Motorway driving takes planning and skill, however most have little or no training for this. Although many drivers use the motorway regularly, some avoid it altogether and although they are built with speed in mind, often distances are misjudged. The key thing is to manage the space around your vehicle and plan for others whilst on the road. The commentary below shows the approach to the motorway. It is important that your car is ready for a any journey, but due to the high speeds whilst on the motorway, it is critical do you check your car is safe particularly tyres and lights. You will notice in the video I have considered the traffic on the M6 before entering, remember that the road could be busy and has very few exits, so a quick glace to see queuing traffic may change your mind about this route and to consider another.

The next step is to get onto the motorway, for some this can be tricky, see my previous post about the motorway.  Again the main thing here is space and speed, matching your speed to the traffic on the road, and merging in without causing them to change speed or lane. When joining the motorway, be cautious about moving out into lanes 2 or 3 quickly.  With the situation in the video I moved across due to the two trucks overtaking each other, but was very considered.  It can take a while to get used to the speed of the traffic, moving out too quickly can make it difficult for other drivers to plan their drive.  Considered decisions rather than quick decisions at these speeds are critical, after all 70mph is 31 metres (about 90ft) in one second.

Exiting the Motorway…

Onto the A500 – Note not alongside the truck, until he is safely out of the way on the roundabout…….