How close to a queue can you still overtake someone?

[Gavin Chipper]

I've often wondered about this. You're walking behind someone who's definitely going to the same place as you, and there's a queue outside. They're walking quite slowly so you want to overtake them, but at what point does it look a bit rude, like you're pushing in in front of them?

[Matt Morrison]

I haven't thought about this at all, and further, I think it has happened to me very little. Not to say it hasn't happened before though.
I'd say about five metres or further from the back of the queue is acceptable, although obviously it depends on the size of the queue and the width of the path being travelled on too.

[Charlie Reams]

I've noticed that people here are less concerned about things like this. People will routinely stand right in front of you while you're waiting for a train, for example, or angle their shopping trolley just in front of you at the last moment before a queue. You're expected to hustle a bit.

Also people don't seem to consider it rude to stare in public, which I find very disconcerting.

[Martin Bishop]

An acquaintance from university claimed that the further forward you jump in to a queue, the better. His theory is that people near the front of a queue don't care as much, because they know they'll reach the front very soon anyway. He proved it in practice once, when after me and some other friends had been queueing for over an hour to get tickets for a popular union night, he joined us right in front of the tills and no one batted an eyelid.

I guess that's not quite what you were asking. I think, that as long as you keep a fairly steady walking pace there's no problem. They should have been aware you were gaining on them and not dawdled so much. If you're going to suddenly run and sneak in at the last second, you might as well head to the front. It'll be less hassle.

[Ian Volante]

An acquaintance from university claimed that the further forward you jump in to a queue, the better. His theory is that people near the front of a queue don't care as much, because they know they'll reach the front very soon anyway. He proved it in practice once, when after me and some other friends had been queueing for over an hour to get tickets for a popular union night, he joined us right in front of the tills and no one batted an eyelid.

Ah, that's one of the exceptions to queuing though - if you know someone in the queue, you can join them, and it's suddenly all legit. I've never seen this cause a problem.

[Marc Meakin]

Its called a 'cut and chat' which colncidentally was demonstrated in yesterdays Curb.

[Jon O'Neill]

Its called a 'cut and chat' which colncidentally was demonstrated in yesterdays Curb.

This. I mind.

[David Williams]

It's actually a Chat and Cut.

If there is someone in front of me in a queue, and someone who is (effectively) last in the queue, who would like to be together, I've always felt that the polite thing would be to go to the end of the queue. I've never had the nerve to say it.