The Department of Transport is asking for our opinions on road signs:
Motorists, cyclists and pedestrians are to have their say on the way British road signs should look in the future.
The Department for Transport is carrying out its biggest review of traffic signs in 40 years.
It says it wants to use the latest technology to cut congestion and emissions, and improve safety, without cluttering the streets.
Well, as a motorist, motorcyclist, cyclist and pedestrian, I can say that at the moment there are far to many of them. Street furniture in recent years has proliferated to a point where there is information overkill. Less is definitely more. And, while we are at it, let’s get rid of traffic lights – at least the vast majority; especially the ones sited on roundabouts. If ever there was an insane idea, that is it. If roundabout traffic flow is unbalanced, then the obvious and sensible solution is a magic roundabout. This means that traffic continues to flow and can take a more direct route. Traffic lights undermine the spiral effect of a roundabout and force drivers into the wrong lane as they have to stop part way through their manoeuvre and find themselves cut off as another driver moves into the road-space they were about to occupy.
And, while we are at it, shared space and motorcycles in bus lanes have been proven to work, so more of both, please.
Oh, and please, ignore the extreme cycling lobby that, despite clear evidence to the contrary, still claims that motorcycles in bus lanes place cyclists in danger. They don’t.
Sod that. End bus lanes completely. That’s about 20% extra urban road capacity right there.
Obnoxio The Clowns last blog post..Cornerstone
I’ve got mixed feelings depending on whether I’m on the bike or not 😉
One thing that does annoy me is that they suddenly come to an end and create a bottle-neck. Worse, are those HOV lanes that start and end nowhere; pointless – not to mention that they create more problems than they are supposed to solve.
Just new one sign is needed – a big one that says ‘Indicators – USE THEM!!!!’
JuliaMs last blog post..Customer Service – FAIL!
Whilst I generally agree with your coment on traffic lights on roundabouts I can attest to one that works and saves me around 30mins a day. When they were installed on the roundabout under the M4 the Heathrow Spur, along with a few other changes traffic started to flow.
Can I add my twopenneth – a law making it illegal to drive with fog lights on in the rain and at speeds over, say, 30MPH. Death to the former and at least 9 points to the latter.
The Great Simpletons last blog post..How many airlines and holiday companies…
The Highway code (rules 226 and 236) refers to visibility being below 100m; i.e. if visibility is above 100m you must switch them off. Some drivers are just plain stupid. I’m not sure about it being specifically illegal, though. If you need them on – why the fuck are you doing over 30mph would be my question – or is that an obvious question?
Agreed, turn ’em off, chop ’em down, shared space is cheap and it works.
And instead of speed limits on motorways, the law should be you have to leave a two second gap between yourself and the vehicle ahead of you.
Re your comment at mine, where are you living now, I thought you were moving to France?
Mark Wadsworths last blog post..Unlikely heroes (5)
Mark, we’ve overlapped. I have expanded on my points here. I am in the UK at the moment and moving to France at the beginning of December.
BTW – did you know that the two second rule doesn’t work? You need rather more than two seconds at 70mph.