National Road Safety week - That means speed checks

[Stu]

http://www.brake.org.uk/

Road Safety week 19-25th November
So you can count on millions of Police doing speed checks - You have been Warned!!

[Fallout]

Thanks for the heads up! :)

[Runako]

That explains a lot. I've seen at least 4 or 5 police speed check vans this weekend alone in Wales. That's more than I've seen this year! Ta

[yorkie_chris]

Great, time to go and rob the offy :)

[-Ralph-]

millions of Police doing speed checks

Where will we get all these police? All volunteers in their own vehicles perhaps?

[leebex]

oaps in villages with a radar gun :p

[Bluepete]

Thanks for letting me know Stu! We've had nothing about it.

I'll let you in on a secret. There's so few traffic cops left, you've more chance of winning the lottery than getting stopped by the dibble.

Pete

[Runako]

Thanks for letting me know Stu! We've had nothing about it.

I'll let you in on a secret. There's so few traffic cops left, you've more chance of winning the lottery than getting stopped by the dibble.

Pete

"... Says the predator, as he lures his unwitting prey in for the kill" ;)

[DarrenSV650S]

Thanks for letting me know Stu! We've had nothing about it.

I'll let you in on a secret. There's so few traffic cops left, you've more chance of winning the lottery than getting stopped by the dibble.

Pete

hurray!! One species I would love to see extinct :cheers:

[-Ralph-]

hurray!! One species I would love to see extinct :cheers:

As driving standards get worse and worse. But then if police had spent more time in the past when there was more of them, bollocking drivers for poor driving standards, rather than just trapping and fining speeders all day, then maybe driving standards wouldn't be that bad.

On the motorway where I spend most of my time, speeding shouldn't even be on the coppers radar (I realise it probably isn't anymore, but only because there isn't enough resource to deal with it), until such time as the traffic or weather conditions deteriorate, at which point fair enough, get the speed gun out if people are just being plain stupid

How many accidents occur on the motorway, outside of rush hour, in clear dry weather, as a result of speeding? Answer = Almost NONE.

Tailgating, lane hogging, pulling out on faster traffic, dangerous impatient undertaking, should be order of the day for writing tickets. To be fair I haven't included mobile phone use in that list as that is already firmly on the radar and enforced as and when a copper sees someone with a phone pinned to the ear (even if there aren't enough coppers to make a difference).

Drivers need some serious education - like we had 'Charlie Says' as kids teaching us how to cross the road, and a white haired Pedophile teaching us to 'Clunk Click every trip' why can't we have some TV adverts teaching really basic stuff out of the highway code? We got an advert about a teenage girl texting while driving and I think it really helped raise awareness.

[Fallout]

why can't we have some TV adverts teaching really basic stuff out of the highway code? We got an advert about a teenage girl texting while driving and I think it really helped raise awareness.

The man is onto something. A few ideas for featured phrases to educated the nobbers out there:

- Calmly deal with all antagonistic situations
- Understand rudimentary car physics
- Never use the phone while driving
- Tailgating is BAD!

[Sir Trev]

Drivers need some serious education - like we had 'Charlie Says' as kids teaching us how to cross the road, and a white haired Pedophile teaching us to 'Clunk Click every trip' why can't we have some TV adverts teaching really basic stuff out of the highway code? We got an advert about a teenage girl texting while driving and I think it really helped raise awareness.

The Public Information Films of days gone by were very effective. Simple messages repeating common sense reminders about the road and general safety (although I do recall my Mum had to tell me the man in the funny clothes was Alvin Stardust). When you think how many people just do not understand the simplicity of keep left unless overtaking there is a real need for a modern version of these. A Tufty revival can teach people not to text and walk; a new Green Cross Man can tell the reps and middle managers blighting _Ralph's_ day that nobody is impressed by their identikit four-pot German diesel; a new Charlie can use street-talk to warn the yoof about cyber-bullying.

[Spank86]

I think they should include it in the BBC's mandate, you could easily slot a short clip between programmes to inform people

[Fallout]

It is a genuinely good idea. Most of the errors people make is because they're not capable of using their own common sense. Televisual brainwashing would work wonders on these pathetic minds.

[Owenski]

I'll be sure to leave my speed at home while out and about this week then.

[Wideboy]

TBF I think you could "educate" the motoring nation as much as you'd like and it wouldn't make any difference, the average population either have no common sense or are just too thick. You'd think the threat of points and higher insurance would be enough.

[Spank86]

. You'd think the threat of points and higher insurance would be enough.
Clearly, which is why you ride so slowly all the time.

[Wideboy]

Precisely

[Fallout]

TBF I think you could "educate" the motoring nation as much as you'd like and it wouldn't make any difference, the average population either have no common sense or are just too thick. You'd think the threat of points and higher insurance would be enough.

It's because they're thick that it would work. They allow themselves to be brainwashed. How many people do you know who always do the speed limit because it's the right thing to do? I know loads. It's not the threat of points or fear of being pulled (as it is for us), it's because they're happy to just accept that someone who decided 30mph (for example) is the right speed limit for all vehicles, driver abilities, weathers, etc is right. They don't question it. Someone in government or an agency who got a 2:2 in a Traffic Management degree worked it out with an abacus, so it must be right.

It's these people incapable of their own thought that, with a prolonged ad campaign will slowly be turned. It's like drink driving. It's culturally unacceptable now since we've banged on about it for long enough. If there was a constant Ad campaign saying "Pull into the slow lane. Don't be a *****!", eventually hogging the middle lane would have such a stigma that people wouldn't do it.

