The weekend before last it was a cyclist - who kept waving me past,
despite it being a fairly narrow country road, close to a bend, with
no idea what might be coming the other way.


It is dangerous as most people will subliminally feel obliged to comply
with gratitude. I never wave anyone out. There are times when I may
obviously lift my hands off the steering wheel to signify I am not going to
move.

I feel that a crawling queue should be like a train! Coupled wagons. Others
can join at the back end - or reconsider the validity of the rat run if
that is what they were doing.

Near me is a road that avoids a set of traffic lights. To use it the driver
has to cross a double lane on a dual carriageway, negotiate parked cars and
a speed bump and then wait to get out at the other end. Lo and behold
though - someone will stop and let him out.

"JohnP" wrote in message
. ..


The weekend before last it was a cyclist - who kept waving me past,
despite it being a fairly narrow country road, close to a bend, with
no idea what might be coming the other way.


It is dangerous as most people will subliminally feel obliged to comply
with gratitude. I never wave anyone out. There are times when I may
obviously lift my hands off the steering wheel to signify I am not going
to
move.

I was driving along a single-track road with passing places, following a
cyclist. Whenever we got to a passing place where it *might* be safe for me
to overtake, he moved out into the middle of the road, preventing me
overtaking. But when we were in a single section, approaching a bend, he
signalled furiously, waving me past. He did this several times: it was not
just a fluke. Either he *wanted* me to force him into the verge and then hit
an oncoming car that appeared from round the bend, or else he had no traffic
sense at all.

He seemed to be getting more and more irate that I wouldn't overtake, but he
wasn't letting me do so at the places where it was safe. On one occasion I
could see the top of a red Royal Mail van over the wall around the bend, so
I *knew* it wasn't safe. From his higher vantage point he should have had an
even better view of it and known not to beckon me on.

I think some of the problem is the "performance cyclists" who want to ride
as fast as their stamina and the gradient will let them, and who aren't
prepared to let any other traffic past. When I'm cycling, especially on a
narrow country lane, I try to be aware of whether there's anything behind
me, and will always pull into a farm gateway. The "point ahead and then
left" gesture seems to convey very well my intention that I'll keep going
until I get to the gateway that I can see ahead, and then I'll pull over.

As a car driver I will occasionally want to drive slower than I sense cars
behind me want to (if I'm looking for an address, or I want to admire the
view) and I will find somewhere to pull over, rather than just driving
slowly and making them wait. I once had a problem with my car (turbo hose
hadn't been properly re-attached by garage, so car was running with no turbo
assistance) which meant my car could only get up to about 40 mph, and slowed
to about 20 on even gentle hills. I drove home very carefully, looking for
pulling-over spots and ready to let normal-speed traffic get past. (I played
merry hell with the garage for returning my car in the state that they did,
after rectifying an early problem. I booked it in for the loss-of-power
problem to be investigated, not relishing the drive there, but something
made me check for loose hoses, and found the hose to the turbo was hanging
off. It took a minute or so to tighten the jubilee clip and normal service
was restored. So I rang to cancel, and reported the problem to the service
manager who gave me my next service or MOT for free. I hadn't realised just
how much a turbo-diesel *needs* the turbo - evidently a normally-aspirated
1.6 is pretty puny!)

On Wed, 7 Apr 2021 23:03:11 +0100, Steve Walker
wrote:

snip

The weekend before last it was a cyclist - who kept waving me past,
despite it being a fairly narrow country road, close to a bend, with no
idea what might be coming the other way.

Is there any chance they could hear there was nothing coming, or see
over the top of stuff?

Cheers, T i m

On 08/04/2021 10:18, T i m wrote:
On Wed, 7 Apr 2021 23:03:11 +0100, Steve Walker
wrote:

snip

The weekend before last it was a cyclist - who kept waving me past,
despite it being a fairly narrow country road, close to a bend, with no
idea what might be coming the other way.

Is there any chance they could hear there was nothing coming, or see
over the top of stuff?

Should they expect you to believe them?

--
Max Demian

Ah but what about the tailgaters on downhill stretches of isy roads, do they
have a death wish or are they relying on the person ahead to stop them.
Lucky I don't drive, and even luckier I cannot see this behaviour any more.
Brian

--

This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"JohnP" wrote in message
. ..
Why the F do some drivers leave such a big gap behind the vehicle in
front!
Watched a busy junction yesterday - An ambulance was trying to get through
but the junction was blocked - several cars further down there were
massive gaps that, if closed up would have left the junction clear.

Another near me often has cars backing up when the light change - yet in
the distance is someone leaving a 2 car gap in front. Probably the
mentality of "I won't get there any faster if I close up"

Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every side
road -
preferably before they have to stop. What about some consideration to
those
behind?

