Do we need a change Thinking on Speed ?
Discussion
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has reportedly announced that 85 % of RTA are at a speed of less than 20 MPH. And of that figure at least 50% include pedestrians.
If these figures are to be believed and every serious RTA needs to be avoided if possible, is it right that the obsession with persecuting drivers with speed camera etc . Surely more effort should be made for all in society to be better road users and that includes pedestrians. Bad driving cause more accients thatn speed although I do accept that the consequences are worse the faster the vehicle is travelling.
I do find it very difficult and I would say dangerous to be constanlty looking at speed signs, camers and the speedo whilst diving in traffic.
The A406 ( the famous North Circular Road on N london) changes the speed limit every few hundred yards in places . Good driving and concentrating on the road in my opinion is better that constantly looking at arbitary speed limit signs and checking speedo readings.
I do have a clean licence touch wood and do not condone over the top speeding especially in built up areas.
Doing 90mph on a deserted motorway is infinitely different than 40mph in a small village or in a town centre . But then again is 40mph in the same town or village different at 2.00 in the morning and 15.30 when the schools are turning out.
Years ago traffic cops would use their common sense unless you were lippy.
MOTs and insurance were also checked at the same time
But revenue or arrest targets hadnt been invented then.
Trev
If these figures are to be believed and every serious RTA needs to be avoided if possible, is it right that the obsession with persecuting drivers with speed camera etc . Surely more effort should be made for all in society to be better road users and that includes pedestrians. Bad driving cause more accients thatn speed although I do accept that the consequences are worse the faster the vehicle is travelling.
I do find it very difficult and I would say dangerous to be constanlty looking at speed signs, camers and the speedo whilst diving in traffic.
The A406 ( the famous North Circular Road on N london) changes the speed limit every few hundred yards in places . Good driving and concentrating on the road in my opinion is better that constantly looking at arbitary speed limit signs and checking speedo readings.
I do have a clean licence touch wood and do not condone over the top speeding especially in built up areas.
Doing 90mph on a deserted motorway is infinitely different than 40mph in a small village or in a town centre . But then again is 40mph in the same town or village different at 2.00 in the morning and 15.30 when the schools are turning out.
Years ago traffic cops would use their common sense unless you were lippy.
MOTs and insurance were also checked at the same time
But revenue or arrest targets hadnt been invented then.
Trev
Edited by WOO5IE on Monday 11th August 14:24
We should bring back the Green Cross Code and the Cycling Proficiency Test in schools.
THEN you can bring in jaywalking fines and a standardised compulsary insurance plate for cyclists (as in Switzerland). Then one can start reducing traffic accidents in towns and return the road to whom it belongs i.e. those who pay for it....!!!!
YES and one does need a proper driver training, NOT just a driving test, say a second training which all have to take after they've passed the drivers road knowledge test and the basic driving proficiency. (and remove all the green lies from the tick test!)
There are so many gormless numpties driving nowadays we should also lose the British "take the test as often as you want" attitude and use the (european standard) 3 attempts at the test and 3 failed then NO license EVER!!!
THEN you can bring in jaywalking fines and a standardised compulsary insurance plate for cyclists (as in Switzerland). Then one can start reducing traffic accidents in towns and return the road to whom it belongs i.e. those who pay for it....!!!!
YES and one does need a proper driver training, NOT just a driving test, say a second training which all have to take after they've passed the drivers road knowledge test and the basic driving proficiency. (and remove all the green lies from the tick test!)
There are so many gormless numpties driving nowadays we should also lose the British "take the test as often as you want" attitude and use the (european standard) 3 attempts at the test and 3 failed then NO license EVER!!!
WOO5IE said:
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has reportedly announced that 85 % of RTA are at a speed of less than 20 MPH. And of that figure at least 50% include pedestrians.
If these figures are to be believed and every serious RTA needs to be avoided if possible, is it right that the obsession with persecuting drivers with speed camera etc . Surely more effort should be made for all in society to be better road users and that includes pedestrians. Bad driving cause more accients thatn speed although I do accept that the consequences are worse the faster the vehicle is travelling.
I do find it very difficult and I would say dangerous to be constanlty looking at speed signs, camers and the speedo whilst diving in traffic.
The A406 ( the famous North Circular Road on N london) changes the speed limit every few hundred yards in places . Good driving and concentrating on the road in my opinion is better that constantly looking at arbitary speed limit signs and checking speedo readings.
I do have a clean licence touch wood and do not condone over the top speeding especially in built up areas.
Doing 90mph on a deserted motorway is infinitely different than 40mph in a small village or in a town centre . But then again is 40mph in the same town or village different at 2.00 in the morning and 15.30 when the schools are turning out.
Years ago traffic cops would use their common sense unless you were lippy.
MOTs and insurance were also checked at the same time
But revenue or arrest targets hadnt been invented then.
Trev
agreed 100%If these figures are to be believed and every serious RTA needs to be avoided if possible, is it right that the obsession with persecuting drivers with speed camera etc . Surely more effort should be made for all in society to be better road users and that includes pedestrians. Bad driving cause more accients thatn speed although I do accept that the consequences are worse the faster the vehicle is travelling.
I do find it very difficult and I would say dangerous to be constanlty looking at speed signs, camers and the speedo whilst diving in traffic.
The A406 ( the famous North Circular Road on N london) changes the speed limit every few hundred yards in places . Good driving and concentrating on the road in my opinion is better that constantly looking at arbitary speed limit signs and checking speedo readings.
I do have a clean licence touch wood and do not condone over the top speeding especially in built up areas.
