Safe Speed Forums

I'm sure we can all think of many of these (and PeterE has a good list on his site covering the NW). Still, it would be good to assemble a list of the worst offenders in one place.

I'll kick off with Worcestershire County Council. I don't live in Worcestershire, but do drive through it frequently, and I get really, really p155ed off with their policy of reduced speed limits through "villages", on all roads no matter how major. There are several problems with this:

1) the definition of a "village" is somewhat generous. Any small collection of dwellings can be given the treatment (sometimes 40 limit, often 30)

2) the definition of the boundaries of villages are also generous, so the lollipops are usually 100 yds or more from the first/last house

3) for a 30 limit, there will often be a "preparatory" 40 limit for 1/2 mile either side.

It may come as some comfort that I have yet to observe any police effort being expended on enforcement of these artificial, and plainly "political" limits.

For an example of how this works, try the B4101 from the A435 at the Cross and Bowling Green junction to Bordesley (just north of Redditch), through the village of Beoley. All the above features are present and correct.

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Keep right on to the end of the road ...

The relevant page is:

http://speedlimit.dreamwater.org/slr.html

The prize for the most ludicrous reduction I have seen must go to the A56 Walton bypass near Warrington, where an NSL dual carriageway through an entirely rural area was reduced to 40.

http://speedlimit.dreamwater.org/images/a56walton2.jpg

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

Surely the A449 between Worcester and Kidderminster has to be worst engineered road in Worcestershire? If anything, a road with a dubious safety record now feels even more dangerous to drive down with its numerous two-lane-to-one bottlenecks and rigidly enforced 50mph limit?


Dave

Off the main subject I know but there's an interesting near chicane on the A69 in Cumbria just East of Low Row. Recomended max is 40. You can round it at 60 in a good car but the road limit is 60. Furthermore, you get traffic heading eastbound accelerating away from it and 1/4 of a mile up the road there is a garage entrance!

I actually know the traffic engineers who planned and installed this. And they're both pretty useless!