OT: Speeding yobs!

[Dave Liquorice]

Cars are not a problem, at least not high velocity ones, stopping in stupid places in the town whilst looking for a parking space so the occupants don't have to walk more than 20yds is another matter...

Out of town most cars travel between 45 (farmers checking their sheep & hat wearing volvo drivers) up to around 60. As I said the roads around here a nice driving roads, long straight sections several 2 or

3 miles long, bends where you can see the road ahead for the next 3 or 4 bends and the real traps, bends where you can't actually see but it appears you can.

Of course the boy racer(*1) bikes open them up along the straights

100mph+ then end up having to use too much of the road at some of the tighter non obvious blind corners or simply too fast round the ordinary blind bends hitting or having to take evasive action of what ever is just hidden from view, stray sheep, 20mph tractor(*2) or 45mph land rover.

(*1) Term used to indicate the more lunatic minority of bikers, not their age.

(*2) Tractors are speed limited to 25mph or there abouts.

[Jerry.]

Are they?..

AIUI, it's more to do with the transmission gearing rather than been speed limited.

[Dev Null]

Things like the Deutz Fahr Agrotron 265 move along quite nicely at over 35 mph ... doesn't half terrify the locals though :-)

Pop along to any agricultural show over the summer and you'll find others that offer reasonable road speeds. And some monsters that'll do even more ...

DN

[James Hart]

There's a limit for vehicles with non mechanical steering but I don't think there's a blanket limit on tractors, the Fast Traks round here tootle along in the 40's with a trailer on them. Even the big rubber tracked caterpillers ain't slow.

[Lurch]

On Sun, 30 May 2004 09:17:00 +0100 (BST), "Dave Liquorice" strung together this:

That's a new one. They're not purposely limited, it's just that most won't go any faster. I've been in tractors that have topped 30mph!

[Dave Liquorice]

I now can't find the reference, it was somewhere in the HMC&E site relating to the qualification to use red diesel on the public highway. The "search" only pulls up stupid press releases nothing from the actual site content.

Found a few other references (that might be out of date) refering to "tractors" and 20mph and "fast tractors" 40mph.

How ever in the context of this thread the techincalities of a tractors maximum speed isn't relevant, they are slow.

[Paul Mc Cann]

Fine when its the tractor on its own but when the moron driving it is also towing a heavy trailer at this speed, which said trailer is bouncing all over the road it can be a terryfing experience when coming towards you.

Paul Mc Cann

[me]

In message , James Hart writes

what is non mechanical steering???

[Jerry.]

For example a hydraulic ram controlled via a non mechanical linked control valve [1] or any fully track mounted vehicle (Bulldozer, large digging machine, tank etc.).

[1] ie. not like a cars power steering system were even if the hydraulic system fails there is still a mechanical element

[Grimly Curmudgeon]

It was somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember "dave @ stejonda" saying something like:

I'd presume hydraulic, where rams actually steer, there being no direct mechanical connection between the steering wheel and the front wheels of the tractor.

Either that or a bit of rope. :)

[G&M]

Just shows we need the Isle of Man/Nevada/Yokohama/several other places system - shut a road somewhere about once a month, set a one way system and set people off at one minute intervals to enjoy themselves. Yes some will terminate themselves, as they do on the IoM TT spectator sessions, but that's part of the thrill (for them).

[Ian Stirling]

For one moment there, I thought you were talking about a pyrotechnic solution to speeding...

[Steve Walker]

I seem to remember that there used to be a speed limit of 20mph, possibly on agricultural tractors, but certainly on trailers without a sprung suspension.

Steve W

[Steve Walker]

One of the ADI theory test questions that I've just been practicing on covers the distance part - less than 200yds.

The height part is something that someone else mentioned - something about lamposts less than a certain height (21ft?) not being classed as streetlighting, but as footway lighting and therefore not affecting speed limits.

Steve W

[Jerry Built]

Ah, the fells. If there were quite a few pebbles on the road, obviously, not hidden but in plain view, that might help. Also, on bends, a "mud on road" sign might help.

Try cross-posting this to uk.rec.motorcycles for a non-partisan and helpful discussion (darfc).

J.B.

[Huge]

Except that anti-car bigot councillors keep changing them downwards, without adequate notice.

Perhaps there's some way you could persuade local councillors to look at them?

[Andy Luckman (AJL Electronics)]

Or adequate reason apart from their hatred of private transport.

[Jerry.]

Lets face it, cameras don't even need to have warning signs, the speed limit sign has told road users what the maximum speed is - if people can't read or obey the 'rules of the road' then WTF should any driver get a final warning ?

So what you are implying is, those who get caught should not be driving anyway because they are unable to drive 'with due care and attention' (not paying attention to displayed instructions whilst driving) !..

All street signage changes go up to the DoT for approval, I've heard of cases were the DoT have made changes as the original proposals were unlawful.

[John Laird]

If you had cared to read enough of the thread, you might have seen that the context was that of other numpties standing on their brakes in front of posters to this group, causing unnecessary danger. They may in some cases even have been travelling at a perfectly legal speed, but on spying the camera obviously have some kind of panic attack and think it necessary to get down to 40 (typically in a 50/60) or 30 (in a 40). I was simply suggesting that it is not unreasonable for the camera itself to carry, or be close by, a repeater sign. Numpty problem solved.

[G&M]

Because the speed limits are set so low that one has to ignore them to get from A to B in a financially viable time.

We have the best motorways but lowest motorway limits in Europe. Most of our system could easily support fully derestricted limits as in Germany.