Driving standards

[PaulCheffus]

1 hour ago, kevinlms said:

Isn't parking so close to an intersection/junction enforced in the UK? It seems so blatant in UK videos.

Hi

 

Not around here it isn’t unfortunately. People also think it’s a good idea to park right up to a blind bend so in order for you to get around it you have to be on the wrong side of the road.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[cessna152towser]

On 31/01/2024 at 23:11, Pete the Elaner said:

I have just driven home from the club, along the A421 between the A1 & M1. For those unfamiliar, it is 70mph dual carriageway & I was in my car, so 70 was the limit for me.

I was in the overtaking lane & accelerated to 70 but had to back off because the car in front was doing just over 60. A car pulled up on my left because he did not want to pass on the left, so I tried to stay slightly in front but not closer than about 2 seconds behind the car in front of me.

The car in front was a little slower than those in front of them, but backed their speed off to around 56 & matched their speed with a lorry in the left lane, remaining in their blind spot. They even dabbed their brakes a couple of times to stay there & maintained this position (yes, in the blind spot) for a minute or 2. I was not sure if they were trying to brake check me, even though I was still a couple of seconds back. I began to wonder if there was a car in front of them which I could not see, but it was clear.

Reminds me of an experience on a quiet autumn night on the M6 a few years back.  Car some distance ahead pulled out into fast lane then slowed down, just as I pulled into fast lane behind him to pass slower traffic.   He eventually slowed to 38mph.  I flashed my headlights and he responded by putting on his fog lights.  It was a clear night, with no traffic up ahead in the fast lane but traffic now passing on the inside.  This went on for a couple of miles, then he suddenly speeded up, dabbed his brakes and then sped up again.    I regained my 70mph but lost him as he raced away, now at an excessive speed.  I assume he must have been drunk and I regretted not getting his number and notifying the police.

[cctransuk]

2 hours ago, Nick C said:

It doesn't seem to be enforced at all, at least not on residential streets. The Highway code says not to park within 10m of a junction, but that doesn't seem to stop people...

 

It may be in the Highway Code - but that doesn't make it illegal.

 

The Highway Code sets out good driving practice - much of it is not legally enforceable.

 

CJI.

[Nick C]

1 hour ago, Reorte said:

but there's usually plenty of time at most junctions whichever way they go.

Unless you're at the A34->A303 eastbound junction, which I think has been mentioned on here before - very sharp bend into really short slip, and no visibility either way. That's one where, when I'm already on the main road, I tend to move over into lane 2 on approach if it's safe to do so, so that there's room for anyone coming up the slip to merge in.

[Reorte]

5 minutes ago, Nick C said:

Unless you're at the A34->A303 eastbound junction, which I think has been mentioned on here before - very sharp bend into really short slip, and no visibility either way. That's one where, when I'm already on the main road, I tend to move over into lane 2 on approach if it's safe to do so, so that there's room for anyone coming up the slip to merge in.

That's why I qualified it with "most." There are certainly some nasty junctions where it's not. The M6 J34 northbound was one of those, really nasty, a sharp corner on to the motorway, and no acceleration lane to speak of (it joined on a bridge that never had enough space for a hard shoulder). At least plenty of the traffic on the motorway seemed to be aware of it, pulling out from the inside lane when approaching it was common even if you couldn't see vehicles trying to merge (which was hard to unless you were fairly close).

 

Fortunately that's gone now and been replaced with something much easier as part of the Heysham link road (the join now seems excessively long, but at least that doesn't cause problems).

[johnofwessex]

Interesting document here

 

https://www.southyorks.police.uk/media/9243/op-parksafe-v2.pdf

 

You CAN get points for parking

[cctransuk]

45 minutes ago, johnofwessex said:

Interesting document here

 

https://www.southyorks.police.uk/media/9243/op-parksafe-v2.pdf

 

You CAN get points for parking

 

.... but, in practical terms, only in a small area of Sheffield where the locals have made a fuss.

 

CJI.

[johnofwessex]

7 minutes ago, cctransuk said:

 

.... but, in practical terms, only in a small area of Sheffield where the locals have made a fuss.

 

CJI.

 

Then make a fuss

[cctransuk]

1 minute ago, johnofwessex said:

 

Then make a fuss

 

Not enough people give a sh*t - best of luck!

 

CJI.

[Enterprisingwestern]

 

Only needs one person.

 

Mike.

[trevora]

2 hours ago, cctransuk said:

 

It may be in the Highway Code - but that doesn't make it illegal.

 

The Highway Code sets out good driving practice - much of it is not legally enforceable.

 

CJI.

I and 6 others got done for parking in a short street all within 10 mtrs of the two ends

[stewartingram]

4 hours ago, Reorte said:

It says "do not" rather than "must not" (rule 243), which suggests it's bad practice rather than strictly banned. Failing to follow what's in the Highway Code when it doesn't say must or must not could be interpreted as something along the lines of careless driving, but isn't a specific offence.

 

Any time it uses "must" it's referring to the law, anything else is describing good practice, but the Highway Code isn't the law in its own right.

Our local PC (over 20 years since I moved away from there) was old school, and used to enforce it on our estate. Seen him issue tickets. Also cars parked on the wrong side of the road (facing traffic). Sadly he retired shortly before I moved. That's how it used to be, but times have changed.

