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Speed humps and mini roundabouts

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One of our local government transportation engineer has created speed humps on all our back streets and introduced dozens of mini-roundabouts in places which are, quite frankly, dangerous.  What about vehicle safety though?

These humps have damaged my car.  They were presumably introduced to reduce speeds on side streets to lower than 30 (or 20 mph).

Quite honestly, if you drive more than 7 mph over the new bumps your car will come crashing down on the other side of the hump, smashing your front-end.  Far from saving the pedestrian who might dash in front of you unawares, it frightens the living daylights out of whatever passengers you might be carrying at the time.

Mini-roundabouts: These stupid and dangerous.  Whoever thought of putting a mini-roundabout on a main road with one blind junction to a very minor road wants their mind seeing to.

A mini roundabout risking the life and limb ...

Cars emerge from this blind junction, unseen till they are actually on the roundabout.  They emerge without stopping for what is effectively the main road, risking the life and limb of any car on the main road who thinks they might have right of way.

Mini-roundabouts have a totally ambiguous priority system.  They are not, as the Highway Code might think, or have not the same priority system as a full roundabout.  Two cars approaching a full roundabout from diametrically opposite direction both wanting to turn right can't actually see one another on a full roundabout usually.  Both have equal right to enter the roundabout at the same time.

The mini-roundabout can't cope with this situation properly.  There is insufficient space on the roundabout to accommodate two cars at the same time.  Who therefore has the priority?  It becomes a race to the roundabout to see who is first on the dotted line.

By: Griper


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Pantera

Pantera

The "traffic calming speed ramps" are, I agree, an absolute abomination, a cheap alternative to the chicane type, with which I have no real problem, that style affects all vehicles (including the AWD types which are relatively unaffected by the height of the things) without the resultant damage to suspension, exhaust & body trim. Over the years the road surface either side of the ramp sinks, making it almost impossible to negotiate without damage of some nature. I do however, find the comments concerning "mini-roundabouts" beyond belief. They should be approached & used in the same manner as any other roundabout!!. Consult the Road Traffic Act. Right of way is exactly the same with these as with any other. If a driver, (on what may have been the Major road before one was installed at a junction), chooses to use it if it was just a pimple in the road to be ignored, the Give-Way hatched lines are still there!! for even the most ignorant & impatient to see. It's not difficult is it?. USE THE STEERING WHEEL to steer around the obstruction. The same pathetic idleness can be witnessed when individuals turn right into a T-junction, using the right-hand side of the road to save themselves the effort of actually braking, slowing down or steering to negotiate a vehicle waiting at the intersection, with the usual glaring eye-stare at somebody else actually being in their badly planned path on approach, except of course, when understandably, they've got a telephone jammed between one shoulder & ear, making such complex operations a bit inconvenient at the time !!!!.
08/11/13 Pantera
4
Bobcat

Bobcat

The Stig,what those drivers are doing is going the wrong way round the roundabout and would be seen as such if an accident occured.
07/01/12 Bobcat
3
the crash expert

the crash expert

Actually Cyclist is wrong, Speed Cameras have been implicated in the deaths of several motorists in recent years, in different parts of the country.
02/11/10 the crash expert
0
Mike

Mike

I couldn't agree more! But it is worse, much worse, than you claim. Many of these idiot features DO have a "Give Way" double broken line plus sign on ONE "entrance. For some reason which is utterly beyond me this is read by most drivers as "Give Way unless you are TURNING right - in which case you don't even need to slow down. This is completely contrary to common sense AND the Higway Code, and it is bloody dangerous - especially as there is only me and my mate Nick who understand how these things are supposed to work!
10/06/10 Mike
4
Colin T

Colin T

Is your council building mini roundabouts at practically every road junction, whilst spreading parking residential parking zones to further fleece residents of any money they may have left over after their extortionate council tax bills are paid, like the council area I live in does?
Not allowed to mention particular places, but it's recently become a so-called city, just south of Dunblane and north of Larbert , begins with S and ends in G. Do you not think that council officials and councillors need to be reminded that they work for us and not we for them?
Perhaps a bit of pain on the jobs front will bring them to heel?
01/06/10 Colin T
-16
Chris.

