Letter: Motorists urged to take more notice of markings on the road
I was accused of dangerous driving this afternoon and told that if I kept it up I would cause an accident.
Funny thing is, I knew I was in the right and it was the person who accused me who nearly caused the accident.
I was on my way to the recycling centre at Granville in Telford and had just pulled up at the roundabout, ordinarily as I was going straight ahead, I would use the left hand lane. However, Telford & Wrekin Council have marked it so the left hand lane is for turning left only and the right hand lane is for straight ahead or turning right.
So there I was in the right hand lane, a dark blue Audi was in the left. I pulled out onto the roundabout when clear and realised soon after that the Audi was going straight ahead the same as me. I accelerated and pulled ahead (perhaps in hindsight the wrong decision, but it was my right of way), the Audi then proceeded to tailgate me (so close I could not see the car's front grille in my mirror) all the way to the Granville turn a few hundred yards down the A5 and followed me down the track and into the recycling centre.
I pulled up and started to unload and saw the Audi had pulled into a space a bit further down. As I walked to the skip I received a mouthful of verbal abuse about cutting her up and dangerous driving. I replied quite calmly that I did not cut her up as the road markings quite clearly indicated that I was in the right lane and she was not. The 'lady' refused to accept that and carried on verbally abusing me with some quite colourful and very unladylike words, this in front of her teenage son. I pointed out that in terms of the Highway Code she was right, however, if she had looked at the road markings, then she would have seen that she was in the wrong. Again, she refused to accept anything I said, so I ignored her and carried on emptying my car of the rubbish, before I had finished, she had left.
On my way back, I checked, just to make sure and I was right, the road markings did indicate that I was correct. So, it may not be me who will be the cause of any future accident, but the kind of person who takes no notice of road markings and signs.
Bob Shingler, Telford
