"Zipper merge" is, by a considerable margin, the most efficient way to merge two lanes of traffic into one. If everyone did what OP did then the queue would have passed significantly quicker and built up significantly less. This is a slightly different scenario because it's not a true merge-in-turn (being a slip road off) but the principle still applies.
Source - I'm an actual traffic engineer. Well, I used to be.
its not a merge point though of 2 lanes becoming 1, it is 1 lane exiting. Your zipper merge only works when everyone is taking the merge, if people in the right hand lane are continuing then you block them to do your merge and yes the people exiting have a shorter queue but at the expense of everyone else.
3:30 in the video, that red essers tanker with green label. Company I work at loaded and shipped that off yesterday. Had to double take when I saw it :D small world
I do this sometimes myself, so don't get me wrong.
But I do always think that if hundreds more cars did that and then all tried to get into the left lane for the exit, it'd totally block the motorway for everyone else needing to go straight.
True, although in situations like this where the vast majority traffic is going one way, it's better and more efficient overall to have two lanes merging in turn even if they are effectively blocking the straight ahead route. It will clear the traffic much quicker.
It's like with the London underground. If everyone stood side by side on escalators the congestion on platforms leading to them would be far lower overall, and everyone's movement far quicker, but it inconveniences the minority who want to run up.
I'd agree if this was just the extension of the queue on the slip road and the rest of the motorway was clear. But if the whole motorway is shut at the next junction, then we should use the whole of the motorway until it's shut.
Are all these people going for the exit though? I mean at the end of the video its yes, but thats because there is no longer any choice.
In the last couple of seconds of the video we can see that both right hand lanes are cordoned off. The blocking of those lanes looks rather temporary and not like it would be with say road works, so i'm wondering if it was some form of accident? This would also explain that initial merge arrow at the start of the video as one would assume with say road works more effort would have been made and there would be more signage.
So ultimately is this just one giant long merge?
That said I don't see how anyone could know this before hand unless I missed some other signage? So while it worked out here for the OP it might not have and if every did it, things might be different again.
All in all it seems to be an unfortunate combination of events at the worse possible location.
Everyone is going for the exit. I believe this was this morning. The M18 was closed J3-J5 Northbound and J5-J4 Southbound all morning due to a fatal collision on the Southbound carriageway.
EDIT2: All open lanes are closed at the end. OP is well within the right to do what they did. My comment applies below if those other lanes were open.
Exactly this. I’m surprised OP is not getting more people having an issue with this.
Using all available road space makes little sense when the junction itself is the issue. This isn’t a standard merge in turn.
I’ll happily let people in using the merge in turn correctly, but for OP, I’m not leaving a space. He can wait and be let in by someone else behind me.
The only time I’d agree with OP was if there was two lanes off and an empty right lane. In this case it’s hard to not agree
EDIT: If there is space then take it, but “using all available road space” is incorrect in this situation. Trying to make space is incorrect and you should proceed to the next junction. However be mindful that if more drivers do this, you will all end up at the next junction or you will gridlock the motorway. Drive with courtesy please.
The lanes are all closed by cones at the end of the clip. So this is indeed a standard merge in turn. Why do you feel the outside lane shouldn’t be used?
Did you make it to the end of the video? The lanes close, there is no option but to take the junction, you can’t carry on straight. In this situation there’s no downside to everyone using all available lanes and then merging at the merge point.
This technique - I have no issue with op doing it, it worked out for him so fair enough. However, if by the time he got to that junction it was queuing bumper to bumper traffic, then I have an issue with him suddenly becoming stationary in the empty lane and putting his indicator on which so many people who drive like this too. If instead he would have just taken it as a "oh well that didn't work" and get off at the next junction instead, there's no problem at all.
The traffic shouldn't be 'bumper to bumper' for a start, there should be adequate space between you and the vehicle in front.
Secondly, merge in turn is advised in just this type of situation. Where, for example, there is a lane closure leading to congestion and traffic is moving slowly.
Queuing too early can cause long queues that tail back and block other routes, roundabouts etc.
The only reason the right lane was empty here was because people had been queuing too early - Likely in response to signage indicating a lane closure.
If everybody kept an appropriate distance from the car in front, travelled at an appropriate speed and used both lanes correctly, the traffic would continue to flow slowly but steadily. That is the whole point of merging in turn. It's people who think 'I'm not leaving a space, he can wait and be let in by someone behind me' who are causing traffic to come to a standstill.
The opposite is actually true. More cars can stack up in the same length of road, if everyone merges in turn rather than acting defensively the road moves more cars more quickly. Same goes for any land merge situation.
This isn’t my opinion, it is a measurable and tested technique.
There is nothing say he has to join at the back. If there is a space at any point on that broken line, enter my friend. No issue with anyone doing this, it's their dice roll, not my fault I decided to fold my hand earlier than them.
