M3 Nightmare Continues!
Discussion
Joe.. said:
Heads up - Spotted the speed camera going off several times now on the Northbound side before the M25 (think it might be the last gantry before jcn2)
Seen several people bombing it Southbound so assume they are not triggering yet?
Commute is loads better but so frustrating with all the numpties in lane 3 doing 60 still...
Just went southbound from M25 to J4 and I saw one flash twice as well, between J3 and J4 during a 60 VSL. Quite a few drivers were ignoring the limit and going at 70-80 I'd guess.Seen several people bombing it Southbound so assume they are not triggering yet?
Commute is loads better but so frustrating with all the numpties in lane 3 doing 60 still...
What's more interesting is that my radar detector didn't give an alert, so they are either operating on a band not used by the other type of HADECS3s or they are using loops in the road to detect the speed.
Either way, be careful out there!
TheRainMaker said:
They look like HADECS 3 cameras to me, radar I believe, how they are set I've no idea.
Agree they are HADECS3s, although the hardware is somewhat different to the ones on the M25.Next time I'm along that stretch I'm going to reconfigure my radar detector to scan on all bands in case they've done something different with the radar.
I suppose it's possible they're still testing and have set them to flash randomly. As always, time will tell and if we suddenly see an increase in NIPs being received for this section, we'll get an idea what's going on.
Frimley111R said:
I didn't think cameras needed to flash these days and the only ones that did were ancient gatsos?
You need some sort of illumination for when the sun goes down...Even in daylight, a flash will illuminate the number plate in a more consistent manner and deliver a higher quality image than relying on natural light.
The HADECS3s are available from the manufacturer with visible or IR strobes.
Why the ones in the UK seem mostly to have visible instead of IR strobes is open to debate. My theory is that they want drivers to see the flashes so it acts as a deterrent and cannot be classed at 'spy' or 'stealth'. Or maybe the visible ones are cheaper.
This afternoon I went to Twickenham (from J4) and was quite surprised by how well the traffic was flowing towards the M25, until I got to the M25 interchange and was greeted by the gantry there (with camera on) displaying 40, when the previous one still displayed NSL with no warnings of delays ahead, which resulted in a lot of anchoring on by people to get slowed in time to avoid being flashed 
Based on the normal flow of traffic onto both directions of the M25, and the M3, with no slow moving traffic, I'm not sure what the "40" was intended for Even better was along with the anchoring on to avoid being flashed you also had to keep a north eye out for the usual last minute bellends trying to get onto the M25 from the outside lane of the M3, rather than just getting into the correct lane in advance, like every other normal person 
Also, can someone please explain why the single lane restriction still exists through the southbound part of the M3/M25 interchange? As a result of that when I was coming through there around 5.15pm, everything ground to a complete halt at the M25 feeder lanes, then crawled along at barely 5mph all the way under the M25, all whilst the lanes merging from the M25 both flowed nice and quickly at the restricted 50mph
I can only hope that they're still reworking the lane layout there as the lane markers on that stretch were a mismatch of studs, painted lines, partially tarred over old worn lines, etc, meaning it was interesting trying to figure out exactly which lane I was moving into when we finally cleared the M25 feeder lanes and started, slowly, getting back up to a normal speed
Edit - I almost forgot about the various luxo-barges pushing 3 figures when I was heading back towards J3. Should be some nice revenue generation there, if the cameras are now working 100%, from all the bellends who think that just because the roadworks have gone the speed limit no longer applies.
Based on the normal flow of traffic onto both directions of the M25, and the M3, with no slow moving traffic, I'm not sure what the "40" was intended for
Even better was along with the anchoring on to avoid being flashed you also had to keep a north eye out for the usual last minute bellends trying to get onto the M25 from the outside lane of the M3, rather than just getting into the correct lane in advance, like every other normal person Also, can someone please explain why the single lane restriction still exists through the southbound part of the M3/M25 interchange? As a result of that when I was coming through there around 5.15pm, everything ground to a complete halt at the M25 feeder lanes, then crawled along at barely 5mph all the way under the M25, all whilst the lanes merging from the M25 both flowed nice and quickly at the restricted 50mph
I can only hope that they're still reworking the lane layout there as the lane markers on that stretch were a mismatch of studs, painted lines, partially tarred over old worn lines, etc, meaning it was interesting trying to figure out exactly which lane I was moving into when we finally cleared the M25 feeder lanes and started, slowly, getting back up to a normal speed
Edit - I almost forgot about the various luxo-barges pushing 3 figures when I was heading back towards J3. Should be some nice revenue generation there, if the cameras are now working 100%, from all the bellends who think that just because the roadworks have gone the speed limit no longer applies.
