Yesterday I learned two things:
Firstly, that the V60's speedometer doesn't overread by very much, and secondly, the speed cameras on the M5 near Bristol are switched on all the time even when the variable limit signs are off.
Annoyed with myself because I normally loaf down the motorway at 72 instead of 85 indicated (been a long day in miserable conditions at work), but mostly because I didn't twig what was happening until the second set of flashes from the Gatsos tucked away on the gantries.
The only consolation is that I wasn't the only one being flashed and far from the quickest. Seems a bit pointless really - most people including me respect the VSL signs with or without cameras so why not have the signs on at 70? Can't deny they caught me bang to rights, though.
First offence but not entirely sure what happens if the whole string of the b***** things is set off. Long way to work on a bike. And if you have a Volvo - when it says you're doing 85, you're doing 82...
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Others know more about this than me but ISTR there is long history of these cameras pinging but no NIP being issued. Not that such a view makes the 14 day wait any less worrisome.
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>> Others know more about this than me but ISTR there is long history of these
>> cameras pinging but no NIP being issued. Not that such a view makes the 14
>> day wait any less worrisome.
The only cameras I know that ping with no variable speed limit sign, and then go on to issue NIPs are the ones on the southern section of the M25. No variable speed lint displayed, no NIP - you are safe.
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>> The only cameras I know that ping with no variable speed limit sign, and then
>> go on to issue NIPs are the ones on the southern section of the M25.
>> No variable speed lint displayed, no NIP - you are safe.
>>
www.bristolpost.co.uk/M4-M5-speed-cameras-temporary-speed-limit-signs/story-25866420-detail/story.html
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...and note the Police's stance on them being active between M5 Junctions 15 and 17 at NSL without a display:
www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/advice/vehicles-and-roads/speeding/
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>>
>> >> The only cameras I know that ping with no variable speed limit sign, and
>> then
>> >> go on to issue NIPs are the ones on the southern section of the
>> M25.
>> >> No variable speed lint displayed, no NIP - you are safe.
>> >>
>>
>> www.bristolpost.co.uk/M4-M5-speed-cameras-temporary-speed-limit-signs/story-25866420-detail/story.html
You can believe me or believe me not, It matters not to me, I am not the one crapping my pants unnecessarily. Happy new Year.
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...unfortunately, at that speed it's above the ACPO guidelines for action, (10%+2 mph) but you fall within the range for the possible offer of a speeding awareness course (10% +9mph) if you are otherwise eligible.
It is, however, below the guideline level for a full summons, so Fixed Penalty at worst.
AFAIK, as long as you can reasonably plead that you were doing the "same" speed between the different points of "capture" by the cameras, the offence should be treated as a single one.
So, once you've triggered detection, 85mph all the way home, then. ;-)
E&OE
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I think there used to be some rule of thumb where they wouldn't do you for two transgressions in the same journey.
I do know a couple who got done twice in one day - in the morning he "drove there" and got flashed, and she also got flashed (in the same place I believe) "driving back". Both attracted points.
It's easy to be holier than thou on speeding but there's a lot of people do it, and worse, but don't realise or admit it.
Hopefully you'll get the opportunity for a speed awareness. The table on page 8 of the ACPO document indicates this would be normal between 79 and 86. www.cambs-police.co.uk/roadsafety/docs/201305-uoba-joining-forces-safer-roads.pdf
However fingers crossed that you hear noting within the 14 days.
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Just done a return trip to Edinburgh via M5, M42, M1 and A1 and the worst strain was the variable and gantry cameras. It's not just keeping to the limits, which is not too hard, but trying to maintain a reasonable safety zone around you. For example if you are overtaking in lane three and somebody zooms up on your tail. Your options are to keep at the limit while you pass and therefore at risk of aggressive driving or nip past and get out of their way, momentarily exceeding the limit. Just your luck if that's under a gantry camera. The result is there seems a lot more bunching (and risk) on camera sections than on unmonitored motorways where people can use speed differentials to keep safe distances. I do keep to the limits most of the time and will slow down where that is an option but sometimes judicious acceleration is best. I've driven well over half a million unticketed miles in 40 odd years of driving but it feels increasingly as if a minor blip can catch you out.
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I don't use the m/ways anything like the amount I used to... however... when I did that stretch in October, I went northbound at approx 0500 hours..and..went noticeably faster than your indicated speed.... then.....coming back would have been about 1700 on a Saturday... likewise for the speed, albeit not as much as the 0500 run as there was more traffic.
