The most annoying part of the A303? It's not Stone Henge....
Discussion
Beati Dogu said:
The section in Somerset I think it is used to have a common overtaking lane, AKA a suicide lane. That was bloody scary. Now it alternates sides at least.
There are a few of these if you head off up the A350 to Warminster and on towards Bath.Pure evil, I won't even consider an overtake on them. How they get past planners/H&S etc I will never know, crashes aren't uncommon.
causes serious tailbacks! e21Mark said:
People's inability to merge from 2 lanes down to 1, is possibly the biggest cause of tail backs I think?
If I'm in a hurry I usually travel overnight. I still enjoy pressing on without the hassle of traffic and get there quicker than I would using the M4/M5.
Agreed. But perhaps there is a ray of hope. I travel from the M3 to Devon and back quite frequently and on the last few trips I have noticed an improvement in merge discipline. It might have been luck, but here's hoping that people are realising that a bit of common sense and courtesy makes the journey quicker and easier for everyone. If I'm in a hurry I usually travel overnight. I still enjoy pressing on without the hassle of traffic and get there quicker than I would using the M4/M5.
Around the late 90s I used to pass that speed camera in one of these:
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I don't know how powerful a 1.3? 1985 Ford Escort was, 50bhp maybe? But that camera ruined that overtaking spot for me. Going uphill was still about trying to not lose too much speed, accelerating was out of the question.
I don't know how powerful a 1.3? 1985 Ford Escort was, 50bhp maybe? But that camera ruined that overtaking spot for me. Going uphill was still about trying to not lose too much speed, accelerating was out of the question.
Mabbs9 said:
I hate where fences block the view approaching one of the roundabouts. I assume to force traffic to slow almost to a stop before entering. Totally removing the benefit of a roundabout.
+1Few of these around Bristol too. Why is having less visibility of a junction a good thing?
Have they actually repainted the lines required by that camera now? For a long time they didn't bother. Tbh, I expect it does more good than bad, because it stops people who are unfamiliar with the road bombing up the lane at 100+ only to find theyve run out of lane and have no where to go.
I prefer the road across the plains to the north regardless. You rejoin the A303 in time for the Mere bypass.
I prefer the road across the plains to the north regardless. You rejoin the A303 in time for the Mere bypass.
caiss4 said:
If that camera is in Wiltshire then it isn't an issue. Wiltshire's cameras have been decommissioned for quite a few years now. Bit like the cameras near Solstice Park; the boxes are there but no cameras for at least 4/5 years.
Shame more of the people commenting here didn't read this.
EnglishTony said:
caiss4 said:
If that camera is in Wiltshire then it isn't an issue. Wiltshire's cameras have been decommissioned for quite a few years now. Bit like the cameras near Solstice Park; the boxes are there but no cameras for at least 4/5 years.
Shame more of the people commenting here didn't read this.Obviously, that's half the reason they are normally left standing after being switched off. They are still a deterrent
giantdefy said:
tobinen said:
I use that bit fairly regularly. I've always assumed the dual carriageway is 70 MPH limit but I usually pass at low 60s. Is it 70 MPH?
If you are referring to the bit where it is three lanes it ain't a dual carriageway. Dual carriageways have to have some sort of dividing strip between the carriageways.It's not about the number of lanes in any direction. It's about the surface of the carriageway being interrupted in some way so as to make it, for all practical purposes, two separate carriageways - one in each direction. Single lane dual carriageways are possible, so are triple lane (or more) dual carriageways. Conversely, simply because there are four lanes, ie: two in each direction, does NOT make a road a dual carriageway.
The controlling factor is the ability to move from one lane to another on an uninterrupted sealed driving surface. If this is not possible, due to an Armco barrier, an earth bank, or even just a grass strip, then you are on a "dual carriageway". If the asphalt surface is continuous across the full width, then it is a "single carriageway".
http://www.theorytestadvice.co.uk/learn-to-drive/d...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_carriageway
Image harvested from that Wiki link...
...which explains it quite simply.
You often see this...
...on roads like the A303, which is meant to discourage overtaking on the two lane single carriageway sections prior to a dual carriageway, by tempting you with the promise of a relatively stress-free overtaking opportunity.
Whereas this...
...warns you that the dual carriageway section is ending.
The "most annoying part" of the A303 referred to by the OP is nothing more than an additional Crawler Lane within a two lane single carriageway section. We ought to be grateful that it exists at all, really, rather than running it down. It's not ideal. In an ideal world the whole length of the A303 would be a dual carriageway, by-passing towns and villages on the route. But that's unlikely to happen any time soon so be grateful for small mercies like this crawler lane in the meantime. It's the same with those alternating overtaking lanes on the 'orrible concrete section. It's NOT a dual carriageway, and so the maximum permitted road speed for light vehicles remains 60mph, regardless of any solid white lines.
I do seriously wonder about the 'petrol head' credentials of some folk. I thought we were supposed to be a community of driving fans? How can you not know basic s
t like this if you profess to be a car fan and/or a keen driver? 
ETA:
If you don't know your road sign, it seems you are far from alone...
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2617666/A-...
Edited by yellowjack on Wednesday 27th April 08:51
yellowjack said:
giantdefy said:
tobinen said:
I use that bit fairly regularly. I've always assumed the dual carriageway is 70 MPH limit but I usually pass at low 60s. Is it 70 MPH?
If you are referring to the bit where it is three lanes it ain't a dual carriageway. Dual carriageways have to have some sort of dividing strip between the carriageways.<snip>
Matthen said:
I prefer the road across the plains to the north regardless. You rejoin the A303 in time for the Mere bypass.
I live halfway along that road. Sadly since the closure of the road past Stonehenge you either sit in a huge tailback and turn right towards airmans cross on the new roundabout or you cut through solstice services, larkhill and in to the back of Shrewton (much to the annoyance of locals). Both of which add a chunk of time (the former for queuing traffic and the latter for 30/40mph zones).Plus people seem to drive at 40mph across the plains and over Mere down these days.
It's tedious either way.
Edited by Freddy88FM on Wednesday 27th April 10:15
The most annoying element of that road is the same annoying element on all roads today and that is the emergence over the last 20 years of the Gandalf driver.
It used to be good etiquette, if you had no intention of over taking the slow moving vehicle ahead, to drop further back than needed from the car in front so that others could work their way through and pass.
Sadly, like almost all road etiquette this has gone and people now actively work to stop anyone passing.
It used to be good etiquette, if you had no intention of over taking the slow moving vehicle ahead, to drop further back than needed from the car in front so that others could work their way through and pass.
Sadly, like almost all road etiquette this has gone and people now actively work to stop anyone passing.
Google Maps Link
In front of the green van is a 40mph sign. The limit here is still 50 but majority of drivers slam the anchors on and go down to 35mph for this stretch because the new limit and the camera come in to view together.
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