Tell me something I didn't know

[steve harrison]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid_1961000/1961096.stm

- like for instance. If local authorities are so strapped for cash and resources to repair roads, how come thay can always find the money for another stupid set of speed bumps or chicanes, or yards of silly coloured tarmac that rubs off in a few weeks , or a complete revamp of an already perfectly adequate junction to add pedestrian crossing lights that I've not seen a single person use in the four months they've been there at the end of our street?

Surrey County Council have been digging up speed bumps and putting them back exactly as they were for f**k's sake.

[plotloss]

Did anyone see Quentin Wilsons bit about road investment on Fifth Gear?

10 years ago the revenue collected from the motorist was £12 billion and the amount spent on improving and extending the road network was £12 billion.

10 years later and the motorist is being raped for £38 billion a year yet only £6 billion is invested on the road network, and at £30K a camera you can guess where a large proportion of that cash is going.

Its an absolute bloody scandal as far as I am concerned its theft/larceny/robbery call it what you will its wrong whichever way you look at it.

Matt.

[Fatboy]

Actually it was 1975 when it was 12 and 12 - that means allowing for inflation the drop in investment is ridiculous!!!

Agreed with him 100% on that show.

P.S. Oxford city council have been digging up their speed humps, in between buggering up the main shopping street!

[mattjbatch]

The state of the roads where I live is a disgrace. So bad in fact that I know of one bloke who filled a pothole in himself. But, lots of money has been spent/wasted on new traffic lights, mountainous speedbumps/suspension breakers and that red tarmac stuff. The best one though was the pedestrian crossing for put in especially for blind people. Well, they put in those bumpy paving stones etc. but the crossing has no audible signal for when it is sake to cross! Stupid council

[loudpedal]

Many London councils are having elections tomorrow. Vote.

[Neil Menzies]

quote:
...10 years later and the motorist is being raped for £38 billion a year...

quote:
"That is why in our 10-year transport plan we have allocated £31bn over 10 years to improve local highways in England.

And that is a grand sum of £3.1bn a year. Do they think quoting a ten year figure makes everything OK? Gordon "Twat" Brown does the same with all the budget figures, quote all taxes in yearly figures, and all expenditure in ten year figures, and it all sounds fantastic if you're a numpty.

[steve harrison]

quote:
Well, they put in those bumpy paving stones etc. but the crossing has no audible signal for when it is sake to cross! Stupid council

We've got the same nonsense here. Lumpy paving stones and a speed bump with a red brick paver surface. Neither pedestrians nor drivers know what the deal is so mass confusion results with some pedestrians expecting cars to stop and wandering out, others waiting, some drivers screeching to a halt and others ignoring it and driving over.

Strikes me as a sure fire way of getting somebody killed - then they can drop the speed limit again. F**king ridiculous

[filmidget]

When the 'bloody Council' put tactile paving (bumpy slabs that look bit like lego) in the footway up to a ped crossing that has no audible signal, try feeling under the push button box (if you are brave). You may well find there is a little metal cone, which rotates when it is safe to cross. If not, then yes, that council are a bunch of wits.

Have to agree about raised areas of block paving in the road - just what do they think they are doing? I assume 'morally' the ped would be at fault - but with the law and political situation in this country at the moment who would get the blame (/fine/insurance claim)!?!

Makes me angry. Think I'll go and smash up a high street and stuff, and call it a protest.

Cheers, Phil

[nonegreen]

quote:
Many London councils are having elections tomorrow. Vote.

So how should we vote?

Lib Dem
This lot will spend all your money on bumps, cameras, 20mph limits, bus lanes, traffic calming narrow roads and raise a few bob selling licenses for canabis cafes, which they will spend on facilities for minority groups like one legged lesbians regardless of whether any live in the borough

New Labour As above, but it will cost a bit less although somehow you will be more pissed off about it

Conservative This lot will spend all your money on flowers for the queen on her visit to the borough. Then put a few bumps and traffic lights in and squander the rest on extra police to harass the under 15s which will have no effect except to encourage them to nick cars to get away from the area at night.

Greens This shower will double your council tax in the assumption that you agree a blanket 3mph speed limit is a good idea, together with saturating all roads with speed cameras. They will then spend the revenue raised to employ lots of halfwits to go round harrassing anyone suspected of liking cars. Finally they will introduce a local congestion charge which will pay for a community cycling scheme with free bikes left all over town which will all get nicked within a week by scousers who will export them to Moscow. Within a month your house will have lost 99% of its value and you will probably invest your last few quid in a baseball bat to hunt for the council who are now exiled in Utah.

Natural Law party This lot will ban cars altogether announce yogic flying as the only permissable form of transport which will inevitably lead to a world shortage of orthapedic surgeons due the rapid increase in knee operations needed. They will then attempt to redress this by bancrupting the town to fund extensive use of foam rubber on all streets. This will result in a major fire destroying said town and resulting in an additional question about politics on all future insurnace proposals.

BNP they beat everyone up including you then shoot themselves


I give up

[CarZee]

Quality...

All too true... but don't forget, a Vote for Alastair Composted-Silage is a vote against everything..

[smeagol]

nonegreen you're absolutely right. I used to frown on people that don't vote or spoil their paper, but I must be honest I have no idea who I'd vote for next.