Applying the Right Hand Rule and mutual consideration in Practice?

Hi, I recently took the practical driving test and was failed. I would like to get some feedback to hopefully help with my practice, being a safe driver in the future, and passing the exam. One reason was entering a motorway with an acceleration lane and no yield sign for me or the highway (i have gone back an confirmed this was the case). I somewhat see their point because I did end up closer to the vehicle in front of me than a safe following distance, but I adapted to the situation and merged behind this individual (i had to slow down with the brake to do this), never crossed a solid white line, and did not cause further obstruction to vehicles behind me. I also adjusted to a safe following distance as soon as I could after merging. From my perspective, the other person who sped up over the speed limit when they could have moved to the left lane which was not occupied or slightly slowed down to allow me to merge in was the issue and lacked mutual consideration, but I agree, I was closer than I should have been to the person in front, so I admit that it could have been a cause for failure. However, I think since I adapted and recovered to a safe driving distance I showed I handled a difficult merging situation with an inconsiderate driver. Not a situation you want to be in, but if others don’t provide their part of the mutual consideration there is only so much I can do without causing an obstruction to a number of other drivers also attempting to merge. Should I have used the hard should for a moment to prevent an unsafe following distance? Or is it more a comment on planning? I did have a plan of course, but it went bad which means I had to adjust which I felt that I did.

The other thing the evaluator said was a problem (which was never actually an issue because there were never any intersecting cars even according to the evaluator) was that they didn’t believe I was applying the right hand rule correctly. The situation was in neighborhoods where the speed limit was 30-40 and some of the junctions had views that were partially obstructed to the right by bushes. I was going the speed limit or slightly under. In my mind, I did not think it was appropriate to slow down using brakes, because then I would be an obstruction to the traffic behind me (which also didn’t exist and was just a theoretical point). I was traveling close to the speed limit, as it was normal road conditions with good visibility, so I had assumed that it would be appropriate to travel at the speed indicated by the speed limit. So I guess I have a few questions now related to the right hand rule. How do I show that I intend to apply the right hand rule when there is no traffic? If it is a right hand rule junction and the view to the right is partially obstructed do I need to slow down, or is it enough to just take my foot off the accelerator and hover my foot over the brake in case I need to stop? Does the right hand rule apply if I would reach the first, but I would obstruct the driver to the right before clearing the junction? In general, I feel uncertain about how to apply the right hand rule now. Particularly I feel uncertain how to show the evaluator that I intend to apply the right hand rule, even if there isn’t a car coming from the right.

In all, I am disappointed with the result, but I am also curious if others have a perspective on this. I know it is difficult to take sides without having been there in person and that there is nothing I can do about that test, but let me know if you think these things sound like logical reasons for failing a person on the practical test or if maybe the inspector was being a bit too critical. Hopefully responses can help make me and others on the site better drivers.

If your cannot see clearly to the left or right of an intersection where the ”right before left” rule should be applied, you should brake/slow down a bit and be cautious. If the intersections come shortly after one another you could keep a lower gear to have more engine braking.

Potentially stressed cars behind you should not really be a concern, as safety comes first. They would probably slowdown aswell.

When priority to the right applies (the right hand rule) you should slow down before the crossing the intersection so that you can stop the vehicle without any hard breaking. So break a little bit and easy before hand if you need to, that’s allowed.

You should prove to the examiner that you’re aware of the right hand rule. How do you prove when there’s no one coming? You prove it by moderating your speed and readiness to brake at every intersection. Your head should shouldn’t be looking straight but from side to side, scanning traffic at intersections as you go.

The same applies to your earlier question as well when you merge into the highway. You need to plan and scan early on - as soon as you enter the entry lane and adapt your speed accordingly. The fact you managed to slip right behind another car shows you didn’t plan and scan to adapt speed earlier.

Keywords: plan and scan - all the time

I have a similar question, how to deal with right hand rule when almost no one do use this rule in practice? The situation where I failed and inspector applied break --> I slowed down at a crossing in a suburban area where right hand rule applies. I scanned right and let the car from right pass. After this car has passed and it was all clear on right, I started moving forward slowly but a car from my left started accelerating at really high speed. I was at this car right so I had priority but still the inspector applied break. I told him that wasn’t it my priority. He said, ”Yes, it was but in my world he couldn’t have stopped to let you pass”.

Sure, you were right, but the law is written in a way that puts safety first. You can’t hit somebody, even though you’re have priority. Act safe. Can reckless drivers take advantage of this? Unfortunately.

Perhaps the traffic inspector applied brake because you attempted to take priority from the right without possibility to do so in a safe way, as the driver from your left didn’t yield priority for you as he was supposed to do.

Despite the priority to the right rule, you are supposed to keep special attention when approaching a junction and be prepared to stop, if necessary to avoid risk of collision, if any driver from your left who must yield priority doesn’t do it. According to the 1st paragraph in the Swedish traffic law (”Trafikförordningen”), a road user is obliged to be imperatively careful to avoid accidents, and this applies even in a traffic situation where other road users must yield priority.

Your inspector perhaps ruled that you were not imperatively careful when attempting to pass a junction with priority to the right before a driver from the left, who failed to yield priority for you from the right, as you took a potential risk of collision with another road user (who, however, didn’t follow priority rules but that other road users fail to follow rules does not give anyone right to collide with other road users; in Sweden, traffic educators are used to say that ”In traffic, one has never any rights, one has only obligations”).

By the way, in those cases where a driver has collided with another vehicle oncoming from the right in a junction with priority to the right, the driver obliged to yield priority has generally been held lonely liable for the collision, while the driver from the right has been free from liability.

Very confusing
I was also failed due to similar reason. I was driving on a major road and a heavy truck emerged from the right at a junction. I slowed down as the truck was fast and he could hardly brake with a sound. He said why u applied brakes? U have following traffic, I said I have to choose the lesser evil between getting hit by truck or following small car. And because of safety I thought its appropriate that I let the truck pass by surrendering my priority.
He refused to accept and failed me

Did you drive on a priority road? If not, the truck oncoming from the right did not have priority. The priority to the right rule does not apply on a priority road or otherwise in a junction with a give-way sign on the road on the right-hand side.