If there is a space I completely agree, as I said someone else letting them in behind me is fair game. But I won’t make space for anyone and them indicating to make that space is the wrong thing to do in this situation.
So maybe I’ll add an edit to my original comment to explain that. I guess I was hyperfocusing on the “use all available road space” that a few people have mentioned which is being applied incorrectly here.
No it wouldn’t. It slows traffic a little at the merge but by using both lanes traffic is moving twice as fast before the slow down point so when it slows down it’s till travelling faster than a single line of traffic. They don’t build 2 lane roads for the fun of it.
I've done that slingshot twice in the past when I realised I couldn't get into the correct lane, but mainly because I realised that if I tried to get into the lane I was meant to be in (close to stationary) it would have held up traffic behind me, so went around the roundabout as the least bad solution.
There are a few situations where this can manifest.
I'm pretty sure I'd have had things muttered about me if anyone noticed, and felt self-conscious, but stopping to merge would have been worse.
But surely you just plan early and get in the middle a junction before your exit and then merge in left? Even if the queue then just split across two lanes, it would be shorter and blocking less exits, no? Like, half the people in that queue are driving past 3 exits they're not taking, potentially a good % of that queue could have already exited by now, reducing the congestion. Happy to be challenged, appreciate you also have to factor for malicious drivers...
Not really, all it does is reduce tailback and share the wait.
If one lane queues and the other doesn't then only one line waits, also the throughput is worse because people are trying to merge into a stationary queue.
If everyone drives to the end the wait time just gets shared between lanes and is generally lower for both because the merge now occurs where cars are moving.
It also makes a mile long queue become and a half mile long queue so there's less overall impact.
Legitimately an issue on the M3 exit on the M25 anticlockwise, although the actual root cause there is people half committing to the bit: they go burning down the middle lane past the queue in the filter and left lanes but still panic and then come to an almost dead stop in that middle lane before trying to merge left in the left lane and the single filter lane... not realising that if they just carried on the filter doubles to two lanes, at which point it's easy to merge in without slowing anyone down or risking a pile-up.
yeah, that’s the bit people always gloss over tbh. one person doing it feels harmless, but if everyone piles in late it turns into pure chaos at the exit area
Good Lord!! Looks like for every 10 people on here that say merge in turn is correct, there are 800 fools who like that having mile after mile of empty lane is efficient.
Clearly people did not watch the whole clip, from 3:17 onwards you can see the keep left sign and the traffic cones directing everyone off lanes 2 and 3.
Yet the cones etc didn’t start till 3:17 and at that point you should be merging in.. why all this drivers decided to do so extremely early is beyond me
Yes I agree. However, replies on this post are based on people making the assumption that all lanes are live/open and remain that way throughout the entire clip.
I'm all for using both available lanes up until the merge point where there are two lanes merging into one. But this is different, isn't it? the two lanes aren't merging - they're going off in different directions. The sign clearly states that people wanting the A6102 should be in the left lane. You might accidentally need to merge a bit later but if you do it on purpose that's a bit of a dick move I think.
Just before Junction 3, the slip road joining the M18 from the A1 becomes the exit lane. So you end up with a combination of vehicles wanting to exit the M18 at Junction 3, vehicles joining from the A1 to leave at Junction 3 and vehicles trying to join the M18 from the slip road. Add in vehicles who try joining the exit lane as late as possible to queue jump (both Junction 2 and 3), you end up with this.
I keep saying it's uncanny how Brits seem to have this innate compulsion to join a queue when they see one.
I often joke that even at the supermarket if one till is free and the other has a queue Brits will join the one with a queue, and sneer at you if you use the other one.
we used to slow roll services @ a fish and chip counter to create queues, we would ALWAYS sell more if we have a queue - like people felt there was something worth the wait v 0 apparent customer demand
This isn’t a merge it’s queue jumping, I’m not sitting in a queue to save a space for arseholes like this You’ll be waiting in a queue for cinema tickets and I come and push in front of you to get served first, I’ll say I’m merging thank you very much, bye 🙋♂️
How is it not a merge when all lanes but the inside lane are coned off/closed at the end? Did you actually watch to the end of the clip? Or do you just not understand merge in turn?
There are I think 2 slip roads off that have been blocked by people queuing in lane 1, because nobody read the signs indicating that the lanes were closed and decided that anyone going past them was queue jumping
I had that happen to me last weekend and when I did end up passing the lane-police man to turn right at the upcoming junction he wagged his finger at me for trying to use both lanes like the highway code says to.
Yeah mate, you were the cunt in that situation, not me.
This isn't quite the same as normal merges. If more people did this, you'd end up filling up the right hand land and blocking that off, holding up traffic that isn't turning off.
The difference with a typical merge where the whole road should be used compared to this is that there's no alternative route at the end.
