There was another appalling accident on the M1 on Sunday, and apparently 3 people died. I don't know what happened in this instance, but I find that the standard of motorway driving in this country is generally quite alarming. Are you one those people who drives at a steady 90 mph in the outside lane, about 6 ft. from the car in front? If so, I am genuinely interested to know whether you just prefer not to think about what might happen if you need to brake quickly, or if you think "if you're time is up, there's nothing you can do about it", or what?

i find its the people who don't know the difference between the lanes is the problem.

The are for over taking!!

yet people hog the middle lane going like a snail!

Once I was doing about 70mph in the 1st lane, nothing on the motorway pitch black at night and I kid you not there was a car in front of me doing less than 30mph. Idiots! :rant:

I'm personally shocked by the number of people who undertake on the M1 these days .. If the 'fast' lane is doing between 70 and 80 and they want to do 90 and the 'slow' lane is free they just fly up there and then jump into someone’s stopping distance about 3 cars ahead!

I'm not a fan of motorway driving, but I do drive as I am supposed to, at a decent speed, in the first lane, over taking vehicles as and when I need to.

The ones who hog the middle lane do my head in!!

I drive to Hull quite a lot and the M62 is usually clear when I travel and you can guarantee that there will always be someone tootling down the middle lane at about 65mph even if there no cars in the left hand lane! Worst I've seen was on a trip to Nottingham, it rained so hard that me and about 10 other cars were down to about 45mph in the slow lane, all keeping a safe distance from each other and this big black BMW went flying round us all at about 90mph! What an idiot!!

I'm personally shocked by the number of people who undertake on the M1 these days .. If the 'fast' lane is doing between 70 and 80 and they want to do 90 and the 'slow' lane is free they just fly up there and then jump into someone’s stopping distance about 3 cars ahead!

Totally. That really gets my snot out. :rant:

I drive shef to leeds + back everyday. Lots of time on M1.
I could list a bunch of stuff that winds me up but my 'favourite(?!)' hate is when ppl decide that the space I left between me and the car in front is there cos I was nice enuf to leave space for people to get in front of me.

I'm personally shocked by the number of people who undertake on the M1 these days .. If the 'fast' lane is doing between 70 and 80 and they want to do 90 and the 'slow' lane is free they just fly up there and then jump into someone’s stopping distance about 3 cars ahead!
Fast lane?
Slow lane?

If the "slow lane" (as you call it) is empty, then the people in the "fast lane" are in the wrong - they have no reason to be there.

I can't stand idiots, and unfortunately, the motorway is full of them. I get more annoyed with the deluded tard sat in the middle lane at a steady 70mph, not overtaking anyone, than i get with the guy 6ft from my back end in the outside lane if im in there for no reason.

Solution?

Drive in the inside lane (left hand). If there's something in front of you driving slower, use the middle lane to overtake, then pull back in.

Simple :rolleyes:

...my 'favourite(?!)' hate is when ppl decide that the space I left between me and the car in front is there cos I was nice enuf to leave space for people to get in front of me.
Absolutely hit the nail on the head with this. Numpties who drive so close behind the car in front that you can hardly see their number plate are truly the spawn of the devil. They apparently believe that they are immortal, that accidents happen to other people.

Yes, motorway driving can be relatively safe, especially when you consider what many drivers get up to on twisty-turny roads in built up areas. However, surely it's common sense to do whatever possible to keep motorway driving safe: drive according to the conditions, don't swerve from lane to lane because you think it's so important to get that one car's distance in front, don't try to intimidate those in front of you by driving up their backsides... I could go on, but everyone knows how they should be driving on motorways.

Fast lane?
Slow lane?

If the "slow lane" (as you call it) is empty, then the people in the "fast lane" are in the wrong - they have no reason to be there.