Never heard nowt.
Same for the M42, on the southbound trip I avoided the M5/M6 bottleneck and went via the M6 toll and M42.... heard nothing from them either.
The newspaper article someone has posted was dated Jan 2015... and I went through o.k. in the October.
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Got snapped by a red light camera a few years ago. Never heard anything about it, and I suspect, neither did the thousands who also got snapped. Reason being, the camera was wrongly programmed, and was snapping everyone who went on green.
Poor thing was having conniptions. :o)
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A work contact was on 12 points but managed to keep his license through a plea from his employer that if he lost it, some staffs job would be at risk as he was a salesman.
Then in August he got done again doing 80mph on the A1 by a cameravan. Cant remember the exact distance but it was something like 700m away from the car when the image was taken!
This time he got the six month ban and fine. His partner has been driving him to appts or been getting train. Ban finishes in February when his licence will get wiped off all points and he will start afresh with a clean license! Didn't realise this is what happened but apparently there is a threshold, bans of more than 60 (?) days will result in license being wiped.
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If I were on 12 points I would be very very careful. That's why I would hate being a rep, targets & meetings, 40k + miles a year. Occasionally on my days off I would chauffeur my ex because I enjoy driving. She only had a humble VW CC but it's so easy to cruise at higher speeds if not using cruise control. Her phone would ring almost constantly with customers wanting info... No way could I concentrate on my driving and conduct a serious conversation at the same time.
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>> phone would ring almost constantly with customers wanting info... No way could I concentrate on my driving and conduct a serious conversation at the same time.
It is, as with many tasks, a sort of practice makes perfect thing in some ways. Not suggesting there's no choice, but to survive in an increasingly competitive world in a job sector with very little security I can relate to people trying to do it.
There are lots of things you can do to mitigate the problem areas though, such as setting off in plenty of time to avoid the need for rushing, store the mobile number of the next person you are due to meet in your phone before beginning your journey ( so it's easy to find if you do have to alert them to an unavoidable change of plan ) make sure you have enough fuel to reach your destination so you don't have to stop unless you want to for some other reason. Only put the radio on if you need specific information or are not under pressure and never in city traffic ( too much of a distraction) Be prepared to not answer the phone if you can see it's someone who can wait. Offer to call back when you can pull over if it's turning into a complicated one. Etc etc...
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>> It is, as with many tasks, a sort of practice makes perfect thing in some
>> ways.
I don't drive very well when I'm talking on the phone, I lose driving concentration...badly... because I'm all ears to the phone conversation.
Nevertheless, I think you could train yourself to achieve it.
Before I retired, I took a mate out in a police car (all authorised) and at one point took an emergency call to an incident that I was needed at to manage it.... and had to talk a lot on the police radio and make decisions, require extra staff, etc...whilst driving there at speed, on blues/twos.
Afterwards, my mate wondered how on earth I could do all of that at once. I'd never thought about it, it was second nature....
... yet, i'm useless nowadays on a phone?
To state the obvious, holding a phone to your ear doesn't dramatically reduce your driving abilities. Holding a phone to your ear and concentrating on the call does.
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Almost certainly, you were doing what I did*. A decent driver with radio communication only gives perhaps 5% of their attention to the radio, and 95% to the road.
The trouble is, not only does ones usually need a free hand with a phone, but the vast majority of mobile phone users seem to give 90% or more of their attention to the phone. As driving, any fool can do that - and frequently does!
* I'm a licensed radio amateur and did my recent in car communications with a proper hands free kit.
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>> Before I retired, I took a mate out in a police car (all authorised) and
>> at one point took an emergency call to an incident that I was needed at
>> to manage it.... and had to talk a lot on the police radio and make
>> decisions, require extra staff, etc...whilst driving there at speed, on blues/twos.
I think you've hit the nail on the head, West.
It was a 'job related' call, so 'all' was part of 'one', if that makes sense.
Having to listen to blathering on the telephone, which has no relation to the trip you are taking, is a distraction. However, if the call is relevant, then I can multitask - ie getting or receiving directions, updates or instructions during roadtest sessions, etc.
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I'm not a natural multitasker but I have developed a habit or perhaps trained myself to focus on the main task in hand.
If I'm driving I focus on that to the exclusion of other distractions, the same if I'm swimming or hammering down the side of a hill on my mountain bike or any situation where it suits me to be in a "zone". If you allow your mind to wander when the consequences of distraction can at least be painful you soon learn to try at least to avoid that!