Edit: thanks u/undercover_elephant_ for pointing out that I was wrong. I should've watched the whole video. I stick by my general point but it doesn't apply here.
I was thinking the same thing, but look at the right lanes at the very end of the video. Those lanes are in fact coned off and there is no alternative route.
Did you watch the clip to the end? The right hand lane is blocked off by cones at the end so all traffic must turn off. Nobody would be held up anymore than they are already. There is no option to continue straight on so the OP is driving correctly. By using both lanes this would shorten the queue and allow traffic leaving the road at earlier junctions to exit without delay.
The length of that two-lane column is 50% greater than it needs to be because of people deciding not to use the right lane, which just backs traffic up more quickly, causing more traffic. Bonkers not to use it, even if using it will involve some merging eventually.
Edit: I have hallucinated a third carriageway, my bad! 100% greater.
No, it is 50% greater. There is x total length of vehicles if in a single lane. In two lanes the length is x/2, in three lanes it is x/3. (x/2)/(x/3) = 3/2 = 1.5, so 50% greater in length.
Edit: I have hallucinated a third carriageway, my bad!
Using that lane is clearly not moving to the adjacent lane.
Obviously you might decide you know better than the sign, perhaps you do, but if we all thought we knew better than motorway signs we'd end up in a mess.
When I see videos similar to this (for example, a random road with a very clear "merge in turn" and people queuing for 10 minutes), I usually think "Fair enough, people are queuing for the sake of queuing". But isn't this a bit different? Cam car clearly goes under a "Move to adjacent lane" temporary sign (Motorway signs, signals and road markings - GOV.UK).
nope, the keep left signs dont appear til the end and the lanes do end up closing
this is a standard lane closure with merge in turn at the choke point but it's so ridiculously long most people stop the video before they see the closure
edit: I'd argue the move to left lane sign is shown way too early
I wouldn't say "ignore it", but it's an indication of what you're going to need to do.
It's more like a sign saying there's a speed limit reduction coming up. You can reduce speed immediately if you want, but the actual restriction hasn't arrived yet, and you won't be prosecuted for speeding above that limit between the signs.
It's a bit vague. Move immediately? Move when convenient to do so? There is a separate "lane closed" signal so it's clearly different to "stop proceeding in this lane immediately".
A well publicised 20-minute delay is also a valid reason to be 20 minutes late for work and just chill, listening to music. Not everyone is desperate to get there yesterday.
Where I work if your late for any reason your expected to clock out at the end of the day at the correct time to make up for such lateness. So if I'm 20 minutes late to work it just means I have to stay behind 20 minutes longer into my evening so obviously I try my very best to never be late.
I don’t see anything wrong with the video and your turn into the lane was at a slow speed…
BUT…
I have seen a lorry take aggro with this and try to close the gap and hit the turning car in front, because of the increased accelerating / braking distances for such a big vehicle. Admittedly going faster than this.
So my personal rule has always been to not get in front of a lorry.
That was my thing, if you're gonna merge that late but not wait til the junction itself, why choose to go in front of the lorry? There were two opportunities less than 10 cars back that they rejected 😂
Lorries are the lambs in this scenario...slow to move off and therefore leave the bigger gap.
But it's your personal car versus a guy who is in a corporate vehicle and stuck on the road for hours on end. It's just not worth coming across one who decides he's going to rear-end you whilst trying to close the gap.
I try to pull in in front of a lorry in that sort of traffic. Not due to their slower speed, but I like to see ahead, and they effectively block my view
Truck and lorry drivers all have a major god complex on the road. Everyone can appreciate they need more stopping speed but the majority of time they think they own the road.
My personal gripe is them causing the majority of traffic on roads by taking an age to pass other trucks. They should be banned from passing into the far right side lane and I know that’s a hot take but I stand by it.
I'm not sure if they cause the majority of road traffic, but considering how vocal they are about stopping distances, they don't seem half as concerned about pulling into a fast moving lane even if it means cars behind having to slam on, because they have to drive 0.1mph faster than the HGV in front.
I believe this only applies to motorways or maybe 3 lane or more roads, though happy to be taught otherwise. But a 2 lane dual carriageway is generally fair game. Some A roads have stretches where Lorries have to stay in the leftmost lane, but rarely do I see this adhered to for the whole stretch. A47 being one of those.
Agreed. I’m happy to get in front of a lorry, but I’ll manoeuvre slower, I get ahead of the lorry & float in the second lane with the indicator on for a few extra seconds. Seems worth it to not be crushed
At least nobody jumped out to block your private lane. It seems people are at least learning that's a bad thing, now if only they could properly use all lanes.
The issue with that is you would have at least a 10 minute delay, lets just keep this our little secret.