I can't stand idiots, and unfortunately, the motorway is full of them. I get more annoyed with the deluded tard sat in the middle lane at a steady 70mph, not overtaking anyone, than i get with the guy 6ft from my back end in the outside lane if im in there for no reason.

Solution?

Drive in the inside lane (left hand). If there's something in front of you driving slower, use the middle lane to overtake, then pull back in.

Simple :rolleyes:

Save your angst for someone else please ... my references to fast and slow lanes where meant to be humorous, that’s why I used inverted commas! :rolleyes:

Now regarding my reference to people using the left-hand lane to undertake. This is easily done even if other road users are adhering to the rules of using a motorway. If said car is travelling fast enough, they can easily weave in-between traffic travelling in both left and middle lanes and then jump into someone’s breaking distance a few cars ahead. This usually results in breaking of the car behind the guy with a death wise which sets off everyone else in the lane having to break!

Save your angst for someone else please ... my references to fast and slow lanes where meant to be humorous, that’s why I used inverted commas! :rolleyes:


I assure you, no angst intended :D

I clearly didn't read your posts thoroughly enough before quoting it ;)

I'm personally shocked by the number of people who undertake on the M1 these days .. If the 'fast' lane is doing between 70 and 80 and they want to do 90 and the 'slow' lane is free they just fly up there and then jump into someone’s stopping distance about 3 cars ahead!


but you are obliged by the highway code to pull over after overtaking. you should not therefore be driving in the "fast lane" at 70 if the other lanes are obviously free.
if "you" drove correctly other drivers wouldn't have to break the law.

A police driver interviewed on Radio 4 admitted to 'undertaking' on motorways. His argument being that if he has time and space to change lanes, overtake and then change back again so too does the undertaken driver have time to pull over to let him pass.

Good enough for me.

Fast lane?
Slow lane?

If the "slow lane" (as you call it) is empty, then the people in the "fast lane" are in the wrong - they have no reason to be there.

I can't stand idiots, and unfortunately, the motorway is full of them. I get more annoyed with the deluded tard sat in the middle lane at a steady 70mph, not overtaking anyone, than i get with the guy 6ft from my back end in the outside lane if im in there for no reason.

Solution?

Drive in the inside lane (left hand). If there's something in front of you driving slower, use the middle lane to overtake, then pull back in.

Simple :rolleyes:

spot on!

exactly what i meant to put :hihi:

but you are obliged by the highway code to pull over after overtaking. you should not therefore be driving in the "fast lane" at 70 if the other lanes are obviously free.
if "you" drove correctly other drivers wouldn't have to break the law.
That would be a valid point if everyone on the motorway drove at a constant speed, but as you would have experienced on many motorways, lane speeds vary dramatically from time to time especially at peak times.

Yep, middle & outer lane hoggers are the biggest annoyance to me !

Need the overhead signs on all the time saying "Keep Left", just to remind the muppets. I occasionally flash people :D when they have acres of space to move left into, usually they realise but there are plenty who move over, you go past them and pull left, they then flash you like mad and move back into the middle lane !!!! ****ers !

I think motorway driving should be part of the test. Although I guess this isn't practical. The rules people stick too seem to purely based on their opinion rather than the rules.

Am I one of the Middle/Outer lane hogs talked about? I will happily sit in the the righthand lane if part of a stream of traffic (with a sensible distance to the next car) moving quicker than people in the other lanes. Should I be moving back to the middle lane if there is going to be a few second gap before passing the next car to allow the idiot behind flashing their lights to get passed and attach themselves to the car in fronts rear bumper. It seems that is what some of you are implying.


The thing that most recently infuriated me was on the M18 with the roadworks in place. I was in the left lane travelling pretty much exactly 50mph as per the camera enforced limit. A lorry spent the whole of the length of the road works about 6ft from my boot flashing their lights. Just before the limit was lifted they overtook me and moved in to the middle lane travelling at their limited speed of 59mph so once it was back to normal motorway limits , I then overtook them and pulled back in plenty in front of them only for them to put their full beam and fog lights on untill I was out of sight! They clearly though I was the one in the wrong.

