Variable Speed Limits
Discussion
As an M25 user, I reckon these work pretty well at not only keeping things moving but buy reminding one to remain vigilant for changes in conditions etc.
So, why do we not have more variable speed limits? e.g. outside schools the chaos at the stat and the end of the school day at the one near me what with random acts of parking and wandering small people would definitley justify a 20mph limit for those periods of the day, a total of an hour max, but the road is perfectly safe at the posted 40mph the rest of the day. What I gather we are due to get is a compromise 30mph. Where is the lgic in that?
Perhaps the principle could be extended further to avoid the ridiculous issue of the urban dual carriageway user that gets the old flash and NIP for doing 35 at two in the morning with no-one in sight for miles?
Any thoughts?
So, why do we not have more variable speed limits? e.g. outside schools the chaos at the stat and the end of the school day at the one near me what with random acts of parking and wandering small people would definitley justify a 20mph limit for those periods of the day, a total of an hour max, but the road is perfectly safe at the posted 40mph the rest of the day. What I gather we are due to get is a compromise 30mph. Where is the lgic in that?
Perhaps the principle could be extended further to avoid the ridiculous issue of the urban dual carriageway user that gets the old flash and NIP for doing 35 at two in the morning with no-one in sight for miles?
Any thoughts?
I think this is a great idea.
Apart form the obvious issue of outside schools, many Motorway standard A roads in London are 40 and 50 limits because of rush hour traffic. If they had variable limits then the limit could revert to a more acceptable level when it is quieter.
It would of course cost alot of money to implement I can't imagine that such signs would come cheap if implemented on a mass scale, but they would help to rebuild confidence in speed limits being for safety reasons rather than fine collection.
Apart form the obvious issue of outside schools, many Motorway standard A roads in London are 40 and 50 limits because of rush hour traffic. If they had variable limits then the limit could revert to a more acceptable level when it is quieter.
It would of course cost alot of money to implement I can't imagine that such signs would come cheap if implemented on a mass scale, but they would help to rebuild confidence in speed limits being for safety reasons rather than fine collection.
Thank you for your support, I shall wear it always.
I agree in some instances, cost could be prohibitive if one were to go high-tech but they could just be like part time bus lane signs, particualrly if some convention could be agreed as to what constitutes rush hour.
One problem I can foresee is you might get people doing two speeds. MLM types would always do the lower speed particualrly if there were cameras 'Just to be on the safe side' rather like the eejit that braked to 25mph in front of me as we passed a speed indicator sign in a 50mph zone yesterday.
I agree in some instances, cost could be prohibitive if one were to go high-tech but they could just be like part time bus lane signs, particualrly if some convention could be agreed as to what constitutes rush hour.
One problem I can foresee is you might get people doing two speeds. MLM types would always do the lower speed particualrly if there were cameras 'Just to be on the safe side' rather like the eejit that braked to 25mph in front of me as we passed a speed indicator sign in a 50mph zone yesterday.
rustybin said:
As an M25 user, I reckon these work pretty well at not only keeping things moving but buy reminding one to remain vigilant for changes in conditions etc.
I not so sure the variable limits on the M25 work well at all.
Whenever I've been through the variable limits, it's always been at near standstill.
I've actually been through the gantries just as the limits are activated (early morning) and the immediate effect was for the three lanes (moving perfecttly) to suddenly jam on brakes simultaneously with a wave effect going back such that a few hundred yards back it was at a near standstill.
Judging by the jams every day they don't seem to work. How is "success" judged?
supraman2954 said:
This is usual practice in Germany They dont feel the need to use expensive matrix signs either, just a small roadsign with limit for the time of day. How come this country is so far behind when adopting common sense road policies?
Was just about to say the same thing and people tend to stick to them too. Great idea, never take off over here tho - it's far too logical.
Streetcop said:
mentioned on another thread;
came across such a thing recently. A matrix board on a road on the approach to a school....20mph during school hours, then reverts back to 40mph at other times.
...people would then RESPECT speed limits, rather than feel patronised.
This works both ways. Clacton seafront is a 30mph speedlimit all year. It is a wide, straight road with excellent visibility.
In the summer when its very busy, 30mph at some parts would be lethal.
In the winter when it's dead, 30mph is ridiculous.
parrot of doom said:If our government changed the road policy such that efforts of those BiB, who would usually hide behind bushes on motorways with 'safety' guns, could be redirected to patrolling such areas (looking for nutty drivers and paeds), parents would then feel much better about letting their children make their own way. However, this is not such an effective method of 'cost recovery'.....
I'll tell you what will improve road safety around schools - banning fat arsed lazy mothers from picking their kids up, and forcing the kids either to use a school bus, or SHOCK HORROR walk!
james_j said:Which just shows how ignorant people are, because this is the one time that the system is 100% guaranteed not to enforce.
I've actually been through the gantries just as the limits are activated (early morning) and the immediate effect was for the three lanes (moving perfecttly) to suddenly jam on brakes simultaneously with a wave effect going back such that a few hundred yards back it was at a near standstill.
thub said:A lot of traffic lights, particularly in rural areas, have either inductance loops in the tarmac or light sensors on the pole so that they can change to green when you approach them on red and there is nobody else waiting.
Moving on the idea of changing the signeage to match the time of day - why don't many traffic lights (particularly on roundabouts) go to flashing amber from, say, midnight to 6am?
Far better than an easily misinterpreted flashing amber.
parrot of doom said:
I'll tell you what will improve road safety around schools - banning fat arsed lazy mothers from picking their kids up, and forcing the kids either to use a school bus, or SHOCK HORROR walk!
School duty this week again! (ffs!)
Yesterday a bit of a blitz was in progress.
Worst behaviour from a safety point of view was the kids..... as usual. But the two most dangerous drivers were at the wheel of......... you'll never guess......
THE SCHOOL BUSES!
derestrictor said:
Thank you for your support, I shall wear it always.
Whoa there: do I detect hint of Bladder in that thar remark?
If so, every credit!
If memory serves me correctly, it's said by nursey when ol'slackbladders gives her the captains beard when they return form their voyage (avoiding the dreadful spindly killerfish, of course
) due to the captain having been caught and eaten by some natives on an island they bumped into having mistaken it for southampton 
and yes, that is from memory! 
derestrictor said:
Thank you for your support, I shall wear it always.
Whoa there: do I detect hint of Bladder in that thar remark?
If so, every credit!
I was thinking Goons / Milligan but gawd knows which show. I'm guessing you are thinking Nurseys reaction to the return of Captain Red Beard Rums Beard? In which case...
Red Beard said:
You have a womans speed limit mee Lord. I'll wager that round red sign has never had a dozen sailors tossing on it.
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