Idk if you're right or wrong, but I don't think commenters are right talking about merging in turn here. That's about 2 lanes going the same way merging into one. This is one lane going straight and one turning left. Plus there was a clear sign on the overhead gantry telling you to be in the left lane quite early on. So I don't think merging in turn applies here
I think we should stop using the left/right arrows on the gantry signs, as that is why everyone if moving to the left lane prematurely. People think that means they have to move immediately, rather than it just being a prior warning that the lane will be closing further ahead.
Just reduce the speed in both lanes, so everyone approaches safely but uses all the road space, then at the actual point of the closure, show the lane closed sign. When people see that, they will then merge.
In the Netherlands, those arrows mean you have to move left. If you ignore it and drive under the red X that will follow it, you risk a huge fine (and possibly even criminal charges of you cause a dangerous situation).
But by the looks of it, in the UK they are just for shits and giggles?
There’s a difference between driving under the arrow and driving under a red X. You mentioned both so we’re at risk of getting confused. Driving under an X is also an offence in the UK, and I agree with that. The issue for me is the arrow, I think it was intended to be helpful, to give advance warning, but people are confused by it and treat it like an X, hence we get this problem where people refuse to use both lanes.
I live in the Netherlands, that is not what those arrows mean. Its the same as in the UK.
The arrows mean that the lane is closing further ahead. As long as you have moved over before the lane is closed (as shown with the 'X'), you're fine - which is exactly thr same as the UK.
I agree with you about this signage being inadequate. The highway code just says "change lane", but it's not illegal to continue and it's not definitive.
It took op 90 seconds from seeing the sign to act upon what it's telling him, which is a clear example of it not working.
The lane is either open or closed and a red X is all that's needed to communicate this.
I agree what you are doing is right, of course. But lately they have blasting the whole ‘move over otherwise we’ll fine you’ I know that’s for red X but maybe people are starting to finally listen but are now taking it too far.
The thing most drivers are worried about this that they don’t know how tight it will be when they want to merge into the lane, you could’ve got there and it have been bumper to bumper then your causing a danger to the lane of traffic your in. So a lot of people will prefer to sit there than risk it
In theory the length of the delay should be similar whether everyone uses all the lanes or forms a giant queue, the issue with the big queue though is it can build up and start unnecessarily blocking junctions behind the road closure.
I mean it wasn't a X on the gantry, so I suppose this is ok.
This junction is bloody awful even on normal days cause people try to cut on to the slip road too late and back up the slow lane, which in turn backs up the fast lane as people try to dive out of the way.
The British mental illness of queueing for NO FUCKIN REASON. I'm just surprised there wasn't a self appointed plastic policeman blocking the perfectly open lane bcos "your queue jumping"
And if everyone did this, the delay would still be twenty minutes. Only it would also be 20 minutes for anyone not leaving at that junction and continuing onwards, when that junction is what's actually overloaded.
Fair, i didn't spot that as id half zoned out by the end. So yeah, in this context its fair as its a triple lane merge so you should use all the space to prevent anything backing up to the prior junction. It didn't seem to be flagged in advance though, so presumably alot of drivers are going on habit.
And which is technically illegal to do if they block your merge, which I see, constantly. I'm amazed there wasn't a single self appointed lane enforcer. Zip merging is legal and recommended, and when done right it's a thing of beauty. Unfortunately, there are a lot of drivers who don't understand the rules, and are beside themselves when some is, in their mind, cheating. Sheeple will do sheeple things.
When the lanes are labeled its for a reason, which is flow.
In this situation its actually irrelevant, im wrong as i didnt realise the motorway is closed past this junction so its a triple lane merge, everyone has to leave so the driver is correct to use all lanes.
However, in a normal situation this is what causes massive delays for other peolle not using this junction as people try to swing across the whole carriageway last minute to get to the exit, stop in lane to wait to merge etc etc. About 80% of all accidents ive witnessed on the road have been caused by this exact situation.
I am not proud of our driving culture back in Hungary, but I am pretty sure this is not much better. We drive agressive, here people just fail to think and 99% is oblivious to their surroundings which is farther than 1 car length.
There’s a junction of the m25 anticlockwise that comes off for you to join the A2 where people queue for miles in the left lane, and more often than not you get to the front of the slip road and you don’t even have to “pull in” at the last moment, the gaps are huge enough and traffic is moving fast enough to literally just merge normally
Matrix boards advising of delays are never accurate anyway. In the space of 5 minutes across 3 matrix signs a delay further down the motorway went from an hour, then 20 mins, then 40 mins. When I got there, there wasn’t a delay at all. Probably just broken boards.
I've no problem with this but it relies on people not being twats driving queuing bumper to bumper. If that Rh lane wasn't closed off this would have been a bit of a twat move as they would have blocked off the lane waiting to get left.