Another thing that really winds me up is people pulling back in to the left lane as you are joining the motorway I don't know why this happens so often to me. Usually as I have already half entered the clear left lane forcing me to swerve and slam on the brakes.

I think motorway driving should be part of the test. Although I guess this isn't practical. The rules people stick too seem to purely based on their opinion rather than the rules.

Spot on there.
It's ludicrous that as a learner you are not allowed to drive on a motorway, yet as soon as you pass your test you can drive unaccompanied on the one type of road you have never driven on nor had tuition for.

interesting anecdote alert.
A traffic cop (ex as he'd left the force) told me that undertaking is not actually illegal. It is advised against.
So if it's safe to do so and some moron is hogging the middle lane, go ahead and undertake.
If you get pulled, explain that they were in the wrong lane, undertaking was safe, and that you had observed the hard shoulder to be empty if they pulled left without checking, so you could avoid them if need be.

I don't like to undertake, but if someone is sat in the middle lane for no reason I've got fed up with having to move out two lanes to overtake, then move back two lanes to carry on.
I try not to tailgate though, it is probably the largest cause of motorway accidents. But put up a few speed cameras, that'll solve it, or at least line the government coffers.

you may well find that your speedo overreads by about 10%, so they didn't like being held to 45mph when they could be doing 50.
That doesn't excuse there behaviour, but it might go part way to explaining it.

To determine whether to pull back over, I normally assess a few things for myself. Firstly, will I have to pull out again within about 5 seconds, or before the car behind me has finished passing me. If yes, then I don't pull over as it would be pointless and/or dangerous. Secondly, am I at my chosen speed, or do I wish to pass the car in front and go faster. If I'm still waiting to go faster, then I don't pull over, I wait for the car infront to pull over, overtake them and then reassess.

I think motorway driving should be part of the test. Although I guess this isn't practical. The rules people stick too seem to purely based on their opinion rather than the rules.

Am I one of the Middle/Outer lane hogs talked about? I will happily sit in the the righthand lane if part of a stream of traffic (with a sensible distance to the next car) moving quicker than people in the other lanes. Should I be moving back to the middle lane if there is going to be a few second gap before passing the next car to allow the idiot behind flashing their lights to get passed and attach themselves to the car in fronts rear bumper. It seems that is what some of you are implying.


The thing that most recently infuriated me was on the M18 with the roadworks in place. I was in the left lane travelling pretty much exactly 50mph as per the camera enforced limit. A lorry spent the whole of the length of the road works about 6ft from my boot flashing their lights. Just before the limit was lifted they overtook me and moved in to the middle lane travelling at their limited speed of 59mph so once it was back to normal motorway limits , I then overtook them and pulled back in plenty in front of them only for them to put their full beam and fog lights on untill I was out of sight! They clearly though I was the one in the wrong.

Another thing that really winds me up is people pulling back in to the left lane as you are joining the motorway I don't know why this happens so often to me. Usually as I have already half entered the clear left lane forcing me to swerve and slam on the brakes.

I tend to stay on the left when I can.... I use the M53 every day to get into work along with a few hundred other employees as the shifts change. Most of them are young Lads in brand new cars and lots of em think they can take the world on.... this has caused quite a few accidents of late.... I am glad to say though that there is now a purge of employees at shift time changes by the police and a few have already lost their licenses.... well overdue.

I believe there should be mandatory training by an instructor in motorway driving techniques before anyone is allowed on them for the first time.

Excellent thread this -

In my experience, the vast majority of undertaking occurs when long lines of cars in the overtaking lanes are just following the one in front without any intention to overtake. There are some idits who jink and weave but they are much rarer.

