Drivers to be fined and given penalty points for range of careless driving offences starting from today

'It sort of strikes me as the sort of behaviour that many cyclists complain about i.e. people behaving as if they own the roads because they are the fastest on the roads.'

Quite the opposite. It's like the cyclists who RLJ moaning because those of us obey the rules are asking them not to give everyone else a bad name.

@Colin, perhaps outside of London you begin to realise that up here in Scotland we've passed already last years total...

When you're next driving along a quiet motorway and you spot some twonk in the middle lane, go across the two lanes to over take them in the far-side lane and then head back to the near side lane and lift off the accelerator. If this twonk hasn't taken the hint let him/her/it over take you and repeat the maneuver and see how many rings you can do around the hog until he/she/it finally wakes up and moves into the near side lane. Only attempt this on a very quiet motorway and not on a busy one (apply common sense).

Those individuals getting heated about middle lane hogging seem to be the obnoxious pedants who this law seems to be targeting. If you can't keep up with traffic stick with the lorries doing 50 mph in the near-side lane after all 70mph is the maximum not the required speed.

Keith Brown, Scottish Minister of Transport, launching the "Nice Way Code" "mutual respect" campaign. Note the car that is parked beyond the stop line, and which is violating Highway Code 191 by overtaking another vehicle at a pedestrian crossing. The gentleman in the passenger seat is Neil Greig, Director of Policy and Research at the Institue of Advanced Motorists.

The A82 through Glencoe is notorious for being unfriendly to cyclists.

On the positive side there are roads much better suited to cycling in Scotland.

The measures won't make a blind bit of difference, period. The reduction in Roads Policing officers, the reducution in response and neighbourhood officers means the officers left are run ragged with high workloads. They have to prioritise their jobs. They are going to treat minor road offences as they do now.... do nothing and let them pass.

Road users (lorry, van, car drivers and even cyclists) have become complacent on our roads and think nothing of committing minor road offences because even if spotted by patrol officers they turn a blind eye because they have jobs stacked up.

Its lip service, nothing more and it won't help.

I have seen it many times, empty motorway and cars in the middle lane. Is it really sensible to fine people for this? Its ruddy annoying that's for sure but £60 annoying? Instead of these fines I would like to see better sentencing guidelines and retesting for motorists every few years

There is no 'slow lane' - or 'fast lane'. It's the inside lane and the over taking lane according to the Police - or used to be.

Instead of fining people for driving faults the government needs invest in Public Info Films to remind people how to drive on motorways, what indicators are for and why they are important and why tailgating is dangerous.

I sympathise with some middle lane hoggers. All the timid folk who used to inhabit the inside lane are now sandwiched between lorries which will not slow to let other lorries pass so block two lanes for miles on end - and the Audi brigade in the outside lane.

Why are Audi drivers so aggressive? There's a psychology doctorate in here somewhere. Looking at all the interior decor from the A3 to the A6 the answer could be the black and chrome boy racer fixtures which make every driver feel a little bit sporty and too quick to be held back by other road users.
Critchio's right. Complacency with a dose of entitlement is increasing. I see cars ignoring red lights on pelican crossings all the time and the 30mph speed limit is a joke to most drivers.

IAM is a road safety charity? Lol. In bizarro world maybe.

As many people have said, this means little without more police on the roads to enforce it.