Bullying of small cars.

Which misses the point.

Nobody said it was illegal to drive at 70kph on a motorway.

But it is too slow.
Where is it stated that 50kmph is too slow to drive on a 'clear' (this is the word you used) motorway. Who would be inconvenienced by this speed when it's clear and there are lanes for the purposes of overtaking.

Too many motorists drive right up to the slower vehicle and then get frustrated that they have to slow. This is easily avoidable

I post on the assumption the slow vehicle is not in the middle or outside lane.
Edited to add: That is still no reason to drive right up behind them/tailgate/flash lights/sound horn, all of which is bullying.
 
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Edited to add: That is still no reason to drive right up behind them/tailgate/flash lights/sound horn, all of which is bullying.
Absolutely. The solution to someone driving dangerously slowly is not to drive more dangerously.
 
And my opinion is that the age group 55+ of them are the worst.
I agree. Young drivers are way better than my age cohort was when we were in our late teens and early 20's. The number of injuries and deaths on our roads per kilometre travelled is a fraction of what it was 30 years ago. That's due to many things but better and more responsible young drivers are a big factor.
 
You're overtaking the merging traffic.
The law is you stay left unless overtaking traffic in the lane that you are in. It is illegal for them to join in front of you at a slower speed.

That said it does make things easier for everyone if done correctly, but the problem is the idiots who pull out into lane 2 obstructing faster moving traffic in that lane.
 
It will be interesting to see what Jill has to say ......I'm waiting....
 
If you're approaching to a junction entering the dedicated lane that is marked your direction is clearly the way to go, otherwise moving out of the left lane other than to overtake a vehicle already in that lane is actually illegal even if it's just temporarily to make it easier for someone else to merge in.

Do you know which law it's breaking? I'm almost certain I remember a road safety tv ad years ago advising drivers to move lanes when it was safe to help accomodate merging drivers.

Also from the RSA https://www.rsa.ie/docs/default-sou... in good time to,to join the motorway traffic.

Lane 2 – On a two lane motorway, you should only use this lane for overtaking. You must move back to lane 1 once you have finished overtaking and it is safe to do so.You can also move into lane 2 to allow vehicles coming from your left to join the motorway.
 
You can certainly do it but you should make sure that you do not cause the car behind you in the lane you move into to brake.
 
You can certainly do it but you should make sure that you do not cause the car behind you in the lane you move into to brake.
That is not entirely correct. Let's assume the car being courteous to traffic merging from left indicates their intention to move to the right lane in good time, and does so. Traffic coming from behind in this right hand lane has a duty to also read the road ahead of them. That includes allowing vehicles to pull into that lane to allow traffic merge from the left. If the vehicle in the right hand lane is speeding, then they should slow, as a matter of courtesy, or move to outside lane if there is one, so their speeding can continue without disrupting other traffic. It's just not ok that they can impose a right of way because they choose to speed without regard to other road users

The more I read this thread, the more I realise that Irish people don't know how to drive on motorways. On the continent, it is mandatory to move to next lane or slow to allow traffic to merge.

Driving a motorway is supposed to be a cooperative method of driving by all to ensure traffic can join and move forward within the prescribed speed limit, using all lanes available. However, in Ireland, for many, it's just a free for all.
 
That is not entirely correct. Let's assume the car being courteous to traffic merging from left indicates their intention to move to the right lane in good time, and does so. Traffic coming from behind in this right hand lane has a duty to also read the road ahead of them. That includes allowing vehicles to pull into that lane to allow traffic merge from the left. If the vehicle in the right hand lane is speeding, then they should slow, as a matter of courtesy, or move to outside lane if there is one, so their speeding can continue without disrupting other traffic. It's just not ok that they can impose a right of way because they choose to speed without regard to other road users
If the flow of traffic in the right lane is moving at 95 and you pull into that lane and force all those cars to slow does that's both rude and dangerous.

The more I read this thread, the more I realise that Irish people don't know how to drive on motorways.
I agree.

