Do roads need white lines?

[Smurfy]

End of the road for white lines on highways - Highway chiefs say blank roads make motorists drive more cautiously
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/12137382/End-of-the-road-for-white-lines-on-highways.html

Transport for London, which manages major roads across the capital, told The Times the system used on parts of the A22 and A23 in south London and the A100 in central London may now be expanded to other roads.

Anyone got experience of cycling on the A22, A23 and A100 roads used for the trial?

 

[Colin_P]

Other than motorways or duel carriageways, I don't think they do.

A few years ago there was a 'naked roads' experiment where they did this, an idea imported from the Netherlands I think.

Anything that forces drivers to concentrate on the task in hand is a good thing.

 

[gavroche]

I disagree, I think white lines should be kept. Concentrating too much is tiring and dangerous. White lines help to see the side of the roads in the dark, wet, fog. so should be kept.

 

[Markymark]

White lines makes things safer. White lines makes things worse. There's only one way to find out......

Try it for a few months and analysis the results.

Who cares what people think, if it helps reduce collisions, it's a good thing. If it doesn't, it isn't.

 

[snorri]

White lines makes things safer. White lines makes things worse.

....................and each statement can be true depending on the location!

 

[Drago]

I'm with Marky, let's have some properly managed experiments in the real environment here in Blighty and see how it goes.

The oft heard cry of "It works in the glorious people's republic of the Netherlands" is, quite frankly, rubbish, as behavioural engineering of this sort never seems to translate effectively from one country to another, so let's test it and see.

 

[Spinney]

I read a BBC article on this yesterday:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35480736

What shocked me was the last paragraph:

"Throw in the need for new connected cars to be able to read the road and the vision needs of an ageing driving population and the case for white lines is still very strong."

[rant alert]
If they need white lines to help them stay on the road/stay on the right place on the road, THEY SHOULDN'T BE IN CHARGE OF A TONNE OR MORE OF MOVING METAL!
[/rant]

 

[fossyant]

White llnes can be dangerous, especially for two wheels - loss of grip, but not convinced overall.

 

[Spinney]

I'm with Marky, let's have some properly managed experiments in the real environment here in Blighty and see how it goes.

The oft heard cry of "It works in the glorious people's republic of the Netherlands" is, quite frankly, rubbish, as behavioural engineering of this sort never seems to translate effectively from one country to another, so let's test it and see.

er - they have trialled this, haven't they? Both the Torygraph article and the BBC one mention it being trialled in a few places in England.

But it is clear that it would only apply to certain types of road in certain places.

 

[Spinney]

So it's not 'the end of the road for white lines on highways' then. More empty hyperbole. You'd think the lines on motorways were being removed as we speak, the way some people are posturing.

Yup - usual hyperbole in the headlines - but that's what the press always do, sadly.
The BBC article did at least have the headline
Are roads safer with no central white lines?

 

[Illaveago]

They are trying it around here. I think it a dangerous idea as a motorist came really close to me as I cycled along in the cycle lane. It was later on whilst driving along that same section of road that I noticed other drivers were using the cycle lane to position themselves in the road. A lot of the drivers are now driving with one wheel in the cycle lane where there is no central white line. They are also not replacing some of the white lines on mini roundabouts and now some motorists are blitzing through without slowing down for people who are already on the roundabout.
Surely if people thought that the inventor of the catseye had a brilliant idea which made him a millionaire, why on earth are we going back to mediaeval times by getting rid of them.
It was bad enough getting rid of catseyes now they want to get rid of the only thing left for you to tell where you are on a really foggy day.

 

[Drago]

Yep, some small trials. It needs incrementally expanding to see.If the results stay true as the scale expands. After all, what may hold true for road safety in London may not 750 miles further North in Lerwick, with different traffic, road behaviours weather and levels of sunlight.

One must be careful the one doesn't interpret the results of a few trials as automatically applicable to everywhere, else one may as well just blindly copy the Dutch to begin with.

 

[mjr]

White lines makes things safer. White lines makes things worse. There's only one way to find out......

As Withnail is your current avatar, my mind gave it a whole other interpretation... say NO to coked-driving!

 

[mjr]

I noticed other drivers were using the cycle lane to position themselves in the road

...but as the cycle lane is more than the minimum 2m width stated in Local Transport Note 2/08, cyclists still have at least a nice metre of space between them and overtaking motorists... or they would if Wiltshire ever followed the minimum guidance

 

[Profpointy]

...but as the cycle lane is more than the minimum 2m width stated in Local Transport Note 2/08, cyclists still have at least a nice metre of space between them and overtaking motorists... or they would if Wiltshire ever followed the minimum guidance

I've seen a few cycle lanes narrower than a bike - outskirts of Preston for instance.
(I know you were being sarcastic by the way)