25 September

If you’re sceptical status runs all human life, the road should be a great teacher. For example, why is it so overwhelmingly popular to overtake other vehicles, even those doing the speed limit? And why do people being overtaken often almost feel violated by it? Because our position on the road is about status. Overtaking is like queue jumping. Some drivers can’t bear the thought of any vehicle being in front of them at all, and will speed up to overtake any vehicle in sight. But even more moderate drivers will feel a sting if they’re doing the speed limit and others fly past them. You’ll also notice often how a slow vehicle that fights against being overtaken suddenly falls well back once you’re past them, proving again it wasn’t about speed. It was about status. People who just can’t bear being behind anybody are beyond help and should have their licence removed. Bring on semi-automated driving. (Speed limits are mostly useful to space out traffic and stop congestion. Most driving doesn’t know this, and wouldn’t pay attention to it even if it did understand.)