This really p***** me off!!!!! >:(

spockety

See it every goddamn morning on the M50 between Firhouse and Dundrum, come across queues of 20 cars at a time doing 75kph for ages, cos some tools in a HGV or Dumper truck doing 80kph decides to overtake another one that's doing 79kph or so.

AGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH.

Needed to vent that one.

crosstownk

I totally agree with you - it drives me nuts too.

In most other EU countries HGVs are not allowed use the overtaking lane at busy periods. Why can't such a rule be applied here?

kluivert

Its illegal for buses or HGV vehicles to use the overtaking lane.

Matthews run a very good express bus service from Dundalk to Dublin, really quick. But the Minister of Transport told them that if they wish to continue using this route that they cannot use the overtaking lane. Because its illegal to do so. Shame as journey is not that far off that of a car.

I dont mind buses overtaking, they are pretty quick. HGV well it depends on the attitude of the driver really

Drax

As of next month they'll get a penalty point for this as far as I know.

sandyg

Yep when the new points system comes into place there will be penalty points for all hgvs, buses etc to use the "fast lane" (overtaking lane). I agree with kluivert, i get the exp in the mornings from drogheda and we were just saying this morning that its going to be a pain in the rear end when we start geting stuck behind some load loader/slow lorry all the way to Dublin with the buses not being allowed into the overtaking lane.

signs

This p***es me off too as I drive approx 40k miles per annum.

The maximum speeds of large vehicles in Ireland are:

(The Laws)

(1) Double Decker Buses: 65 km/h max
(2) Buses and Coaches (with more than 8 passengers): 80 km/h max
(3) Trucks (weighing more than 3,500kg): 80 km/h max
(4) Towing Vehicles (car/van/tractor + trailor): 80 km/h max

In each of the above it means they cannot us overtaking lanes on motorways, unless blocked by accident/or breakdown to other.

(Below Some Of The Worst Offenders)

(1) Dublin Bus 'drivers' drive at this speed all the time hence most Oap's etc can't catch buses.
(2) Bus Eiréann & private Irish owned coaches do have limiters removed from them as so they can drive at speeds of 125kmph on motorways, which is illegal. With regards to Bus Eiréann buses they are government owned so they think they have exemption. Utter bu** s**t.
(3) A lot of Irish/Brit trucks have their limiters removed too so that they can do more work in a basic working day. Illegal and dangerous.
(4) Cowboy builders sitting on overtaking lanes of motorways, with heavy/overwieght dangerous trailors, blocking a clear road ahead.

maidhc

sandyg wrote:

Yep when the new points system comes into place there will be penalty points for all hgvs, buses etc to use the "fast lane" (overtaking lane). I agree with kluivert, i get the exp in the mornings from drogheda and we were just saying this morning that its going to be a pain in the rear end when we start geting stuck behind some load loader/slow lorry all the way to Dublin with the buses not being allowed into the overtaking lane.

Or a tractor doing 20mph

You need to take a chill pill spockety or I see high blood pressure in your future.

Cause Irish drivers arn't going to get better anytime soon!

KTRIC

maidhc wrote:

Or a tractor doing 20mph

I witnessed a big tractor on the section of the M50 between Leopardstown and Tallaght one evening at about 17:30. He was doing about 30 - 40 Kph , the Gardai caught up with him in a squad car, pulled him over and then proceeded to lift him out of it. The guy was nearly in tears with everyone looking on.

blastman

Drax wrote:

As of next month they'll get a penalty point for this as far as I know.

My ar$e they will. Who's going to see most of them?

Lovely theory, rubbish enforcement. The same old same old.

Squirrel

The new law would only work in countries with 3 lane motorways (I think Britain has this rule), where they can't use the lane closest to the central divide. Now trucks can't legally overtake at all which is very stupid. It's grand in 3 lane motorway countries because they still can overtake slower vehicles. Another case of the Irish copying the Brits wrongly

BrianD3

Well in the UK trucks are perfectly entitled to use the middle lane (which is an overtaking lane) on a 3 lane motorway or the outside lane on a 2 laner. This is the way it should be as trucks are entited to overtake just like anyone else. If truckers are to be given penalty points for overtaking on motorways here then
a) it is a load of bollox and a mistake in the legislation
b) it's completly unfair and ridiculous and the hauliers will be up in arms and rightly so

The outside lane on a m-way is an overtaking lane - not a fast lane. You are perfectly entitled to overtake at 40 mph in the overtaking lane of an M-way as long as you pull back in to the driving lane when you've finished your maneouvre and don't cut up/impede vehicles already in the overtaking lane when starting your maneouvre.

