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What does a single white line along the edge of a two lane road in a rural area actually mean, does it have any legal meaning or is it as I think only to mark the edge of a road where there is no street lighting,sometimes called a fog line. I have been all over the Highway Code and various web sites and can't seem to find a definative answer. Your replies appreciated.
Edited by Pugugly on 13/07/2009 at 20:17
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The Highway Code calls it an edge line, but doesn't refer to a relevant rule number ~ see Download 'Road Markings'. tinyurl.com/3x33br
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The Highway Code calls it an edge line but doesn't refer to a relevant rule number ~
That's all it is, there are no rules about crossing or straddling.
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thy used to call it a boundary line. i would advise you dont cross a solid continous line
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I think it is there, in mildly reflective paint, to show you both edges of the road, rather than expensive and increasingly rare catseyes which show you the centre line.
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It is sign 1012.1 TSGD 2002
Edge of carriageway available for through traffic other than at a road junction,
exit from private drive onto a public road or
layby or
back edge of hardshoulder or
edge of footway where it passes over a railway or tramway crossing.
Unlike a double line in the centre of the road there is no penalty involved if one straddles.
It is simply........an edge of carriageway marking.
dvd
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As I thought, the reason being today I was told by "someone" that it marked a clearway and that I should move My car (which I did'nt) the car at the time was parked at a pull in at the side of the road with the o/s wheels just on the line whilst I walked the dogs in the field across the road, the road is hardly the busiest and I have been parking here for years, jobsworth award pending maybe !
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The local council has put down these lines in front of many driveways and areas of pavements where there is a dropped kerb for pedestrian and disabled use.
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I think what the OP refers to are the lines on the nearside for effectively narrowing the road to discourage overtaking. It is usually done in a 'safety scheme' along with protected right turns.
Edited by Hamsafar on 10/04/2009 at 20:17
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I think what the OP refers to are the lines on the nearside for effectively narrowing the road to discourage overtaking. >>
Yes they do use them for that, but also as a contiuous edge marking in unlit rural areas with no kerbs or pavements. Or they do in my area. They may be used on clearways as well but I think this is a coincidence.
Edited by Old Navy on 11/04/2009 at 10:16
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As I thought the reason being today I was told by "someone" that it marked a clearway and that I should move My car (which I did'nt) the car at the time was parked at a pull in at the side of the road with the o/s wheels just on the line .......
Incidentally, most people don't seem to be aware that the restrictions placed by yellow lines apply to both sides of the lines. It isn't just on the carriageway that they apply ~ parking either side or straddling all contravene the rules.
Edited by L'escargot on 11/04/2009 at 09:00
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I think it used to be the indication of an urban clearway with no parking.
I had reason to search a few months ago and came to the conclusion that the clearway idea had been dropped. (now who has a 1980's highway code?)
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Incidentally most people don't seem to be aware that the restrictions placed by yellow lines apply to both sides of the lines. It isn't just on the carriageway that they apply ~ parking either side or straddling all contravene the rules.
"The 'ighway extends from 'edge to 'edge." They used to say.
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These are on a lot of the A-roads in Devon now, and almost all the way down the A382. I like them, particularly at night, but they have the side effect that some people are reluctant to cross them. This causes bottlenecks in the singletrack bits where two cars can fit at a squeeze, but only one at a time if the white lines are respected.
However, most people will cross them eventually if the alternative is a head-on with an arctic. ;-)
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I can tell you from hard experience that those lines represent the end of the solid road. I found this out the hard way last summer when I had to pull my lorry over to the side of a recently re-surfaced bit of road in north Wales to avoid a dozy car driver; the tar & chippings had been spread past the metalled road edge onto the grass verge and I consequently ended up stuck in the ditch!
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I'm sure I remember learning years ago that they were the rural equivalent of a single yellow line in towns, and therefore meant no parking apart from loading and unloading.
But they seem to be all over the place now, not just in the country. In Aberystwyth for example there are stretches of road that have both double yellow lines and a solid white line. What does that mean - no parking, yes we really mean it - ?
