Traffic calming measures and sleeping policemen
I have a choice of two routes to work, a busy dual carriageway (usually gridlocked at various points, lots of minor accidents, very stressful drive) or a quieter country road through the villages and fields (quite relaxing, light traffic).
Owing to the county council placing badly timed traffic lights on the roundabout junction which leads onto the dual carriageway, most people choose to take the country route rather than sit in long queues of traffic waiting for the lights to change. Fine, there are a few more cars trundling along the country roads but nothing heavy and still no gridlocked stretches. However, the residents of the villages are not happy with people using “their roads” as so called “rat runs” and we drivers have been subjected to protests in the local papers, speed traps and “this is your speed” warning devices.
But now the villagers have persuaded the council to put in "traffic calming measures". So picture this, the road into the village goes over a small hump backed bridge, barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass as it is. The traffic calming measure is an island of bricks which protrudes into the road so that people travelling into the village have to wait and give way to people coming out of the village.
Now, there are two major problems with this. The "protrusion" is at the start of the hump, so whilst you wait behind it you can’t see any cars coming over the hump and have to edge out to see if you actually have right of way, if you haven’t you are so far out you either have to risk the wrath of the driver approaching and pullout anyway or reverse back, so annoying the people in the queue behind you who have followed you out assuming you can see over the hump.
Problem number two is that in the morning far more traffic is coming through and out of the village and the traffic trying to get into and through the village (to the dual carriageway) queues up. Thus, rather than "traffic calming" they are creating yet more queues and yet more infuriated drivers. OK, people decide to live in the country for peace and quiet and to avoid traffic but in this day and age cars are a way of life and the people will choose the quickest way to work whatever.
Comments from visitors
I have lived in Glenrothes most of my 46 years and agree that the government has gone speed bump mental ! I think it's justified outside of schools or play parks but they should go from kirb to kirb across the roud fully. I ride a motorbike as well as a car and as with buses and vans can go straight through the stupid lumps in the road at any speed which defeats the purpose. The only thing they do is provide the government with Vat from the bills for the repairs to drive shafts, track rod ends and bearings on our vehicles as if we dont pay enough for driving on the roads!!!
+96
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lecyviolin
'Join the 'hoot at humps' campaign, residents will soon get sick and prefer normal traffic.'
Try that and pretty soon the locals will pester the council to block the road with bollards and stop through traffic and idiots like you.
'Join the 'hoot at humps' campaign, residents will soon get sick and prefer normal traffic.'
Try that and pretty soon the locals will pester the council to block the road with bollards and stop through traffic and idiots like you.
-10
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The council in my village put a sleeping policeman halfway up a 50 yard hill in an attempt to "slow" traffic and now all the young uns on their mini quads and motocross bikes use it as a stunt jump!
I gotta admit though it looks like a lot of fun, maybe I join them!
I gotta admit though it looks like a lot of fun, maybe I join them!
+95
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The worst are the kerbs that jut out in to the road making it an obstacle course even if you are fortunate not to have oncoming traffic. Some years ago in my locality, there was a road that connected two major roads, and so was used as a rat run. There was a care home situated on that road and when the council placed large humps (or mounds of ashphalt) there, many a hearse got stuck or bottomed out on them!
+66
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When the Police did tests as to speeding drivers through the villages of the UK more than 50% of the speeders caught were in fact Locals,that's right!,the people who lived in the village itself and did the moaning were the worst culprits (serves e'm right).
I know this is now going to be a bit of a long winded letter but Sleeping Policemen nor fixed camera's are the answer,on the one you only slow down and then accelerate back up to speed causing pollution,as to the other once you know where the camera's are they are no longer a deterrent.
However,with the technology that is already available speed camera's (laser guns) can already be fitted easily onto a Police Motor Cycle,and you'd never know where it would be at any given time,I think this would be a much better idea and we could do away with all the road humps.
Oh yes,before someone writes in to moan,should you by caught by the Camera (police bike) that's your own fault,just live with the outcome of being a speeder that got caught
I know this is now going to be a bit of a long winded letter but Sleeping Policemen nor fixed camera's are the answer,on the one you only slow down and then accelerate back up to speed causing pollution,as to the other once you know where the camera's are they are no longer a deterrent.
However,with the technology that is already available speed camera's (laser guns) can already be fitted easily onto a Police Motor Cycle,and you'd never know where it would be at any given time,I think this would be a much better idea and we could do away with all the road humps.