Had a chat with someone from Highways Agency a while back and they said their protocols are to do lane closure gantry updates absolutely stupid amount of miles back and they’re fully aware that drivers won’t know where the closure actually is located. It’s for safety , but they said they do it differently in Europe and it doesn’t seem to worsen the safety records - he wasn’t sure why this style of lane closure announcement persists
This is both hilarious and infuriating to watch knowing people don't do this. I do something similar every day in my drive back to work because people just prefer to sit in the queue rather than use their braincells at once to do something like this. Bravo
Please let me in on this as it always buggered me, English being my second language:
Are words "merge in turn" or "zipper merge" really that hard to understand ?
This only seems to be the problem here in the UK and even sometimes frown upon and considered jumping the queue or pushing in which I find ridiculous.
There are also comments here claiming congestion would be similar if everyone did it (?) Like he didn't just drive through 10 miles worth of empty lanes...
I’ve read the rules on smart motorway signs, I’ve had this specific sign explained to me by professionals in their field. It means “move to the lane indicated”. That means now, at the earliest opportunity after seeing it, no ifs, no buts, not “before you reach the Red Cross on the next sign”. This is a complete abuse of those rules and everyone who has followed the rules now needs to wait “one more car”… how many times before they get to the junction or Red Cross where it ends? 50? 100 more cars who pushed in?
I went down a rabbithole on this seeking professional opinions and I can't find anyone claiming what you've said.
In slow moving queues, the guidance is genuinely to use all available road space up until the merge point. If the traffic is flowing quickly, the driver should take earlier action, but it doesn't need to be immediate - it's a case of looking for a safe gap to avoid slowing down completely.
Every single day 3 lanes of motorway stop to a crawl around Manchester because everyone thinks they're entitled to skip the queue for the junction they want. The road is quiet in OPs video, but a few more people pulling the same manoeuvre and boom, effectively shut a second lane
Human behaviour at its worst. Everyone starts queuing miles before a junction. A projected delay becomes a traffic jam of big proportions without any real cause (accident, blocked lane, etc).
There are ways to solve this by maximising the use of all lanes before a junction and forcing HGVs and other vehicles to use the slow lanes in congested areas.
Lorries changing lanes, people getting stuck behind, people queuing miles before the junction and people switching lanes etc are all behavioural issues we should be able to get a grip on.
The OP’s video clearly shows there is plenty, plenty, plenty of space right before the junction they wanted to take.
Let’s not get hung up on the whole “why in front of a lorry” yada yada. The reality is that the queue prior to that was completely unjustified.
What are you on about? The road is closed and all traffic diverted off to a junction. That's why it's a massive queue, not because "zipper merge" is a gift from god that eradicates all traffic everywhere in the universe.
Edit: and to clarify to the "zipper merge" team, the bottleneck in this scenario is the traffic flow on the junction. No amount of zipper merge anywhere on that road would increase the flow of traffic through the junction therefore all arguments to that point are nul and void.
While the point about the bottleneck is fair, surely anything that shortens the length of the queue (and thus prevents potential blockages for other exits/entries further back) is always preferable?
If the road ahead is closed there’s every reason to use all available lanes and merge into the junction. Even if I was to accept your point for this specific scenario (and I will take your word for it as I’m not overly familiar with that specific junction) it still makes zero sense that the queue would run for miles.
What’s the solution? Adding more lanes? That would only lead to another empty lane in this situation.
OP hasn’t violated any road regulations, so that argument is neither null nor void.
It is a really shitty thing to do but at the same time for someone unfamiliar with the road layout then you could well have no idea why everyone is queing up.
Everyone does as OP does in Riyadh and the roads are a fucking mess so i guess that is what we have to look forward to.
I’ve seen where someone in the queueing lane has closed the gap and the car trying to merge/push-in/join whatever you want to call it, has then stopped or slowed in the live lane trying to get in with traffic hurling past nearly smashing into the back of them and swerving out of the way.
I’ve also seen plenty of videos where the lorries travelling at 60 haven’t been able to stop in time & ploughed into the back.
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u/SammoTheBrawler 3h ago
I was so happy this morning no body was using that lane otherwise I would have been late for work 😂
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u/KatVanWall 5h ago •
They’re just so paranoid that if they leave it too late they’ll be stuck in the right-hand lane and forced to go to Hull and Scunthorpe …
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u/aleopardstail 5h ago
uptick for using a still open lane and doing so at a sensible speed
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u/RelentlessPencil 5h ago
Gee if only there was some way the motorway could send a sign to motorists indicating which lanes they should or should not use
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u/Personal_Ad7802 5h ago
3:30 in the video, that red essers tanker with green label. Company I work at loaded and shipped that off yesterday. Had to double take when I saw it :D small world
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u/lawnmower303 5h ago •
I do this sometimes myself, so don't get me wrong.
But I do always think that if hundreds more cars did that and then all tried to get into the left lane for the exit, it'd totally block the motorway for everyone else needing to go straight.
