CycleChat Investigates - Smart Motorways

Smart Motorways - whaddya reckon?

  • Just amazing, I can waft along in congestion free comfort

    Votes: 4 8.5%
  • OK I guess, though I was happy enough with the old motorways

    Votes: 4 8.5%
  • Meh, not that bothered

    Votes: 5 10.6%
  • I don't like them, the high speed they encourage and lack of hard shoulders is concerning

    Votes: 22 46.8%
  • Who'd have thought Death Race 2000 would turn out to be a documentary?

    Votes: 12 25.5%

  • Total voters
    47
  • Poll closed .
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Joey Shabadoo

My pronouns are "He", "Him" and "buggerlugs"
It's the age-old issue where no matter what the UK buys, there will be those saying "should have got this or should have got that. The big boy across the road has got one of those, why can't we?"

The RN is coming out of 40 years of neglect with the most modern and capable fleet in the West. The question isn't about the quality of the kit, it's about the numbers. It's been cut to the point where it really can only operate effectively combined with others. We have the high end equipment, the French, Germans and Dutch supply the cheap and cheerful frigates.

All of which is a bit of a distraction from a bloody stupid experiment with motorways.
 

BoldonLad

Not part of the Elite
Location
South Tyneside
"Having an entire complex and carefully engineered infrastructure exclusively built for you at taxpayers expense and expanded to suit your needs" is a curious definition of suffering.

On a Cycling Forum! Aren't motorists (or, if you prefer, people, who drive cars, and, quite possibly, ride bicycles) not taxpayers too?
 

BoldonLad

Not part of the Elite
Location
South Tyneside
It was dreamt up by somebody who's never broken down on the hard shoulder and had the scary experience of cars and lorries hammering past at high speed. Somebody who's never had a tyre explode or a piston bang through the bonnet at 60mph necessitating an immediate stop.

Indeed. The hard shoulder can be a very scary place, been there, done that!

It is a number of years ago now, so, the statistics may have changed (although I doubt it), I was working for a Company who's business was traffic monitoring systems. The lane on a typical motorway, with the most accidents and fatalities, was, the hard shoulder (this was before "smart motorways"). Somehow, to me, making that lane a "live" lane, never seemed like a wise move.
 
On a Cycling Forum! Aren't motorists (or, if you prefer, people, who drive cars, and, quite possibly, ride bicycles) not taxpayers too?

I think I may have been misunderstood: I'm referring to the motorway network: an entire complex and carefully engineered infrastructure exclusively built for motor vehicles at taxpayers expense and expanded to suit their needs.
 

BoldonLad

Not part of the Elite
Location
South Tyneside
I think I may have been misunderstood: I'm referring to the motorway network: an entire complex and carefully engineered infrastructure exclusively built for motor vehicles at taxpayers expense and expanded to suit their needs.

Sorry, I was being facetious. But my point was, people who drive cars are generally taxpayers too, so, they are not exactly getting something paid for, exclusively, by someone else. I don't know how roads are funded in Germany, but, here roads are funded out of general taxation, hence, the often heard jibe of cyclists having no right to be on the road, because they do not pay "road tax" is not valid. Plus, "Road tax" as such, was abolished in the 1930's, more latterly, the tax on vehicles is called "Vehicle Excise Duty", and, is not used to fund roads, it is part of general taxation, like Income Tax, VAT, Insurance Premium Tax etc etc etc
 
Sorry, I was being facetious. But my point was, people who drive cars are generally taxpayers too, so, they are not exactly getting something paid for, exclusively, by someone else. I don't know how roads are funded in Germany, but, here roads are funded out of general taxation, hence, the often heard jibe of cyclists having no right to be on the road, because they do not pay "road tax" is not valid. Plus, "Road tax" as such, was abolished in the 1930's, more latterly, the tax on vehicles is called "Vehicle Excise Duty", and, is not used to fund roads, it is part of general taxation, like Income Tax, VAT, Insurance Premium Tax etc etc etc

Fair enough. I was pointing out that although Motorways (and Autobahns) are paid for by general taxation, not everyone can actually use them.


I appreciate there are practical reasons for this.

However, to say motorists are "suffering" when they have this incredibly expensive, complex and well engineered system exclusively at their disposal, which seems to be expanded and improved at the merest whisper of complaint, is pushing it a bit.
 

Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
Whoever came up with the idea should be forced to drive an elderly Chevette up and down the motorway until it happens to them.
An elderly Chinese motorbike; even better.
Edit to add... 111 posts and no mention of motorbikes on these abominations. I haven't yet ridden on a smart motorway, but if it is scary and dangerous in a car, imagine how it must be on a motorbike.
 
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sheddy

Legendary Member
Location
Suffolk
 
No new smart motorways until radar technology is installed, no mention of the existing smart motorways having the nearside lane banned to all but distress. Those ones must be different than any new ones and therefore already safe.
I don't see how radar technology is going to make a difference in the first few seconds or minutes of a vehicle breaking down.
 
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