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'..at above 20mph children have great difficulty perceiving how fast things are travelling toward them' rather presumes they're standing in the middle of the road, which isn't a good idea at the best of times.According to ROSPA guidelines:'20mph *zones* use traffic calming measures to reduce the adverse impact of motor vehicles on built up areas. The principle is that the traffic calming slows vehicles down to speeds below the limit, and in this way the zone becomes ‘self-enforcing’. Speed humps, chicanes, road narrowing, planting and other measures can be introduced to both physically and visually reinforce the nature of the road.' '20mph *limits* are areas where the speed limit has been reduced to 20mph but there are no physical measures to reduce vehicle speeds within the area. Drivers are alerted to the speed limit with 20mph speed limit repeater signs. 20mph limits are most appropriate for roads where average speeds are already low, and the guidance suggests below 24mph. The layout and use of the road must also give the clear impression that a 20mph speed or below is the most appropriate.'But we are now increasingly getting blanket 20mph limits(?) that include wide 'main roads' with no physical arrangements to suggest or justify a lower speed limit, which some motorists find more difficult to recognise or accept.  Like other traffic management schemes, they seem to be justified under some overarching 'make the world a better place' philosophy rather than the immediate needs of traffic management.

Peter Evans ● 1356d

Problem is not speeding. It is driving dangerously or recklessly, or with undue care and attention.But given that the national standard road speed limit has been 30 for nearly 90 years, generations of drivers can judge 28-30mph by instinct without checking the speedo.More to the point, speedometers in older vehicles are not accurate below 30mph, they were calibrated for optimum accuracy from just below 30 upwards. Being out by 3 to 5mph in the lower range has always been within permitted tolerances under 30.It's why Police cars were always fitted with second highly sensitive calibrated speedometers.Being 3mph over 20metres on a B road where pedestrian facilities are good, Is that as serious as doing 30 or more down a single track residential road with parked vehicles and less well lit? Or 25mph+ on an Scooter or electric bike in a Park?It is very hard to judge speed below 25mph.  Even Cyclists who are regularly fined in Richmond park for exceeding 20mph are surprised at how fast they are actually riding.Secondly, B roads locally are still carrying road markings and other pointers for 30mph ( according to the DoT Driving book which gives all the indications to recognise a speed limit on a road without needing the signs.) even though there are signs for 20mph as well.  Even Little Ealing Lane has a 30mph warning sign near to a faded and obscured 20mph on the road surface.But what remains unaddressed is E scooters, Cyclists and Moped riders using pavements, riding with number plates obscured, No lights, too many turning out of One way streets the wrong way, riding on the wrong side of the road and clearly not riding with due care, going completely unchecked with no enforcement whatsoever.These additional hazards are a nightmare for professional drivers, Bus drivers in particular are suffering huge additional stress on every shift. Cameras are supposed to be in positions of hazard, but in one or two locations the newer hazards are prior to the camera location. The prime thing for any motor vehicle driver where potential hazards exist is to keep eyes on the road, mirrors and cover the brake for those who are complexly devoid of any road sense and protocol abeyance. But additional hazards from completely unpredictable scenarios are not factored in ...Yet.In the end it just makes enforcement of this type exposed for what it is, a cash cow and makes a mockery of road safety for all who use a road in whatever mode.

Raymond Havelock ● 1356d