speed humps, clearance, and liability
Discussion
Not a big speed hump fan, as I believe they wreck cars, cause increased polution, and still don't educate pedestrians about not walking out into the road. Probably make it worse actually.
However, if you were to buy yourself a nice sports car with low ground clearance and then the council were install humps around where you live such that you can't avoid scraping you car on them, is anyone liable?.
Hello Mr Council, your speed humps have just caused 3k worth of damage to my car. What are you going to do about it?
However, if you were to buy yourself a nice sports car with low ground clearance and then the council were install humps around where you live such that you can't avoid scraping you car on them, is anyone liable?.
Hello Mr Council, your speed humps have just caused 3k worth of damage to my car. What are you going to do about it?
bryan35 said:
Not a big speed hump fan, as I believe they wreck cars, cause increased polution, and still don't educate pedestrians about not walking out into the road. Probably make it worse actually.
However, if you were to buy yourself a nice sports car with low ground clearance and then the council were install humps around where you live such that you can't avoid scraping you car on them, is anyone liable?.
Hello Mr Council, your speed humps have just caused 3k worth of damage to my car. What are you going to do about it?
IMHO the clearance on a factory standard car must NOT be overreached by road furniture. If the humps do, the erector of the hump is in all cases liable. IMHO there is even EU case law on this, this is why humps are a big nono on the continent!!!
Not a lawyer but read this a time (twelvemonth) ago...
Sadly, as I've found to my own cost, the councils are astonishingly ignorant on these matters. To make it easy for you, the regulations permit a maximum height above the original road surface of 100mm, with a government recommended maximum of 75mm. Approach and departure ramp angles shouldn't exceed 1 in 20.
In theory, most cars should clear these with no problems, but not all... And the council doesn't care one jot if your sportscar can't quite make it. Again, in theory, anything over the 100mm limit (it's referenced in the Statutory Instrument) is an obstruction in the highway, and should be removed immediately. Getting them to actually do it is another matter entirely.
Case in point - an oversized speed bump within 100 yards of my house is still in place, with the council refusing to remove it. Tricky, since there has been a fatality caused by a car which had just crossed the speed bump, hitting a pedestrian. Number of accidents before the speed bumps were installed? Zero...
With that kind of advanced thinking, there is little hope.
In theory, most cars should clear these with no problems, but not all... And the council doesn't care one jot if your sportscar can't quite make it. Again, in theory, anything over the 100mm limit (it's referenced in the Statutory Instrument) is an obstruction in the highway, and should be removed immediately. Getting them to actually do it is another matter entirely.
Case in point - an oversized speed bump within 100 yards of my house is still in place, with the council refusing to remove it. Tricky, since there has been a fatality caused by a car which had just crossed the speed bump, hitting a pedestrian. Number of accidents before the speed bumps were installed? Zero...
With that kind of advanced thinking, there is little hope.
Muncher:
D of T Circular Roads 2/92 on Road Humps:
www.tinyurl.com/29xef
Highways (Road Humps) regs 1996:
www.tinyurl.com/2j9mx
DVD
D of T Circular Roads 2/92 on Road Humps:
www.tinyurl.com/29xef
Highways (Road Humps) regs 1996:
www.tinyurl.com/2j9mx
DVD
The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations 1996 are revoked
You need The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations 1999
www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1999/19991025.htm
You need The Highways (Road Humps) Regulations 1999
www.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1999/19991025.htm
This is a useful source of information too:
www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_control/documents/contentservertemplate/dft_index.hcst?n=9300&l=3
www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_control/documents/contentservertemplate/dft_index.hcst?n=9300&l=3
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