Chris.

To clarify before some wise @$$ perks up that by slowing me down, the humps are doing their job, I don't speed and rarely if at all go over a speed limit. That only happens when I'm spending my time looking at the road ahead and not constantly staring at my speed.
31/05/10 Chris.
0
Chris.

Chris.

Humps not only cause the bunching up of cars but they destroy car componants. I'm forever having to replace wishbone balljoints and suspension struts through driving over atleast a mile of them on my journey to work and again on the way back. I could if someone got really anal, re plan my route but that also adds about 3 miles onto it and more heavy traffic queues.

Road bumps also don't have the desired effect on half of the drivers out there. I slow right down to being pulled along at idle in 1st gear, to then get thrashed past by an old lady in a Corsa or someone with no respect for their own car still going 35 over a hump in a 30 zone. That in itself is amazing because the 23 year old in a very fast hatchback is driving slowly over the speed bumps and the mature drivers that can do no wrong, drive over the limit hitting 5 - 10mph over the limit.

Funny really.
31/05/10 Chris.
-2
Arrawn

Arrawn

I drove 50foot long lorries for a living,mini roundabouts I'm sorry to say are just there to be ignored,my vehicle could not possibly go around them,so to be fair I must admit that it ended up with me not even trying to do so.
But I have an opinion on traffic humps that may surprise you.Rip them all out,simple,but fit Police Motorcycles with Radar guns,or even plain vans,I don't care which,if your caught speeding thats your problem,we can all see the speed limit signs.But why should every car be expected to drive over pavement sized humps every 100 yards just because of drivers with a heavy right foot.
30/05/10 Arrawn
-10
The Stig

The Stig

We have several mini-roundabouts in our village where most drivers turning right cross in front of the roundabout instead of going around it, claiming that they have right of way. Should an accident occur with a vehicle on the roundabout going straight ahead, who would be at fault?
29/06/09 The Stig
-2
slam

slam

Can a car drive over the middle of a mini roundabout to turn right?
08/06/09 slam
-20
Mallory

Mallory

I agree with Griper; no matter what speed you are doing over some of these speed bumps you can jar your car and/or yourself. A 100 yard long road near me has no less than 5 of the big wide ones, and even going at 2 mph gives one hell of a jolt. It's made worse because it's the only road leading to an old folks retirement complex; a nightmare if an ambulance is needed.

While the principle of speed bumps is sound, there really should be more thought given to the style of them. Smooth bumps raised a couple of inches off the road are OK, but great big edged monstrosities are just ridiculous. And in areas where ambulances are seen frequently, use speed cameras instead!
09/03/09 Mallory
-13
All things great and small

All things great and small

God created mini-roundabouts and other traffic calming measures so that you could sin going round or over them.
08/03/09 All things great and small
-17
NSI.

NSI.

Mini roundabouts were never intended to be that type of junction.
In the majority of cases, the location of the roundabout was originaly a T junction with bend in the road or a crossroads. Due to that the amount of space to turn is greatly reduced.
Due to increasing volumes on traffic on the roads, they were put in to prevent pollution in side roads to bordering houses from waiting stationary traffic. Most of the roads effected were being used as "rat runs" by drivers. They along with speed humps also slow down the traffic, which came about due to the few mindless idiots who speed through quite residential roads.
Therebye spoiling it for the rest of us sensible drivers.
My qualifictions, amongst others Approved Driving Instructor Grade 6 /M.I.A.M/Holder of HGV C+E/Motorcyclist/Diploma In driving Instruction/ADI Trainer.
08/03/09 NSI.
-1
Cyclist

Cyclist

Griper is clearly a halfwit.

It is perfectly obvious that he is speeding over the speed humps and mini roundabouts.

The crunching sound your car makes, is an indication to SLOW DOWN!
25/10/08 Cyclist
-2
David Webb

David Webb

What speed are you doing over these "Speed Humps"? Don't you realise they have been put there for a reason? To slow you down,not to see how fast you can take them!
Unfortunatly I am disabled & walk with the aid of a stick. The number of drivers that refuse to slow down to allow me to cross safely never ceases to amaze me.
26/04/08 David Webb
-4

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