I have noticed that some drivers edge over towards the left hand side of the lane as you come up behind them and then not quite manage to complete the manouvre, as if they've got an angel on one shoulder saying "Let him pass" and a devil on the other shoulder saying "B*ll*cks to him there's a car on the distant horizon which I need to get past first"

I believe there should be mandatory training by an instructor in motorway driving techniques before anyone is allowed on them for the first time.

I agree 100% with you owlface, I passed my driving test when the M1 used to stop at junction 28 so I sort of grew up as the motorways grew, but my wife and my children all had extra lessons on motorway driving after they passed their driving tests, and without exception they said they were grateful for the instructor being there with them on the first bit of motorway driving.

There is the 'Pass Plus' scheme, which is mostly Motorway driving. I did it and was :o that it (or any other prior tuition for Motorway driving) is not compulsory for new drivers.

Spot on there.
It's ludicrous that as a learner you are not allowed to drive on a motorway, yet as soon as you pass your test you can drive unaccompanied on the one type of road you have never driven on nor had tuition for.

i believe that when my time comes... it will come...

nevertheless though that doesn't mean i'm gonna drive like some of the nutters out there...

i'm a roof down, cruising just chilling with the music blaring kinda guy...

I think motorway driving should be part of the test. Although I guess this isn't practical. The rules people stick too seem to purely based on their opinion rather than the rules.

This is something that driving instructors have been lobbying for for some time now, but the answer we always get back from the DSA is that there are large areas of the UK that do not have access to motorways (eg Cornwall, Wales, north Scotland) and as a result, they cannot make it compulsory.

I believe there should be mandatory training by an instructor in motorway driving techniques before anyone is allowed on them for the first time.

I completely agree with this. The number of people I have taken on the motorway after passing their test that say afterwards "That was more scary than I thought it would be" is quite alarming. The problem would be 'policing' it - how would you differentiate between someone who has and who hasn't had lessons?

By the way, if anyone wants motorway lessons, you know where I am!!:)

The thing that most recently infuriated me was on the M18 with the roadworks in place. I was in the left lane travelling pretty much exactly 50mph as per the camera enforced limit. A lorry spent the whole of the length of the road works about 6ft from my boot flashing their lights. Just before the limit was lifted they overtook me and moved in to the middle lane travelling at their limited speed of 59mph so once it was back to normal motorway limits , I then overtook them and pulled back in plenty in front of them only for them to put their full beam and fog lights on untill I was out of sight! They clearly though I was the one in the wrong.

Same thing happened to me and my ex a few years ago when driving from Sheffield to Warboys near Peterborough, although this was at night. My girlfriend was driving at 50mph through a roadworks area as requested and a lorry was right behind us flashing his lights like mad all the way. She was a nervous driver anyway and considering the car we were in was only a little Clio, the darkness of night, the distance of the lorry and the brightness of his lights she got herself into quite a panicked state, poor lass. Needless to say when the speed limit returned to normal he got the finger! :loopy: Bloody idiot!

Pet hates:

Middle lane hogging while going slow. Quite often I've found myself in situations where I'm going along quite happily in the inside lane and catch up the cars hogging the middle lane and the outside lane - it's hard to know whether to slow down to avoid undertaking them or just carry on.

Tailgating, especially on the outer lane of two lane motorways. If I'm overtaking a line of lorries and then one of them decides to move out and overtake another one, thus forcing me to slow down, the last thing I need is some cretin driving up my *rse - where does he think I can go, and if I did get out of the way where could he go?

And the one that really gets me, I don't know why. People that don't read the signs when joining a motorway and therefore don't realise that one of the lanes of the slip road carries on as a lane of the motorway, such as at Meadowhall. They zoom on, and then move a lane to the right, when it's completely unnecessary to do so. Add to this one lorry drivers who are somehow oblivious to the fact that an extra lane has appeared to their left and carry on regardless in the middle one.

