New 50mph limit roads - Bike Magazine

[Raffles_Gentleman Thug]

Hello loyal BCFers.

I've got a small question - and possibly a favour - to ask you.

It can't have escaped peoples' notice that 50mph speed limits are appearing all over the country. Especially around Derbyshire and Wales.

Have any of your local national speed limit roads been turned into one of those horrible, pointless 50mph zones?

The reason I ask is that Bike is starting a campaign to try and save some of our favourite 60 limit roads - which are being cut down without justification - and it'd help massively to have some people who've experienced it. We'd like to share your stories in the magazine in a future issue, too.

If so, let me know. [email protected] and let me know - thanks all.

Merry Christmas.

(Except for this bloody snow. Melt, damn you! Melt! I want to go out for a ride!)

Khal a.k.a. Miraclefish
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"Is sir addressing me or is he masticating on a house brick? Because either way sir loses his teeth."

[UnknownStuntm...]

To quote Stinkwheel (I think...) from a while back - "I ignored the 60 limit, and I'll do the same with a 50 limit".

[Kickstart]

Hi

None that recently. A34 from Stafford to Stoke used to be an NSL dual carraigeway for most of its length but get nailed down to a 60 limit about a decade ago. The A5 (wide major A road) near Cannock has been a dodgy 50 limit for years.

However we do not appear to have had any more examples of the creeping death of reduced limits around here recently.

If you see the notices in the paper you can object, and it might delay them a bit but the chances are that unless a large number object (and few normally bother) they will just ignore the objections.

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[the grim reaper]

The one that really pissed me off was the A3057 from Romsey to Stockbridge, near Southampton. That used to be a 60 limit all the way and is a fantastic road. Unfortunately, the Police got wind of the bikers using it and, to be fair, some of the bikers were ignoring the two 30mph villages along the way, so it is now a set of 40mph and 50mph limits.

Cheers

Grim
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Adverts don't always work: Remember that advert, where the army are running across the desert and they have a wounded man on a stretcher. They get to a ravine, the bridge is down and a caption pops up that says, 'What are you thinking?'. I don't know about you but I was thinking, 'Christ, I'm glad I'm not in the f***ing army'.

[MarJay]

Hey Khal, how is it going?

Got no "Winter hack challenge" planned this year? As I recall you almost died on a CX500 or something.

Our local councils are short sighted in the extreme. They've cut a load of 60mph roads down to 40mph recently, but they are only short stretches so I guess I don't really fit in to the article.

I am concerned about the government's new idea to allow councils to cut NSL roads to 50, but to be honest they had that power before, and so what makes people believe they will use it now?

The debate is a bit tired now I guess, but the long and the short of it is, speed doesn't kill, but poor driving kills. If everybody improved their driving standards, we'd reduce road deaths. In fact, reducing speed limits may even encourage complacency on dangerous roads (I believe there is some scientific evidence to this effect).

Reducing speeds just reduces the speed of impact, it doesn't cut accidents and it most certainly doesn't improve driving standards, its just easy to enforce.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[27cows]

Quite a few of the roads I travel on have been 50'ed, notably the A28 between Canterbury and Ashford. There doesn't appear to be any logical reasoning behind the change.

[Raffles_Gentleman Thug]

Haha no, no winter plans at the moment. Bless that CX500...

Hmm, sadly, they're not only allowed to drop roads down (the short version is this: in the past, road limits were set by the 85th percentile. Now they're set by a chart. 'Does the road have corners and junctions? And it's rural? That's a 50.' This is all following a DfT Circular.

And, here's the worst part, the DfT have ordered all regional councils to complete a review of every A and B rural route and assess its speed limit by 2011.

Ouch.

But, you can fight back...
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"Is sir addressing me or is he masticating on a house brick? Because either way sir loses his teeth."

