Having got held up for 40 minutes a couple of weeks back, just to get through the toll booths, I wrote to the Highways agency to ask how they justify the delay that the tolls cause (thousands of man-hours lost, extra pollution from standing traffic, etc.) Here is their reply:

"I refer to your email of 20 October to the Highways Agency about charging at the Dartford River Crossing. Your email has been passed to me to reply.

The powers to charge a toll at the crossing expired on 31 March 2003. However, prior to the expiry of these powers, the Government commissioned consultants to investigate the effect that removing charging at the crossing would have on traffic levels. This research, published in August 2001, suggested that use of the crossing would grow more rapidly if there were no charge to use the crossing, which could have an adverse impact on the local community and users of the crossing. The increased use at the crossing could result in longer journey times and discomfort for users while also possibly adding to air pollution. These factors could have a detrimental effect on health, the economy and the environment.

As such, in summer 2001 the Highways Agency carried out a public consultation on the proposal to introduce a charging scheme under the Transport Act 2000 (the 2000 Act). The consultation included seeking views on the proposed charging structure. Following this consultation it was decided to implement the charging scheme. The charging scheme came into force on 1 April 2003.

Paying to use the crossing is not the limiting factor on traffic at the crossing, but rather the capacity of the crossing itself particularly the tunnels. The layout of the toll plaza is not designed for free flow conditions, and the toll plazas perform an important safety role in controlling the demand and speed of vehicles both through the tunnels and away from the bridge. For instance, southbound there are three closely spaced junctions, and much of the carriageway for through traffic is restricted to two lanes. To allow a free flow of traffic through the plaza area would increase the possibility of accidents occurring, thus leading to more delays.

Every effort is made to get traffic through the crossing area as quickly as possible. I do appreciate the frustration that can be caused from sitting in a queue, but it is necessary to balance this against the safety of those who travel on our roads."

So the justification is traffic control: why not just cone off a couple of lanes permanently? Read more

It appears the Highways Agency would like our views on what to do with the M3:-

www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/motorways/m3/m3...m Read more

Has anyone done this? Any advantages/disadvantages? Hints/tips? Read more

An recent article by HJ that has now disappeared from the RHS got me thinking.

(Ed note: News Items do not "disappear". They merely go into Archive News.)

It argued that the high cost of insuring some individuals, most noteably young drivers is effectivly pricing this market sector out of the market.

Hence this is one reason put forward as to why people are driving around without insurance.

Often where people decide to abide by the law and follow a sense of responsibility, the costs of motoring can cause a real hardship in the household. It is these people that I believe should be offered inducements.

The idea of a special new of young driver scheme whereby membership of the IAM or a special body could make a real impact on premiums, rather than the minor adjustment some companies make to date is one idea.

Limited use insurances, say for a particular purpose (driving to work) with the benefit of a few thousand miles for Social domestic and pleasure added on).

Schemes linked to regular post test driver assessment and revision (say every 3 months for younger drivers then 6 months thereafter) Such schemes would aim to assess and correct driving techniques. Getting drivers off the road would be an absolute last resort. Hence there would be no pass or fail threashold but assessors would be given a high level of discresion to work with the driver and even insist they come back for more lessons etc if they are really bad.

Performance limiters fitted on some cars on behalf of insurance companies, to say reduce both speed and acceleration. We forget that the cheapest car on the market today is capable of greater acceleration and speed than decent sized family cars were 30 years ago.

Optional invitations by insurance companies to attend defensive driving technique open days with the added incentive for a percentage reduction in the premium if certain attainments were met.

H Read more

My 307 has done 6k miles and cruise control is unreliable. It seems to function OK for most of its use but is spontaneously unreliable.
The faults I have found at all speeds between 30 ? 70mph and in both 4th and 5th gears include the following:
1. Failure to engage cruise control.
2. Failure to increase or decrease speed when the appropriate button is pressed or only after a long delay in response (15 - 60+ seconds).
3. Increasing speed by 2 - 10 mph when climbing a hill then holding the new increased speed and not returning to the original setting. It originally only increased by 2 ? 3 mph but it now it increases by 10mph.
4. Failure to re-engage cruise control when the memory button is pressed.
I have had the car back 3 times now to the local Peugeot garage and it is now going back again. The garage have so far found a poor connection in the steering column wiring loom, replaced the steering column control stalk and now propose to reconfigure the management system components. In the garage, no faults have been identified but on road tests, the car has demonstrated the type 1 fault on two separate occasions.
Am I alone with this fault. Suggestions welcome.

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