People who give out about trucks overtaking too slowly should try driving a vehicle with a speed limiter sometime. It's funny how in this thread some are giving out about trucks overtaking too slowly while others are on about the limiters being removed and them going too fast. BTW I would be careful before I went accusing Bus Eireann of removing limiters from its vehicles, this is this is the sort of accusation that could get boards.ie sued.

fletch

Suppose one was to take a photo of the offender with their digital camera? Could you use that to show the cops?

mike65

In Germany this phenomenon is called "Racing Elephants"!

Mike.

Seth Brundle

K-TRIC wrote:

I witnessed a big tractor on the section of the M50 between Leopardstown and Tallaght one evening at about 17:30. He was doing about 30 - 40 Kph , the Gardai caught up with him in a squad car, pulled him over and then proceeded to lift him out of it. The guy was nearly in tears with everyone looking on.

How did you manage to witness *all* of this?

fletch wrote:

Suppose one was to take a photo of the offender with their digital camera? Could you use that to show the cops?

Just make sure you are not driving whilst taking pics!

maidhc

BrianD3 wrote:

If truckers are to be given penalty points for overtaking on motorways here then
a) it is a load of bollox and a mistake in the legislation
b) it's completly unfair and ridiculous and the hauliers will be up in arms and rightly so

Agreed! I presume the same will be applied here as the UK, otherwise things will become farcical.

Also, is there any evidence that more than 80k is too fast for a truck on a motorway??

elexes

mike65 wrote:

In Germany this phenomenon is called "Racing Elephants"!

Mike.

lol class . ive never seen a offical Bus Eireann bus on the motorways . not yet anyway i dont mind trucks overtaking eachother . i can see why they would want to do it and i understand id do the same thing . but taking off your limiter i could not agree with

Drax

BrianD3 wrote:

BTW I would be careful before I went accusing Bus Eireann of removing limiters from its vehicles, this is this is the sort of accusation that could get boards.ie sued.

Well then we wont be mentioning the disabling of ABS either then...

rossious

kluivert wrote:

Its illegal for buses or HGV vehicles to use the overtaking lane.

Matthews run a very good express bus service from Dundalk to Dublin, really quick. But the Minister of Transport told them that if they wish to continue using this route that they cannot use the overtaking lane. Because its illegal to do so. Shame as journey is not that far off that of a car.

I dont mind buses overtaking, they are pretty quick. HGV well it depends on the attitude of the driver really

Only on 3 lane motorway. If its 2 lane they can use both.

spockety

kbannon wrote:

How did you manage to witness *all* of this?

Have you seen how slow traffic goes on the M50 at that time of day? It's probably quite plausible that one would have time to witness an event like this from start to finish. ;-)

Seth Brundle

spockety wrote:

Have you seen how slow traffic goes on the M50 at that time of day?

Ive never seen traffic that bad between Leopardstown and Tallaght

spockety

kbannon wrote:

Ive never seen traffic that bad between Leopardstown and Tallaght

I use it every day at around 5.30, and I'd say that at least 1 evening a week, traffic is backed up to Dundrum from the Red Cow at that time..

J.

Seth Brundle

fair nuff

AMurphy

spockety wrote:

See it every goddamn morning on the M50 between Firhouse and Dundrum, come across queues of 20 cars at a time doing 75kph for ages, cos some tools in a HGV or Dumper truck doing 80kph decides to overtake another one that's doing 79kph or so.

AGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH.

Needed to vent that one.

You would not appreciate being on Highway 17 to Santa Cruz (2 lane each way), when one 40 ton 18wheeler sandtruck, doing 30.5 decides to pass another doing 30, on the uphill section and in rushhour traffic.
And to really get the fear factor up, you find you have one of these on your rear bumper on the downhill section;


http://www.layover.com/infocenter/slang.htm

signs

BrianD3 wrote:

Well in the UK trucks are perfectly entitled to use the middle lane (which is an overtaking lane) on a 3 lane motorway or the outside lane on a 2 laner. This is the way it should be as trucks are entited to overtake just like anyone else. If truckers are to be given penalty points for overtaking on motorways here then
a) it is a load of bollox and a mistake in the legislation
b) it's completly unfair and ridiculous and the hauliers will be up in arms and rightly so

The outside lane on a m-way is an overtaking lane - not a fast lane. You are perfectly entitled to overtake at 40 mph in the overtaking lane of an M-way as long as you pull back in to the driving lane when you've finished your maneouvre and don't cut up/impede vehicles already in the overtaking lane when starting your maneouvre.

