More Genius from Government!

[SidewaysFeltham]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1213...-highways.html

I really wonder at times, how many of the genii in supposed "Think" Tanks actually know anything connected with the subjects and topics they pontificate upon?

Just imagine: the nouveau breed of highway thugs, AKA Range Rover drivers, will thereafter presume their rights of way include both sides of a two way road! Adopting their quaint tenet "Me First!"

No doubt none of the brains of Britain who came up with these flawed "Conclusions" have ever driven, at night, against masses of oncoming traffic where the drivers approaching leave their new age headlights on mainbeam backed up by unnecessary spotlights... or in fog or heavy rain and mist.

[VIVA GT]

Yes, I saw a feature about this on Breakfast TV this morning, one of their presenters was 'reporting' for the pavement of one of these white lineless roads in London.
What struck me was how far away from the kerb cars that passed him & the TV camera were driving. Presumably that was because the 'drivers' hadn't got the white line in the centre of the road on their side of the vehicle to follow, so were blindly driving somewhere near to the middle! None of them appeared to be travelling that slowly either!
I too foresee more accidents and the problems that go with it, but at least the councils will save a few bob on white line paint.
I suppose the next 'innovative' suggestion will be to remove Give Way markings and traffic signals because some non-driving clueless idiot will think it'll slow the traffic down because "drivers will have to be more cautious at junctions!"
(I'm going for a lie down now...)

[bella]

they can't be arsed to repaint a lot of the white lines around my way (in england) anyway, so it's in practice a lot already by accident

on one bit of road in particular i tend to find it means that cars end up much more in the centre of the road than they do if there's lines. i've nearly lost a wingmirror almost every night since it's been dark at 6pm where someone has been too close to the centre because a) they don't want to get their freshly washed white car muddy b) they've no idea how wide their car is and c) potholes. everywhere.

[chillibowl]

how does this affect the newer generation of cars that have lane assist/lane departure features and even the future of self driving cars? would have thought that maintaining road lane markers was an essential aspect of these technologies working and in keeping motorists safe.

not very forward thinking at all!

[grantp]

Ah. Now understand something that had puzzled me for a few days.

On 12 mile night time journey to visit a daughter, almost entirely main roads, we managed to spot 3 cyclists on dark bikes wearing dark clothes and totally without lights.

Presumably this is another experiment with the road safety "charities" (how do they get that status?) supporting the idea that virtually invisible cyclists will feel more vulnerable and so ride more carefully.

Eventually drivers, fearing a flood of unlit and invisible cyclists on every road (including motorways) will drive so slowly that accidents will become a thing of rarity. Along with completed journeys.

In fact for so many different reasons the sooner we stop people travelling anywhere the better the result will be for the country.

Cameron could have set a good example with his pointless carbon spewing flying around the area of the globe generically known as "Europe".

[grantp]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

how does this affect the newer generation of cars that have lane assist/lane departure features and even the future of self driving cars? would have thought that maintaining road lane markers was an essential aspect of these technologies working and in keeping motorists safe.

not very forward thinking at all!

Yes but of course the "Charities" will claim that such aid stop people considering their own responsibilities and so should be banned.

In the UK we only have to wait for it to rain (not a very long wait usually) to experience the effect of lack of road markings since they become almost invisible instantly unless very recently repainted.

Thus, potentially, we already have data that go some way to proving whether the "charities" assumptions are correct.

Why has the analysis not been published and promoted in the media?

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by grantp

Eventually drivers, fearing a flood of unlit and invisible cyclists on every road (including motorways) will drive so slowly that accidents will become a thing of rarity. Along with completed journeys.

brilliant!

[SidewaysFeltham]

Originally Posted by grantp

Ah. Now understand something that had puzzled me for a few days.

On 12 mile night time journey to visit a daughter, almost entirely main roads, we managed to spot 3 cyclists on dark bikes wearing dark clothes and totally without lights.

Interestingly, grant, yesterday evening ny wife and I drove back from a quick social visit to friends, along circa 1 1/2 miles of rural road; loads of overgrown trees, hedges and bushes hanging over the road: as one car approached at speed, lights blazing, I fortunately spotted a dipstick, clothed in cam suit walking along the road towards me... no ditch to jump into, no verge; insanity!

Clearly, a hugely intelligent individual; wearing cam gear which blended successfully into the undergrowth.

Probably a destruction tester for a cam suit manufacturer. Or contestant in the 2016 Darwin awards.

[bella]

Originally Posted by grantp

Eventually drivers, fearing a flood of unlit and invisible cyclists on every road (including motorways) will drive so slowly that accidents will become a thing of rarity. Along with completed journeys.

you ever driven around central cambridge just after lectures have finished in the dark? cyclists everywhere, riding like toddlers on their first trip without stabilisers, without lights, or with tiny little ones they got from a pound shop. proof that intelligent life form has absolutely zero survival skills

[chunder]

Let's be honest here, the vast majority of current drivers have the spatial awareness of a baby anyway.

I do see their point, they literally can't afford the policing and redesign necessary to make roads safer, so removing lines does two things, it forces people who can't understand how wide their car is to be dominant on the roads, thereby reducing accidents as we will all be sitting behind them all the time as they will try and move out 8 feet to pass a cyclist or horse or parked car.

If you think about it closely, it's genius. saves the council a fortune in paint (the driving force I would imagine) and the minority as usual will rule the roads.

Thereby forcing us to consider public transport which as we all know has been government policy for the last two decades.

[Mike Harte]

One of the Scandinavian countries started this process in at least one city, removing all the traffic lights, etc. The results were that traffic collisions and pedestrian injuries/deaths were all reduced as drivers had to be far more aware of their surroundings and the actions of other road users.

I believe that it is also being trialled in parts of some towns/cities in the UK.