That would be a valid point if everyone on the motorway drove at a constant speed, but as you would have experienced on many motorways, lane speeds vary dramatically from time to time especially at peak times.


im afraid its a valid point regardless of speed & part of the highway code, so it shouls be adhered too the same as indicating before turning etc. if as the op stated they were being undertaken - then the lane to their left is obviously free.
you should pull across as soon as you complete your manouvre, obviously this could involve anumber of cars, in which case the likelihood of being undertaken is reduced.
undertaking is not ilegal if the driver does not pull out i front of you.
i.e they are allowed to drive past you on the inside lane, but not allowed to instantly pull in front of you.

Another thing that really winds me up is people pulling back in to the left lane as you are joining the motorway I don't know why this happens so often to me. Usually as I have already half entered the clear left lane forcing me to swerve and slam on the brakes.


they may not have seen you, however they have no legal obligation to permit you to enter the motorway or junction. the onus is on "you" to merge safely with the flow of traffic not the other way round.

I would be interested to hear from someone in the know who can confirm or deny the following: I was told recently that when refrigerated food is being trucked, there are strict delivery deadlines, and if the delivery is late it has to be dumped. I'm not sure I believe this, but it might explain the "Trucker 10 minute overtake", when one lorry overtakes another at a speed differetial of about 0.5 miles per hour, causing massive tailbacks along the motorway, and tailgating in the outside lane.

they may not have seen you, however they have no legal obligation to permit you to enter the motorway or junction. the onus is on "you" to merge safely with the flow of traffic not the other way round.


This reminds me of another motorway pet hate: Drivers who go too slowly down the slip road when trying to join the motorway, then braking sharply and sometimes stopping until a gap appears, forcing everyone behind to slow too. If they had got up to 60mph, they could have merged seamlessly with the traffic on the inside lane, and so could everyone else. Jn33 of the M1 is really bad for this.

This reminds me of another motorway pet hate: Drivers who go too slowly down the slip road when trying to join the motorway, then braking sharply and sometimes stopping until a gap appears, forcing everyone behind to slow too. If they had got up to 60mph, they could have merged seamlessly with the traffic on the inside lane, and so could everyone else. Jn33 of the M1 is really bad for this.
J33 is indeed a nightmare for this kind of thing. Also, there's often some idiot who begins an overtaking manoeuvre on the slip road but doesn't move ahead of you; just matches speed at your right hand side, forcing you to take corrective action i.e. slow down to avoid a collision.

they may not have seen you, however they have no legal obligation to permit you to enter the motorway or junction. the onus is on "you" to merge safely with the flow of traffic not the other way round.


I must have missed the bit in the highway code where it says you cant join a motorway when there are cars in the middle or right hand lane. If I am half way on to the motorway and a car from the middle lane (that clearly hasn't seen me) decides to pullover, with no indication how is it my fault. If you waited for a gap to appear in every lane of the motorway before entering it you would sit at the end of the slip road for days on some motorways.

I only use motorways every now and then, usually when I am going to an airport. I am the one in the slow lane doing 65 to 70 mph and try to keep out of the fast lane as there is always someone behind me who has his or her sights set on the land speed record.

What really gets my goat is the one that overtakes you and then proceeds to drive along at a speed far slower than you were going prior to being overtaken. You then get fed up of following them at 60mph and overtake them just for them to do it again, what are they trying to achieve?

...what are they trying to achieve?
Testosterone-fueled need to demonstrate oneupmanship? Pathological urge to wind people up while driving on motorways? Who knows? There are far too many of them around though.

have to agree with pretty much everyone posting.

People going down the slip road at 60, the traffic is moving at 70, get your foot down.
TeaFan - I have a friend who works for hazlewood foods (lots of sandwich deliveries) and that is basically correct. If the sandwiches are not kept at the correct temperature for the right length of time they have to be dumped. This could mean that being 10 mins late looses a day of shop shelf life (unlikely to mean immediate disposal, but still costs a lot of money). No excuse though, they should have left the depot earlier.

have to agree with pretty much everyone posting.