[PhilJ W]

5 hours ago, cessna152towser said:

Reminds me of an experience on a quiet autumn night on the M6 a few years back.  Car some distance ahead pulled out into fast lane then slowed down, just as I pulled into fast lane behind him to pass slower traffic.   He eventually slowed to 38mph.  I flashed my headlights and he responded by putting on his fog lights.  It was a clear night, with no traffic up ahead in the fast lane but traffic now passing on the inside.  This went on for a couple of miles, then he suddenly speeded up, dabbed his brakes and then sped up again.    I regained my 70mph but lost him as he raced away, now at an excessive speed.  I assume he must have been drunk and I regretted not getting his number and notifying the police.

Get yourself a dash cam. I have just had to replace my car written off in a crash for cash scam. I will be fitting the new car with dash cam ASAP.

[PhilJ W]

8 hours ago, Nick C said:

In a lot of places it's difficult, if not impossible, to avoid cutting the corner - especially with the number of parked cars around on many residential roads these days (illegal itself so close to a junction, of course, but as @cctransuk says, such is life...). The important thing is to do so slowly and safely so there's no risk of collision.

 

There's a lot of "It's my right of way" type attitude (often when it isn't...), but sometimes it's better to wait for the other car to go first anyway, then you've got more room to manoeuvre...

 

8 hours ago, kevinlms said:

Isn't parking so close to an intersection/junction enforced in the UK? It seems so blatant in UK videos.

It is but as has been mentioned the law is rarely enforced. My house is on a T junction with only nine feet between my drive and the junction. There is one particular driver who always parks his car there, either overhanging my drive or the dropped curb on the junction for people with wheelchairs or pushchairs to cross.

Edited February 12 by PhilJ W

[johnofwessex]

37 minutes ago, PhilJ W said:

Get yourself a dash cam. I have just had to replace my car written off in a crash for cash scam. I will be fitting the new car with dash cam ASAP.

 

Nah what you want is this 

 

 

With voice actuated targeting  'White Audi at 3 o'clock' 

[MrWolf]

Or a really old Skoda.*

 

*Also handy for supermarket car parks.

 

Bundesarchiv 

[kevinlms]

11 hours ago, PaulCheffus said:

Hi

 

Not around here it isn’t unfortunately. People also think it’s a good idea to park right up to a blind bend so in order for you to get around it you have to be on the wrong side of the road.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

So this whole thread is nonsense, regarding declining standards of driving, when apparently you all are prepared to put up with dangerous parking.

 

Remember that the law of averages says, that some contributors of this thread (of 501 pages to date) are offenders of parking in dodgy spots.

[johnofwessex]

The experience in the State of Victoria (Australia) was interesting

 

As I understand it, when they started doing road blocks for drink driving and the 'average' driver could expect to be stopped every two years or so it had a major impact on driving standards because people realised that they were likley to be caught if they misbehaved.

 

I suspect that many of the poor parkers attitude extends to other areas of not only driving but life in general and towing their cars and giving them points might get a message over about their behaviour as well as being fairly 'low risk' in terms of not getting a car chase and possibly quite a productive use of police resources.

[Enterprisingwestern]

8 hours ago, MrWolf said:

Or a really old Skoda.*

 

*Also handy for supermarket car parks.

 

Bundesarchiv 

 

* You would still get some twot/twotess in their chelsea tractor who would reverse into you saying they never saw you!

 

Mike.

[Coldgunner]

...or riding right up your chuff on the parkway

[jbqfc]

Man reports himself for drink driving 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-york-north-yorkshire-68281661

 

John 

[PaulCheffus]

5 hours ago, kevinlms said:

So this whole thread is nonsense, regarding declining standards of driving, when apparently you all are prepared to put up with dangerous parking.

 

Remember that the law of averages says, that some contributors of this thread (of 501 pages to date) are offenders of parking in dodgy spots.

Hi

 

Who said I was prepared to put up with it?

 

Please don't make assumptions, I reported it and it was dealt with eventually but there are many other cases of this one of which the Police say isn't a proper junction so they can't do anything about it.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[cctransuk]

5 hours ago, kevinlms said:

So this whole thread is nonsense, regarding declining standards of driving, when apparently you all are prepared to put up with dangerous parking.

 

Remember that the law of averages says, that some contributors of this thread (of 501 pages to date) are offenders of parking in dodgy spots.

 

The point is that moaning about 'dodgy' parking on here is not going to achieve anything - the majority of the population do not see it as a problem, it would appear.

 

CJI.

[cctransuk]

2 hours ago, johnofwessex said:

The experience in the State of Victoria (Australia) was interesting

 

As I understand it, when they started doing road blocks for drink driving and the 'average' driver could expect to be stopped every two years or so it had a major impact on driving standards because people realised that they were likley to be caught if they misbehaved.

 

I suspect that many of the poor parkers attitude extends to other areas of not only driving but life in general and towing their cars and giving them points might get a message over about their behaviour as well as being fairly 'low risk' in terms of not getting a car chase and possibly quite a productive use of police resources.

 

I think that I'd rather have my burglary investigated, given a choice.

 

CJI.

[Enterprisingwestern]

54 minutes ago, cctransuk said:

the majority of the population do not see it as a problem, it would appear.

 

 

I think the majority of the population have just given up on anything less than a murder.

 

Mike.