April, 2011 - Diary Of An ADI

Highway Code 80 Years Old (Update)

14/04/2011

I wrote recently about the Highway Code being 80 years old. The DSA has just put out an email alert:

Highway Code celebrates 80 years on the road

One of Britain’s best selling and most iconic publications – the Highway Code – is 80 years-old today.

The first edition was published on 14 April 1931 in a bid to cut down on the number of accidents taking place on Britain’s roads. Despite the fact there were just 2.3 million motor vehicles at the time, over 7,000 people were killed in road accidents that year.

The Highway Code quickly became the ‘must read’ publication for those using the road and is now recognised the world over. The Code is now used by millions of drivers, motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians every year and has even been featured in TV drama storylines.

Road Safety Minister Mike Penning said:

“The Highway Code is the official guide to using the roads safely and responsibly. The Code has helped to save thousands of lives over the last 80 years, which is cause for celebration.

“The Highway Code is not just for new drivers, it holds crucial information for everyone from experienced motorists and motorcyclists to horse riders and pedestrians.

“The publication offers the latest information on the rules of the roads and road safety advice, as well as promoting greater courtesy and understanding among all road users. Its long-standing success is one of the reasons why Britain’s roads are among the safest in the world”.

The Highway Code has moved with the times and is now available in a variety of formats, including online from the Directgov website, as a download and on CD ROM with a voice-over for people with reading difficulties.

The Highway Code: Directgov – Travel and Transport

200 Miles Per Charge?

14/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, General, World

Wow. A huge stumble forward for electric cars is on the cards. This prototype SIM-LEI can apparently get 200 miles on a single charge.

You can read about it for yourselves, but it won’t be in production until 2013, and we can only guess on the price from the description (a separate motor for each wheel…!?)

Mind you, some of the comments are interesting at the bottom of the article. I agree with that one about how ugly electric cars are – they just look like there’s something wrong with them right from the start.

Then there is the one referring to the Tesla Roadster. Even after tax rebates that one costs over $100,000!

But let’s not forget that 200 miles (twice the Nissan Leaf’s range) is still pretty poor when you consider how long it will take to “fill” it up again. It’s also the manufacturer’s figure – real range is likely to be well under 180 miles, and even then only if you don’t have the climate control on.

And as for where you can fill it up… and what happens if you don’t…

Deflation… Unsafe and Costly

13/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, World

A report in the Independent says that 70% of European drivers (that includes Britain) are driving on under-inflated tyres.

The survery was done by Bridgestone, who calculated that 2 billion litres of fuel are wasted annually as a direct result. Nearly 10% of cars tested were so seriously under-inflated they were dangerous.

You should always:

check your tyre pressures regularly
look for any obvious deflation at other times
get the correct information from your handbook or the label in the door frame or under the fuel flap (there will be one somewhere)
DON’T read it off the tyre
use a reliable gauge – don’t trust the garage forecourt meters
measure the pressure cold – before a journey
don’t forget the spare tyre

You can pick up pressure gauges from Halfords for around £5.

People Are Idiots

13/04/2011

DOAADI

General

The Mirror reports that people who have completed their census forms are sending them back with all manner of additional material. including…

passports
cheques
death certificates
a drawing of the Queen
credit cards
house deeds
family photos
driving licence application form

It’s bad enough if you do it by accident, but in the twilight recesses of some peoples brains they probably meant to send whatever it was they sent. The results from these people are likely to be even more questionable. The last census prompted this comment on the Office for National Statistics website:

No religion includes people who ticked ‘None’ at the religion question plus those who wrote in Jedi Knight, Agnostic, Atheist and Heathen and those who ticked ‘Other’ but did not write in any religion.

As the title says, people are idiots.

And so far, only about three quarters of households have completed the mandatory census form – risking a £1,000 fine if they fail to do it. Census collectors are now being sent out – I wonder how much that costs?

MoT Not Annually?

13/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, News

This one is frightening – the Mickey Mouse government we have is considering increasing the time between MoT testing from the current 12 months.

Unbelievably, the reason behind this is as follows:

There is growing public anger over soaring petrol prices and the overall cost of driving a car. This has forced Philip Hammond, the Transport Secretary, to look at ways in which these costs can be curtailed. He has now ordered the MOT system to be reviewed.

Can you believe it? And they have the cheek to suggest this, too:

This could save motorists a significant amount of money in the long run.

Well, that’s from the article, but anyone who thinks it is true is an idiot.

If you take a car in for its MoT, the test itself only costs around £30 (to £60 depending on where you go) – this means that if you keep the car for 20 years (yeah, right. And assuming the MoT price stays the same) from new, instead of paying out £510 (first 3 years don’t need an MoT) you’ll pay only half that if they increase the lifetime of the certificate to 2 years. A saving of £250 over 20 years is not “a significant amount of money”, even if 20 years is a “long run”. And they ARE NOT going to increase it to 2 years – it’ll be 6 months or something pointless.

But where the costs really start to mount up is when you have to have work carried out. So if your tyres are bald or your brakes are down to metal, having that fixed every year is expensive – as is all the other stuff that goes wrong. When I used to have to worry about MoTs it was impossible to get the car through without £400+ of work each year. On my old Citroen Xantia, a new clutch cost nearly £500.

