What does this road sign mean.....

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estebanrey

estebanrey

estebanrey

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...to you in terms of speed limit, when you're driving a car on a single carriage country road for example?

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....because it seems sometimes I'm the only one who knows it means 60 mph.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_speed_limits_in_the_United_Kingdom#National_speed_limits

The number of times I sit behind someone doing 40 after this sign is amazing and makes me question why they don't just replace it with 60 signs.

I said to a relative I was driving the other day after driving past one on a single carriageway, "Why don't people know that means you can go 60" and their reply was "I thought it meant 50". I just sighed.

Before anyone jumps down my throat with the cliche about limits being limits and not targets (I respect that and I'm not one of those idiots who'll drive up someone's backside because they're doing the speed limit or a just under), I'm specifically referring to the misunderstanding of the sign and not people who don't like driving fast in general.

I've seen people who'll happily drive at 35 mph in a 30 zone before a sign and then creep up to a little over 45 after it. I've seen people pulling away from me on one part of the road (as they are speeding) only for me to catch up and have to slow right down after a National Speed Limit sign.

The only reason I can think they were invented was to save money, rather than print numerous different signs with different numbers on them, just have one and expect the driver to translate it later but I think it's time it is retired and replaced with plain and simple numeric speed signs.

Did you get the answer right when you saw the image above or like many, did you think it meant 40, 50 or even something else?
 
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Diddums said:
It means NSL which could be 60 or 70 depending on the amount of lanes.
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..or 30 if it's a restricted area. As above, I'm aware of the various NSL limits but I gave a specific example at the start which stated we were talking about a single carraige country road, hence it means 60.
 
davieg said:
Also depends what vehicle your driving too so it means all sorts of different limits depending on circumstances.
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Good point, forgot that. I only thought about what it means for me because I don't generally drive buses, vans or lorries.
 
It means I can drive up to 60 without the rozzers getting all up in my rear.
 
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In East Sussex and parts of Kent it appears to mean speed up to 40 and stay there regardless of any other speed limit signs. :-)
Andi.
 
estebanrey said:
Yes, hence why I said "when you're driving a car".
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Then you've kind of answered your own question about why we have the sign instead of numerical ones.

Also kind of related, ignoring road works or other temporary speed restrictions, have you ever seen a speed limit sign on a motorway?
 
Theres a few places i know of where limits can get strange, section on my old commuting road (now pleasantly replaced with confirmed 70 limit dual carrigeway) was 50 (reference a mates dad is a retired traffic cop) but i have never seen a 50 sign on it, nor anyone ever doing 50, or anyone getting pulled over for speeding.

Same goes with the new dual carrige way which meets up to an older dual carrigeway both ends, same construction as the new road so 70mph limit, but people still stick to 60 on it.

Another road i often drive past has a section by a garage that people seem to think is 40, but there's no signs for it and no actual restriction, although the number of accidents at that section with folk pulling out is probably reason enough to slow down.


Tbh i dont really mind folk driving at 40 in a 60, those buggers that go just slow enough to annoy and just fast enough to make overtaking too dangerous are the worst, or the ones who'll do 35 on a road with wide corners that you cant overtake on but then speed up the moment you get to a long enough straight section are downright trolling.

This is on a roads of course, there are obviously country roads that it's just not sensible or safe to do 60 on, to the discovery of far too many late boy racers.
 
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MooMoo444 said:
Country roads vary wildly, some have no business being NSL
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Right....but it still means 60 if you are driving a car with no trailers (IE just the car) down a single carriage country road regardless if the road doesn't seem like it should be NSL.

Honestly the amount of nit picking is hilarious :p
 
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