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This is an old thread, but never answered satisfactorily, and yesterday I noticed these lines again in two different circumstances:
1) Continuously along both sides of an ordinary rural single carriageway road. At driveways, overgrown farm gates , etc the line changes to a broken white.
2) Continuously along similar but more major roads that are marked as Clearways.
So do the lines indicate Clearway? Does a Clearway have to have the lines? Or this just a coincidence serving two different purposes?
Somewhat different question:
What does a white line right across two lanes on a roundabout mean? Does it mean that the normal give way rule is reversed, and traffic on the roundabout should wait at the line for joining traffic? I have never seen anyone stopping, they are just completely ignored. What are they for?
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>> 1) Continuously along both sides of an ordinary rural single carriageway road. At driveways overgrownfarm gates etc the line changes to a broken white. 2) Continuously along similar but more major roads that are marked as Clearways.
The Highway code indicates that they are "Edge markings". As in "Cross this and you are in the scenery", or ditch.
Edited by Old Navy on 13/07/2009 at 10:14
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SQ
The Highway code indicates that they are "Edge markings". As in "Cross this and you are in the scenery" or ditch.
On the long stretches of Clearway I saw yesterday the carriageway extended a long way beyond the white line. It was a continuous lane at least as wide as a cycle track, and in places almost wide enough to park in. No pedestrians allowed however.
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 13/07/2009 at 11:31
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In my younger days, if you saw a white line on the road it just meant that someone had spilled some white paint and a following motorist/cyclist had driven through it!
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Perversely, although white boundary lines help with night-time visibility on rural roads, I know of one instance where this wasn't done - as it would encourage drivers to travel too quickly!
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So what do they mean in urban areas where they are clearly to prevent you from parking in front of driveways?
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So what do they mean in urban areas where they are clearly to prevent you from parking in front of driveways?
These can often be found near schools and are normally characterised by short lines at right angles to the line at each end. They will probably mean that the householder has applied to the local council for them to be installed to try to deter inconsiderate school-run drivers or the like from parking there. Some councils charge the householder for installing them.
Edited by L'escargot on 13/07/2009 at 15:29
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So is the conclusion that they have no legal force whatsoever? They are intended to discourage drivers either from stopping there, or driving over them and into the ditch.
They are incidental to other signs indicating say a Clearway, but in themselves have no mandatory significance?
So similarly a solid white line across a junction doesn't mean anything either, unless reinforced by a STOP sign?
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They are intended to discourage drivers either from stopping there or driving over them and into the ditch. They are incidental to other signs indicating say a Clearway but in themselves have no mandatory significance?
Here are a few opinions on the subject of white lines at the end of driveways. tinyurl.com/neyqf2
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"So similarly a solid white line across a junction doesn't mean anything either, unless reinforced by a STOP sign?"
Correct.
A solid white line across the mouth of a junction is a transverse marking to Diagram 1002.1, not a longitudinal marking to Diagram 1012.1
"Vehicles must not proceed beyond the line when required to stop by the sign shown in Diagram 601.1." Diagram 601.1 is the STOP sign.
DVD quoted the meaning of a solid edge line above.
All diagram numbers refer to the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions, (otherwise known in our office as the Big Buff Book).
Edited by RobertyBob on 13/07/2009 at 18:08
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At our Meeting House the neighbour's garage was frequently blocked by inconsiderate parking. He applied to the council who wanted £200 to paint a white line across the entrance, and he invited us to contribute to the cost. However the police were quite happy to turn up and charge the drivers with obstruction, so a simple notice warning people of this was enough of a deterrent.
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Painting a solid white line across an entrance seems completely contrary to the situation I observe most commonly. That is, a solid white line where there aren't any entrances, and a broken line where there are, presumably indicating that you, or the entrance owner, can stop there.
Edited by Cliff Pope on 18/07/2009 at 16:45
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Just keep it on the black bit, you will be fine! :-)
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The solid white line that indicates that you should not block an entrance is different from a normal edge line. It is offset a minimum of 500mm from the edge of the carriageway and has cross bars at the end (Diagram 1026.1). See :-
www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2002/023113bg.gif
Edited by RobertyBob on 18/07/2009 at 17:33
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