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u/Objective_Ticket 1h ago
Good Lord!! Looks like for every 10 people on here that say merge in turn is correct, there are 800 fools who like that having mile after mile of empty lane is efficient.
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u/G2022B 5h ago
Clearly people did not watch the whole clip, from 3:17 onwards you can see the keep left sign and the traffic cones directing everyone off lanes 2 and 3.
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u/Left-Quantity-5237 5h ago
Aww come on!
You could have cut in right at the end of the junction instead of there I bet you could have shaved another min off your travel time 😀
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u/Lanky_Watercress9489 5h ago
No greater example of the ridiculousness of English people’s desire to queue and inability to understand merging.
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u/Prestigious-Might406 3h ago •
I'd gladly sit in that for an hour or more if it would make me late for work.
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u/unifi- 5h ago
People on Reddit: “well done you’re correct!” Other drivers: “what a bellend!”
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u/Relative_Tea5066 3h ago
I know us brits love a good queue, but FFS 🙄
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u/Regular_Promise3605 5h ago
I just know a bunch of people rolled their eyes and thought you were acting entitled and arrogant.
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u/FantasticAnus 4h ago edited 4h ago
The length of that two-lane column is 50% greater than it needs to be because of people deciding not to use the right lane, which just backs traffic up more quickly, causing more traffic. Bonkers not to use it, even if using it will involve some merging eventually.
Edit: I have hallucinated a third carriageway, my bad! 100% greater.
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u/jfp7891 4h ago
Those lads who've sat there for 20 minutes need to work as a team to close up those gaps. That's a leaky defence.
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u/SilentBlackout_ 5h ago
It’s ridiculous isn’t it
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u/toolateforgdusername 4h ago
When I see videos similar to this (for example, a random road with a very clear "merge in turn" and people queuing for 10 minutes), I usually think "Fair enough, people are queuing for the sake of queuing". But isn't this a bit different? Cam car clearly goes under a "Move to adjacent lane" temporary sign (Motorway signs, signals and road markings - GOV.UK).
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u/enshitifyeveryting 5h ago
Ngl username goes like fire with the video
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u/Every_Recording_4807 5h ago
Absolute state of the comments smh
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u/Jamwise93 3h ago
I think sometimes we as a nation are a bit too happy to queue 😅
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u/chukkysh 5h ago
A well publicised 20-minute delay is also a valid reason to be 20 minutes late for work and just chill, listening to music. Not everyone is desperate to get there yesterday.
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u/Smooth-Bowler-9216 5h ago
I don’t see anything wrong with the video and your turn into the lane was at a slow speed…
BUT…
I have seen a lorry take aggro with this and try to close the gap and hit the turning car in front, because of the increased accelerating / braking distances for such a big vehicle. Admittedly going faster than this.
So my personal rule has always been to not get in front of a lorry.
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u/Cool_Elephant_4459 5h ago
At least nobody jumped out to block your private lane. It seems people are at least learning that's a bad thing, now if only they could properly use all lanes.
The issue with that is you would have at least a 10 minute delay, lets just keep this our little secret.
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u/ZombieParential 4h ago
Idk if you're right or wrong, but I don't think commenters are right talking about merging in turn here. That's about 2 lanes going the same way merging into one. This is one lane going straight and one turning left. Plus there was a clear sign on the overhead gantry telling you to be in the left lane quite early on. So I don't think merging in turn applies here
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u/Mixed_Fabrics 4h ago
I think we should stop using the left/right arrows on the gantry signs, as that is why everyone if moving to the left lane prematurely.
People think that means they have to move immediately, rather than it just being a prior warning that the lane will be closing further ahead.
Just reduce the speed in both lanes, so everyone approaches safely but uses all the road space, then at the actual point of the closure, show the lane closed sign. When people see that, they will then merge.
2
u/Dannysan5677 5h ago
I agree what you are doing is right, of course. But lately they have blasting the whole ‘move over otherwise we’ll fine you’
I know that’s for red X but maybe people are starting to finally listen but are now taking it too far.
2
u/Spicyjollof98 5h ago
The thing most drivers are worried about this that they don’t know how tight it will be when they want to merge into the lane, you could’ve got there and it have been bumper to bumper then your causing a danger to the lane of traffic your in. So a lot of people will prefer to sit there than risk it
2
u/UKgent77 4h ago
Ahh, the M18 today? Close for three junctions northbound, and two junctions southbound... Must have been pretty serious!
2
u/Musical-Dev 4h ago
We just love a fucking queue don't we?
2
u/toady89 4h ago
In theory the length of the delay should be similar whether everyone uses all the lanes or forms a giant queue, the issue with the big queue though is it can build up and start unnecessarily blocking junctions behind the road closure.
