Overtaking

Can be dangerous!

• Overtaking is hazardous because it may bring you into the path of other road users

• It is a complex manoeuvre due to a number of subsidiary and primary hazards presented by the vehicles to be overtaken

• Applying the system enables you to overtake safely

Key safety points

• Don’t overtake where you cannot see far enough ahead to be sure it is safe

• Avoid causing other vehicles to alter course or speed – sometimes they deliberately make life hard!

• Always be able to move back into the nearside in plenty of time

• Always be ready to abandon overtaking if a new hazard comes into view

• Overtaking must be done in accordance with the Highway Code and IAM manual

• Never overtake on the nearside on dual carriageways or motorways

• You can pass on the left in slow-moving* queues of traffic when offside queues are moving more slowly – this is not overtaking

• You may not move to a left hand lane in order to pass – this is overtaking

* Highway code …

• 163 - stay in your lane if traffic is moving slowly in queues. If the queue on your right is moving more slowly than you are, you may pass on the left

• 268 - Do not overtake on the left or move to a lane on your left to overtake. In congested conditions, where adjacent lanes of traffic are moving at similar speeds, traffic in left-hand lanes may sometimes be moving faster than traffic to the right. In these conditions you may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to overtake.

Hazards to Consider Before Overtaking

Reproduced by permission from The Stationery Office Ltd from Roadcraft published on behalf of the Police Foundation

The Three Stages of Overtaking

• Stage one – the overtaking position

• Stage two – the take off position

• Stage three – the overtake & return

The Following Position

Reproduced by permission from The Stationery Office Ltd from Roadcraft published on behalf of the Police Foundation

Stage OneThe Overtaking Position

Reproduced from Pass Your Advanced Driving Test

Do not hold your thumbs like this

Stage TwoThe Take Off Position

Reproduced from Pass Your Advanced Driving Test

Stage Three The Overtake &

Return

Reproduced from Pass Your Advanced Driving Test

• Do not accelerate until you are in the take-off position – power with steering will destabilize the car – especially in an automatic

• Do not change gear until you are going in a straight line

Overtaking -Right Hand Bends

Reproduced by permission from The Stationery Office Ltd from Roadcraft published on behalf of the Police Foundation

Overtaking – Left Hand Bends

Reproduced by permission from The Stationery Office Ltd from Roadcraft published on behalf of the Police Foundation

Summary

• Passing on the left is not the same as overtaking on the left

• Position yourself to obtain the best view• Three stages of overtaking• Move back to nearside in plenty of time• If in doubt, hold back

Questions?