[Kickstart]

Hi

Bit out of date, but the ABD thing on objecting to speed limit changes.

https://www.abd.org.uk/speed_limit_objections.htm

And a bit on the 85th percentile speed (ie, accepted to be the speed which setting the speed limti higher OR LOWER will increase accidents):-

https://www.abd.org.uk/speed_limits_85th.htm

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[paddlesat16]

fuckin nanny state
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I once saw a bloke shagging a donkey.... in Saudi arabia. Theory Test Passed 26/10/09 Mod 1 Passed 26/4/10, Mod 2 Passed 7/6/10 Current Bikes Suzuki GSX1400 K5, Aprillia Pegaso 650, Suzuki DR350T.

[Tango675]

I have read the article and was interested to hear that any road can be nominated and that onlt 21 days notice needs to be given.

Most of the road between buckingham and bicester have been lowered to 50 for no obvious reason.

I get the feeling that once a new speed limmit is in place its very hard to undo, so to speak.
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Somebody give that windup merchant a torque wrench..

[MarkJ]

Pretty much any NSL road going from Sheffield to somewhere in Derbyshire is now a 50, most notably the A57 Snake Pass.

Not that it makes much difference to the average car driver - most are too afraid to go over 40 anyway.

[Bru]

It's a fantastic idea. Seriously, the DfT has not ignored the science behind speed limits. Rather, they have wisely decided that there is money to be made and saved, using their science. Think about it: if the research indicates that a road has a 'natural' safe speed zone (read Kickstart's link), then installing speed cameras set at a lower speed will guarantee to pull in a higher number of penalty payments. This will also save on active policing; a win-win for the councils.

EDIT: I removed my thoughtless comment about the government and Iraq; irrelevant, easy and not at all helpful to our friendly journalist and the subject at hand. Sorry.

Now, if the DfT were to introduce a camera which could spot motorists overtaking over solid white lines around blind bends or over blind crests, that I would support whole-heartedly.

[metalangel]

The A470 into Cardiff becomes 50mph between Nantgarw and Coryton. Not that recent a thing but still annoying.

The A4232 around Cardiff Bay has gone back and forth between NSL and 50 too many times in the last ten years, I've lost track of what it is right now! Cameras have been added and removed several times as well.

And we all know about the infuriating 50mph on the M4 from J30 to J24 'for safety reasons' while the variable speed gantries are fitted (which I have no doubt will then just be permanently on 50 like on the A470)
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Previous: 2002 Honda CB500 (sold), 2007 Suzuki SV650SK6 (crashed), 2005 Yamaha FZ6 Fazer (sold). Currently bikeless
"A faired bike will get you 10x more clunge than a unfaired one." -Marlboro Matt

[st3v3]

If we launched a FaceBook style campaign to get these decisions 'laughed out' in a 'battle of the charts' style fashion as per recently then how many people think it would have any success?
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Roger wrote: Women don't get damp for clingy puppies. Get some better happy pills, hit the gym & buy a medallion the size of a dinner plate. Job done

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

[Yazta]

I agree Grim, the romsey road being cut was really annoying! I ride that everyday and it's always crawling with coppers if it's sunny.

[Bru]

I agree that some places are safer than others. My point refers to blind bends and blind crests.

[buddy]

its so idiotic

THE SPEED IS NOT WHAT CAUSES ACCIDENTS

90% of the time its just shit driving that causes is it
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When this baby hits 88 miles per hour... you're gonna see some serious shit.

[damz]

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

[st3v3]

[Kickstart]

Hi

That is basically why the 85th percentile rule was used. The speed at which 85% of drivers would drive at or under without speed limits, etc. Those who naturally drive at about that speed are the safest, with the risk increasing for not only those who drive faster but also slower.

However now they would rather increase the risk by reducing speeds as long as the resulting accidents happen at a slightly slower speed.

All the best

Keith
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[Shreddie]

[lostboy]

alot of the 50 limits in derbyshire been up for a while now and as matlock a bit of a local biker haunt the 50 limit is observed all the time , shame they put the limit up there cos the road to matlock got some of the smoothest roads in the county, however have noticed a few new speed cameras popping up which is a bit of a pain.
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Never invite a vampire into your house you silly boy!

[Kal]