I witnessed an amusing-but-wasn't incident the other day.
I had arranged to give a colleague a lift to the office so I parked up in a layby at the agreed meeting point. This was off an NSL road with one lane in one direction and two in the other. Road crew were out coning off one lane for repairs. The chap was dropping cones off the back of the truck, but he wasn't being particularly careful where they were landing. Inevitably, a few minutes later an artic ended up shoving a couple of the cones into the path of the oncoming traffic. Most vehicles managed to avoid the hazard, but one motorist was clearly confused, couldn't decide which way to dive and ended up splatting a cone and dragging it along the road. He pulled into my layby and removed the (very squashed) cone from under the car, and then continued on his way: not even a scratch on his shiny 03 plate Mondeo.
(i) I recall from my trophying days that those cones are reasonably weighty when filled with sand. Could they do any serious damage? I don't think i would like to hit one at any significant speed.
(ii) Has anyone else observed the maintenance crews being careless to the point of being a serious danger to road users? I thought they were supposed to be scrupulously cautious?
Ed.
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I hit one that was in the middle of the M1 late on night, broke a wing mirror on my dads new A6. He was not pleased, but then it shouldn't have been there in the first place.
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(i) I recall from my trophying days that those cones are reasonably weighty when filled with sand. Could they do any serious damage? I don't think i would like to hit one at any significant speed.
Sand, mate? It would break modern-cars plastic bumpers to pieces! No, they're just plastic cones, but with a low center of gravity and an aerodynamic design to withstand quick wind-gusts.
Vagelis.
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Due to a spectacular lack of observation on my part I once hit a traffic cone in my then car (a 1988 Fiat Uno - necessity rather than choice).
The cone did absolutely no damage whatsoever. Sadly, the metal flashing orange lamp on top took of my side repeater and put a lovely gouge over the wheelarch. Served me right, really...
Cheers
Rob
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Ah, I thought the base was sand filled. They used to be. Maybe not any more.
Mondeo man hit the cone square on at ~50 mph so i was quite surprised that the car was completely undamaged.
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Ah, I thought the base was sand filled. They used to be. Maybe not any more.
Well the cone some drunken moron placed on the roof of my car at the filling station recently while I was inside the shop paying for the fuel had sand in its base. Everytime you shook the cone, it was like it had a bad case of dandruff. The sand became trapped between the base of the cone and my paintwork. What with drunken moron chucking it on the roof and me subsequently removing it resulted in loads of scratches in the paintwork. Fortunately most of the scratches polished out.
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Many years ago I remember seeing a picture in a magazine article of a cone that had gone under a Mini and punched a hole in the sump!
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Sand, mate? It would break modern-cars plastic bumpers to pieces! No, they're just plastic cones, but with a low center of gravity and an aerodynamic design to withstand quick wind-gusts. Vagelis.
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God, the technology that goes into a traffic cone, eh?
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Early 1990s (I can't remember the specific year) and the south coast got a thorough beating from storm force winds. No Dosh is returning a Mini City, repo'd the previous week, as the punter has come up with the money to settle the finance.
The local police have partially closed the M27, sending through small groups of cars and lorries (curtain sides open where practical) under escort to the next junction, where the motorway is less exposed.
Lorry in front swerves to avoid a flying cone, ends up on its side after a few teetering moments.
No Dosh sits there, sweating and swearing in the mobile coffin that was BLs finest. After the Police allow us to continue, two cones, (they had decided to hunt in packs) hurtle across, ripping off the front number plate, leaving bumper hanging and causing No Dosh to find religion, before losing it again as a third cone finished off the bumper and dislodged the exhaust.
Naturally it was my fault when we handed the car over to the punter, despite assurances that it would be repaired at our cost. Never mind the fact that I'd risked my life to return the blessed thing!
And cones used to have a platic tube of sand coiled in the base, but they don't seem to these days. Probably one too many Minis went were they deserve. Never driven one of the dreadful things since.
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I remember during the early '80s, a road tanker hit a motorway cone which had been filled with concrete (set)
It wrote the cab off, and the company (oil company) sued the contractor.
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Not exactly cones, but similar...
