It is that attitude which causes accidents MJ Smitten; if you see a vehicle on a slip road approaching a carriageway you should let the that vehicle gain access to the carriageway safely by allowing access in front of you, accelerating to be front of that vehicle or by changing lane.

Changing lane is not dangerous if performed correctly so maybe it is you MJ Smitten, that needs further instruction on how to drive safely and not other road users.

Same happened to me, but i got a mad woman in a Renault scream and waving , gesturing wit two fingers , then flashing her lights from behind waving a phone and then a pen.

I thought oh dear she must want something so slowed down to which she replied by accelerating towards me hard with her tongue out and her eyes bulging .

She then overtook through bayston hill . It was a worry when i saw where she turned in to in church stretton .My advise is learn the high way code dear and see a dr for some HRT clearly at your age you should no better.

I quite agree. There is too much agression and selfishness on the roads in general but I would also like to comment about cyclists weaving in and out of traffic and going through red lights in Shrewsbury. Yesterday I was stopped in traffic when a cyclist hit the back of my car at speed causing a large dent and scratches tro the back of my car, when I asked for id or if he was insured he simply told me I would have to pay for the damage myself! I have obviously reported this to the police who would also like his details.

Completely agree with BA Smith.

"A major cause of difficulties that may lead to accidents at these junctions is drivers suddenly changing lanes to let vehicles join which, though outwardly polite, is actually dangerous"

...for you, perhaps, but not for the majority of motorway users.

If you couldn't pull across then I'm sure you would have pointed that out in your letter, but since you haven't I am assuming that lane 2 was clear but you chose not to pull across simply because the Highway Code does not require you to pull across.

If this is the case then you have allowed written guidelines* to come before common sense and courtesy. Furthermore, if you find yourself having to 'suddenly' (as you say) change lanes, then you have not anticipated the likelihood of traffic joining at the slip road, which is a hallmark of a poor driver.

I'm not surprised other drivers get upset with you. Bloody minded, obstinate drivers are just as responsible for causing accidents as dangerous ones.

*Guidelines: The only parts of the Highway Code that are law are paragraphs that contain MUST/MUST NOT. The paragraph on joining a motorway at a slip road doesn't contain this, so it's not law, despite what you might like to believe.

I agree with Mr Smith, The view of the carraigeway from the slip road is restricted. The very fact that traffic is in a cars blindspot by default, defers responsibilty to the cars with a better perspective! I was told by my driving instructor that it is the responsibility of the traffic on the carraigeway to slow up or change lanes for traffic joining as they have a much better view of the situation..

People holding their ground and causing the joining traffic to hit the brakes when they are hard accelerating to match the traffic speed is very dangerous. Several times I have been joining a dual carraigeway with only 1 other vehicle on it and they have refused to change their lane or speed forcing me to brake hard. Just plain stupid.

M J Smitten, I think you will find that giving way to the right is largly a traffic island and T-junction affair.

Original Jake I totally agree with your response, I speed up to join the traffic and the fast lane has no cars in so what do they do sit in the slow lane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That is dangerous because I am them trying to work out what speed they are going to see if I can join the carriageway! What happened to a bit of common courtesy??? M J Smitten 'YOU' are the people who cause accidents! No offence M J Smitten, can I say you are of the 'Older' Generation!!!!! Instead of writing a pointless letter try driving better and having manners to let us on the carriageway! When you join the M6 or the M54 do people pull over for you??

Yes, if the lane to your right is clear you should pull over and let the slip road traffic join. But I have had to stand on my brakes many times, particularly around Telford, when drivers coming down the slip road have simply failed to look or slow down and literally charged onto the main road in front of me when the lane to my right was blocked. In one instance the lane was coned off and I finished up trashing several cones.

But unfortunately (and perhaps in response to many slip-road collisions) T&W Council and the Highways Agency have instituted 'single lane only' through about half the junctions on the A442 Queensway. This means the slip road traffic can join without looking (or caring) The trouble is, far too many unobservant drivers are assuming ALL junctions in and around Telford are now 'slip road friendly' and act accordingly.

All the A442 junctions need to be the same - and if not, then 'Give Way' signs need installing on slip roads that don't have a direct access lane. Perhaps unwittingly, T&W seem to have created a new form of inconsiderate driving virus.

Similarly, the M54 eastbound at J4 is a regular scene of sudden braking by vehicles in Lane 1 with Lane 2 fully occupied as impatient commuters (and lorries) barge their way onto the motorway, despite the extended slip road.

It's pretty evident from the above that in our driving we all take it as some form of personal slight at the prospect of anyone getting ahead of us in our rush to arrive at our destinations. The great British etiquette of queuing is rarely more evident.

The fact is we all get along faster when we all get along and so why not yield to the left, the right and even to the guy or girl on your tailgate if there's nothing in front of you. 'Merge in turn' the signs say so lets try to keep us all keep moving, rather than causing the stop-start with our gesticulating and accelerating to close potential gaps for others.

