Motorway middle-lane hoggers to face higher fines

ARCHIVES 2013

By admin-s On Jun 5, 2013

(The Guardian) – You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking a number of slower-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past.

[Malaysians, on the other hand, hog not just the middle lane, but the right-most lane when there are no other cars ahead of them. – MTadmin]

Drivers who needlessly hog the middle lane on motorways face fines of £100 as well as three penalty points under new government measures designed to crack down on careless motoring.

Fines for a number of other offences on the road – including using a handheld mobile phone while driving, or jumping traffic lights – are also expected to be increased from £60 to £100 after the unveiling of the package on Wednesday.

Traffic police will decide when motorists are considered to have been hogging the middle lane and issue on-the-spot fines to offenders.

Although some commentators have argued that fines are not necessarily the right approach for careless driving because cases are often not clear-cut, motoring organisations have long called for better lane discipline by drivers, which they say could dramatically solve congestion problems.

The Highway Code states: “You should always drive in the left-hand lane when the road ahead is clear.

“If you are overtaking a number of slower-moving vehicles, you should return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past.

“Slow-moving or speed-restricted vehicles should always remain in the left-hand lane of the carriageway unless overtaking.”