On 07/04/2021 14:09, JohnP wrote:
Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every side road -
preferably before they have to stop. What about some consideration to those
behind?
Never mind that. People wanting to make a right turn in front of me are
so annoying.

I'm writing to Grant Shaps to suggest making the manoeuvre illegal.

On 11/04/2021 07:29 pm, Mark Carver wrote:
On 07/04/2021 14:09, JohnP wrote:
Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every side
road -
preferably before they have to stop. What about some consideration to
those
behind?
Never mind that. People wanting to make a right turn in front of me are
so annoying.

I'm writing to Grant Shaps to suggest making the manoeuvre illegal.

But even if it's made illegal, how will they know that you're the one
behind?

On Sunday, 11 April 2021 at 19:29:58 UTC+1, Mark Carver wrote:
On 07/04/2021 14:09, JohnP wrote:
Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every side road -
preferably before they have to stop. What about some consideration to those
behind?
Never mind that. People wanting to make a right turn in front of me are
so annoying.

I'm writing to Grant Shaps to suggest making the manoeuvre illegal.
I once read an account about a woman who only made left turns going miles out of her way to get to destinations without doing a right turn.

Richard

Tricky Dicky wrote in
:

On Sunday, 11 April 2021 at 19:29:58 UTC+1, Mark Carver wrote:
On 07/04/2021 14:09, JohnP wrote:
Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every
side road - preferably before they have to stop. What about some
consideration to those behind?
Never mind that. People wanting to make a right turn in front of me
are so annoying.

I'm writing to Grant Shaps to suggest making the manoeuvre illegal.
I once read an account about a woman who only made left turns going
miles out of her way to get to destinations without doing a right
turn.

Richard


A bit extreme - but sometimes a bit of planning on a regular journey can
lead to avoiding an awkward turn. Hence I tend to avoid a particular rat-
run as it involves 2 right turns and I prefer to go to a traffic light
controlled junction to take one safer right turn.

"JohnP" wrote in message
. ..
Tricky Dicky wrote in
:
I once read an account about a woman who only made left turns going
miles out of her way to get to destinations without doing a right
turn.

Richard


A bit extreme - but sometimes a bit of planning on a regular journey can
lead to avoiding an awkward turn. Hence I tend to avoid a particular rat-
run as it involves 2 right turns and I prefer to go to a traffic light
controlled junction to take one safer right turn.

Yes, whenever I'm taking a load of garden waste and Amazon cardboard to the
tip (sorry, "recycling centre") I take a slightly longer way round to avoid
having to turn right from a minor road onto a major road where there isn't
very good visibility either way because the junction is on a long bend. At
quiet times, it's not a problem but as soon as there's a stream of cars
going to the coast, it's a dead loss because there's almost nose-to-tail
traffic and it's rare for anyone to stop to let me out.


Where I used to live, there was a crossroads where my road joined a busy
trunk A road. If I wanted to turn right, I had to check for two streams of
traffic coming from my right because the road narrowed from two-lane
dual-carriageway to one lane at the junction, and from the left some cars
were preparing to overtake others as the dual carriageway started.

https://i.postimg.cc/MTwKYxZ7/Scan-12-04-2021-1030.png (I'm approaching from
the bottom of the map)

I quickly worked out that there was an easier way. There was another road, a
little dead-end into a hamlet, about 300 yards to my left. I would turn left
(only need to check for traffic from my right), pull into the centre
turning-right lane, do a U turn around the island in the mouth of the
dead-end (having checked there was nothing coming from that direction) and
pull out again into the direction I originally wanted. People from the
hamlet did the converse with U turns in my road.

I got a *very* funny look from a car that was waiting (and waiting and
waiting) to turn right when I did my turn-left-U-turn manoeuvre and went
past him, still waiting. I would have slowed down and flashed him out ahead
of me, but there was traffic coming from his right so he wouldn't have been
able to get out even if I'd let him - and anyway, there's too much risk of
someone overtaking me at the junction and hitting him.


It was a weird junction for traffic doing odd things. If I was turning right
into my road (coming from the left), I'd indicate a few seconds before and
pull over into the centre turning-right lane, carrying on indicating. And
I've lost count of the number of people who have nearly rear-ended me and
then swerved left to avoid me - presumably because they thought I was going
to accelerate to move into lane 2 of the dual carriageway rather than slow
down and turn right. I must have been doing something wrong for it to happen
so often. Maybe the signage is such that people see the "start of dual
carriageway n-hundred yards" signs but not the "cross roads" sign and don't
realise that a right indicator might mean "turning right" rather than
"moving right to overtake". https://goo.gl/maps/fZFyenzoxRyY4CRs9 (I start
to indicate somewhere between the dual carriageway and cross roads signs)
and then slightly further on https://goo.gl/maps/F99Dua6AFXeVSofN6 (I pull
into the centre lane as soon as the hatching ends and start to brake).

