This afternoon, my journey home took me anti-clockwise on the C Ring Road. I joined a long line of cars, in three lanes, waiting to get to the signals on the C Ring road at the White Palace junction.

The queue of traffic stretched from the previous crossroads. We edged slowly forward towards the junction. I waited patiently along with other vehicles for the lights to change and move twenty cars closer.

Beside the three lanes is a hard shoulder. It is used by impatient drivers to bypass all the waiting traffic. They pull out, drive along the hard shoulder, then force their way in when the lane ends.

As we reached the underpass, four drivers took the opportunity to make their move, leaving their lane and speeding along the shoulder, pleased that they had saved a few minutes from their busy lives. Only this time, they were trying to pull in before they’d even go through the underpass.

At the next change of lights we saw why they were trying the get back in lane. A traffic policeman was standing just round the curve in the road, taking down numbers of violators. Doubtless they will receive a 500QR fine.