Safe Speed Forums

I've never been tempted to park in a disabled bay but when I was on crutches for several weeks, I always used to have a go at the numpties parking on disabled bays with no disabled signs. When you have to walk any distance on crutches it soon makes you realise what pratts they are who can't park in a proper space.

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.

Yes indeed. It make cycling so difficult

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

This has the side effect of meaning you're more likely to be stopped when the light goes green, whereas you roll up slowly and quite often the light changes before you get there, and you actually end up having gone faster overall.

The other one that gets me is people that creep impatiently forward at red lights, then don't actually pull away that quickly.

it's better to roll up to it to time it so that you don't have to actually stop. Not stopping gets you off the mark quicker than cars with a lot more power and or uses a lot less fuel. It's a tactic I use on my tractor when going through town, I can see the lights too from my high perch.

Hmm, I wouldn't purposfully slow to avoid having to wait at a red light if I was in my car, unless there was nobody behind me.

Why not? It smooths the traffic out and everyone keeps going. Next time you are in a long queue that starts and stops, back off so you can just keep creeping along in first. No wear on the clutch, but if you like a tiring drive and wearing your brakes out...

Today's gem, turning right round a large roundabout in a line of six cars.

Only one car (me) indicated right.

Only two cars (me + 1) indicated off.

Well that's me and you who both signal JtB but I think we're in a minority. So..

How about a transducer in all cars which picks up a pulse from a passive electronic device fitted under the Tarmac at islands which senses which lane you’re in thereby automatically turning your indicator on? If you’re in the correct lane your car signals your intention but also acts as a reminder to get in the correct lane if you’re daft enough to be in the wrong one?

How's that for a numpty idea?

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The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.

It could cause mayhem, but if we all drove really slowly it'd be fine.

I will bet the numpty in question never receive FPN over such illegality of the sort which CAN kill


But twazaks I have encountered?

Muppet weaving about the road whilst texting.

He was wearing black lycra.. no lights.. .. on bicycle

Pedestrians the other week (already had most over them. Or rather the other driver did . He approach pelican crossing, He actually within the crossing .. level with the post .. when..

woman step straight in front of him. Then they all do. (Well, fair enoughski - - he had stopped, und so had I when I saw person crossing as I approach und then slow down to stop for the "hazard of people crossing on a GREEN light ahead". What made the other driver go purple though was one woman gesticulating at the lights und claiming "right of way". I wade in .. or rather waddle in.. und point to lights .. saying "GREEN! Liebchen."

She had grace to turn as red as the little man .. apologising und then break faith with the "sisterhood" by telling me that "I should not be driving whilst pregnant" They said they thought the lights had changed as both of us approach "so slowly as if stopping for red light" (It was snowing/sleeting.. )

OK .. dealt with the numpty road user general who does not need a licence to be a numpty

Now for the licenced one.. (Mad Doc still has not posted up his report of the IAM wannabe from hell.. but that one ist in "world of his own". Mad Doc advised "not to give up on this chap yet as he has sought IAM membership .. so might just accept there are "concerns" - but ist considering "wussing out of the next encounter und getting IG to do it for him )

But that tale worthy of Mad Doc's special wit und style of what like to encounter a "Maureen of Driving School notoriety of 2001-ish" ist a rant to savour on its own I will ask him to post it up when he get home.. as you all now on edge of seats perhaps ..


The ones I encounter last..

fool who blat by me on a Gatso infested DC .. braking for each scam.. but weaving on a Handy phone.. und who stop with a centimetre to spare from car at lights. That car edge forward to create a little space. He edge forward to almost contact with that car

Mumpty who kept indicator on for a whole mile despite my trying to tell her so by various flashing of headlamps und Morse Code like use of own indicator. She indicate right turn. At 35 mph on empty NSL. But this road has the right turns. I cannot be sure if she want one of them./.. so I sit behind her at decent distance .. but trying to catch her attention.


Then the person I let out of side street into queue. I wave und smile at him. He give me a two finger salute und instead of merging with the traffic .. kept slamming on the brakes for no actual reason. This actually exacerbated the queue based on the laws of physics Wooden top with no brain und manners to match

But the award of the month has to go to the fool who drive with rear fog lights on with no fog .. with close runner up the one who had high beam on in the fog this very morning .. but did not put on his rear fog lamps at all

Vying for a place on the rostrum was the weaver bird who just could not decide which lane he wanted

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Nicht ganz im Lot!
Ich setze mich immer wieder in die Nesseln! Der Mad Doc ist mein Mann! Und ich benutzte seinen PC!

UND OUR SMILEYS? Smile ... und the the world smiles with you.
Smiley guy seen when you read
Fine me for Safe Speed
(& other good causes..)