On Mon, 12 Apr 2021 10:50:19 +0100, NY wrote:

snip

It was a weird junction for traffic doing odd things. If I was turning
right into my road (coming from the left), I'd indicate a few seconds
before and pull over into the centre turning-right lane, carrying on
indicating. And I've lost count of the number of people who have nearly
rear-ended me and then swerved left to avoid me - presumably because
they thought I was going to accelerate to move into lane 2 of the dual
carriageway rather than slow down and turn right. I must have been doing
something wrong for it to happen so often. Maybe the signage is such
that people see the "start of dual carriageway n-hundred yards" signs
but not the "cross roads" sign and don't realise that a right indicator
might mean "turning right" rather than "moving right to overtake".
https://goo.gl/maps/fZFyenzoxRyY4CRs9 (I start to indicate somewhere
between the dual carriageway and cross roads signs) and then slightly
further on https://goo.gl/maps/F99Dua6AFXeVSofN6 (I pull into the centre
lane as soon as the hatching ends and start to brake).

There's an odd junction for joining the westbound A27 from the A280 just
outside Worthing.

The A27 is a two-lane dual carriageway at that point. The A280 merges into
lane one from a slip road. Nothing unusual about that so far.

The oddity is, about 100 yards further on from the end of the slip road
the A27 gets a third lane split off from lane two.

I've never been able to work out why the slip road doesn't simply become
the new lane one on the left.

In article , Mark Carver
writes
On 07/04/2021 14:09, JohnP wrote:
Similar annoyance is Mr Kind who stops to let cars out of every side road -
preferably before they have to stop. What about some consideration to those
behind?
Never mind that. People wanting to make a right turn in front of me are
so annoying.

I'm writing to Grant Shaps to suggest making the manoeuvre illegal.
Suggest he sets up a telephone hot line so you can ring in in real time
on your mobile...oh hang on, hands free mobile and have a good rant.
--
bert

Tim Streater wrote in
:

On 07 Apr 2021 at 14:09:10 BST, JohnP wrote:

Why the F do some drivers leave such a big gap behind the vehicle in
front! Watched a busy junction yesterday - An ambulance was trying to
get through but the junction was blocked - several cars further down
there were massive gaps that, if closed up would have left the
junction clear.

I take it you mean a gap when they are at rest at lights, not when
driving along? I agree about the gap at the lights, but most people
don't leave a sensible gap between themselves and the vehicle in front
when on the move. I learnt very early on to do that.


Yes - in a static - or crawling queue.

On Wed, 07 Apr 2021 15:44:50 GMT, JohnP wrote:

Tim Streater wrote in
:

On 07 Apr 2021 at 14:09:10 BST, JohnP wrote:

Why the F do some drivers leave such a big gap behind the vehicle in
front! Watched a busy junction yesterday - An ambulance was trying to
get through but the junction was blocked - several cars further down
there were massive gaps that, if closed up would have left the
junction clear.

I take it you mean a gap when they are at rest at lights, not when
driving along? I agree about the gap at the lights, but most people
don't leave a sensible gap between themselves and the vehicle in front
when on the move. I learnt very early on to do that.


Yes - in a static - or crawling queue.

There are several instances of lights / junctions round here that have
a *very* short sequence in some directions and at various times. There
is one right filter where if you aren't really ready and get off
smartly on the green, you might only be one or 3 of a queue of 20 that
get's through each long cycle.

So I've nearly done a PIT Manoeuvre on the car in front as they have
turned right after the lights in an effort to get them to hurry up
getting clear of the junction to give those behind a chance to get
though.

Many people, especially those talking to their passengers or on the
phone seem oblivious of everyone else, especially those behind
suffering the consequences of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m

In article , T i m
writes
On Wed, 07 Apr 2021 15:44:50 GMT, JohnP wrote:

Tim Streater wrote in
:

On 07 Apr 2021 at 14:09:10 BST, JohnP wrote:

Why the F do some drivers leave such a big gap behind the vehicle in
front! Watched a busy junction yesterday - An ambulance was trying to
get through but the junction was blocked - several cars further down
there were massive gaps that, if closed up would have left the
junction clear.

I take it you mean a gap when they are at rest at lights, not when
driving along? I agree about the gap at the lights, but most people
don't leave a sensible gap between themselves and the vehicle in front
when on the move. I learnt very early on to do that.


Yes - in a static - or crawling queue.

There are several instances of lights / junctions round here that have
a *very* short sequence in some directions and at various times. There
is one right filter where if you aren't really ready and get off
smartly on the green, you might only be one or 3 of a queue of 20 that
get's through each long cycle.