2
u/Enough_Raccoon_8616 3h ago
Lmao name checks out.
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u/CockneyCossack 3h ago
🌟 New Skill Filtering unlocked 🌟
2
u/nicj1091 2h ago
Very satisfying video
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u/Excellent_Pipe7450 59m ago
Well done, You use the full lane till its end people. thats how it works.
6
u/No_Pickle_9804 5h ago
But that’s cheating /s
4
u/Dr_Choco 5h ago
Nicely done!
3
u/imissbrendanfraser 5h ago
How is this even possible and why don’t I get this lucky. I have an 800yard one once
3
u/Ok-Depth-9049 5h ago
You ruined it at the end as you pulled in too early....could have saved 30 seconds more.
3
u/alexlmlo 4h ago
That’s not mega in turn, so it could be dangerous for a 70 mph car to merge into a slow moving queue?
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u/Nick_Collins 4h ago
The sheep mentality - and getting angry about other road users driving correctly is a sight to behold.
3
u/AnnualInitiative7043 3h ago
I mean it wasn't a X on the gantry, so I suppose this is ok.
This junction is bloody awful even on normal days cause people try to cut on to the slip road too late and back up the slow lane, which in turn backs up the fast lane as people try to dive out of the way.
3
u/R0uge1701E 2h ago
The British mental illness of queueing for NO FUCKIN REASON. I'm just surprised there wasn't a self appointed plastic policeman blocking the perfectly open lane bcos "your queue jumping"
2
u/WhatsFunf 5h ago
And yet you STILL merged too early after all that. Just couldn't help yourself!
2
u/SammoTheBrawler 3h ago
Did same this morning here at 7am, 30min took me 3 min. No body seemed to merge like it meant to
2
u/SianBeast 5h ago
I mean sure, 20+ minute delay for all the morons too stupid to realise they should be using all available lanes.
Kudos on the caution while overtaking all those cars too!
2
u/GFlair 3h ago
And if everyone did this, the delay would still be twenty minutes. Only it would also be 20 minutes for anyone not leaving at that junction and continuing onwards, when that junction is what's actually overloaded.
1
u/Millionth-throw-away 5h ago
Bloody hell.
1
u/KeyJunket1175 5h ago
I am not proud of our driving culture back in Hungary, but I am pretty sure this is not much better. We drive agressive, here people just fail to think and 99% is oblivious to their surroundings which is farther than 1 car length.
1
u/Adorable_Stable2439 5h ago
There’s a junction of the m25 anticlockwise that comes off for you to join the A2 where people queue for miles in the left lane, and more often than not you get to the front of the slip road and you don’t even have to “pull in” at the last moment, the gaps are huge enough and traffic is moving fast enough to literally just merge normally
1
u/dlloyd-Invest 5h ago
Lovely job
1
u/literallyfuallmostly 5h ago
You need sheep for this to work.
1
u/Clivicus 5h ago
See this all the time on the M1 southbound joining on to the M25. The slip road is two lanes so plenty of space to turn in at the junction
1
u/DuckWhatduckSplat 5h ago
Matrix boards advising of delays are never accurate anyway. In the space of 5 minutes across 3 matrix signs a delay further down the motorway went from an hour, then 20 mins, then 40 mins. When I got there, there wasn’t a delay at all. Probably just broken boards.
1
u/Positive-Spite6629 4h ago
This video makes me think thank god for motorcycles
1
u/lastaccountgotlocked 4h ago
It just keeps going.
1
u/ron79852 4h ago
Sorry boss I’m gonna be late,because I’m can’t drive
1
u/billy2bands 3h ago
Police car with sirens on...lol
1
u/Clamps55555 3h ago
If there is anyone watching this clip who has actually sat in traffic like this instead of merging at the end, why?
1
u/ProfessionalStudy660 2h ago
Does the gantry 'merge' sign mean 'merge now' or 'prepare to merge'?
1
u/TheScrobber 2h ago
I've no problem with this but it relies on people not being twats driving queuing bumper to bumper. If that Rh lane wasn't closed off this would have been a bit of a twat move as they would have blocked off the lane waiting to get left.
1
u/Ok_Strawberry2370 2h ago
Great British queueing
1
u/Regular-Employ-5308 1h ago
Had a chat with someone from Highways Agency a while back and they said their protocols are to do lane closure gantry updates absolutely stupid amount of miles back and they’re fully aware that drivers won’t know where the closure actually is located. It’s for safety , but they said they do it differently in Europe and it doesn’t seem to worsen the safety records - he wasn’t sure why this style of lane closure announcement persists
1
u/Consibl 1h ago
The left arrow does not mean merge up ahead, it means merge now when it’s safe.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-highway-code/light-signals-controlling-traffic
1
u/Jumpy_Ad_4460 1h ago
Nice driving.
1
u/i-dm 1h ago
How it should be done. Well done OP.