People who give out about trucks overtaking too slowly should try driving a vehicle with a speed limiter sometime. It's funny how in this thread some are giving out about trucks overtaking too slowly while others are on about the limiters being removed and them going too fast. BTW I would be careful before I went accusing Bus Eireann of removing limiters from its vehicles, this is this is the sort of accusation that could get boards.ie sued.

(1) You are right to say that the outside lane of the motorway is for overtaking, as to why its called the 'overtaking lane'

(2) You cannot overtake any vehicle on a motorway at 40 mph unless the vehicle you are overtaking is doing less than 40mph(pointless exercise), as this would be classed as misusing the overtaking lane.

(3) Trucks are limited to 80kmph/50mph for a safety reason, not for the fun of it, or lack of, from experience. So if a truck is doing 50mph in left driving lane, a truck is not entitled to overtake it at 50mph also for the sake of it.

(4) Alot of Bus Eiréann buses(ie not school buses) are limiter-less and they do drive on motorways in the Republic ie the M7 & M4 at speeds of around 70mph, and I come across these almost everyday. I fail to see how they can overtake me at 70mph etc, if they are limited to 50mph. So in saying this, they are obviously removing the fuses to limiters to complete a journey from a to b quicker. And from your quote saying "this is this is the sort of accusation that could get boards.ie sued" How can it as they boards.ie havent said anything, I have, and I've yet to be proved wrong.

maidhc

signs wrote:

How can it as they boards.ie havent said anything, I have, and I've yet to be proved wrong.

To defend a defamation claim you dont have to be proved wrong, you just have to prove you are right.

TBH if a bus can handle 70mph, so be it, 50mph is very slow to be driving on a motorway in fairness.

signs

maidhc wrote:

To defend a defamation claim you dont have to be proved wrong, you just have to prove you are right.

TBH if a bus can handle 70mph, so be it, 50mph is very slow to be driving on a motorway in fairness.

(1) Hands up! okay maybe I should have said proved right.

(2) Maybe so but I don't make the rules, I'm supposed to go by them.

Any how a bus carrying say 50 people goes out of control at 70mph, it would cause absolute carnage as it being around 10/12 ton would crush any car or van in the way. Thats my problem with having large vehilcles driving at speed on motorways or any road in general, its not a grudge towards drivers in general. And I do understand the pressures of driving, as I do around 1000/1200miles myself in a 5 day week, but I try not to disrupt other drivers journeys.

BrianD3

signs wrote:

(2) You cannot overtake any vehicle on a motorway at 40 mph unless the vehicle you are overtaking is doing less than 40mph(pointless exercise), as this would be classed as misusing the overtaking lane.

(3) Trucks are limited to 80kmph/50mph for a safety reason, not for the fun of it, or lack of, from experience. So if a truck is doing 50mph in left driving lane, a truck is not entitled to overtake it at 50mph also for the sake of it.

Of course a truck travelling 50 mph can't overtake another one also doing 50. It's physically impossible! If two trucks are alongside each other both doing 50 the the one in the overtaking lane is wrong as he's not overtaking. If OTOH the one in the driving lane is doing 45 mph then it's acceptable.

Also, doing less than 40 mph on a motorway might seem pointless or even dangerous but the law and ROTR sees it as acceptable

Look, all vehicles that are allowed use a 2 lane motorway are allowed use the overtaking lane. This includes JCB Landtrak tractors, HGVs, buses, Citroen 2CVs, VW Golf 1.4s etc. A Ferrari driver might perceive that the 2CV in front is not overtaking quickly enough but that doesn't mean that 2CVs can be banned from the overtaking lane or that the rules should be geared towards Ferrari owners.

On the Bus Eireann thing - I find on boards that when posters make potentially damaging comments about specific companies the mods or admins generally edit the post as they are worried about being sued. If you are noticing buses doing 70 mph it is possible that the limiters are faulty/missing. It's also possible that your speedo is not accurate (many overread by about 10%, sometimes more)

mike65

signs wrote:

(1) Dublin Bus 'drivers' drive at this speed all the time hence most Oap's etc can't catch buses.
(2) Bus Eiréann & private Irish owned coaches do have limiters removed from them as so they can drive at speeds of 125kmph on motorways, which is illegal. With regards to Bus Eiréann buses they are government owned so they think they have exemption. Utter bu** s**t.

Do you have any evidence to back this claim?

Mike.