Conference terri::cars_uk

	I've no idea why; how about the road being dangerous above those
	speeds 'cos the surface has degraded or something to do with
	wildlife preservation?

	Dave

    
    'cos the council says the road has broken up due to the hot summer.
    
    I live 400yds off it, & it seems to me not significantly different to how
    it's been for the past few years.
    
                                           

    
    I rang up the council and enquired 'bout this ...
    
    They claim that it was closed because the surface had melted in the
    intense heat, and now that it's cooled-down all the grip has been
    smoothed-out. The concern was when it gets damp/wet there will be a
    2 mile skid pan!!
    
    They wanted to close the road until Jan '91 when they have scheduled
    some major road repairs but the congestion along Bearwood road etc.
    meant they had to re-open the road. They have gone `over-the-top' on
    speed limit so that no-one can claim they are being negligent if there
    is a major accident as a result of the dangerous (their term) road
    surface.
    
    I'm informed by them that this speed-limit is enforcable and the boys
    in blue may take an interest in it when the weather is poor.
    
    Happy motoring !!!
    

    > I'm informed by them that this speed-limit is enforcable 
    
    Well, if you've not seen the signs, then you'd have to ask.  But if you
    have, and they are in a red circle, then you shouldn't need to :-)
    
    Jeff.

    Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm....
    
    They've done the same on the road from Ascot to the A30 ( the one which
    comes out near Virginia Water) for what appears to be a very long 
    stretch, some of it may be warranted, but some of it seams rather 
    extreme, before it had no speacil restriction on it.....
    
    
    Helen.

    
    Re .5
    
    What a shame, that always used to be one of my favourite stretches of
    road late at night and with no other cars on it! :^)
    
    Mark

    Have they just sprinkled new chips on the top? They did this to the A34
    a few weeks back. Only took a few hours for all the chips to get into
    the ditch (or windscreen!) but at least a week to remove the 20 MPH signs.
    
    Why don't they roll them in properly as they did when I was a boy?
    (I can guess the answer :-(  )
    
    Jc

    As far as I could tell there was no difference in the road surface -
    I haven't driven it for a week or two, but the signs looked pretty
    permanent to me when I was there - a few had actually sprung up
    just to remind you on the nice bits....
    
    It seams silly to think that you could loose your license if you
    were doing over 40mph :-(
    
    Helen.
    

The section of A329 in question has steep banks each side which deposit mud on
the road every time it rains.  They also help channel water onto the road.  The
long dry summer would have caused a large dust build-up on the road, so as soon
as it rains this will get mixed with water and mud making a very slippery
surface.  The road is very bendy, and people tend to drive rather fast along it,
so I presume the limit is to try and stop people taking mud-sodden bends rather
wider than they had intended.

But every time I drive down it, cars are still doing 40-50.  I must admit I
thought the signs were a mistake when I first saw them...

Scott

PS Helen: do you live in Ascot?  Do you commute to Reading?  Do you want to
car-share?

    Thanks for the offer Scott,
    
    Unfortunately I come up the A33 from Basingstoke most days, but
    I still tend to go back to Egham sometimes to meet up with friends,
    hence the use of the A329  and what used to be some fun driving....
    
    
    Helen.

Personal Name Etymology:

There are suggestions in various notesfiles that women find certain inanimate
objects more useful than men, so this is mainly for revenge.

Original phrase, spoken by Rex Harrison in film-whose name-I-can-never-remember:
    "Why can't a woman be more like a man"

Personally, I wouldn't fancy a masculine girlfriend, so that idea doesn't
appeal.  But I like cars, hence the adaptation.  Interpretations range from the
innocent to the very smutty, and most are applicable ;-)

I'll leave the rest of you to compile your own lists of interpretations...

Scott

    
    
    re .13
    
    ... and I always thought that last word was cagoule ;-)
    
    Wasn't the film 'My fair lady' ?
    
    nik.

    
    My wife is not dissimilar to one of my cars...
    
    
    
    Both are unpredictable and lots of fun! 
    
    Mark
    

    
    Funny you should say that.
    
    The welder has been spending a lot of time with her recently! :^)
    
    Mark

Re: .7

>    Have they just sprinkled new chips on the top? They did this to the A34
>    a few weeks back. Only took a few hours for all the chips to get into
>    the ditch (or windscreen!) but at least a week to remove the 20 MPH signs.
    
The 20 MPH signs displayed then are solely an advisory speed limit.  The 
reason for them is twofold - firstly to reduce the number of flying stone 
chips and secondly that fast vehicles can severely damage the new surface 
before it gets fully bedded in.

jb

    Time was when roads were surfaced with tarmac, bedded in with a road
    roller. Now they spray the old surface with thin tar, drop a few
    chippings on it, leave some 20 MPH signs, and ****** off.
    
    Ah, me. Nostalgia is not what it used to be.
    
    Steve

A large proportion of the New Forest area is covered by a _blanket_ 
40mph speed limit.... and it's enforcable, too. It's been in effect since
early this year.

In practice, anywhere North of the A31, between Southampton and Ringwood 
and one or two areas extending South are affected.   
You get _one_ sign when you enter the restricted area, after
which you may or may not see reminders around and about.

The intention is to cut down on the number of car/animal collisions... and in
those there parts, the animals come big !!!  (Deer, cows, horses, pigs..)
It seems to be working, and the local constabulary are enforcing the limit
enthusaistically.... on the principle that handing out tickets is better than
sorting out wrecks.


IanP

I thought the law required reminders of "non standard" speed limits every so 
many yards...

if so you'd probably have a valid defense against a speeding conviction (there
was a case in Lancashire a few years ago when a 40 sign was being repainted: the
sign was correct bu it stood on a grey pole, rather than a black and white
banded one, and the speeder got off as "the limit was not legally and accurately
posted")

/. Ian .\

Re: .21

> I thought the law required reminders of "non standard" speed limits every so 
> many yards...

That is correct.  In the New Forest there are repeater signs, and it is 
also painted on the road at certain intervals.  (Out of interest, repeater
signs are specifically _not_ allowed in 30 MPH zones where there is street
lighting.  Hence the "You are still in a 30 MPH zone" signs I saw earlier
this year near Rochdale.) 

> if so you'd probably have a valid defense against a speeding conviction (there
> was a case in Lancashire a few years ago when a 40 sign was being repainted: the
> sign was correct bu it stood on a grey pole, rather than a black and white
> banded one, and the speeder got off as "the limit was not legally and accurately
> posted")

Let's get rid of this business about black and white banded poles.  They 
have not been required for any roadsigns for at least 20 years - grey has 
been the standard colour for the poles since the current style of signage
was introduced in the 1960s. 

jb

    This may be a bit late but it seems like a good place to put it.
    In Galway our local council recently completed a 2-mile stretch of dual
    carriage-way that by-passes a congested stretch of the Eastern approach
    road.It was designed for speeds of up to 70 MPH and assisted with
    European grants,so it is a very high quality job indeed.
    The joke is that the council have put a 30 MPH speed limit on it!!!!
    Another joke is that the remaining 4 miles to my home are single lane
    and bendy and if you get stuck behind a slow-poke you're stuck there.
    It has a general 55mph speed limit.
    The joke is that where it is possible to do a decent speed the law
    won't allow you and where it is often physically impossible to do 55mph
    it is legally permissible!!
    BTW NOBODY does less than 45mph on the dual-carriageway so the law is
    being treated as a joke.