Motorway Progression...

[Steve H]

There's obviously a real difference between filtering through slow moving traffic whilst on the motorway and making progress by undertaking.

This thread is compelled by my recent ride back from Donnnington on the Motorway (M42/M5). I came back on the Monday and had dry, clear riding conditions (I mention this only to set the scene I suppose - if it were the weather conditions I experienced coming away on the Sunday my riding style would have changed accordingly).

I found myself using all of the road (certainly more than I usually do) and feeling comfortable with it - I don't think I was riding dangerously as such (personally when I read some of the threads on here I think I'm a relatively sedate/safe bugger!), just making progress by utilising all of the tarmac available. Yes, I undertook where appropriate (and I realise using the word 'appropriate' is gonna be frowned upon by some) and I certainly didn't hang about

How far do you go to make progress on a Motorway (and to a lesser extent dual carriageway I suppose)?

Do you sit in the outside lane and sit behind traffic when they are in your way or do you make progress by using all of the road where it's safe to do so and when you can?

Or (for the mentalists), Do you just sit at a ton twenty/thirty and weave in and out and use the hard shoulder?

SteveH
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[colin1]

seems a bit unsafe to me
Car drivers might check their rear view mirrors when switching lanes but I dont think they all check their wing mirrors and very few are gonna check their blindspots.

They are even less likely to check before pulling back into the slow lane.
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[Dom]

I did exactly the same as you, Steve. I generally avoid motorways like the plague but since I was stuck on them for hours last Sunday along with a million other bikes it seemed stupid to just sit there after a while.

I stopped in a service station and grabbed a bite to eat with a bloke who had a Speed Triple and after leaving did the rest of the M1 down to London with him. I undertook tonnes of cars (if nobody else wants to use the 'slow' lane I bloody will, and faster than you lot) which previously I rarely did as well as splitting between cars in the middle and outside lane when they were doing about 60. Enjoyed it.

I do generally still stick to 15 odd mph more than the traffic when it's as busy as that though.

[Black Knight]

I 'use the road' as you put it. I have no issues with using the left hand lane to pass a car.
I was following a Bandit the other day, he was sat behind a merc for about 2 or 3 miles. the tosser driver was completley oblivious to what was going on around him. The left lane was totally empty, and i mean completly unused.
I pulled into the left lane and untertook giving a wide a berth as possible to the car driver.

As I understand it, you can pass on the nearside if traffic in the left lane is moving quicker than in the right lane. There fore as long as you are not moving into slower moving traffic its a perfectly safe, and legal manover.
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[mistergixer]

On my boring ride to work(dual carriageway, motorway, dual carriageway) i seem to be the only vehicle using the inside lane.
This seems to be a UK only phenomen, over in Yurrup lane discipline is a standard thing. I like the way french drivers leave their left indicators on as if to say 'i want to make good progress, please move over'.
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[Sparks!]

I'll happily undertake if some nob is hogging the "fast" lane..
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[A J]

had a weird experience on the motorway when i was accelerating up to a car in the fast lane , instead of getting out the way he put his right indicator on??

First i thought that he had put the right on by mistake and meant to put on the left but he didnt move over so eventually i moved over and undertook him but giving him a wide birth, then when i was past he turned it off.

Maybe he was just trying to say i aint moving??

[colin1]

yeah i think so
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[hugo-a-gogo]

[JonB]

Yeah I do it, but I am wary after my "incident" on the M3 last Saturday, Dom and Sam will know what I am on about.

Basically there was a twat hogging the outside lane and another hogging the middle lane so I thought, i'd cut right across and go for lane 1, got down there and there was a car in that lane too.

Never again...

But yeah on the Way back from Donington on the M42 I was following a dude on a R1 and we were weaving in and out of the traffic, much to the car drivers annoyance.
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