So what these idiots are advocating is that people will be allowed to drive around for two years (or whatever period they go for) in a death trap, instead of just one before it fails its MoT and gets fixed.

If the car has a fault, it has A FAULT. It needs fixing. Increasing the MoT period is a mandate for people to drive dangerously defective cars.

Oh, yes. We all know that the MoT doesn’t protect you if you are stopped and found to be driving a defective vehicle – even 10 minutes after the MoT was issued. I’m sure the families of those who will likely die as a result of people NOT being stopped by the police (who are subject to cuts of their own) feel much better about that.

If the idiots in this coalition want to help financially, then cut the stupid fuel duty by 10p.

1 in 5 Motorway Deaths is Pedestrian

13/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, World

Another Irish story, this time in the Independent. Apparently, 1 in 5 of all deaths on Ireland’s motorways is a pedestrian. Irish Trucker also reports the same story.

It’s another shocking statistic which perhaps derives from Ireland’s previously lax road laws.

RSA chief executive Noel Brett said pedestrians were a “massive risk” on motorways and not only were they a danger to themselves, they were putting other road users in danger.

“The message is clear: never ever walk on a motorway,” he said. “Pedestrians are at a massive risk on a motorway — you’re taking your life in your hands and putting other road users in danger, too.

“Likewise, drivers who stop on a motorway can cause collisions involving their own car and potentially many others. It’s unsafe and it’s an offence.”

Again, it is frightening that people can have such a blasé attitude. You can only hope that the country’s attempts to modernise it’s driving systems takes hold quickly, but you can’t help think that the present generation will always be a problem.

Driving the Wrong Way

13/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, World

The Irish Times reports that driving the wrong way (citing a specific motorway in County Limerick) is now “a daily occurrence”.

The report also says:

The most dangerous drivers on motorways, gardaí say, are “middle-aged and older drivers”.

These would be the ones who “learned” to drive under Ireland’s previous almost non-existent (according to my Irish pupils) teaching system. I hope those opposed to Ireland’s attempts to bring their system up to scratch are listening… but I doubt it.

Having some troglodyte coming towards you in the outside lane in the opposite direction isn’t funny. I know.

It isn’t just my take. Noels Brett of the RSA said:

…there were 2½ million driving licence-holders, and the vast majority had had no formal driving instruction, particularly older drivers, who he said may be used to driving in a way that was not suitable for motorways. “If someone misses their exit they may feel it’s okay to do a U-turn, or try and reverse back. One simply cannot do that in the high-speed environment of a motorway,” he said.

It’s frightening, isn’t it? It’s like changing from driving on the left to driving on the right – but doing it gradually.

Highway Code 80 Years Old

13/04/2011

DOAADI

ADI, General

The Sun reports that the Highway Code is 80 years old – then goes on to take the pee in typical Sun fashion.

Road signs were a bit different back then, and a lot of consideration was given to road users who might be riding or moving animals, or who might be riding vehicles other than cars.

For example, you are advised that if you’re a drover (someone who moves cattle and sheep around on foot) and have someone with you, you should send him ahead so he can warn traffic.

Of course, back then it was customary to use the horn to let people the other side of a bend that you were coming. This gives The Sun all the opportunity it needs to say that a good PARP was all you needed, instead of MSM.

The juveniles who work for The Sun have no concept of anything that happened more than about 10 years ago and take the rise accordingly, in the mistaken belief that it’s humour. Well, it is to other juveniles.

Throughout the history of driving, the current version of the Highway Code has been vital. Back in the 30s the advice it gave was absolutely current. Some of the advice even back then still has validity today if you’re a half decent driver. A couple of years ago I was driving down a country lane and rounding a bend found the road blocked with sheep. A similar thing happened last year driving between Plumtree and Keyworth, as they were moving sheep from a field on one side of the road to the farm on the other. And more than once that stupid cow in Wysall has got out of its field to chow down on the Hawthorns the other side.

Of course, the kind of people who work for The Sun would probably have difficulty recognising a sheep, let alone dealing with a whole flock of them.

EDIT 18/4/2011: This article in the Express also makes interesting reading.

Test Pass: 13/4/2011

13/04/2011

DOAADI

Driving Tests

Well done Vivek, who passed first time today with 9 driver faults.

It was mayhem at the test centre. We turned up the required 10 minutes early, and since the previous time slot’s tests were just going out the car park was quite full (instructor cars carefully spaced so that there was one empty space between all of them. Cowards). Then, at the end, there were at least two private runners who had decided that they didn’t need parking bays, and that it was OK to stop in the middle of the road outside the centre (no attempt at parking or pulling over).

Still, these are the things Vivek will have to deal with now he’s a full licence holder.

Sun Pillar

13/04/2011

DOAADI

General

I had to get up early this morning (5.15am) for an early morning test at 8.20am. I glanced out of the window and noticed a red sky – “red sky in the morning…” I thought to myself – but then I noticed that there was a sun pillar.

You don’t often see them this pronounced, and the photo I took using my phone’s camera doesn’t do it justice.

This one lasted quite a while, and the vivid red, orange, and purple sky colouring made it particularly attractive.

The “red sky in the morning” thing also looks like being quite accurate on this occasion. It started off sunny, but has quickly clouded over and heavy rain is forecast. It’s also quite cold out there.

Archive - April 2011