20mph zones!

[ubersonic]

Stupid stupid ideas, there's even evidence to support them being less safe than 30mph zones.

My car is a 3L automatic so literally incapable of maintaining 20mph, instead I have to bounce between 15-20mph, so I basically drive down the road looking at the speedo for miles on end and using the force to try and avoid any children >.>

 

[Nasher]

Not many 20mph streets around me, but they seem to love changing 40s to 30s in places where it's just not necessary. Yet not changing some small and bendy country roads with blind corners, which are far more dangerous. I suspect they are just picking roads where it's easier to install cameras.

 

[TehBluebear]

We've got a few new (well, I say new, more like 3-4 years old now) 20 zones around where I live, and for good reason. Winding old roads with cars parked both sides.

I stick at 20 on them because I've had a few near misses myself from people blasting past the other way. The amount of irritation people have for a 'boy racer's car (tints, exhaust, lowered) doing the speed limit is hilarious, and you can see them weaving around and getting right up my rear. And really, these are people who should know better, driving around in MPVs with their brood of terrors in the back. They'd be the first ones to scream blue murder if they met themselves coming the other way.

EDIT: Dup, what do you drive? Wonder if I've ever seen you about? Work in Nelson, live near Padiham.

 

[ttaskmaster]

Lots of roads right next to schools are having the limit reduced to 20. Used to be advisory but now its becoming compulsary.

Thing is, they leave them in place at 20 even years after the school itself has been closed. Got two of those here in this town and they're real bugbears, especially as both are on fairly steep downhills!

It's not "hard", but it may just be unusual. A car no matter what it is will happily drive at 20mph.

Depends on the vehicle. Many bikes have the same problem with 30mph, whereby 1st (or sometimes 2nd) gear means revving far too high and 2nd (or 3rd, depending) results in a badly labouring engine.
I found something similar with our automatic Merc - I went a good half-mile plus, with the engine hovering at high revs because 18-22 (indicated) just wasn't quite high enough to trip the change-up.
It was horrible!

I like doing the speed limits in slow zones to annoy people behind me, is that bad?

Deliberately doing something to antagonise other drivers? Yes, that is bad.

There is *apparently* something in the law, but not mentioned in the Highway Code, whereby you can exceed the speed limit if every other vehicle around you is already doing so, and whereby you could be perceived as presenting a hazard by travelling slower than them.
It's not something I can immediately find anything about, but several driving instructors have come out with this information as advice for tests. Generally the advice is to exceed the limit if it avoids you becoming a hazard, but to get back down as soon as it is safe to do so.

 

[Spuddy]

Not too many 20 zones here. Do they actually have speed cameras in 20 zones? Never seen or heard of it before.

 

[Mr Badger]

What I really enjoy about Bristol driving is the "new" 40 mph stretch of the M32. In particular when you are heading out of town and there is a car (based on my observations 90% of the time with a woman driver) sitting in the outside lane doing 39 mph and refusing to pull over until they get to the 70 mph sign.

 

[ttaskmaster]

Not too many 20 zones here. Do they actually have speed cameras in 20 zones? Never seen or heard of it before.

Seen plenty of cops parked nearby at key times of day...

 

[Dup]

EDIT: Dup, what do you drive? Wonder if I've ever seen you about? Work in Nelson, live near Padiham.

Hah, I know of you Nick . Vaguely know Rik and Ben from when I was more involved with cars and went to meets. Sadly gave up my MX5 for a boring orange Civic Type-S. I live in Whalley. Not seen any Starlets about for a long time but when I'm driving to work (Bury) I skim passed Padiham through the Atham/Read/Fence lights.

 

[Jamauk]

The problem with a lot of the 20 zones is that there is no common sense used with where they are put, I can understand it on roads outside schools, perhaps on no through roads (in housing estates, ect), and where it's difficult to get two cars side by side down a road, due to parking.

But some roads around Oxfordshire seem to have the most random speed limits, there's a village on my commute to work where the limit is 40, yet all the surrounding villages are 30, and a lot of main roads that were previously NSL have been changed to 50. Other main roads have been changed to 20 zones from 30/40 zones, which I could understand if there was development of new buildings that would make the roads a danger to pedestrians.

However there needs to be a lot more teaching in schools and from parents of the highway code, as so many children just seem to run out for no apparent reason without even looking!

Ultimately though it's all down to emissions, I tried doing a mock theory test yesterday to pass the time, and a lot of the questions asked were focused on emissions of vehicles, the most efficient way to drive, and one question that seemed a bit random was asking how much of the UK emissions is caused by vehicles on the road (Answer - 20%).