So I've nearly done a PIT Manoeuvre on the car in front as they have
turned right after the lights in an effort to get them to hurry up
getting clear of the junction to give those behind a chance to get
though.

Many people, especially those talking to their passengers or on the
phone seem oblivious of everyone else, especially those behind
suffering the consequences of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m

Jesus, you should get a life.
--
bert

ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m



Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.

On Wed, 07 Apr 2021 21:55:37 GMT, JohnP wrote:

ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).


Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.

Well, I don't know how many people do it for that reason (unless they
know them possibly), rather than they just aren't seeing the bigger
picture?

I really believe many people turn off their brain as they turn on
their car engine.

Or they change character, pushing into queues in a way they wouldn't
dare to if on foot.

On the road-space one, another thing that get's me are people parking
in bays that are beside / parallel to the road where they don't park
right close to the end (meaning a bay can now only take 2 not 3 cars).
Similarly, parking 7/8ths of a cars length from a car that's obviously
at the end of any parking space (like on the road beside an access
road) when the front car can just drive out so you only need to leave
enough space to get out yourself assuming someone parks close behind
you or the person in front needs to get access to the rear of their
vehicle (like an estate to get dogs back in after a walk etc).

I often give them the benefit of the doubt and assume there may have
been a motorcycle or longer vehicle parked there but the chances are
there wasn't (as I've sometimes seen them parking).

Cheers, T i m

On 08/04/2021 10:16, T i m wrote:
On Wed, 07 Apr 2021 21:55:37 GMT, JohnP wrote:

Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.

There's also people who appear to be waving a pedestrian to cross when
they might be flicking ash off their fag or waving to someone they know.

Well, I don't know how many people do it for that reason (unless they
know them possibly), rather than they just aren't seeing the bigger
picture?

Most altruism is incomprehensible or anti-evolutionary; but there you are.

--
Max Demian

On 08/04/2021 10:16, T i m wrote:
On Wed, 07 Apr 2021 21:55:37 GMT, JohnP wrote:

ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).


Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.

Well, I don't know how many people do it for that reason (unless they
know them possibly), rather than they just aren't seeing the bigger
picture?

I really believe many people turn off their brain as they turn on
their car engine.

Or they change character, pushing into queues in a way they wouldn't
dare to if on foot.

On the road-space one, another thing that get's me are people parking
in bays that are beside / parallel to the road where they don't park
right close to the end (meaning a bay can now only take 2 not 3 cars).
Similarly, parking 7/8ths of a cars length from a car that's obviously
at the end of any parking space (like on the road beside an access
road) when the front car can just drive out so you only need to leave
enough space to get out yourself assuming someone parks close behind
you or the person in front needs to get access to the rear of their
vehicle (like an estate to get dogs back in after a walk etc).

I often give them the benefit of the doubt and assume there may have
been a motorcycle or longer vehicle parked there but the chances are
there wasn't (as I've sometimes seen them parking).

Cheers, T i m



When you were a prefect at school did you enjoy it? Did you ever
consider a job as a traffic warden or policeman? Do you volunteer to
direct the traffic at local festivals? Are you the admin of a Facebook
group? Do your children keep secrets from you? Would you vote for a
political party that would force people to eat less meat? Do you
sometimes wonder why almost no-one except you obeys the rules?

Bill

On 07/04/2021 22:55, JohnP wrote:
ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m



Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.


Or Brighton where people turning right simply drive half way across
(forcing cars to come to halt) expecting that the stream cars in
the other direction will stop/slow and allow him in.

On 08/04/2021 11:29, Andrew wrote:
On 07/04/2021 22:55, JohnP wrote:
ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m



Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.


Or Brighton where people turning right simply drive half way across
(forcing cars to come to halt) expecting that the stream cars in
the other direction will stop/slow and allow him in.

That is more a London procedure when you're fed up with waiting at a
junction. The usual technique was to either wait for a brand new car or
a taxi. Taxis will always back off and prevent an accident if they can.

On 08/04/2021 11:29 am, Andrew wrote:
On 07/04/2021 22:55, JohnP wrote:
ces of their selfish actions and have added
another 5 minutes on the journey time to for no justifiable /
unavoidable reason.

In a different vein it also frustrates us when someone at the end of a
string of cars stops to let us cross, rather than carrying on past and
letting us cross in the massive gap behind them and the next batch of
cars (for the extra pollution that causes if nothing else).

Cheers, T i m



Spot on - likewise the "flasher" who waves a car out of a side turn -
oblivious to what is coming the other way. Just wanting a "nice" credit.


Or Brighton where people turning right simply drive half way across
(forcing cars to come to halt) expecting that the stream cars in
the other direction will stop/slow and allow him in.

"Only" Brighton?

;-)