Oh yes,before someone writes in to moan,should you by caught by the Camera (police bike) that's your own fault,just live with the outcome of being a speeder that got caught
-13
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'Traffic calming measures' or 'road furniture' causes huge increases in fuel consumption and emissions.
This means we have buy more fuel, which generates more tax.
One of our local roads was recently relaid :) then there were some rumble strips laid :( then they got ground off :| wot a waste, now the new surface is messed up.
This means we have buy more fuel, which generates more tax.
One of our local roads was recently relaid :) then there were some rumble strips laid :( then they got ground off :| wot a waste, now the new surface is messed up.
+79
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Speeding in residential areas will become almost impossible in time There are trials of ISA (intelligent speed adaption) being carried out across the world. These are in car electronic devices that can warn a driver that the limit is being exceeded and can be adapted to limit the speed either by a fuel limitation method or by increasing accelerator pedal pressure.The Dept of transport has reviewed these systems during the last 10 years and reported favourably and a trial with a fleet of vehicles in 2009 is being assessed.Their preliminary reports are favourable and strangely enough the majority of drivers were in favour and in fact missed them when removed.
-53
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Join the 'hoot at humps' campaign, residents will soon get sick and prefer normal traffic.
+75
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just read the artical on traffic calming and must say I do agree on the aspect that yes people will take the quickest route they can find after all I do myself and yes the council may well have placed them in the wrong place however I still think there a good idea I wish I could persuade our council to do the same. the driver in question may well be a good driver and stick to the limits however not all drivers are and thats the problem the council dont just spend the money on traffic calming because a couple of people complain theres months somtimes years of debate over it.and no I dont work for any council its quite unbeliveble that I would defend them as my veiw of councils in general are quite low. still the fact remains traffic calming is a good idea and it saves lives not just pedestrians but drivers to ok its a bit inconvienient but so what this day and age there is that many cars on the roads you carnt help but get slowed down and after all why not just leave home a little earlier and take it easy I dont know about the driver that wrote the story but I would hate to knock anyone over and worse still if I was speeding. and like they say if you dont like it go another way.
+74
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And even better we have Sat Nav coupled to Speed Camera alerts and Laser diffusers... bring it on. Perhaps if the government didn't persecute us on the main roads we would not have to drive thru the nimby villages, so complain to your MP and Council, until then ... Coming to a village near you... Sat Nav tourism!
-42
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Sat Nav Tourer - 19-Mar-08 09:09
Horray for the sat nav. Now we can take even more obscure diversions through really small villages to avoid the congestion at the push of a button.
+43
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Everybody has the right to complain. Nobody but the government or council can dictate wether people can go through a village, none of you OWN the road. I know, living next to a road must be such a pain. All these cars........ travelling...on a road....next to your house....thats been built for use.......by cars.....for PUBLIC USE.
However!, I do not condone or try to defend the people speeding through built up areas as my brother was recently hit and left with 2 broken legs and a fractured pelvis, by someone caught doing 52 in a 30 zone, and proceeded to speed off.
All of this stupid, obsessive behaviour about roads BELONGING to a certain place or people is nonsense. The public has every right to use them, but use them responsibly, if the problem worsens, then calming measures should be introduced.
However!, I do not condone or try to defend the people speeding through built up areas as my brother was recently hit and left with 2 broken legs and a fractured pelvis, by someone caught doing 52 in a 30 zone, and proceeded to speed off.
All of this stupid, obsessive behaviour about roads BELONGING to a certain place or people is nonsense. The public has every right to use them, but use them responsibly, if the problem worsens, then calming measures should be introduced.
+40
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What a fantastic result!
If you don't like it, use the dual carriageway like you're supposed to :-)
If you don't like it, use the dual carriageway like you're supposed to :-)
-54
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Take a leaf out the book of the people of the Chiapas region in the southeast of Mexico.
There the people take the "law" into their own hands. They lay large Sleeping Policemen across the main roads passing by or through villages, and when any strange car or coach passes the humps cause it to slow right down, they stop this vehicle and then demand $1 tax in cash each from its occupants.
There the people take the "law" into their own hands. They lay large Sleeping Policemen across the main roads passing by or through villages, and when any strange car or coach passes the humps cause it to slow right down, they stop this vehicle and then demand $1 tax in cash each from its occupants.