People going down the slip road at 60, the traffic is moving at 70, get your foot down.


That depends on your car. At some junctions and in some conditions (such as joining soon after a long stop at lights, or a short slip road) mine can take a while to get up to 60 - which is what I tend to stay around on the motorway to conserve fuel, unless I get a good downhill stretch. So I often join at only 50 or so. Its a big car with a small engine. Yes, I do stay left unless overtaking :thumbsup:

The drivers who annoy me the most are those who leave it too late for junctions and come careering across the traffic in an attempt to get to the slip lane in time. Or those who insist on overtaking everyone in order to get that last burst of 90mph before they leave the motorway and then fly in at the last minute only to end up 3 cars ahead anyway. :loopy:

And people who slow down on the motorway instead of slowing down on the slip road. I was taught that this is very bad driving, and it is.

fair enough, I know that some cars won't accelerate like mine, it's often a relatively new mid size family hatch that pootles of the roundabout at 50 and stays at 50 all the way down the slip road. Of course if it's a two lane slip road, that's not an issue, but some of them do this in the 2nd lane or straddling both lanes of the slip road. Those are the times I'd like to have a slow seeking missile mounted on my roof.

fair enough, I know that some cars won't accelerate like mine, it's often a relatively new mid size family hatch that pootles of the roundabout at 50 and stays at 50 all the way down the slip road. Of course if it's a two lane slip road, that's not an issue, but some of them do this in the 2nd lane or straddling both lanes of the slip road. Those are the times I'd like to have a slow seeking missile mounted on my roof.

It won't be me holding you up! I keep left all the way unless I have to overtake - I try to maintain a steady speed. If I can't overtake without slowing someone down seriously, I just wait til they're gone and slow down for half a minute myself. The only time this is ever a problem is the drag up the M1 towards the Barnsley turn off with wagons crawling at 40!

Has this ever happened to anyone:

A person in the "fast" lane when the middle is totally empty. You come up a bit closer, they eventually realise you are behind them and move to the middle. You overtake (shooting them an evil as you pass by).

Look back in your mirror to see the car then move back to the "fast" lane again

:loopy:

Or those who insist on overtaking everyone in order to get that last burst of 90mph before they leave the motorway and then fly in at the last minute only to end up 3 cars ahead anyway. :loopy:

I have to agree with this point, it really annoys me when people do this. What's really weird is that I do it myself, and it really annoys me when I do it. :loopy:
I tell myself to pull into the inside lane nice and early, but it just doesn't happen.
I don't swerve across or cause other cars to brake but I still cause myself unnecessary stress. I promise I will be more self disciplined in future. :thumbsup:

Confession is good for the soul they say :)

I confess. I have undertaken on many occasions :(

I spent nearly three years commuting to Nottingham daily using the M1 between Juncs 26-30. Granted I spent most of my journey keeping in the left or middle lanes doing between 70-80 mph whilst watching the sheep in the outside lane doing 55-65 mph. Now was I in the wrong or just driving sensibly? If I had joined the sheep in the outside lane would I have been contributing to the massive congestion on this stretch of motorway or driving sensibly?

IMHO, if everyone slowed down and joined the sheep in the outside lane the M1 would grind to a halt, albeit with two lanes empty apart from lorries :mad:

I hate the idiots who insist on driving with their main beams on when driving late at night. You overtake and then get blinded for the next 10 miles - no matter how many times you flash your foglights at them.

And lets not forget the Saxo drivers who undertake using the hard shoulder.....

I once once in a Ferrari F40 doing 112Mph. thats felt good :)

Me + speed = Smile on face
________
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I love the motorway.

However

There should be no upper speed limit.

You should receive points for not using the left hand lane to drive on in the mean; (the other two lanes are there only for overtaking and avoiding traffic that is joing the motorway at a slip road).