On the continent, it is mandatory to move to next lane or slow to allow traffic to merge.
Which country? I've driven in France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Holland, Poland, Romania and probably a few others I can't think of and I've never seen it as common practice for cars pull into a lane and force the vehicles in it to slow down. In fact I've seen motorists in France blow the horn and tailgate cars for doing that.

Driving a motorway is supposed to be a cooperative method of driving by all to ensure traffic can join and move forward within the prescribed speed limit, using all lanes available. However, in Ireland, for many, it's just a free for all.
I agree. We have a bad understanding of the rules of the road, as can be seen in this thread.
 
In Spain, Italy and other European countries you have to give way to the vehicles travelling on the right (slow) lane, as signalled but the inverted triangle, when joining a motorway or similar road. Not the other way around.

If you can't join safely YOU MUST STOP, ideally before the end of the ramp, and join only when safe to do so.

Few drivers slow down to let anyone in, even fewer move lanes!

It is also illegal to overtake on an inside lane except in a few specific situations, as is driving on any lane other than the slow one when not overtaking. If caught you'll get a fine and possibly penalty points.
 

Section 9:


9.
Save where otherwise required by these Regulations, a vehicle shall be driven on the left hand side of the roadway in such a manner so as to allow, without danger or inconvenience to traffic or pedestrians, approaching traffic to pass on the right and overtaking traffic to overtake on the right.
As it is not required to change lanes to facilitate other traffic joining the roadway, doing so is a breach of the above.

When looking for the legislative background, don't get caught up in what the RSA say, much of what they say is not explicitly set in law. If they say 'must', there's usually a clear link to the law. When they use 'should', it usually implies what follows is their interpretation.
 
Sometimes over my 70+ years I get amazed listening to people discussing the Rules of the Road. We all know what to do if a Three-Legged Transexual Tibetan Turkey lands between traffic lanes on motorways or if the Italian Air Force lands armed crack troops paragliders in the centre of a busy roundabout. But few motorists know how to use the car indicators anywhere. Let's get the simple things right:-
1. Use indicators
2. Slow Down
3. Stop showing the finger, flashing headlamps, blowing horns, waving your fist, raising arms if somebody doesn't take off within a millisecond on green at traffic lights etc.
4. Be courteous to other road users.

Realistically, the only way we can influence bad drivers to drive good is by example. If there is another way, I'm all ears . . .
 
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It is also illegal to overtake on an inside lane except in a few specific situations, as is driving on any lane other than the slow one when not overtaking. If caught you'll get a fine and possibly penalty points.

(5) A driver may only overtake on the left—
( a ) where the driver of the vehicle about to be overtaken has signalled an intention to turn to the right and the driver of the overtaking vehicle intends, after overtaking, to go straight ahead or to turn to the left,
( b ) where the driver of the overtaking vehicle intends, after overtaking, to turn left at the next road junction and has signalled this intention,
( c ) in slow moving traffic, when vehicles in the traffic lane on the driver's right are moving more slowly than the overtaking vehicle.

And to be clear it's not a slow lane, it's the driving lane, the lane or lanes to the right of it are only to be used for overtaking.
 
That is not entirely correct. Let's assume the car being courteous to traffic merging from left indicates their intention to move to the right lane in good time, and does so. Traffic coming from behind in this right hand lane has a duty to also read the road ahead of them. That includes allowing vehicles to pull into that lane to allow traffic merge from the left. If the vehicle in the right hand lane is speeding, then they should slow, as a matter of courtesy, or move to outside lane if there is one, so their speeding can continue without disrupting other traffic. It's just not ok that they can impose a right of way because they choose to speed without regard to other road users

The more I read this thread, the more I realise that Irish people don't know how to drive on motorways. On the continent, it is mandatory to move to next lane or slow to allow traffic to merge.

Driving a motorway is supposed to be a cooperative method of driving by all to ensure traffic can join and move forward within the prescribed speed limit, using all lanes available. However, in Ireland, for many, it's just a free for all.

Why do you assume a rule on the continent is the same in Ireland ? I thought some were different.
 
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