Is AD 'better driving'?

[sussex2]

One of the things we cover on the IAM course is being courteous. Don't forget UK roads are more congested and it is not always possible/safe to wave an arm leg at the time.

I personally don't like vehicles moving over to 'help me' overtake (other than filtering in congested towns). They invariably do it approaching blind bends, junctions etc. Or slow up and move over kicking up all the debris from the side of the road, or even do it where there's solid white lines! just continue your drive in a safe manner, not up the backside of the car in front (which makes it a multiple vehicle overtake or not at all) and I'll find my way past when it is safe for me to do so.

I'm not talking about exaggerated moves but a few flashes of a near side indicator allows the overtaker to 1/ Know they have been seen and their intentions acknowledged 2/ That the overtaken is likely to cooperate.
As I said you I don't generalise but have found that courtesies of this nature are more common elsewhere.
The end result is two happy road users

[akirk]

I think there can be a real sense of good communication between those driving / riding well - a road I often drive is a 'biker road' so I am often making progress with a cloud of swarming bikes - makes it far more challenging as I reckon 80-90% of them do not expect a car to be overtaking / making progress, and make assumptions where if I was not being cautious could lead to some interesting moments... The reality is that a bike will always be faster than my car but with either there is a speed cap at a level appropriate for the legality / safety / conditions etc. so I can be driving at that speed cap as much as any bike... I usually have my roof down so have very good visibility and will make very clear signals / use road positioning to show my intent as indicators seem to be invisible even then I have had a bike overtaking me while I was already overtaking another car in a way which very nearly led to bike ending in the ditch had I not compensated!

Having said all of that, you can spot the really good riders a long way off by the way they approach from behind / their road positioning / etc. and there can often be a very good sense of communication between car & bike - which is very rewarding...

Alasdair

[GTR1400MAN]

Sadly a lot of riders do not consider the fact a car could overtake. Often see this when there's 2 or 3 following a tractor. The cars are up the backside of the tractor with no view and are playing 'peek a boo' yet the bike will race past with little thought.

I'm sure you find the same in cars, but more so on bikes (as more overtakes are possible due to view and often better performance) but the trend for the sheep to follow line astern with no gaps (landing places) makes overtaking difficult if not impossible a lot of the time. Unfortunately this leads to reckless multi-vehicle overtakes by less patient/restrained/considerate riders.

[GTR1400MAN]

This one did the rounds recently on Facebook. The sad thing is the majority of riders could not see the rider was an idiot for overtaking where he did. It's obvious the car is looking for the overtake. All the comments were wanting the driver prosecuted as 'he did it on purpose'. Whether he knew he'd clipped the bike and didn't stop is another discussion, but this could have been so easily avoided and it is this sort of riding/mindset that providers of further training are up against.

[Horse]

The fact you are on the 'wrong' side if the road heading towards them with your headlight on

I only use dipped beam if I think there's a benefit, so that's not the trigger.

[akirk]

That video is very sad, issues with both - but ultimately responsibility with the biker:
- car should have been aware that there was a bike behind & bikes overtake, so there was a high chance the bike would go
- car could have used better road positioning - e.g. stepping out to show to the bike real clarity of intent, before going
- bike really didn't read the car at all
- any bike overtaking more than one car (i.e. those they overtake may also wish to overtake) should be keeping an eye on those they are overtaking - should be doing it with all overtakes as the car could suddenly move to avoid something etc. - but more so in this case...

however it does really illustrate the point I was making about needing to be aware of bikers when overtaking in a car - there is often an assumption that they will not be going...

Alasdair

[Astraist]

And I thought I was Mr Conservative when it came to overtaking.

Oh, I think the overtakes are alright, but the subject of the thread relates to how Advanced Drivers are perceived on the road, namely via "unsociable" overtakes.

The only way to ensure an overtake not being perceived as inconsiderate is to do it when the road on the offside is completely empty.

I only use dipped beam if I think there's a benefit, so that's not the trigger.

If I'm driving a car without dedicated, built-in Daytime Running Lamps, I actually keep the dipped beam on all of the time, except of course for when I use the Main Beam at night and the (very) infrequent use of Fog lights.

There's ample evidence to support the advantage in conspiciousness provided by such practice in all vehicle types and driving environments. If it works in Israel, surely it will work in the U.K.

[jont-]

The only way to ensure an overtake not being perceived as inconsiderate is to do it when the road on the offside is completely empty.

At least in the UK, you may still find the person you are overtaking gets upset ("I'm a safe driver, ergo anyone going slower than me is a doddery old sod, and anyone going faster is a dangerous lunatic").

[Astraist]

I think this sort of people exist everywhere, and it's all too easy to mistake them for the majority of drivers. Anyhow, we can do something to make them the least upset.

[sussex2]

Never assume, not even for a moment.
If there is the slightest doubt hang back.
The vast majority of motor bikes and certainly to my knowledge, small roadsters, are all but invisible. In fact they are not seen by a general driving public now brought up on the SUV type of vehicle.