Edited by AlexRS2782 on Thursday 17th August 20:56
AlexRS2782 said:
Also, can someone please explain why the single lane restriction still exists through the southbound part of the M3/M25 interchange? As a result of that when I was coming through there around 5.15pm, everything ground to a complete halt at the M25 feeder lanes, then crawled along at barely 5mph all the way under the M25, all whilst the lanes merging from the M25 both flowed nice and quickly at the restricted 50mph
I can only hope that they're still reworking the lane layout there as the lane markers on that stretch were a mismatch of studs, painted lines, partially tarred over old worn lines, etc, meaning it was interesting trying to figure out exactly which lane I was moving into when we finally cleared the M25 feeder lanes and started, slowly, getting back up to a normal speed
I drive this section every day and have witnessed many alternative lay outs. The format which used to work better than the rest was when the left lane merged into the right lane on the M3 south bound. Hardly ever any queues and this was during busy traffic months. The current layout is the worst to date in my view. We are in August, the quietest month of the year for traffic and almost always queue in the up to the merging section before building up speed again and then have to drive over the painted lines which does not seem necessary to me but then what do I know.I can only hope that they're still reworking the lane layout there as the lane markers on that stretch were a mismatch of studs, painted lines, partially tarred over old worn lines, etc, meaning it was interesting trying to figure out exactly which lane I was moving into when we finally cleared the M25 feeder lanes and started, slowly, getting back up to a normal speed
Edited by AlexRS2782 on Thursday 17th August 20:56
At a complete guess, the M3 southbound will have one lane, the M25 clockwise will also have just the one lane and the M25 anti-clock wise will have 2 lanes to make the 4 lane section of the M3.
Poor bloke in an S-Max, with his family, had broken down around half way between Junctions 4 & 3 London bound when I drove down there this afternoon.
By the looks of how the car was positioned off the road, the driver knew he couldn't safely make it to the next emergency area so sensibly decided to put the car at a jaunty angle up the embankment to ensure the car wasn't in, or overhanging, lane 1.
By the looks of how the car was positioned off the road, the driver knew he couldn't safely make it to the next emergency area so sensibly decided to put the car at a jaunty angle up the embankment to ensure the car wasn't in, or overhanging, lane 1.
Scroll down to "worth thing I've seen this week"
https://www.autocar.co.uk/opinion/anything-goes/be...
https://www.autocar.co.uk/opinion/anything-goes/be...
So, had to travel to Staines on Friday night, M3 closed, I make a point of calling HA whenever this happens, partially out of frustration, partially in the hope that soneone will finally admit that the works didnt finish on time, partially out of boredom.
I am expecting a communication from them "within 15 working days", to confirm when the overnight closures will actually end, but it won't be this year.
I am expecting a communication from them "within 15 working days", to confirm when the overnight closures will actually end, but it won't be this year.
Location : The M3 westbound between junctions J1 and J2 . Lane Closures : Lanes 1, 2 and 3 will be closed. Reason : Road repairs are planned. Status : Pending. Schedule : Expect disruption everyday between 22:00 and 05:30 from 21 August 2017 to 25 August 2017. Schedule : From 22:00 on 29 August 2017 to 05:30 on 30 August 2017. Schedule : From 22:00 on 31 August 2017 to 05:30 on 1 September 2017. Lanes Closed : All lanes will be closed.
Biggest local F*ckup springs to mind!
I got to J2 tonight on the M25 at 20.55 only to find the M3 Southbound slip-road was shut - why couldn't there have been a sign before that so I could use the A30 instead of having to go up to J1 of the M3 at Ashford (and praying I'd get back before that got shut too).
Signs said "upgrading to Smart motorway" - reality is "downgrading to daytime motorway" - finished my a*se!
It's a total f*ckfest.
I got to J2 tonight on the M25 at 20.55 only to find the M3 Southbound slip-road was shut - why couldn't there have been a sign before that so I could use the A30 instead of having to go up to J1 of the M3 at Ashford (and praying I'd get back before that got shut too).
Signs said "upgrading to Smart motorway" - reality is "downgrading to daytime motorway" - finished my a*se!
It's a total f*ckfest.
Just come back from a night out in Southampton.
M3 was clear and hardly any traffic and most of that was HGVs in lane 1
Most cars in lane 2 day (Night) dreaming muppets with front and rear fog lights on WTF
Anyway nice easy run in the 335 and the hammer was well down in the carpet for most of the time.
All off at Jn3 which is mine anyway.
M3 was clear and hardly any traffic and most of that was HGVs in lane 1
Most cars in lane 2 day (Night) dreaming muppets with front and rear fog lights on WTF
Anyway nice easy run in the 335 and the hammer was well down in the carpet for most of the time.
All off at Jn3 which is mine anyway.
I drove over the M3 at the Ravenswood roundabout around 1.30 this afternoon and noticed it must have been closed / blocked London bound due to the fact no cars were on that stretch at all - the only traffic was heading coast bound, albeit much slower than normal.
From what I heard someone talking about at M&S about half an hour later, someone had initially broken down in lane 1 so there had been a lane closure only, but the closure / enforced block London bound was due to clearing up debris across all 4 lanes either after the broken down car was hit, or due to other cars crashing into each other due to not paying attention
From what I heard someone talking about at M&S about half an hour later, someone had initially broken down in lane 1 so there had been a lane closure only, but the closure / enforced block London bound was due to clearing up debris across all 4 lanes either after the broken down car was hit, or due to other cars crashing into each other due to not paying attention
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