Pulled for going too slow on the motorway

I used to drive a Mercedes rigid which would do the speed limit on the flat or downhill - However, with over a million miles on the clock and 13 boards of sprout tops, or melons in the back it was gutless and struggled between 35 and 56, even reliant robins flew past. If folk drove in the correct lanes this sort of stuff wouldn't be an issue.

I sit at 50 in my td5 almost everywhere, including motorways.

It (like most standard fenders) is fairly low geared and engine noise becomes an issue for me at much over 55, as does consumption!

I stay in the left lane, occasionally overtake a slow lorry etc, I've never had a problem. I pay road tax like everyone else and ill drive on any roads I want to. Motorways are far more direct and easy on juice than going on an a or b road.

Suck it up folks, you'll just have to keep overtaking me, like you always do!

So what the majority of folk are saying is that if l want to use the motorway then l must drive faster than the trucks so as they don't have to change lanes on account of me.
It's ok for me to pull into lane 3 at 60mph in order to pass slower moving traffic (trucks) and sit there for half a mile with 90mph traffic bearing down on me though isn't it ?
I think I'm safer at 50 in lane one, some trucks are limited to 52 so I'm not really a hazard if they are looking where they are going and not relaxing on cruise control .

Very interesting topic.

Certainly when I was repping and doing high mileage in the UK I would have been seriously peed off by someone sitting in the slow lane doing 50 and causing the lorries to pull out and slow everyone down.

I've now moderated my view and agree that it's not up to me to determine what speed other people should drive at but that maybe because I now don't have the time constraints that I once had.

I do think that maybe 45 -50 in the slow lane it's not the safest place to be either for the driver or for those around though.

landowner said:

So what the majority of folk are saying is that if l want to use the motorway then l must drive faster than the trucks so as they don't have to change lanes on account of me.
It's ok for me to pull into lane 3 at 60mph in order to pass slower moving traffic (trucks) and sit there for half a mile with 90mph traffic bearing down on me though isn't it ?
I think I'm safer at 50 in lane one, some trucks are limited to 52 so I'm not really a hazard if they are looking where they are going and not relaxing on cruise control .

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If yer keep up with the trucks and stay at the same speed as them yer will reduce the problem. That's all yer need to do.

Hippo said:

If yer keep up with the trucks and stay at the same speed as them yer will reduce the problem. That's all yer need to do.

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Problem with that I've found is that if l follow a truck into lane 2 to overtake a slower truck then I'm stuck there when he pulls back in. Do l stay in lane two at 55 holding up faster traffic until there is enough room for me to pull back in or do l speed up to 65 and pass the truck l was following then pull in front of him and slow down again. Or l could stay behind the slower truck in lane one at 50mph and risk being prosecuted.

Got people talking this one aint it.
On a side note miltary vehicles are limited to max 55 mph, old snatch landrovers, 4 tonne dafs and the like mainly due to the off road bias tyres fitted then along came the wolf bloodyhell those things shifted i banned more of me drivers in the 1st month we got those that i ever did in the whole previous year.

I think its all relative isnt it some good perspectives here.

landowner said:

Problem with that I've found is that if l follow a truck into lane 2 to overtake a slower truck then I'm stuck there when he pulls back in. Do l stay in lane two at 55 holding up faster traffic until there is enough room for me to pull back in or do l speed up to 65 and pass the truck l was following then pull in front of him and slow down again. Or l could stay behind the slower truck in lane one at 50mph and risk being prosecuted.

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There's no right answer but there is an easy solution. Take the safest option at the time. They teach yer not to pull out to overtake if yer not overtaking. So following a truck into lane 2 to overtake at 1mph faster isn't really worth it. In this situation you either stay behind the 50mph truck in lane 1 which is a risk in itself, or don't use the motorway if yer want to drive below the average traffic speed. I know the highway wombles do it but they're looking out for crap on the roads. The easy solution is not to drive slower than general traffic so yer don't put yerself in this situation, or stay off the motorway. Peeps changing lane is probably the most likely cause of bumps on the motorway. Pulling out or into someone else. If you drive slower than everyone else you create a bubble of over takers around you all the time. The bubble zone has a higher risk of bumps.

Hippo said:

There's no right answer but there is an easy solution. Take the safest option at the time. They teach yer not to pull out to overtake if yer not overtaking. So following a truck into lane 2 to overtake at 1mph faster isn't really worth it. In this situation you either stay behind the 50mph truck in lane 1 which is a risk in itself, or don't use the motorway if yer want to drive below the average traffic speed. I know the highway wombles do it but they're looking out for crap on the roads. The easy solution is not to drive slower than general traffic so yer don't put yerself in this situation, or stay off the motorway. Peeps changing lane is probably the most likely cause of bumps on the motorway. Pulling out or into someone else. If you drive slower than everyone else you create a bubble of over takers around you all the time. The bubble zone has a higher risk of bumps.

