Convoy Method

Guide to driving in Convoy:

1. Common sense applies at all times!

2. All road rules are to be stringently followed.

3. All other road users are to be extended every courtesy at all times.

4. Indicate early; ie: 30 metres before changing lane or direction.

5. The leader is not to be passed at any time.

6. Passing other convoy members is only encouraged where road rules and conditions allow. If you feel that you are holding up the car behind, please wave them through when it is safe and legal.

7. At traffic lights, use more than one lane, if available, to allow more of our cars to get through on each sequence. Once through the lights, assume any position back in the convoy as long as you’re behind the leader.

8. Keep a 2-3 second safety margin between all cars; ie: your required braking distance at 100km/h.

9. As long as it’s safe to do so, please wait at intersections or where the direction taken by the convoy may be unclear to the car behind you. If it’s unsafe to wait at the corner, please wait in a visible position around the corner. If you are unfortunate enough to become lost and have no means of communicating with the lead or tail cars, then proceed directly to the next regrouping point on the run notes.

10. The lead fuide may use his/her discretion to break the convoy into smaller groups to enable better management of a large group of cars. 11. The lead guide will nominate at least one car to follow the convoy and ensure no-one is left behind.

11. Put your headlights on and if you have a UHF radio use it.- This is important in convoy as it helps to distinguish you all as one convoy, with the added benefit of a visual aid helping you keep track of each vehicle in your group. Use your UHF radio to your advantage to let everyone in the convoy know your intentions on overtaking, letting them know of other vehicles passing through or allowing the driver in front also to give plenty of indication to upcoming turns, hazards etc.

12. Have a game plan and communicate it. - Set some guidelines for your group prior to departure, agreed travel speeds, overtaking protocols, plan b for when the group is split all help you and other road users become predictable. e.g. when your convoy overtakes and moves back into the left lane, be cautious that you don’t have vehicles cut in front to keep up with the rest of the group. Many drivers can forget about the group behind them when overtaking or merging on our major highways. This is where speed considerations become important, as it’s all good being the trip leader in your twin turbo chipped V8 and easily sailing past overtaking road trains etc, but what about your mate in the naturally aspirated 2.5 tonne diesel trying to keep up with you.

Convoy Etiquette

If you have taken a stretch of road at a faster pace than the vehicle behind you, slow down on the next straight and allow them to catch up again. Form your own assessment of road hazards and conditions – just because the vehicle in front has passed through does not mean you can as different cars handle differently, have different tyres and other gear. Reduce your speed if road conditions or the weather warrant it. It is less important to lose the convoy than to have an accident.

When travelling through built-up or congested areas, particularly with traffic lights, form the convoy in two lanes wherever practicable without impeding other traffic. This will allow the convoy to get through the set of lights without being split up.

Whenever the convoy stops, if at all feasible, make sure you pull completely off the road. When the convoy passes through a congested area, it should try to stop as soon as practicably possible to regroup before any turns are made. The navigator in the lead vehicle should call out turns on the CB radio. Use your indicators in plenty of time to guide other members of the convoy, as well as inform other road users. When making turns make sure that the vehicle behind you makes the turn and please inform the leader if the vehicle behind you or your own vehicle becomes separated from the convoy.