Anybody who stays at a steady speed in the middle lane for more than 2 miles without moving back to the left lane should have their car removed by the government and sold (with the proceeds going towards new scools for the continually feckless).

A new motorway theory test should cover the 2 rules of motorway driving:

1 - It's not a race
2 - Just don't let anyone overtake you.

I confess. I have undertaken on many occasions :(

I spent nearly three years commuting to Nottingham daily using the M1 between Juncs 26-30. Granted I spent most of my journey keeping in the left or middle lanes doing between 70-80 mph whilst watching the sheep in the outside lane doing 55-65 mph. Now was I in the wrong or just driving sensibly? If I had joined the sheep in the outside lane would I have been contributing to the massive congestion on this stretch of motorway or driving sensibly?

IMHO, if everyone slowed down and joined the sheep in the outside lane the M1 would grind to a halt, albeit with two lanes empty apart from lorries :mad:
Tell the truth - if you were commuting to Nottingham in the morning, you were driving at 3mph as soon as you passed J30... on a good day!! :D

Strangely enough there was a thread about motorway driving on FDUK.

Anyways, one of the 'Do you' options was 'keep as left as possible', which is how I drive.

If someone is in the middle lane when the left lane is empty I will undertake, after all doesn't the highway code state you should be in the lefthand emptiest lane or something?

I've noticed a bad trend of people using the fast lane as a normal lane and as a result traffic builds up in that lane instead of the other two. Particularly on Sundays...it is true, there are such things as Sunday drivers and they're very dangerous normally :)

People going down the slip road at 60, the traffic is moving at 70, get your foot down.
.


once did this & got a speeding ticket - cops followed on to the motorway & pulled me instantly.
60mph on slip road - apparently until u pass the "motorway regualtions" sign or merge its the same speed as a normal road i.e 30mph. it was 17 or 18 years a ago so may have changed since then.

I must have missed the bit in the highway code where it says you cant join a motorway when there are cars in the middle or right hand lane. If I am half way on to the motorway and a car from the middle lane (that clearly hasn't seen me) decides to pullover, with no indication how is it my fault. If you waited for a gap to appear in every lane of the motorway before entering it you would sit at the end of the slip road for days on some motorways.

obviously i misinterpreted where the other car was coming from - and although not referring directly to your incident, the above comment is correct.
but not a lot of people think so.

once did this & got a speeding ticket - cops followed on to the motorway & pulled me instantly.
60mph on slip road - apparently until u pass the "motorway regualtions" sign or merge its the same speed as a normal road i.e 30mph. it was 17 or 18 years a ago so may have changed since then.


In my 20+ years of driving I have never heard of this. The slip road is designed for you to assess the speed of the traffic on the motorway and for you to adjust your speed accordingly before you join it.

Straight from the Highway Code regulations:

Joining the motorway

233: When you join the motorway you will normally approach it from a road on the left (a slip road) or from an adjoining motorway. You should

give priority to traffic already on the motorway
check the traffic on the motorway and adjust your speed to fit safely into the traffic flow in the left-hand lane
not cross solid white lines that separate lanes
stay on the slip road if it continues as an extra lane on the motorway
remain in the left-hand lane long enough to adjust to the speed of traffic before considering overtaking.

The full Highway Code motorway regulations are here:

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/23.htm

once did this & got a speeding ticket - cops followed on to the motorway & pulled me instantly.
60mph on slip road - apparently until u pass the "motorway regualtions" sign or merge its the same speed as a normal road i.e 30mph. it was 17 or 18 years a ago so may have changed since then.

I always thought the motorway regulations signs were at the start of the slip road informing you that you're actually entering the motorway, I'm sure I've seen the odd slip road actually displaying a 70mph limit sign also.

I agree 100% with you owlface, I passed my driving test when the M1 used to stop at junction 28 so I sort of grew up as the motorways grew.

Is that when they used to stop and have picnics on the hard shoulder ? :D