What do you think?
You're in a long line of traffic in a city centre and the right hand lane is about to close. Most drivers are waiting patiently in turn in the left lane, but you get the usual planks racing from the back of the queue down the outside lane, then forcing their way in where the lanes merge.

Are you justified in moving into the outside lane to block their arrogant prickism?

Was similar situation a few months back and think I written it on here but big tails backs heading towards Truro Drive etc from Wolviston roundabout. Lane closing ahead and signs telling you so about 2 miles back. Usual knobs racing to the front.

Bloke in white van behind me pulled into right hand lane and just held his position, bloke who was behind him left him his gap and he held all the impatient fuckers up and then slowly moved back into his spot when the road actually closed. He got a thumbs up from me.

I know that feeling very well and have done a bit of outside lane blocking myself, but -

Whenever the traffic management dummies are smart enough to put up 'merge in turn' signs where 2 lanes are reduced down to one, the traffic always moves faster than when people in the outside lane are randomly putting their indicators on and trying to move across from any point after the first 'single lane traffic' sign. FACT.

If they (traffic management) would only do merge in turn consistently we would all know what we are about and there'd be less delay and a lot less irritation about other drivers' behaviour.

Think about it - whenever there's a slip road with cars on it waiting to join single line traffic, most drivers are perfectly happy to allow them to 'merge in turn.'

I hate it when knobs do that.
I always try and keep close enough to the car in front so they cant squeeze their way in.
The signs are there and they can see people queuing, they have no right to cut in front of me.

The incident I'm on about is the first real case of road-rage I've seen. The 'blocked motorist' followed the 'blocking motorist' through town, revving his car, shouting and tooting. At junctions, not once but twice, he leaped out of his car to hammer on the other guy's roof and shout at him at closer quarters.

He only stopped when he saw someone taking his registration, when he disappeared like snow. One of the things he shouted was that the other guy 'drove like a fucking prick'.

Good on that man/woman, they want castrating and their balls shoved up their arse, impatient bastards who do that make me want to crush a grape

No, that's what causes the hold ups. The distance given on the warning is there precisely to allow the traffic to merge into the open lane, ..... allowing everyone to merge at the last minute is a charter for the queue jumpers.

Have read that it is actually better/quicker to use two lanes and merge at the front and I've seen signs at roadworks suggesting that drivers should do that. Logically that is fairer and would cause less problems. I do get pissed off at people bombing down the outside though but have also wondered at what point you should get into single file? Instantly?

They 'zip' in Germany aswell. I suspect its a misplaced sense of injustice that prevents us Brits following suit.

highway code rule 137 says on a 2 lane dual carriageway,you should stay in the left hand lane.use the right hand lane for overtaking or turning right.after overtaking return to the left hand lane when it is safe.
imagine the tailbacks if every driver in britain observed this rule

Driverless cars will sort all of this out.

Carless drivers would be even better, Toulouse!

I see what people mean, that it might be better in some cases to use both lanes till the last minute. But on the road I meant, in ordinary circs, no one ever is in the outside lane. It's only occasionally that there's a hold-up. So it is definitely queue-jumping and not merging....which is why it pisses people off.

The rule over here is that everybody jumps the queue if they possibly can and swerving into any gap, no matter how small, without indicating is fine. Hard shoulders are just extra lanes that you can use how you like if you're a bit late for work. Dangerous overtaking based on the hope that on-coming traffic will brake is encouraged and roundabouts are a free for all with all indicator use purely designed to confuse other drivers by masking your real intentions. And you can stop anywhere you like as long as you put your hazard lights on.

Once you get used to it and accept it as normal you stop getting stressed. High accident rate though.

Don't forget that when overtaking, slow cars must pull out at least a kilometer before passing the slower vehicle and remain in that lane after passing until someone flashes their lights from behind. Not to do so on two-lane motorways is considered a serious offence.
Also, if you see a car catching up to a lorry, it is compulsory to pull out and overtake that car before it gets a chance to do so itself. The minimum legal time for completing the overtaking manoeuvre is two minutes, though longer times are encouraged.

That blocking you in behind a lorry but then going past slowly still irritates the shit out of me. I'm zen-like about most stuff now but that still gets the rage going.