Almost had a crash; who was at fault?

[workpeter]

Riding down 2 lane motorway, i was in left lane doing 65mph, and waited for car on right to overtake so i could move into right lane.

As the car passed me i increased my speed to 70mph so i can slot in behind him.

I indicated and began my menevour as soon as he passed however i noticed a second car behind in the right lane starting to increase their speed.

My gut reaction was to stop my manevour ( i was already inbetween lanes) and go back into left lane however i decided to commit to the manuver. The car behind continued to increase their speed until we were both almost side by side...in the same lane. Luckily our vehicles didnt touch overwise id likely by RIP. The driver then slowed right down to less than 60mph.

[workpeter]

I think i made the right decision since there was sufficent gap at the time, and the whole point of me moving into right lane was because i was overtaking. A part of me felt that quickly cutting back into left lane without having a few second to assess the situation would have been unsafe. I might of rear ended the car in the left lane.

[fastbob]

I presume you were indicating prior to the first car passing the vehicle in front of you . The second car probably didn't expect you to jump in-between two vehicles making the same manoeuvre . How did you end up stuck behind a slower vehicle in the first place ? Lastly you say that you were running side by side with the second vehicle. Perhaps if you rode more assertively this might not have happened . Although a biker is always going to come off worse in the event of a collision it is still good practice to take possession of the lane you are occupying . Anyway I wasn't there , you lived to tell the tale and maybe you are a little wiser.

[winston smith]

It doesn't really matter who's right or wrong. There could be all sorts of reasons... the driver could have slowed to fiddle with his radio, phone, satnav etc, then speed up to previous speed, maybe he doesnt like bikers, maybe he's just a nobhead, who knows.

It was a near miss, the important thing is nobody got hurt.

So chalk it up to experience - on overtakes don't just look at a gap, look at the next car back too and assess it's speed. Shoulder checks aren't fashionable, but sometimes better at speed if your mirrors vibrate alot

[Hoggs]

Shoulder checks aren't fashionable,

 

Well they should be, saved my arse a number of times Called lifesavers for a reason

[Guest Richzx6r]

I do shoulder checks(lifesavers) all the time, especially at slower speeds and just before turning into streets or at t junctions as you may check mirrors but in the split second a cager could try and post it up the side of you

Edited June 4, 2019 by Richzx6r

[Smithers]

A golden rule that I apply to myself is, anything on 4 wheels is going to kill you, so get far away as possible from anyone acting like a dick because you will always lose an argument with them. Shoulder checks are not only fashionable but they also save your life.

[Six30]

I do em in a car as well ... not a bad habbit I spose.

[Glorian]

I would say 40/60 you / them

You should have checked where you were moving was clear before beginning. Mirror signal gear manouver mirror. (Mirror or lifesaver). Also you need to be more assertive. Hovering in the middle is dangerous and encourages bad driving on the car part.

At the same time the driver should be leaving enough space for people to join the overtaking lane, and paying enough attention to spot other road users. Also he should be more courteous not like you were going slow and being awkward.

This is just my opinion on the matter

[Smithers]

[mention]Glorian[/mention] Love the avatar

[learningtofly]

I think the more important question is what you could have done differently to preclude the risk of harm/injury. My gut feeling is that you didn't have the necessary gap to safely pull out and overtake when you did, and you should therefore have waited in the left lane until you did.

Anyway, I wasn't there and the important thing is that you're okay.

[workpeter]

Very sound advice. Thanks all.

My take away from this expierance is to not go for the gaps. If i could do that situation again i would of stayed in left lane longer and waited for both cars in right lane to pass. Then only when its clear do i move over.

I think the fact that i needed to accelate into a new position was a red flag.

I agree on shoulder check. It saved my life recently on a road merge. An old lady undertook me and was in my blind spot.

The traffic has been weird last couple days....

[ericck]

I think you were at fault.

You made at least 3 wrong manoeuvres

[fastbob]

Shoulder checks aren't fashionable,

 

Well they should be, saved my arse a number of times Called lifesavers for a reason

 

Not fashionable ? Good, well nor am I then . I even chose my Shark Vision helmet because the wider visor gives me an extra inch during shoulder checks . One of many reasons I swapped the GSXR for the Harley was that I just wasn't feeling safe on the motorway anymore . When old age means that you are too stiff to do your lifesaver checks properly it's time to do something about it .

[fastbob]

I think you were at fault.

You made at least 3 wrong manoeuvres

 

Go for it .

[Bender]

I agree, if your changing lanes you need to make sure you know what is going on around you, you have to be sure there is a safe gap to pull into.

[fastbob]

Slightly off topic but someone ( an HGV driver and biker ) told me that in the near future you will be photographed by an ANPR camera and fined if you pass under a gantry with a red X on a "Smart" Motorway. So now we have to focus more on what's ahead as well . And they are building miles and miles of it right now. This is going to cause collisions surely .