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Worst case 3 points and £100. You might have been a bit quick for a course, you need to be doing 96 or 97+ before a date with the Magistrate.
My S60 speedo overreads by 2mph up to 100mph then it goes further out of whack. By 125mph it's 5 mph out.
Last edited by: gmac on Sat 26 Dec 15 at 21:43
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Don't suppose it'll wash much with the authorities if you point out that you regularly safely and legally manage to drive a three wheeler at nigh on 200 mph...
;-)
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Probably not in the world we live in now. Should know better! (in a Brian Blessed boom) is the mantra.
Strangely I was thinking back to Westpig's little incident and no mention of a breathaliser test. I thought:
1. there was no such thing as an accident in the 21st century, someone must be held accountable.
2. why no breath test when a car runs up an embankment inexplicably in December (party season and all that). I thought in all road incidents a breath test was required ?
Last edited by: gmac on Sat 26 Dec 15 at 23:17
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>> I thought in all road incidents a breath test was
>> required ?
IIRC it's normal where Police attend. Given WP's accident was non-injury and bpth parties sorted themselves out I'd guess Devon & Cornwall's BIB were not involved.
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>> IIRC it's normal where Police attend. Given WP's accident was non-injury and bpth parties sorted
>> themselves out I'd guess Devon & Cornwall's BIB were not involved.
>>
Correct
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...no such thing as an accident...
That's a Clarkson favourite and it's b*******. It confuses by conflating accidents with 'acts of God'. The latter are occurrences that no-one could have predicted or done anything to prevent. Most accidents are not like that; they occur because someone did something wrong, or failed to do something right. With careful analysis, we can often find out what the commission or omission was, and so prevent the same thing happening again; that's my understanding of the aviation industry's practice of full, no-blame disclosure. 'It was an accident' is not it itself sufficient defence or excuse.
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>> ...no such thing as an accident...
that's my understanding of
>> the aviation industry's practice of full, no-blame disclosure. 'It was an accident' is not it
>> itself sufficient defence or excuse.
Indeed in accident investigation boards, that is the case. The Police however are intent on apportioning blame.
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>> With careful analysis, we can often find out what the commission
>> or omission was, and so prevent the same thing happening again; that's my understanding of
>> the aviation industry's practice of full, no-blame disclosure. 'It was an accident' is not it
>> itself sufficient defence or excuse.
>>
You are comparing the aviation industry with trained professionals against the car industry where we allow people to pass a test at 17 and never have to see a medical professional again until they are 70.
Also, we have a culture of ambulance chasers. I didn't say I agreed with it but it seems like someone, somewhere always want to apportion blame so they can gain a few ££'s at someone else's expense.
Last edited by: gmac on Mon 28 Dec 15 at 18:09
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>> You are comparing the aviation industry with trained professionals against the car industry >> >> where we allow people to pass a test at 17 and never have to see a medical
>> professional again until they are 70.
No. That isn't so. You don't have to see a medical professional when you are 70.
I understand.
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>> No. That isn't so. You don't have to see a medical professional when you are
>> 70.
>>
>> I understand.
>>
Even better. A driver does not have to consult a medical professional until there is definitely something wrong.
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So it's been 14 days since the 25th and the letterbox is empty. I have learnt my lesson and will not speed* in future.
*past Bristol on the M5
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...give it a day or two.
Probably delayed in the post (and if it was posted at the appropriate time, it will still, unfortunately, be valid).
;-)
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>> So it's been 14 days since the 25th and the letterbox is empty.
ITYS
>>I have
>> learnt my lesson and will not speed* in future.
BZZZZZZZ WRONG you now know you are invincible, the desire to display your invincibility to others in awe of the cameras will win out in the end.
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I drive through this section twice a day. Yes the cameras do work, although at an indicated 85 you might scrape through.
Also something I learnt from Mrs B after her speed awareness course is that the flash is irrelevant - they can still function with no flash, and that sometimes the flash is trigged in a test sequence when no offence is being committed
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>> >> So it's been 14 days since the 25th and the letterbox is
>> ITYS
I promise never to doubt you again.
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>> So it's been 14 days since the 25th and the letterbox is empty.
For good measure, put your reg in the following website to make sure you've not been caught.
www.i-database.co.uk/
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Damn and blast it - Bromptonaut
