|
Are there any requirements for local authorities to indicate where restrictions have been tightened? For the past few weeks on the odd occasion I've been down the A6 in Stockport outside rush hour I've tended to use the bus lanes as the restriction always used to be 7-10am and 4-7pm. However, driving down there today I just happened to notice it's been changed to 7am-7pm. I was able to sheepishly pull out of it and as I don't think they use cameras probably got away with it, but are LAs allowed to just change restrictions as and when they see fit and is it down to us to try and pick out these tiny little plates high up on posts while trying to avoid the traffic as well?
|
I don't know if they are required to or not but my loacl council always puts a notice in the local papers before changing anything like speed limits, parking restrictions etc etc
JaB
|
Local paper isn't really much use for a major road not to mention the fact that even with the best will in the world I doubt they get more then 50% penetration and I doubt a fraction of those who do read it would read the notices in the back...
Hopefully the enforcement people would give a bit of leeway for an altered restriction like this, but as it was so subtly done I could have gone months without noticing and indeed may have done!
|
Thank you SteveH42, I will take notice next time I go into Stockport. That isn't so frequently nowadays - the heavy traffic and local council regulations make getting there quite an onerous journey.
The local authority seems to have experimented with traffic calming from Stockport to Poynton. Traffic lights which were carefully timed to get the optimum flow of traffic were retimed to slow everything down. Lanes were coned off for no apparent reason, and temporary road blocks were set up, seemingly to check changes to traffic flow and get feedback. Everyone seemed to accept it in good part, so it has become the norm.
|
The only section I spotted was on the A6 southbound heading towards Stockport centre. The section northbound towards the center is still as previous. I suspect the change is because they've been tinkering with the bus stops but considering Stagecoach are completely unable to provide a service at any time let alone during the daytime it's a bit pointless if you ask me...
As for the other stuff, I believe some is to do with upgrading bus stops to allow better wheelchair access - not sure why as they appeared to have sorted the 'kneeling' buses but are now raising kerbs instead.
As for the lights - they seem experts at that. As soon as people get used to the phasing and things start to run fairly well they change it again to make things even worse. On my drive to work even when the roads are clear you are lucky to hit one set of lights on green and even the ones that are about 20 yards apart are always set to be on opposing phases.
|
|
|
|
|
Blow changes to timing: try driving in London where there are bus lanes every couple of hundred yards, all with different times of operation.
|
|
London bus lanes are possibly the most extraordinary use of road space & signs. Brian W is not exaggerating. And some stretches of bus lane are no longer than a bus. And some stretches of bus lane are used by only 4 buses an hour - there's a third of a mile of this near my house which causes great congestion.
|
|
One case of local authority 'straws in the wind' was in Hazel Grove, where they dropped a huge pile of gravel in one lane of a cross street next to the Fiveways pub. The crossing has standard traffic lights, and the main road was two lanes. The lights were altered temporarily (for about a month) so that one lane only could be used at a time in all four directions. It was blatantly obvious that it was a 'try on'. It 'calmed' the traffic down very considerably! After the month the gravel was removed, and we found the the previously two lane main road was now down to one lane only. It now takes considerably longer to get through this area for no apparent benefit.
|
|
|
|
![2022 BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe 218i [136] Sport 4dr DCT [Live Cockpit Prof]](/imagecache/url/crop/90x60/https/cdn.uk.prod.group-mobility-trader.com/images/cas/a0a5b537e2d97764f2bb6d3c8e2a4abd/ab4c3d48b6fbbea1a06423474248d9d0.jpg)
