Why do lorries try to overtake other vehicles that are only going marginally slower than they are?

Question

We've all been there. They can sometimes take a couple of miles or more to overtake one another. Is there a sensible, practical reason? Why don't they just stay in line?

Answer 1

Its a MAN thing, they have to be in front.

Bloody annoying.

Answer 2

Reading through the answers here I see a lot of moaning and kicking up about Lorry's, these people should first ask themselves one question.

When you go shopping in Tesco, Asda, B&Q, British Home Stores or filling your car with petrol how do the goods that you can so conveniently buy arrive at these shops etc.

Yes, that the correct answer in those same Lorry's that you are all moaning about and who are generally driving under very tight time schedules.

Answer 3

Well dare I say that most of them are pi**ed and out of there mines.

Answer 4

Perhaps you'd be better off asking why some car drivers in a 70mph zone, dawdle along at 50 mph, and block up the middle lane at that speed, then wonder why lorries are tailgating them!

Answer 5

Very simple - most recent HGVs are fitted with speed limiters at either 56mph (90km/h) or 62mph (100km/h). You'll see the symbols on a lot of foreign lorries - eg 50, 80, 100.

The small difference in limiter accuracy means these morons will try to overtake, even though one is probably doing a half a mile per hour more than the other, and if the overtaking one is loaded, it'll get to an uphill section & slow down, complicating things.

A mate of mine's a lorry driver, his attitude is that it makes a difference if you're driving all day & end up half a mile per hour slower than you could be - after eight hours, you'd be four miles behind. I think they're just arses!

Answer 6

I'm a biker and I have far more faith in HGV drivers than the average car driver.  Most UK motorway is three lanes.  HGVs are not permitted to use the third lane.

Answer 7

Lorry drivers have a schedule to keep to and are governed by the number of hours that they can drive between breaks, therefore they try to keep up a constant speed.

On the other hand 'Joe Public' thinks that the lorry driver is being a pain and complains,  It is much easier to speed up in a car and cars are much more manoeuvrable so why not just be patient, give the trucker the room he needs and get on with life?

Once 'Joe Public' appreciates the difficulties in manoeuvring an HGV the better.  (and No, I am not a trucker! - just a patient driver).

Answer 8

because most  cant be bothered to adjust their cruise control.

and some truckers are young and totally in a panic

every second counts...

trucks are all set at 85 kph but you are allowed a tollerence of +- 5kph  thats why some go faster and some go slower... everyone gets their tacho set by an authorised tacho station  and set at  the high end of the tolerence...  ie.90 kph or 55 /56 mph.

so if your wagon is going that little bit faster and your catching up the vehicle in front ....out we go....

i do it myself, but to be quite honest id rather click the cruise back a notch and have a hassle free journey......

radio on...shades on...hot brew on the go.... warm toes with the heater on...  ace.

Answer 9

It takes a long time for a H.G.V.  to get it's speed up if heavily laden , so rather than slow down and wait behind a slower moving H.G.V. the driver usually goes for it and overtakes but yes to gain speed when loaded with 40 ton is slow but needs to be done or we would have lane 1 packed with H.G.V.s and we don't want a line of H.G.V. s

Answer 10

they all idiots thats why there lorry drivers to begin with

Answer 11

Couple of reasons.

1: Cruising at a good speed and don't want to change so rather than adjust they pass slower vehicles (I do this).

2: Timing, meaning they are on a schedule or such and therefore if going a bit of distance slowing down means loss of a few minutes.  

You would surmise that a few minutes don't matter but sometimes yes it can make a difference.  Where I go there are a few spots where at certain times of the day that few minutes means taking 30 minutes to do the job or 43 minutes due to heavier traffic.  Another factor are break times of delivery points and number of stops to make before end of day.  

Answer 12

In short, no - there is no practical reason.  Their difference in speed is so minimal that overtaking each other is pointless.

But if you were on the roads all day, every day, wouldn't you do the same?

PS. I would far rather the first lane was packed with HGVs, leaving the rest of us to get on with our journeys in the other lane(s).  Maybe they should be limited to only using the first lane?

Answer 13

Good question for all they do is slow other drivers down for many minutes. It is not so bad on a motorway but a d**n nuisance on dual carriage-ways.

Answer 14

It takes a long time for lorries to overtake due to the similar speeds. i.e  truck 1 maybe doing 54 mph and truck 2 56 mph ( Normally max speed due to speed limiters ) Also a driver may choose to drive at max speed and not sit behind slightly slower drivers due to strict driving hour laws and having to get his or her job done that day. p.s for all thoughs people how think lorry drivers are all bone heads just think what would happen to the country if we didn't bother delivering your food, fuel, cars ect for a few days!

Answer 15

Because they have cruise control on and to change speed they would have to turn it off. So they just change lane instead.

If you drive for a living it's understandable i suppose, you would soon get fed up of turning it off and on all the time because a car was going marginally slower than you.