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Non-Sppeding related road safety article (SHOCK!)

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carbore:
Saw this on the BBC of all places

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10454356.stm

An article and report that make recommendations that are not just "people go too fast" and makes sensible recommendations for small scale road changes to improve safety.

For example A dual carriage way near where I live has a lay-by sited just over the brow of a hill party obscured by trees. People com over the hill and don't see people pulling out of the lay-by until very late. They put a Gatso there, but all that means is traffic in the outside lane slows so you cant pull out to let cars out the layby as you get bunching. If the lay-by had been put further away there would be no problems at all. Bad design especially as the road was built form scratch so there were no existing issues re boundaries/buildings etc.

JumboBeef:
Yes, but: a driver should be able to stop within the distance they see to be clear.  Layby or not, you shouldn't hammer it over a brow of a hill/around a bend as there could be a breakdown there.

dxmedia:
Only ever drive as fast as you can stop.  You'll never have an accident unless of outside influence.  Hardly rocket science.

V8MoneyPit:
I agree. If everything, including road design, panders to the idiots it simply makes them more confident of their misguided immortality. We are right back to that old gem, "perceived safety". The safer you make people feel, the more likely they are to have a crash. I think there is plenty of evidence out there to back this up.

SteveGoodz:
<climbs up on hobby horse>

The first thing to say is there is no such thing as a dangerous road. Unless an unforseable mechanical failure makes the vehicle uncontrolable then all "accidents" come down to one thing ... driver error. This may be an unpalatable comment but it is true.

There has been millions of pounds thrown at improving roads over the past two decades with virtually no decrease in the number of KSIs each year. What we have had is a staggering increase in the number of convictions for speeding due to the prevalence of safety sorry speed cameras. At the same time there has been a significant decrease in the number of prosecutions for driving offences that need an actual police officer to witness the offence.

Driver education has more effect on road safety than any other single factor ..

<puts hobby horse back in stable>

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