M J Smitten - simply - you're wrong. I guess you are one the idiots who insists on his Right Of Way At All Times. "He was right, dead right, as he went along, but he's just as dead as if he'd been wrong."

Of course it is not always possible to allow a vehicle in from a slip road, especially if that driver hasn't matched his speed, or adjusted his approach to fit into a gap - in which case he should continue along the hard shoulder until he can correctly filter in.

But to blithely insist that you don't (want to?) let them in - plain bloody rude. If the merging vehicle was a 40 foot artic, I bet you'd change your tune.

The letter writer complains about someone else's lack of courtesy, and then freely admits that they have none themselves by not moving over to let other people into traffic. Are they similarly intolerant of people in front of them wishing to overtake? Do they let such people in or not?

I also have no idea what he's one about when he talks about "dangerous" and "sudden" lane changes. It's not difficult to spot someone who wants to merge into traffic and to move into a different lane. It doesn't take much at all, and they might even acknowledge the act.

We all share the road. Arrogant driving manners such as those displayed by M. J. Smitten have no place on our highways.

It seems like everyone has never made a mistake on the road or caused someone to slow down / change lanes etc so well done, must be the county with the best drivers in the UK !!!

In reality, everyone thinks that their journey is more important than everyone else's and they must be in front of the next driver at all costs, which is obviously only going to end one way. All it takes is a bit of patience and we can all get to where we are going without the usually maxwell house gestures. Interestingly the ones who do make the gestures are the ones driving badly - speeding, jumping lights, under taking etc and because they think its the norm, if everyone else doesn't do it, then the bad driver seems to think it is a personal quest to annoy them on every journey

There is no legal requirement for me to hold a door open for someone following me. In the same way, as MJS points out, there is no legal requirement to move out to let another car join the motorway / dual carriage way. I would however suggest that not to do so where it is a safe manouver to make is extremely rude and disrespectful to other road users.

I tend to fid that drivers that don't pull out and ignore other common courtesies are unaware of the surrounding vehicles and are blythly pottering on in a world of their own unconcerned about the effect their driving has on others.

The onus when joining the motorway is on the vehicle on the slip road. That's why there are dotted lines between the slip road and the motorway. If the vehicle on the slip road is level with the vehicle on the inside lane when approaching the junction the vehicle on the slip road must, because of the dotted lines, give way to the vehicle on the inside lane of the motorway and not expect it to slow down especialy if there are other vehicles behind it which could result in an accident. Fact.

well i think that's you told, MJ Smitten!

A few years ago, I took an advanced driving assessment which is or was part two of the three stage trainee driving instructor assessment. I passed this but failed part three which deals with a candidate's ability to instruct a pupil, and consequently I never became a ADI.

The ADI who was my trainer clearly informed me that if safe to do so, then it is desirable to allow traffic on slip roads to safely emerge by changing lanes, and this was backed up by the training literature issued to me as part of the course. Whilst it is not always possible, this is something I've always tried to do. After all, he is the professional and knows what he's talking about.

So it does peeve me ever so slightly when some inconsiderate individual (who probably doesn't use indicators or know his/her way around traffic islands either), sits in lane one and absolutely refuses to allow vehicles to join when lane two is clear. Case in point this morning at Junction 5 on the M54 was the green Range Rover who did precisely this as I attempted to join the westbound carriageway.

Now I wouldn't for one minute consider making obscene gestures to him or any other driver, but in this day and age when everyone has to be there yesterday, I can understand why some feel the need to express themselves in such a manner.

So I would suggest MJ Smitten that it is up to you to at least consider letting someone in if safe to do so.

what happened to good driving the roads around telford are used like a race track

Ok, it is nice when joining a motorway the driver moves over granted, but I do get annoyed when they do it when I'm blasting down the fast lane at 95 and have to brake just because they let someone in! So then.Annoyed at both of them and the woman twofeet behind me is annoyed at me for braking!! :-)

On a related point, may I politely point out that Legges Way from Madeley roundabout is a 30mph limit? I agree it doesn't look like one, that similar roads all over the district have much higher limits - but I've been firmly instructed by local police that that is the case (and there's a police station on that road). Apparently the fact that there are no speed limit signs is supposed to tell you that, plus the exact distance between street lights.

Every single solitary weekday at around 5.30 - 6pm I dutifully drive along there at 30mph and never, ever fail to be tailgated or have people overtake, usually on bends. I won't be bullied into speeding so if you go that way, please be patient. The middle aged woman in the silver Clio is not doddering along on purpose to irritate you.

Nor am I responsible for the ridiculous and dangerous obstruction placed across half the road just before a bend and a junction by some power-mad traffic 'engineer' but if you insist on flying past me you may well come to grief on it.

Usually variations on white van man but a fair few Audis etc. as well. I need a sign on the back - Look, I don't think it needs to be 30 either but I value my clean licence!!!