[DarrenSV650S]

I wasn't being serious. Just a slightly drunken post. And it wasn't aimed at you at all Pete

[Bluepete]

I wasn't being serious. Just a slightly drunken post. And it wasn't aimed at you at all Pete

Phew!

[DarrenSV650S]

:D *hugs*

[Spank86]

I wasn't being serious. Just a slightly drunken post. And it wasn't aimed at you at all Pete

Which reminds me drinking and driving used to be perfectly acceptable. If they changed that with ads I'm sure they can change other stuff.

[yorkie_chris]

Which reminds me drinking and driving used to be perfectly acceptable. If they changed that with ads I'm sure they can change other stuff.

Well that and almost every group of people I know in their mid 40's or so round here seem to have a few among them who got banned for drink driving.

[Spank86]

Well that was obviously part of it but that could be the same for other offences.

[-Ralph-]

Points, fines, bans and insurance premiums can only work if there is somebody around to impose them, but the powers that be have chosen to make BluePete an endangered species.

[Dicky Ticker]

The speed limits that exist today were set in 1965 with vehicles constructed to a less efficient safety standard,i.e drum brakes were the norm and safety cells,crumple zones didn't exist. Even the safety barriers on our current roads were virtually non existent then.
Perhaps moving into the 21st century would be a step forward.

[-Ralph-]

The speed limits that exist today were set in 1965 with vehicles constructed to a less efficient safety standard,i.e drum brakes were the norm and safety cells,crumple zones didn't exist. Even the safety barriers on our current roads were virtually non existent then.
Perhaps moving into the 21st century would be a step forward.

And with the blanket introduction of 50 mph limits across A roads in many counties, and the introduction of variable speed limit systems that get left switched on when the motorways are empty, then in the main the speed limits have only been REDUCED since 1965.

There's a lot of talk about A road speed limits being reduced to 40mph too.

This countries approach to safety is not to improve road layouts, driver behaviour/education, or enforcement, it's to legislate anything dangerous out of existence, then make everything left over go so slow, that even a blind spastic can manage to stop when it goes wrong.

It's totally dumbing down driver ability.

[Spank86]

Although back when the speed limits were introduced there was a hell of a lot less traffic about so there is some justification for not having the limits keep pace with cars ability.

[-Ralph-]

Although back when the speed limits were introduced there was a hell of a lot less traffic about so there is some justification for not having the limits keep pace with cars ability.

I agree with you, but I don't think the justification is there for reducing speed limits either. It's not speed alone which is causing the accidents.

The governments justification is that statistically if you reduce speed you reduce accidents, which is true, but only because you've made it easier to avoid the real cause of the accident.

So reducing speed is just papering over the cracks.

Lets say you have a car with a turbo hose which keeps popping off under the pressure. The real answer to the problem is to make the turbo hose stronger. All our government would do is leave the turbo hose as it is, but reduce the pressure the turbo connected to it produces.

[Fallout]

Lets say you have a car with a turbo hose which keeps popping off under the pressure. The real answer to the problem is to make the turbo hose stronger. All our government would do is leave the turbo hose as it is, but reduce the pressure the turbo connected to it produces.

Which would be an absolute travesty of justice.

Tis a good analogy! :)

[Runako]

Although back when the speed limits were introduced there was a hell of a lot less traffic about so there is some justification for not having the limits keep pace with cars ability.

If there was such a debate or focussed research into this then I might be inclined to agree but this has never been the reason. Its mostly political, beurocratic and money.

Political - which government will make the first move to apply some serious forward thinking to the way in which we currently use and will use the transport network in say 50 years time?

Beurocratic - who's going to admit that all the signage overkill on the roads, that (IMO) is a smack in the face of common sense, is a huge waste of resources? How will the government justify an increase in the speed limit in line with their Euro Emmissions targets (80% reduction of harmful "greenhouse" gases by 2050)?

Money - All of the above really and, were we to have a proper debate on the subject, I would put forward the ridiculous state of some of the roads and useless policies facilitating a "patchwork" maintenance philosophy of the road network.

[Spank86]

I'm not suggesting it automatically makes current speed limits the perfect ones, merely that cars increasing capability is only one factor and can't be used alone to justify a speed limit change.

[keith_d]

The government has been working for many years to reduce the numbers of KSI accidents. Given that we can't reduce the number of accidents, all that's left is to reduce the severity by ensuring that nobody drives too fast.

As a move to reduce casualities (and unemployment) the government plans to introduce legislation to require all motorised vehicles to be precedeed by a person carrying a large red flag. The flag bearer will be required to walk five yards ahead of the motorised vehicle in all built up areas and warn pedestrians that a mechanically propelled vehicle is about to pass. In other areas a separation of two yards may be sufficient.

With this measure the government expects road deaths to drop almost immediately to zero.

[Runako]

... As a move to reduce unemployment the government plans to introduce measures to require all motorised vehicles to be accompanied by a man carrying a large red flag. The flag bearer will be required to walk five yards ahead of the motorised vehicle to warn pedestrians that a mechanically propelled vehicle is about to pass.

With this measure the government expects road deaths to drop almost immediately to zero.

Lol =D>

[Ceri JC]

With this measure the government expects road deaths to drop almost immediately to zero.

You jest, but some clowns with no understanding of either risk or economics think this [reducing road deaths to 0, irrespective of the cost/negative impact] is a good idea.
http://www.visionzeroinitiative.com/