A to B as fast without stopping for junctions lights etc.
We see a lot of people driving slowly on motorways and making unsafe lane changes, people who are oblivious to what the rest of the traffic is doing.
Arguing that someone who is not a vocational driver should not be expected to be as competent a driver is quite frankly silly, driving is a privilege, not a right. The onus is on the driver to learn and strive to be a competent driver exactly the same as your vehicle roadworthiness etc. If you can’t be a competent driver after passing your test and driving for a few years then you should not hold a license.
You should cruise at a steady speed suitable for the vehicle and the conditions up to the speed limit if conditions allow, you should allow a safe distance from the vehicle in front, you should give way to traffic already on the motorway, you should keep left unless overtaking, you should make sure it is safe to change lane and judge the speed of traffic coming up behind you etc etc. All the things you should do on a motorway and all in the highway code.
Sadly people are idiots and everyone is either in a rush or on a go slow and ignore the road laws including driving in a lane with red x above it etc and soon motorways will be so full of traffic they will become slower roads than non-motorway roads the way things are going.
simcor:
You can be prosecuted for driving too slowly on a motorway fact.
Driving too slowly when not necessary to due to the volume of traffic or adverse conditions is hardly safe or recommended especially bunched in between HGV’s for no good reason. Same as cars that sit at the side of a truck not overtaking. I was taught to drive with the flow of the traffic and not to impede the flow of traffic, and that is the way I will always drive.
If you want to pootle around then use A + B roads whose limits are generally slower and a safer place mostly to drive slower. Motorways were designed for fast moving traffic to get from A to B as fast without stopping for junctions lights etc.
We see a lot of people driving slowly on motorways and making unsafe lane changes, people who are oblivious to what the rest of the traffic is doing.
Arguing that someone who is not a vocational driver should not be expected to be as competent a driver is quite frankly silly, driving is a privilege, not a right. The onus is on the driver to learn and strive to be a competent driver exactly the same as your vehicle roadworthiness etc. If you can’t be a competent driver after passing your test and driving for a few years then you should not hold a license.
You should cruise at a steady speed suitable for the vehicle and the conditions up to the speed limit if conditions allow, you should allow a safe distance from the vehicle in front, you should give way to traffic already on the motorway, you should keep left unless overtaking, you should make sure it is safe to change lane and judge the speed of traffic coming up behind you etc etc. All the things you should do on a motorway and all in the highway code.
Sadly people are idiots and everyone is either in a rush or on a go slow and ignore the road laws including driving in a lane with red x above it etc and soon motorways will be so full of traffic they will become slower roads than non-motorway roads the way things are going.
I agree with all of that, but it needs two additions.
people still drive on the motorways thinking the lanes are designated as fast and slow.
people don’t look past the end of their bonnet whilst driving. This is most evident when approaching lane closures.
Quite right you can be prosecuted but not for doing 50 mph.
If that was the case there would be an enormous amount of truck drivers being prosecuted.
Driving at 50 is not deemed dangerous in normal conditions.Driving much below that could be.
You sound like someone who wants the rules to be made around you.Sadly that will never happen.
At present sitting on a bus between York and Hull.
Looking ahead everybody is nose to tail. The bus we are in, cars, lorries and the road is wet.
Let’s hope nothing unexpected happens.I wonder how many of the mentioned drivers think they are good and quite safe?
Guaranteed 99%
