2 lane carriageway you’re in lane 2 in your truck and you come up to a vehicle travelling below the speed limit. Lane 1 is clear, you pop into lane 1 pass them then pull out again — that’s undertaking Right
Scenario 2:
2 lane carriageway you come up to another vehicle travelling slower in lane 2, lane one empty so you pop into lane one and stay in that lane and don’t pull back into lane 2.
would that still be classed as undertaking if a traffic cop witnessed you do it impo it would be only on a technicality surely because you only passed the not undetook them if you catch my drift
undertaking is for dead people. passing on the inside is the part thats illegal apart from a couple of exceptions so both would get you done. tho i wish the cops would do the ■■■■ in the middle lane instead it would be a harder conviction and we all no they just want easy fixed penalty tickets.
I would say that both are illegal according to the Highway Code aritcle 268.
However, article 268 covers motorway driving so what is the rule on dual carriageways not classed as motorways? No, I wouldnt do it but is there a law stopping it?
Strictly speaking the highway code is offering ADVICE regarding undertaking. They use the phrase DO NOT in relation to passing on the left. This indicates that this behaviour is not desirable but not illegal. If they used the phrase MUST NOT then passing on the left would be illegal.
i was told by a traffic officer , that as long as you dont increase speed to get past undertaking is permissable , BUT that means if you stay at 56 & the middle lane slows below 56 you are still allowed to travel at 56 thus pass the middle lane driver , in any other circumstance you cannot use the inside lane to purposely pass any vehicle in the middle lane
Are you describing your approach to a middle lane hogger ? They are the ones driving without due care and attention so I would flash my lights to make them aware of my prescence, not I hasten to add , bully them into submission.My defence would be,that if they were aware of me, then they would have moved across to the left to allow a faster vehicle to overtake.There is nothing wrong with flashing your lights to make someone notice where you are.What you do next depends on how the other vehicle responds.
Are you describing your approach to a middle lane hogger ? They are the ones driving without due care and attention so I would flash my lights to make them aware of my prescence, not I hasten to add , bully them into submission.My defence would be,that if they were aware of me, then they would have moved across to the left to allow a faster vehicle to overtake.There is nothing wrong with flashing your lights to make someone notice where you are.What you do next depends on how the other vehicle responds.
Imagine the same scenario. Travelling North on the AI, a vehicle is in the right hand lane for instance to turn off into Swainby Pickhill or Rainton. Would you pass him on the inside or sit behind him and effectively turn the dual carriageway into a single lane road?
I believe that undertaking is legal and I think the test would be whether you were driving like a twit and weaving in and out or simply overtaking on the inside.
that is one of the exceptions i mentioned. you can pass on the inside if passing a vehicle indicating right, if you or other vehicle are on a slip road, on a one way street, if traffic is moving in lanes and your lane is moving faster than the one on right. and possibly 1 or 2 more. if the highway code says “should not” then its a suggestion not a law, but do not sounds like a command to me.
2 lane carriageway you’re in lane 2 in your truck and you come up to a vehicle travelling below the speed limit. Lane 1 is clear, you pop into lane 1 pass them then pull out again — that’s undertaking Right
As you pulled back into lane 2 - yes
Cruise Control:
Scenario 2:
2 lane carriageway you come up to another vehicle travelling slower in lane 2, lane one empty so you pop into lane one and stay in that lane and don’t pull back into lane 2.
That is not undertaking but passing so OK - Providing it was done safely
The first senario is an obvious attempt to gain an advantage whereas the second senario was just to pass a numpty lane hogger
2 lane carriageway you’re in lane 2 in your truck and you come up to a vehicle travelling below the speed limit. Lane 1 is clear, you pop into lane 1 pass them then pull out again — that’s undertaking Right
As you pulled back into lane 2 - yes
Cruise Control:
Scenario 2:
2 lane carriageway you come up to another vehicle travelling slower in lane 2, lane one empty so you pop into lane one and stay in that lane and don’t pull back into lane 2.
That is not undertaking but passing so OK - Providing it was done safely
The first senario is an obvious attempt to gain an advantage whereas the second senario was just to pass a numpty lane hogger
Why not just forget the idea of prosecution for overtaking either side and ‘trying to gain an advantage’ should only apply in the case of racing on the public highway?.People from Britain happily drive in the States where overtaking is allowed either side on a multi lane highway and if you’re using a right hand drive vehicle in Europe or a left hand drive one here you’re being overtaken on the nearside all the time anyway so what’s the big issue and problem with it ?.
I seem to have noticed recently , a marked increase of middle lane hoggers (or is it just me ?)