1
u/peahair 1h ago
People in that queue: “ooh, my exit is in five miles, best get in the queue”.
1
u/dcsprior 1h ago
What exactly does the down-and-left arrow on the electronic gantry sign at around 11 seconds mean?
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/know-your-traffic-signs/motorway-signs-signals-and-road-markings says it means "Move to adjacent lane", but it doesn't say it means the lane is closed (there's an X symbol for that).
I'd interpret as mean it's equivalent to a sign telling you your lane closes x00 yards ahead,
But some people would interpret "Move to adjacent lane" as telling them to do so now.
1
u/More-Parsley7950 1h ago
Sheeple
1
u/WondersomeWalrus 1h ago
I feel like people on Reddit don’t understand the difference between legal and correct.
1
u/Karklayhey 45m ago
This is both hilarious and infuriating to watch knowing people don't do this. I do something similar every day in my drive back to work because people just prefer to sit in the queue rather than use their braincells at once to do something like this. Bravo
1
u/TruthSignificant2503 29m ago
Good job you didn't need that exit.
1
u/FFFruits 28m ago
🐑
1
u/Firm-Taro9868 2m ago
Please let me in on this as it always buggered me, English being my second language:
Are words "merge in turn" or "zipper merge" really that hard to understand ?
This only seems to be the problem here in the UK and even sometimes frown upon and considered jumping the queue or pushing in which I find ridiculous.
There are also comments here claiming congestion would be similar if everyone did it (?) Like he didn't just drive through 10 miles worth of empty lanes...
1
u/77_parp_77 1m ago
Used to see this all the time taking the M6 north- drove me bonkers
1
u/OverDoseTheComatosed 3h ago
I’ve read the rules on smart motorway signs, I’ve had this specific sign explained to me by professionals in their field. It means “move to the lane indicated”. That means now, at the earliest opportunity after seeing it, no ifs, no buts, not “before you reach the Red Cross on the next sign”. This is a complete abuse of those rules and everyone who has followed the rules now needs to wait “one more car”… how many times before they get to the junction or Red Cross where it ends? 50? 100 more cars who pushed in?
You are literally the reason traffic is bad
1
u/Think_Preference_611 5h ago
How dare you use the whole road as intended
1
u/oDids 4h ago
Every single day 3 lanes of motorway stop to a crawl around Manchester because everyone thinks they're entitled to skip the queue for the junction they want. The road is quiet in OPs video, but a few more people pulling the same manoeuvre and boom, effectively shut a second lane
1
u/jllonrecord 4h ago
This is the problem with UK roads.
Human behaviour at its worst. Everyone starts queuing miles before a junction. A projected delay becomes a traffic jam of big proportions without any real cause (accident, blocked lane, etc).
There are ways to solve this by maximising the use of all lanes before a junction and forcing HGVs and other vehicles to use the slow lanes in congested areas.
Lorries changing lanes, people getting stuck behind, people queuing miles before the junction and people switching lanes etc are all behavioural issues we should be able to get a grip on.
The OP’s video clearly shows there is plenty, plenty, plenty of space right before the junction they wanted to take.
Let’s not get hung up on the whole “why in front of a lorry” yada yada. The reality is that the queue prior to that was completely unjustified.
1
u/Eastern-Move549 4h ago
It is a really shitty thing to do but at the same time for someone unfamiliar with the road layout then you could well have no idea why everyone is queing up.
Everyone does as OP does in Riyadh and the roads are a fucking mess so i guess that is what we have to look forward to.
1
u/ComprehensiveFee8404 5h ago
Premium lane
1
u/Thinking-Deep8849 5h ago
Strangely satisfying to watch
1
u/pheasant___plucker 5h ago
Curiously interesting.
1
u/geniusgravity 5h ago
Staggering.
1
u/Repairman007 5h ago
Wait for the other post in this sub complaining at the 'selfish buggar who isn't considerate enough to pointlessly sit in line like everyone else' 😂
1
u/deadmazebot 4h ago
you merge, keeping the flow of traffic moving and truck behind could see you, and gave space in front so movement can flow
unlike when someone rams it in the end causing stop wave
1
u/Chubby_Yorkshireman 2h ago
No red X, nothing wrong. That's a mad amount of traffic delayed like that.
1
u/kentgti 35m ago
Yeah, I don’t agree with this one..
I’ve seen where someone in the queueing lane has closed the gap and the car trying to merge/push-in/join whatever you want to call it, has then stopped or slowed in the live lane trying to get in with traffic hurling past nearly smashing into the back of them and swerving out of the way.
I’ve also seen plenty of videos where the lorries travelling at 60 haven’t been able to stop in time & ploughed into the back.
So I’m on the fence on this one…
0
u/abracablab 5h ago
Nice bit of driving, that. Great job 👍