-15
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Pancho Villa - 25-Jun-07 17:28
AAAAAAAARGH!!!! Do you know what really gets on my toot? Busybodies that spend four hours using a borrowed speed gun to detect the speed of vehicles driving through your little corner of the Earth and then running crying to the police whinging and whining that "something must be done!" How sad and pointless their miserable little lives must be.
Go write to the Daily (hate) Mail you useless old farts.
Go write to the Daily (hate) Mail you useless old farts.
-104
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Jeremy Clarkson - 25-Jun-07 15:48
Village life is being lost by traffic. The amount of traffic that goes through the village I live in is terriable. I feel we are loosing the English way of village life and villages should not be used as rat runs for people trying to get to the busy towns and cities. Far enough people have to get to places, but that is why there are moterways like the M3 where the roads are actually built for the amount of traffic of today, unlike many villages. Personally people should only use village roads if they have buisness in the village or wish to get home!
+18
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Traffic calming measures are not just a pain in the neck, alot of them are plain dangerous. I've lost count of the times I've had to screech to a halt because of stupidly placed priority ways and pinch points. Reflective bollards are not always that helpfully placed either. Speed bumps don't really bother me so much, only when people go ridiculously slow over them.
As for speed limits, I think alot of them are again, stupidly placed. I'm talking fast speed limits down narrow winding country lanes, and also stupidly slow speed limits in unnecessary places.
People get run over cause theyre stupid, crossing a road isn't hard. Seriously. (I'm gonna get run over for saying that now).
As for speed limits, I think alot of them are again, stupidly placed. I'm talking fast speed limits down narrow winding country lanes, and also stupidly slow speed limits in unnecessary places.
People get run over cause theyre stupid, crossing a road isn't hard. Seriously. (I'm gonna get run over for saying that now).
-21
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I also use Ringmead when I take my daughter to Easthampstead park school from Prietwood every morning, and I have to say I find it a nightmare to negotiate these so called traffic calming measures the reason being that far from calming traffic they have the oposite effect in so much as they cause motorists to get angry with each other when one driver attempts to drive through when its not ther right of way (not my idea of calming!)
Another problem is a lot of the time one car may have to wait while more than twenty cars come the other way and gives the impression of losing time and being late this causes drivers to speed up above the speed limit once they have passed the artificial obstruction.I don`t know what buffoons thought up the idea of chicanes,but I can only conclude that they are not motorists themselves.
In conclusion ther are other better and more sensible ways of slowing vehicles down I.e speed limit signs that are triggered by cars exceeding the speed limit, I write this as a driver of 43 years expieriance driving on average 60.000 miles per anum.
Another problem is a lot of the time one car may have to wait while more than twenty cars come the other way and gives the impression of losing time and being late this causes drivers to speed up above the speed limit once they have passed the artificial obstruction.I don`t know what buffoons thought up the idea of chicanes,but I can only conclude that they are not motorists themselves.
In conclusion ther are other better and more sensible ways of slowing vehicles down I.e speed limit signs that are triggered by cars exceeding the speed limit, I write this as a driver of 43 years expieriance driving on average 60.000 miles per anum.
-42
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Hurrah for speed bumps. Get on your bikes! It'll all be gridlock on the roads in the next few years anyway.
-93
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Like a number of people who have entered comments here, I also live in a village (once quiet and fairly peaceful) with a 30mph limit, plagued with both heavy traffic and excessive speeding. Traffic calming measures have been absolutely essential; the accident rate is high, and two people have been killed in the past two years....not perhaps a high death-rate, but it's two too many.
A priority gateway protects many of the villagers from being killed on their own doorsteps, so to speak; and we are awaiting the arrival of a VAS.
It seems to be a hobby amongst many drivers to go village-bombing, taking the roads at excessive speed with no regard to residents or road conditions.
If traffic calming measures are holding you up on your way to work, then may I suggest you get up earlier.......or try another route. Although village residents may not own the road, they do live there and were probably there long before the traffic problems started. They do have rights. Either shut up or get to work some other way.
And.....I don't answer responses.
A priority gateway protects many of the villagers from being killed on their own doorsteps, so to speak; and we are awaiting the arrival of a VAS.
It seems to be a hobby amongst many drivers to go village-bombing, taking the roads at excessive speed with no regard to residents or road conditions.
If traffic calming measures are holding you up on your way to work, then may I suggest you get up earlier.......or try another route. Although village residents may not own the road, they do live there and were probably there long before the traffic problems started. They do have rights. Either shut up or get to work some other way.
And.....I don't answer responses.
-27
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