New mobile camera van

[smiley]

Any of you vanners fancy a trip to south warwickshire we have a new mobile speed van.

Not just any old van it is double sided, behind both doors so they get you both ways.

Its been out a lot lately, not that I'm saying you will be speeding your way to Stratford upon avon, but with the speed limit being reduced it's easy to forget.

 

[adrian_5071472]

weve had 1 of them for about 2 years here on anglesey,they are very sly about where they put it,on corners,hidden in laybys,even hidden in gardens,so if you come over this way and see a van parked on a bridge,be careful,zero tolerance on the a55

 

[Steve L]

Speed camera vans are getting more sneaky by the minuit as the chancellor has cottoned on to the fact that they are great cash machines for government.

However If you drive to the speed limit's then you have nothing to worry about, say's the man who was doing 110 Mph solo on the open road just yesterday.

Now my next comment might well be see as contradictory, but if the standard of driving skill's was much better then there would neither be the need for stupidly low speed limits or bizzarly cordoned off sections of dual track just because people cannot be cosiderate and observant.

Lutz may be able to assist me, but last time I was in Germany most of the Auto bann's were dual track with no upper speed limit and while on the occassion of an accident the crashes were serious, the frequencey was much lower than the UK. Mainly I think this was down to the fact that those going fast put their headlights on for a start and also the German drivers seem to be more focused on the prime motivation, driving.

I realy think that rather than looking at cash deprevation as being the "driver" to safety on the roads, the police should be looking at ways to improve driver skill's.

I wouldn't mind taking a driving assessment every five years for instance to maintain a good level of skill at driving, and I'm sure that most people would realy like to see the standard of driving improve.

 

[rob_jax]

Hi Steve,

I've just returned from Berlin and things in Germany have changed a bit:

Large geographical areas around major cities or town / conurbations have imposed speed limits, either full time or during certain hours.

People obey the speed limits - especially where there are road works - and it's not usually necessary to cone off extra lanes to protect / separate the workforce

If you do have an RTA in an unrestricted zone and were found to have been travelling faster than 130 kph (81 mph) then you will be at least 50% culpable.

And HGV and car / caravan / trailer combinations are restricted to the inside lane on dual carriageways during posted times.

The WHO report into fatal traffic accidents shows a similar fatality rate between the UK, Holland and Germany.

Robert

 

[cris_408518]

Working around Europe we've see a lot or road works that are sone without even reducing the speed limits and lane closure is very very often minima.

A year or two beack we did quite a few trips to Belgium and Holland, on Route around Gent and Antwerpen we saw major Motorway works that that seemed to be a full on work operation late into the night rather than mile upon mile of closed M20 and M25 lanes with nothing at all happening with vehicles crawling along bumper to bumper at night and then sprinting to the ferry port.

If people see reasonable limits and then are allowed to get their foot down on good clear roads it has to have good safety benefits as opposed to the frustrations of the nimby limits imposed on many UK roads.

 

[Berty3]

Speed limits are there for a reason and to be obeyed at all times, it's the law, stay within the legal limit and we are all winners, with the exception of the chancellor.

Berty..

 

[Ewan_5130997]

Steve

"I realy think that rather than looking at cash deprevation as being the "driver" to safety on the roads, the police should be looking at ways to improve driver skill's."

I agree with most of your sentiments, but as a serving Traffic cop, I would like to have my tuppence worth. Certainly in my force area, the camera vans are no longer operated by police officers and are run almost, but not quite, independently from the police. I would be among the first to admit I dont agree with some of the 'limits' set for these cameras.

I would have to insist however that a majority of my duties involve improving road safety by encouraging drivers to improve their skills. Yes, that can mean enforcing traffic laws, especially with regard to much of the outright stupid driving I have seen witnesses carried out by young inexperienced drivers. We do however also utilise a system of driver improvement which the proculator fiscals in this area can use instead of a court appearance where it is felt it would be more beneficial to the driver.

There are unfortunately some drivers (and they are not all young) who seem to lose all sense when they get behind the wheel. Having witnesses the carnage first hand that these idiots cause, I have no problem in doing my part in insuring they are banned from driving for a suitable time on our roads.

One last point. In our area, there is a local 'cruise' where hundreds of 'boy racers' gather to show off their cars. While a minority of these drivers definately fall into the category of 'idiots', on speaking to many of the others, they are keen to talk about driving and improving their own driving abilities. Maybe there is hope yet!

Sorry about the rambling

Regards

Ewan

 

[Ewan_5130997]

well that certainly stopped this thread! :>)