More Rubbish no-one wants - 20mph limits

[NickMorgan]

Well, if the roads are as bad in Edinburgh as people above are saying, it is probably as well to have a 20mph limit. That way there will be more time to avoid the potholes and less damage will be done to the cars.
I guess that if this reduces the average speed throughout the city by only one mile per hour that really points to people accellerating between traffic lights only to have to wait at the next set for a little longer. That always amuses me when I am in traffic! Almost as bad as people who think speed limits are for others and that they are more than capable of driving safely at a higher speed!

[Edin Dundee]

Looked it up on BBC website, it called "Morning Call".
Can you mind which day it was on please Bill?
It should be possible to listen again but they don't always show the topic......




thanks,

Ian.

Sorry Ian, no idea -it would be between 7:30 and 8:15, I think they are repeated later in the day.

But here's a link to the Evening News: http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/n ... -1-3654779

Echoing this view, Tony Kenmuir, head of Central Taxis, said the council’s own research indicated that speed cuts had minimal impact on traffic congestion.

“I thought it was going to increase congestion, waste more fuel and increase journey times,” said Mr Kenmuir, whose input on the plans were invited by transport officials.

“But when presented with the council’s own findings, it turned out that speed reductions actually make almost no impact at all.

“Based on trial measures in several different zones, they concluded the introduction of traffic calming measures and reduced speed limits led to the average speed of traffic going from 22mph to 21mph.

“Now, we’re all in favour of increased safety for pedestrians and cyclists. But if average speeds are only going down by a mile per hour, I’m not sure it will accomplish much.”

[NickMorgan]

Well, I see Edinburgh's Councillors voted to impose the 20mph limit this morning.
I used to be a van driver in Edinburgh about 30 years ago and I knew all the little short cuts and quickest routes around the city centre. These have all gradually been closed off. Bus lanes, buses and taxis only roads, one way systems, pedestrianisation, etc. Along with the cost of parking this has all put me off driving in Edinburgh. I now go to the outskirts and get the train in. I suppose that in this respect Edinburgh's measures have reduced congestion, etc.
I work in East Lothian, next door to Edinburgh, and we are faced with having another 10,000 homes built here in the next 20 years. Many of our roads are already at capacity, yet the local authority has been told to sort it out. There are going to have to be measures to encourage people not to use their cars. People don't want to use public transport or cycle because it is more convenient to use the car. I am afraid the only way to make them not use their cars is to make using them less convenient.

[Edin Dundee]

It takes me 12 - 20 minutes to drive the 5.5 miles from home to the squash club.
Using two buses takes 35 - 95 minutes, more on a Sunday. Edinburgh buses are cheap, but that's still £3.50 per trip on a day-saver, carrying a heavy bag and tools and paperwork.
No car - no club. No club - no £420 to the club. No £££ in squash equipment per year. The club hosts 4 sports.....many members are local - many more are not.
That's just one tiny example of why traffic Planning and not traffic Banning is necessary.
I wonder what the combined taxi expenses are of all those councillors who voted for this?
As for the houses being built, they are for commuting into Edinburgh. Hmmm. The Forth road bridge, the A71, the A70, the A1, all one-way traffic into Edinburgh in the morning, out in the evening.
When the schools are off it's easy to drive around Edinburgh - why not ban cars doing the school run? Get the little darlings to use their legs.
Edinburgh has a population of just 500,000. Tiny compared to many other places in the UK, yet the bosses have deliberately created a 'traffic problem' that they need to sort.
They are still p155 that the people of Edinburgh told them where to stick their congestion charge.
60% of people canvassed were in favour of this 20 mph limit. And 100% of the council's figures are baloney.
It says a lot when the polis have publicly stated they will not be enforcing the limit.

[NickMorgan]

Yes, I think you are spot on. If school children used public transport and walked to school rather than being driven in four-wheel-drives then this would start to be the norm. They would then not consider the car as their preferred option to get about. Hopefully by the time they are grown up they will use alternatives ways to get around.
Imagine another 10,000 houses in East Lothian to service the housing requirement of Edinburgh. How are those people going to get in and out of Edinburgh? I was at a planning meeting for the proposed new town at Blindwells, north of Tranent. The junction there reached its capacity in 2008, and they can't built another junction into Blindwells because the junctions have to be a certain distance apart. They have just passed two planning applications for houses around North Berwick. 700 houses, I think. Which road do they use to get to Edinburgh? Yes, the same junction! Blindwells used to have a station when it was an open-cast mine. However, this can't be used for commuting because there are no available slots in the time table for extra trains on the East Coast line. They can't encourage people to use Prestonpans station because the rush hour trains are already full. They can't add extra carriages because the platforms on all of those stations are not long enough!
According to the Main Issues Report it seems that the preferred option is to build many of the new houses at the western side of East Lothian to try to reduce the impact of commuting. These people are all going to converge on Edinburgh!
I often think that there should be a train or tram system running around the route of the bypass with park and ride car parks along it. I can't imagine what it must be like for the people who sit in the congestion of the bypass day after day.

[cleverusername]

I am one of the few drivers who actually obeys the speed limits, spending my whole life been overtaken by everyone. However I think these 20mph limits, except in limited locations outside schools, are stupid. No-one obeys them, and they are been imposed in places with no history of accidents and were 30mph was perfectly safe.

I am seeing more and more daft speed limits. The worst is a country b road, use to be national speed limit, and has now been restricted to 30. There are 3 houses, then nothing, but fields. The limit is absurd, and I feed ridiculous obeying it.

I get anoyed with reckless speeding and in many ways motorists have brought this on themselves. There is far too much bad driving, but these kind of limits due to bring the whole system into disrepute.

[sprint95m]

Thanks for posting the link Bill.

I am a bit confused now over how much of the city is actually covered by the 20mph limit?
The Evening News says that Dalry Road, Leith Walk and Portobello High Street are to have the 20mph limit,
the BBC link states that 80% of Edinburgh will then be covered.
Does that mean that the arterial routes such as the Western Approach Road are not included?


thanks,


Ian.

[sprint95m]

spending my whole life been overtaken by everyone.

On the other hand,
you are much safer with they idiots in front of you .




Ian.

[Edin Dundee]

Thanks for posting the link Bill.

I am a bit confused now over how much of the city is actually covered by the 20mph limit?
The Evening News says that Dalry Road, Leith Walk and Portobello High Street are to have the 20mph limit,
the BBC link states that 80% of Edinburgh will then be covered.
Does that mean that the arterial routes such as the Western Approach Road are not included?


thanks,


Ian.

Hi Ian,

I believe the Western Approach and Dalkeith Road will not be covered. Any existing 40mph roads will stay 40 (for now).
Everything else....

I wonder how many cyclists and buses will obey the limit?

[trackerjack]

As a cyclist does not have to have a speedometer on their cycle its clear that they cannot be caught speeding.
I am an ex racing cyclist and was once pursued by the police (yes quite true ) and they caught me 2 miles from where they started. They said I was going so fast they thought I had stolen the bike So I had to explain that racing cyclists had to train blah blah, so they let me go
I am older and no longer a racer but the police are still just as daft as they were then.

[zombeh]

I wonder how many cyclists and buses will obey the limit?

Cyclists are not "motor vehicles" so speed limits don't apply to them, as for how many will be traveling at less than 20 mph? Most of them most of the time I'd have thought, it's a pain in the arse to go faster than the traffic that's in the way and hard work to go more than 20 unless you're going down hill.