Greatest love & Greatest Achievements Require Greatest Risk
But if you lose the driving plan - don't lose the COAST lesson.
Me?
Je ne regrette rien!

Did you miss a smilie at the end there bud?

You know what really bugs me? “Oh no, he’s gunna go off on one.”

No no! Please hear me out...

Before I die it would be really nice if just for once a ‘Speed Kills’ proponent answered a very simple question honestly which my 13 year old twin girls answered the other day. (Not mine but I’m like another dad to them).

So I’m travelling along a road at 30 mph and I say to Amiee & Steph, “This is the legal limit. Do you think it would be as safe to travel at this speed when it’s raining girls?”

“No” came the reply.

Why is it that two 13 year old girls can understand this very simple concept that a sign, and indeed a legal requirement, does not represent a safe speed but trying to state it here to some is like pulling teeth?

If, during their physics lessons at school, they are being taught that “speed kills” they may as well be teaching them that the world is flat too IMO!

So then, what are Aimee and Steph going to turn into if/when they get a driving licence later? Exactly what message are we, (no – THEY – the Gov), pushing?


“ I don’t understand it officer! I wasn’t speeding. I was doing 30 mph when I run over Susan ”.



(BTW. Steph has really got me into Spong Bob square pants And they both have great road sense, as 13 year old peds! I think they could make great drivers but will be screwed up by current road safety policies )

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The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not necessarily represent the views of Safe Speed.
You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.

i read somewhere that if there isn't a 'reasonable' route round a vehicle blocking a footpath you can just walk over it
i'm tempted to do this on some of my running routes on occasions although often the mirror accidentally catches my elbow.

the worst case i saw was running on the pavement on thr rhs (so against traffic), approaching was a mother & child with pushchair and another chap following a little way behind. in between however a tesco delivery was parked up onto the pavement, just enough room to get between it & the hedge if you didnt mind dodging the mirror, no chance for the pushchair lady who had to take to the road to get past. the other chap kindly waited for me to get through the gap and we exchanged comments as i pushed the mirror flat aganst the door in order to get past. tut.

One problem when running on pavements is cars on side roads stopping at the stop line and blocking you. There was one guy in my running club who used to leap onto the bonnet if that happened.

The simple answer to illegal parking would be to remove the protection of the law from illegally parked cars. It would concentrate your mind if you knew that parking on the pavement meant that your car would be on bricks when you came back

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

There was one guy in my running club who used to leap onto the bonnet if that happened.

He wouldn't do that a second time if it happened to me! Does he not realise the rules of the road?

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.

Tonight's highlight:

I caught a column of three cars and followed them to a T-junction.

#1 was going really quite remarkably slowly, like 35 down a long NSL straight. And at the junction pulled out really slowly in front of a car doing about 50, causing them to brake abruptly.

#2 must have had a broken front indicator as the back one went like the clappers.

#3, a Freelander, had only the tiny oval top brake light working, and didn't indicate at the T junction.

Yeah. Just after they remove the protection of the law from burglars inside their victim's houses.

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Malcolm W.
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not represent the views of Safespeed.

Tonight at 1730 (late dusk) passed a car with sidelights only... and one broken tailight.

Obviously in the weather we've had of late I have seen plenty, but today saw one of the most bafflingly bad bits of driving I've ever witnessed.

I was looking out of the window of one of our clients in Weybridge at the cars coming in and out of the staff car park. A guy in a Citroen MPV (Picasso) was driving out with a huge amount of snow still on his roof. As he went over a speed bump, the whole lot slid forward onto his windscreen. It was stopped by the wipers/bonnet edge from going further, so it stayed there, completely blocking his vision.

Did he stop? No, he kept driving, but really slowly.

He began veering towards a woman in a BMW coming the other way, who started shouting out of her window, then jumped out of her car and ran up to his side window to try and stop him, meanwhile a maintenance man driving a little electric golf-buggy behind jumped off and started clearing the snow off his windscreen for him. At which point he rolled slowly backward in to the little buggy.

To redress the balance a bit: I had a most gratifying non-numpty experience on Monday evening. Driving home from work on quite bad roads I was just, by very careful driving , managing to keep traction uphill. I came round a corner and saw a Landy ahead signalling to turn right and waiting for a some downhill traffic to pass. Consternation - because I knew that if I stopped i wouldn't get going again uphill.

But the Landy driver, on seeing my lights, must have immediately grasped my predicament because he cancelled his signal drove up the hill ahead of me until he could pull into a lay-by on the left. I gave a wave as I passed and he then proceeded to do U-turn and go back down to his turning.

I blush at the things I have said about Landy drivers in the past

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

REAL Landy drivers are ok.