It doesn’t matter if there is nothing else in any of the 3 lanes available too sometimes , they will just sit there at 45-50ish . I’ve had to pull into L2 and wait - flash and wait whilst knocking off the limiter and slowing - wait -wait and finally give up and undertake
Sometimes you can watch as these absolute numptys see what you have done and STILL SIT THERE as the whole motorway stacks up behind . (might it be something to do with the text message they are sending via the phone on lap so no-one can see me method :roll: )
I travelled down to MK in the car last weekend and , with a lot less HGV traffic on the M1 , even my Mrs commented on why nearly everone didn’t bother with L1 anymore
Possible solution ■■
There should be public information adverts made to educate drivers on certain aspects of motorway driving
this could also point out to the great unwashed THAT IT IS NOT YOUR DIVINE RIGHT TO PUSH YOUR VEHICLE ONTO A FREE FLOWING MOTORWAY AT ALL COSTS , YOU DO NOT HAVE RIGHT OF WAY !!!
–bob–:
that is one of the exceptions i mentioned. you can pass on the inside if passing a vehicle indicating right, if you or other vehicle are on a slip road, on a one way street, if traffic is moving in lanes and your lane is moving faster than the one on right. and possibly 1 or 2 more. if the highway code says “should not” then its a suggestion not a law, but do not sounds like a command to me.
Exactly.
What do you do when there is a hold up on the motorway and lanes 2 and 3 are stationary but you are in lane 1 and it’s clear in front?
Stop behind the last vehicle in either of the other lanes?
Or continue in your lane until that lane stops?
This is a different scenario to the knobheads that blatently weave in and out of lanes of moving traffic .
Possible solution ■■
There should be public information adverts made to educate drivers on certain aspects of motorway driving
I would personally like to see their driving licences taken away or them shot at dawn, but then I am a tad totalitarian when it comes to who should be on the roads and who shouldn’t.
if you travel on the M25 like i do every day you cant help but pass someone on the inside. i just stay in the lane thats moving the best, quite often thats the inside lane anyway, so just keep going
i have passed police cars more than once and never been pulled when running around the 25
The way I see it as long as you stay in the lane after passing on the inside and not weaving in and out it’s ok, you get alot of this in roadworks with average speed cameras, all the cars in the middle doing 30-40mph, am I gonna sit with them when lane 1 is clear? Hell no I’m gonna carry on past at 50
im with you m8… ive lost count of the times on the m1 im having to swap lanes cus cars like to sit at 45 in the middle lane. in the road works…
how many times a day!! do cars overtake u half a mile from the start of the roadworks then pull in front and slow to 5mph under the limit
i cant understand the logic… they will do 80+ in normal conditions then in roadwroks sit at a crappy speed…
The presumption arising from the original question, and some of the answers following, is that undertaking is illegal. Per Se, it is not. Whilst the circumstances of such an action could be construed as either Carless Driving, or Driving without Reasonable Consideration, the action, itself, is not prosecutable. For a prosuction to succeed there needs to be shown that either the action caused a danger to other road users, or that other road users were inconvenienced.
Whilst I’m not as au fait with the current Highway Code, as I was with earlier versions, I can recall that there was mention of ‘passing on the left’ in one-way streets in slow moving traffic, and also guidance that if traffic was ‘moving in lanes’, then maintaining speed in lanes to the left was permitted. Noticeably, between the two, the word ‘slow’ (or slowly) only related to one-way streets. And is, anyway, a ‘subjective’ expression.
On a Motorway car journey with my missus last year, doing 70 mph in Lane 1, with ditherers in Lane 2 at about 50-60, and Lane 3 buggering about at between, 65-70, she commented, “Your undertaking.” to which I replied. “I’m in a lane in which it is safe to travel at the permitted speed limit.” Adding a few expletive judgments as those driver around us.
My argument being, that ‘traffic’ was travelling in lanes (at different speeds) and that my lane was moving at a higher speed than the vehicles in other lanes, albeit that mine was the only vehicle there.
Which is in total accordance with (my interpretation) of the Highway Code.
shade:
Possible solution ■■
There should be public information adverts made to educate drivers on certain aspects of motorway driving
this could also point out to the great unwashed THAT IT IS NOT YOUR DIVINE RIGHT TO PUSH YOUR VEHICLE ONTO A FREE FLOWING MOTORWAY AT ALL COSTS , YOU DO NOT HAVE RIGHT OF WAY !!!
Totally agree with you + add “how to signal correctly at round-abouts” to the film topics.
Krankee, i agree with your last post also.
Just one thing to watch guys, if you do go up the inside, best not do it where there is something on the hard sholuder as this leaves no escape route should said ML hogger suddenly decide to move left.
The 4 lane section of M6 in my neck of the woods (Preston) is bad for this as to the south of Preston lane 1 leaves onto the M61 & to the north lanes 1 & 2 leave to the M55. Drivers are so frightened of getting mis-routed.
TRUCK DRIVERS are the worst offenders!!! Especially northbound often running in lane 3 all the way up from the Tickled Trout exit, quite some miles before the M55.
Right 
And is, anyway, a ‘subjective’ expression.