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http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/tpm/ltn ... rafficcalm

Local Transport Note 01/07. This brings together in one comprehensive document a summary of the research commissioned by the Department for Transport together with research from external sources, to provide advice on the use of traffic calming measures today.

Take the blood pressure pills before reading!


Hmm, do I smell bollox?

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"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

It's completely true, no evidence was found. I can't imagine they left the office to look though.

How do you define sensible speed?

Any speed up to and inculding the speed limit?
or 10 mph?

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Oct 11 Birmingham Half Marathon. I am running for the British Heart Foundation.
http://www.justgiving.com/Rob-Taylor

Have they actually comissioned a scientific study in order to rule out this possibility of damage? Surely the source of such revolutionary data will be cited in thier report? Or does 'no evidence' mean we could not be bothered to look for any?

I'm sure negotiating say 50 speed humps, within the speed limit, on a daily basis would cause premature damage to a vehicles suspension. How can they deny it?

Any speed that doesn't cause damage is defined as sensible.

Seriously though, if they truly found no evidence that means they must have deliberately shredded or concealed the three letters I sent them myself reporting damage, which they had previously replied to.

Yep i think youre right!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Vg79_mM2CNY

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"Safety" Scamera Partnerships;
Profitting from death and misery since 1993.

Believe nothing- Question everything.

Depends how they define "damage" too! I think "premature wear" might be a more accurate term to use. I'm sure a single speed bump negotiated within the speed limit in a typical mass-produced car wouldn't show any signs of visible damage at all.

In the meantime, I guess they're still scratching their (empty) heads as to why the public seem to be so fond of 4x4s! I wonder when we'll start seeing car brochures listing a track of "?????mm" in their features list (where "?????mm is about 50mm greater than the width of a speed bump)!

I think a less surreal video clip collection might be http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaYVCeK1LnI&NR=1

yup. I'm mystified as to why manufacturers aren't producing cars with super soft suspension, or at least adjustible ride comfort with "float over bumps" mode for those that mainly use them in cities. (I've got some good ideas for the latter, with the fast chaging shocks like the magnetic audi ones you could drive in float mode with the shockers auto hardening in response to speed incease/steering/braking)

Perhaps they should try talking to stagecoach, who as long ago as 10 years were threatening to remove local bus routes in cheltenham because the damage being sustained by their busses due to speed humps was making the routes unviable

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Fear is a weapon of mass distraction

Citroen have been doing it for years. The C5 and C6 also suspension adjust their stiffness depending on speed and cornering so you don't get the floaty effect of some older Citroens.

Thing is, calling an obstacle course "traffic calming" gives the same sort of impression as calling speed cameras "safety cameras".

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Andrew.

They did. I don't have the orginal copy because it costs £35, but here is a link which tells us what we need to know.

http://www.bromleytransport.org.uk/TRL614_Report_on_Speed_Humps.pdf

So the indisputable science upon which the DfT base their claim, was determined by taking one Astra over one kind of speed bump 85 times. That's less than one week's speed bump traversal for me.

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"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

Ah yes! I had a couple of "DS"es years ago. My "party piece" was taking two particular humps at normal speed and watching the look on my passenger's face as we (a) approached them and they realised I wasn't going to throttle back and (b) the even better look as they turned round because they couldn't believe we'd just been over the hump!

OF course, it only worked with one particular shape of hump at one particular speed but it was uncanny when it did. The problem these days is that the shape of the humps has changed - they're much more steep-sided now so even if you have a car with very soft spring / damper settings you can still damage wheel rims because the tyre sidewalls can't cope. Really you need very low spring rates, very low "bump" damper rates AND very low unsprung mass with very high sprung mass and "full" profile tyres. All of thich the DS had but they weren't the most rewarding cars to chuck into a series of hairpins!

Don't even get me started. Its cost me 300 quid to replace failed front suspension components caused by going over these bloody things

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"Are you sh**ing me?"
"John Spartan, you are fined one credit for a violation of the verbal morality statute."

Don't forget the petition:
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Nohumps/

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Andrew.

Reminds me of a Dave Allen sketch - by the time he'd got to the third "Traffic calming " -steam was almost coming out.

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on