A few months ago there was a heath fire a mile or so along the road and the police closed the road outside our house to allow fire engines to come along and fill up at a hydrant. They placed one of those 'Police Accident' signs right in the middle of the road and a few cones alongside.
First of all a woman came along full pelt and ran right over the top of the 'Police Accident' sign - flattened it and kept going for several hundred yards.
Half an hour later (with a fire engine now alongside, filling up at the hydrant - blue lights flashing) another woman came along - stopped in front of the sign (now re-erected by the fireman) - got out of the car - picked up the cones - moved them to the side of the road and got back in he car, preparing to drive through merrily. Fireman leaves cab - has words!
I stood at the window for almost an hour watching the antics of motorists - not believing what I was seeing!
How on earth can people be so stupid!
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I don't blame the woman who moved the cones, nowadays, the POLICE close all tthe roads in a mile radius just because two cars crash and they stay like it for half a day.
What happened to the days when they just swept the bits to the side of the road and waved you past? They are very OTT, yet cant be bothered to come out to most crimes, and if they do it take hours, not minutes, too bust stood with their cars parked with lights flashing.
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Oh I agree, but I think the fire engine - all guns blazing would have made me stop and think at least!
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I've had a traffic cone bounce across Polo's roof when it was thrown up by a lorry when they were redoing the A41 out of Birmingham. Not a scratch on it - it sounded tons worse than it was.
Joosisiqu - I think you'll find (and certainly in Staffs) that the police attend the accident, do the necessary and call the highways agency to clean up the mess, while they move on to the next job on the list. Highways people sometimes take a long time to attend.
Alternatively, the roads stay closed because collision investigation techniques have improved so much that there is more to do to reach a conclusion. I think if a relative of yours had been killed or seriously injured, you'd be happy for the road to stay closed, and all marks preserved, while the police worked out what had happened rather than speculate or simply call it an accident. Also, people are very quick to complain/sue when roads are left in poor condition and damage is caused to other cars, or further incidents caused.
Bit off topic, but I didn't think it was fair to let that comment slide. Sorry!
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You've had a lorry throw up on your Polo?
What hasn't happened to that poor car?
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You've had a lorry throw up on your Polo? What hasn't happened to that poor car?
It'll be alright. Chances are it fell through the hole in the middle.
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You've had a lorry throw up on your Polo? What hasn't happened to that poor car?
Yes and a hay lorry threw a bale of hay at him today, but we managed to escape Italian Job styleee :)
Now you see why I'm so attached to him - he's stood by me through more than any man would!
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I hit a 4 legged cone back in the 60's spun the car(Fiat 600) 360deg !!! dog was last seen running off. It must have weight 3-4 stone dented my bumper and wing.
K2
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I ran over a cone which had been just knocked into the road by the draught of a truck. I put down the fact that the car escaped unscathed to the A4 having a substsantially full-length undershield.
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>>Due to a spectacular lack of observation on my part I once >>hit a traffic cone in my then car (a 1988 Fiat Uno - >>necessity rather than choice).
>>The cone did absolutely no damage whatsoever. Sadly, the >>metal flashing orange lamp on top took of my side repeater >>and put a lovely gouge over the wheelarch. Served me right, >>really...
>>Cheers
>>Rob
Sorry to laugh at your misfortune but that realy amuses me. Hitting a reflective traffic cone with yellow flashing light on top...I presume you didn't see it.
I'm not having a dig, by the way.
On the subject of cone construction, I recall cones being both partially filled with sand, and also having little plastic sandbags in the base. Nowadays they have a big black rubber base.
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Well, not a traffic cone, but close enough.
I remember some years back a mate was driving along the carriageway when, right after a sharp turn, sees a part of a blown-up truck tire! Not having time to maneuver and travelling at a high speed, he just drives over the thing. No bangs, the thing barely touched the car, so he thought he was ok.
Well, only seconds later, the engine starts to rattle and suddenly dies!
The tire-part had cut the fuel line! I can't remember how he managed to patch it, but he spent several hours trying!
I guess a trafic cone too could cause such minor (but so annoying) damages.
Okay, put a hole in the sump, that'll have to be one strong cone and one thin/rusted sump!
Vagelis.
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