[Bender]

No it will involve lots of fines, the signs are big and red and highly visible

[Six30]

Smart motorways, not so smart they should be called , breaking down and stopping on the hard shoulder is hairy enough but coming to a stop in a live lane of traffic , no danger there then

[Stu]

I don't think it's about pointing the finger as they say there's no point being DEAD right! Learn from it and become a better rider so you don't get in those situations

 

Slightly off topic but someone ( an HGV driver and biker ) told me that in the near future you will be photographed by an ANPR camera and fined if you pass under a gantry with a red X on a "Smart" Motorway. So now we have to focus more on what's ahead as well . And they are building miles and miles of it right now. This is going to cause collisions surely .

 

There's more going on during town driving/riding so this should be a doodle especially with the years of experience you have and already being an observant rider it shouldn't make a blind bit of difference

[fastbob]

I don't think it's about pointing the finger as they say there's no point being DEAD right! Learn from it and become a better rider so you don't get in those situations

 

Slightly off topic but someone ( an HGV driver and biker ) told me that in the near future you will be photographed by an ANPR camera and fined if you pass under a gantry with a red X on a "Smart" Motorway. So now we have to focus more on what's ahead as well . And they are building miles and miles of it right now. This is going to cause collisions surely .

 

There's more going on during town driving/riding so this should be a doodle especially with the years of experience you have and already being an observant rider it shouldn't make a blind bit of difference

 

What the HGV driver/biker chap was concerned about was that other drivers will start veering from lane to lane to avoid a ticket . He thought that if the hard shoulder had been opened to traffic and then the red X,s start appearing up ahead , four lanes could suddenly become three or even two which would result in a lot of braking and lane juggling . At the moment they are advisory I think but once they can impose an instant fine the less observant drivers might start swerving in panic . That was the jist of it anyway.

[Stu]

I don't think it's about pointing the finger as they say there's no point being DEAD right! Learn from it and become a better rider so you don't get in those situations

 

Slightly off topic but someone ( an HGV driver and biker ) told me that in the near future you will be photographed by an ANPR camera and fined if you pass under a gantry with a red X on a "Smart" Motorway. So now we have to focus more on what's ahead as well . And they are building miles and miles of it right now. This is going to cause collisions surely .

 

There's more going on during town driving/riding so this should be a doodle especially with the years of experience you have and already being an observant rider it shouldn't make a blind bit of difference

 

What the HGV driver/biker chap was concerned about was that other drivers will start veering from lane to lane to avoid a ticket . He thought that if the hard shoulder had been opened to traffic and then the red X,s start appearing up ahead , four lanes could suddenly become three or even two which would result in a lot of braking and lane juggling . At the moment they are advisory I think but once they can impose an instant fine the less observant drivers might start swerving in panic . That was the jist of it anyway.

 

They are not advisory!

I haven't seen any issues with it myself as you tend to have a bit of warning

[dynax]

I don't think it's about pointing the finger as they say there's no point being DEAD right! Learn from it and become a better rider so you don't get in those situations

 

Slightly off topic but someone ( an HGV driver and biker ) told me that in the near future you will be photographed by an ANPR camera and fined if you pass under a gantry with a red X on a "Smart" Motorway. So now we have to focus more on what's ahead as well . And they are building miles and miles of it right now. This is going to cause collisions surely .

 

There's more going on during town driving/riding so this should be a doodle especially with the years of experience you have and already being an observant rider it shouldn't make a blind bit of difference

 

What the HGV driver/biker chap was concerned about was that other drivers will start veering from lane to lane to avoid a ticket . He thought that if the hard shoulder had been opened to traffic and then the red X,s start appearing up ahead , four lanes could suddenly become three or even two which would result in a lot of braking and lane juggling . At the moment they are advisory I think but once they can impose an instant fine the less observant drivers might start swerving in panic . That was the jist of it anyway.

 

Probably playing with their phones etc, instead of actually driving should be banned for life

[Guest Richzx6r]

Shoulder checks aren't fashionable,

 

Well they should be, saved my arse a number of times Called lifesavers for a reason

 

Not fashionable ? Good, well nor am I then . I even chose my Shark Vision helmet because the wider visor gives me an extra inch during shoulder checks .

 

Bob are you really a woman, picking something that gives you the extra inch

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Since the original train has already been derailed....I was told, by a copper, that on smart motorways once you pass a sign saying the speed limit is back up to 70 the cameras are still active. They just trigger above 70 rather than the lower temporary limit.

Apparently quite a lot of drivers slow for the reduced speeds due to the cameras but once they pass a NSL sign they're back up to 80+ because they think the cameras aren't operating. Until a brown envelope drops through the door.

So I was told. I'd never know because I never go that fast.