Madam, – I would like to ask members of the MLOC (Middle Lane Owners Club) a question to discover any valid reason for their habit.
I encounter these people daily on the M50 as they drive at moderate speed in the middle lane with cars overtaking them in the outside lane and the inside lane. They seem never to drive in the outside lane and only briefly in the inside lane, on their way to and from the middle lane at the entry and exit of the motorway.
Roads with more lanes are an even better place to observe them and I find the four-lane section between the Red Cow and Liffey Valley to be the best for this, as here they have two middle lanes. At the Red Cow, many MLOC members join and move to lanes two and three and leave lane one relatively empty of traffic, speeding my journey to the Liffey Valley exit. Why do they do it?
There are two possible explanations. 1. As they are travelling at the speed limit, they see no reason to move in and let others pass. But this following-the-rules line falls; as if they are not overtaking they should be moving in to a lane on the left. 2. They are planning to overtake another car. But when they have been passed on the inside and outside, this cannot be the reason.
I would be interested to hear of any valid reason for their behaviour. – Yours, etc,