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So you're saying it's ok for trucks to travel at 50 or 52 mph but not a land rover ?

This morning on the A50 I overtook the same 17 plate vw golf three times, the old giffer kept overtaking me, pulling in front and then slowing down.He had a helping of air horn on the third attempt

There's nowt wrong with 50-55 on a motorway in Lane 1.
If I need to overtake a slow lorry I am within my rights to pull out into Lane 2 to overtake, provided it is clear and safe to do so (as with any overtake anywhere), if it takes me a couple of minutes to complete the overtake then anything approaching in Lane 2 can either overtake using Lane 3 or wait until I have completed my overtake.
It is called driving to the conditions and within the capability of the vehicle. The argument that lorries may have to overtake me in Lane 1 by using lane 2 is no different to them overtaking a lorry.

All the arguments so far seem to based on people thinking they shouldn't have to pay attention.
and by the same logic lorries should be banned from overtaking or elephant racing on dual carriageways.

What about abnormal loads? or someone on a space saver?

Should bring in what is in the majority of German autobahn from 7am to 5 pm no lorries trailers or caravans permitted to overtake

Stone56 said:

Should bring in what is in the majority of German autobahn from 7am to 5 pm no lorries trailers or caravans permitted to overtake

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How does go and knackers sound, lane hogging especially through roadworks should be policed better.
Take a look around you and tell me how many things you see that haven't at some point been on the back of a wagon

Just to say the OP said the were doing 45-50 which is not the same as 55 - pretty much what HGVs are restricted to. As I said a very interesting discussion.

Marmaduke said:

How does go and knackers sound, lane hogging especially through roadworks should be policed better.
Take a look around you and tell me how many things you see that haven't at some point been on the back of a wagon

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Everything has been on a wagon a some point I time.
I have driven low loaders under escort, transit vans and everything in between, I've driven wagons that climbed over Keele services at 22 mph, M62 windy hill at 20 mph for 3 miles, I've driven late seventies and eighties trucks at 80 mph with the rest of the hooligans on the motorway at the time, I once drove a Marathon fitted with a Caterpillar engine that was geared for 103mph and would pull it, I have also driven the governed trucks of today so I'm well aware of the problems that truckers encounter on motorways.
I would rather have had to overtake a 50mph vehicle with a limited truck that a 55 mph vehicle, the slower vehicle is easier and quicker to overtake, truckers need to make allowances for slower vehicles and not regard them as just a nuisance and a hindrance to their progress. The odd overtake would relieve the boredom and keep them alert.

anatomick said:

Just to say the OP said the were doing 45-50 which is not the same as 55 - pretty much what HGVs are restricted to. As I said a very interesting discussion.

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I had been travelling at 50 for about four miles, copper said I dropped below 50 at times

Marmaduke said:

How does go and knackers sound, lane hogging especially through roadworks should be policed better.
Take a look around you and tell me how many things you see that haven't at some point been on the back of a wagon

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sem

Seems to work there get to the signs unlimited mph if you are not doing over 100 you have to move to the inside lane

Stone56 said:

sem

Seems to work there get to the signs unlimited mph if you are not doing over 100 you have to move to the inside lane

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It'd never work, take a trip on any two laned motorway and see how many cars pull into the inside lane. The M42 is a prime example, there can be nothing on the inside road for half a mile but the outside lane is stacked full of cars all up each others arses dabbing the brakes doing sixty miles an hour.

Known what you mean i think most of us have been there inside lane moving faster than outside but is that not an offense overtaking on the inside

Marmaduke said:

It'd never work, take a trip on any two laned motorway and see how many cars pull into the inside lane. The M42 is a prime example, there can be nothing on the inside road for half a mile but the outside lane is stacked full of cars all up each others arses dabbing the brakes doing sixty miles an hour.

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Reminds me on the times I've traveled the M11and moving into the near side lane, you'll stuck when meeting a truck in that lane half a mile up the road, half a mile is only around 30 seconds away and less some of the time, even driving a high powered saloon car its very difficult to pull out to over take that truck.

Use to have something similar on my local motorways the M2 and M20 until they were upgraded with extra lanes but it back to normal now with HGVs hogging the two lanes plus the third some of the time.