Doing 90mph on a deserted motorway is infinitely different than 40mph in a small village or in a town centre . But then again is 40mph in the same town or village different at 2.00 in the morning and 15.30 when the schools are turning out.
Years ago traffic cops would use their common sense unless you were lippy.
MOTs and insurance were also checked at the same time
But revenue or arrest targets hadnt been invented then.
Trev
Edited by WOO5IE on Monday 11th August 14:24
well said
JMGS4 said:
We should bring back the Green Cross Code and the Cycling Proficiency Test in schools.
THEN you can bring in jaywalking fines and a standardised compulsary insurance plate for cyclists (as in Switzerland). Then one can start reducing traffic accidents in towns and return the road to whom it belongs i.e. those who pay for it....!!!!
YES and one does need a proper driver training, NOT just a driving test, say a second training which all have to take after they've passed the drivers road knowledge test and the basic driving proficiency. (and remove all the green lies from the tick test!)
There are so many gormless numpties driving nowadays we should also lose the British "take the test as often as you want" attitude and use the (european standard) 3 attempts at the test and 3 failed then NO license EVER!!!
In my area we do have the green cross code and cycling proficiency.THEN you can bring in jaywalking fines and a standardised compulsary insurance plate for cyclists (as in Switzerland). Then one can start reducing traffic accidents in towns and return the road to whom it belongs i.e. those who pay for it....!!!!
YES and one does need a proper driver training, NOT just a driving test, say a second training which all have to take after they've passed the drivers road knowledge test and the basic driving proficiency. (and remove all the green lies from the tick test!)
There are so many gormless numpties driving nowadays we should also lose the British "take the test as often as you want" attitude and use the (european standard) 3 attempts at the test and 3 failed then NO license EVER!!!
All taxpayers pay for the road, not just drivers.
Each year another 52,000 illegal drivers take to the roads.
Driving without a licence or with a licence obtained by a friend or criminal taking the test for them.
Fake documents.
No TAX
No Insurance
No MOT
No education on basic skills.
Are they more likely to run when police try to stop them?
will they drive again after having the full wait of the law forced down upon them with a full on wrist slap?
Will they be prosecuted for murder when accidentally mowing down a family on the pavement or will they have to suffer another driving ban?
Why do we still pay through the nose for there mistakes, paying for public services waisted by them required to clean up after the event.
Why do we pay extra insurance to protect ourselves from them.
freerange7 said:
Each year another 52,000 illegal drivers take to the roads.
Driving without a licence or with a licence obtained by a friend or criminal taking the test for them.
Fake documents.
No TAX
No Insurance
No MOT
No education on basic skills.
Are they more likely to run when police try to stop them?
will they drive again after having the full wait of the law forced down upon them with a full on wrist slap?
Will they be prosecuted for murder when accidentally mowing down a family on the pavement or will they have to suffer another driving ban?
Why do we still pay through the nose for there mistakes, paying for public services waisted by them required to clean up after the event.
Why do we pay extra insurance to protect ourselves from them.
That's a 1000 a week ? FECK me. That's where I want my taxes aimed !!! Driving without a licence or with a licence obtained by a friend or criminal taking the test for them.
Fake documents.
No TAX
No Insurance
No MOT
No education on basic skills.
Are they more likely to run when police try to stop them?
will they drive again after having the full wait of the law forced down upon them with a full on wrist slap?
Will they be prosecuted for murder when accidentally mowing down a family on the pavement or will they have to suffer another driving ban?
Why do we still pay through the nose for there mistakes, paying for public services waisted by them required to clean up after the event.
Why do we pay extra insurance to protect ourselves from them.
herewego said:
In my area we do have the green cross code and cycling proficiency. All taxpayers pay for the road, not just drivers.
Percentually only about 12% of all income from vehicle drivers goes to pay for the roads, so although the money for roads is taken out of a general pot (filled solely by VED and fuel tax), you cannot really say that non-drivers pay for the roads..... But moot point, we need better drivers, better pedestrian and cycle discipline and MUCH better check ups on the 1.4 million uninsured drivers.
A system similar to what we have here in Germany is good.
ONLY the vehicle registration office can issue plates, they ONLY issure them when valid insurance and driving license is proven (insurance coys must inform office if it becomes invalid), then the plates are issued with the county/town sticker, the TüV and the pollution-check test. These are in the form of stickers which are very difficult to fake and are destroyed if tampered with.
If anything changes and the registration office notes this, the police are informed and your stickers are removed, which is immediately visible to anyone that the vehicle is not allowed on the road. Thus we have little non-insurance, non-licensed, non-TüV crime....
robinhood21 said:
Agree! 
The sooner we get away from speed limits, and concentrate on driving to the condition of the roads/surroundings, the sooner accident levels will begin to fall again.
The sooner we get away from speed limits, and concentrate on driving to the condition of the roads/surroundings, the sooner accident levels will begin to fall again.
Too much is made of speeding and as a concequence of that I think the majority of motorists spend all thier time worrying about getting speeding tickets than worrying about the basics of driving.DoctorFan said:
robinhood21 said:
Agree!
The sooner we get away from speed limits, and concentrate on driving to the condition of the roads/surroundings, the sooner accident levels will begin to fall again.
The sooner we get away from speed limits, and concentrate on driving to the condition of the roads/surroundings, the sooner accident levels will begin to fall again.
Too much is made of speeding and as a concequence of that I think the majority of motorists spend all thier time worrying about getting speeding tickets than worrying about the basics of driving.Last time I was in GB it seemed everyone was looking at anything but the road, speedo, navi, phone, girlfriend or kids... none seemed to be concentrating on the road and the traffic!!!
Gassing Station | Motoring News | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff