What is the point of the national speed limit sign?

aracer – Member
Indeed – presumably the limit somewhat arbitrarily changes from 70 to 60 somewhere about here heading North https://goo.gl/maps/NCwRO

In the absence of any visible repeaters I’d say 30mph down to the roundabout, then 70 through the leafy bit (see one way signs)

In the absence of any visible repeaters I’d say 30mph down to the roundabout, then 70 through the leafy bit (see one way signs)

Roundabout to traffic lights is NSL – 70 mph
One way section through leafy bit – 60 mph

Edit: Tell a lie actually, they’ve recently put 50mph signs up through the leafy bit going north, 60mph going south

Go on then I’ll bite…
What makes those speed limits apparent?

National Speed Limit signs from the adjoining 30/40mph roads, dual carriageway + central reservation = 70mph

One way signs on the bit north of the traffic lights indicating not a dual carriageway but one way street = 60mph

Having had a bit more of a look around the are on streetview it’s all just chaos around there isn’t it!
I still can’t see any repeaters on the DC stretch though (although handily, there is a one way sign for traffic entering it from a field – make of that what you will…) so presumably you could actually be done for exceeding 30mph…

And here’s another fun one for you…
Dropped pin
near A57, Worksop, Nottinghamshire S80 3AR
http://goo.gl/maps/pI2xH

Explain the speed limits on this stretch…

GrahamS – Member
Really? So you what, (going to guess here,) live your entire life in front of a computer?
I’m a software engineer, so yeah I do. Though I currently work from a serviced office so I do have to put my pants on these days.

Presumably because you don’t have a photocard you can’t do all those things that apparently require it like… erm…?

How do you live?
Got asked for it only yesterday, some solar panel salesman wanting it, very disappointed when i showed him the paper one.

How do I live? A long time ago on a planet far far away from software engineer world, that’s for sure.

At my height, i also need it to get served in bars.

OK, I’ll bite. Why would a solar panel salesman want to to see your driving licence?

scotroutes – Member
tyrionl1 » Got asked for it only yesterday, some solar panel salesman wanting it, very disappointed when i showed him the paper one.
OK, I’ll bite. Why would a solar panel salesman want to to see your driving licence?

I’ve no idea, something to do with the Feed In Tarriff maybe, identity confirmation, anti money laundering, any number of reasons, haven’t tried to set up many bank accounts or entered any financial agreements lately I guess, it’s an ID card, no question of it another erosion of civil liberty and I gather you get charged to renew it very so often, I don’t know this since I refuse to have one, but I heard that.

It’s no more an ID card than a statement from your bank or a bill from a utility supplier. You need to move this over to the tinfoil hat thread.

scotroutes – Member
It’s no more an ID card than a statement from your bank or a bill from a utility supplier.

Don’t get out much do you chap?

It’s got your birth date, your picture, your address, how much more ID is there? Even your passport doesn’t carry that much intel.

Well assuming it’s NSL (can’t see any repeaters, can’t be bothered looking for the speed limit change signs, can’t be bothered measuring the distance between lampposts) then 70 as it’s a DC.

Ah, well when I did do something with my bank account recently I used my passport for ID purposes. Good job I have one of those, for reasons alluded to above regarding other photo ID.

The thing is though, you appear to be completely missing the point about why people might consider ID cards to be a bad thing. For example you’re certainly not required to carry your driving licence around with you.

It’s got your birth date, your picture, your address, how much more ID is there? Even your passport doesn’t carry that much intel.

So really, you’re annoyed that your photo drivers licence has the address on it? Something that your ratty old paper copy has as well. Passports carry everything but that plus a whole lot more.

actually back to this one, it is strange how if you’re driving a small lorry or minibus you can only drive at 50 on that, but can drive at 70 here https://goo.gl/maps/xqAFQ

Ambiguity.

There’s a short stretch of road near me that’s 30 if you enter from one end and 40 from the other. The LA didn’t erect 40 signs as you leave the village towards a national speed limit, but reduced the national to 40 and then 30 as you enter the same village

thing is though, you appear to be completely missing the point about why people might consider ID cards to be a bad thing.

Are you perhaps confusing ID cards with compulsory ID cards?

squirrelking – Member
It’s got your birth date, your picture, your address, how much more ID is there? Even your passport doesn’t carry that much intel.
So really, you’re annoyed that your photo drivers licence has the address on it? Something that your ratty old paper copy has as well. Passports carry everything but that plus a whole lot more.

No, I’m ‘annoyed’, which isn’t the term I’d use, since ambivalence would be more accurate, to the fact that a photo and regular fee payment is now required and it is now frequently asked of me for identification purposes since I clearly engage in more activities which require its use as such than the average cycle forum keyboard warrior and have clearly enjoyed greater freedoms in my time on this mortal coil than most here, so object to them being eroded.

Passports do not carry your address per se although you may give the address of someone to contact in the event of your demise I seem to recall.

greater freedoms in my time on this mortal coil than most here, so object to them being eroded.

I’m pretty sure you still have your freedom. Not having or having a photographic driving licence will make no odds to that.

You are a strange (half)man Lannister.

…it is now frequently asked of me for identification purposes since I clearly engage in more activities which require its use…

Sorry – I’m confused. If these activities “require its use” and you don’t have one then how exactly are you engaging in them?? 😕

Passports do not carry your address per se

But you know what does carry your address?

Your old paper licence!

So really the only additional concern with the photo licence is that if you hand it to someone then they will know what you look like.

tyrionl1 – Member
It’s got your birth date, your picture, your address, how much more ID is there? Even your passport doesn’t carry that much intel.

Not enough for some courier companies. Some want a utility bill as well. Applying for financial stuff wanted two utility bills plus passport and driving licence not accepted.

Utility bills are tricky as all mine are paperless now and some places won’t accept a copy or printout.

Anyway, the utility bill bit is supposed to prove you live at that address. Driving licence has the address but you could have moved since it was issued and haven’t updated it.

GrahamS – Member
You are a strange (half)man Lannister.

…it is now frequently asked of me for identification purposes since I clearly engage in more activities which require its use…
Sorry – I’m confused. If these activities “require its use” and you don’t have one then how exactly are you engaging in them??

Passports do not carry your address per se
But you know what does carry your address?

Your old paper licence!

So really the only additional concern with the photo licence is that if you hand it to someone then they will know what you look like.

And you are a strange (half) wit GrahamS, is obfuscation a pre requisite for software code construction? Or did your grey matter catch a ‘bug’?

You must have missed this

More discussion here

What are you on about, Derek?

Some places / services require you to prove your identity with a trusted photo ID. This is not, generally, a bad thing. The driving licence is but one common, convenient form of ID, others are available. Passport, CitizenCard, NUS card, your work pass perhaps?

A national, centralised, mandatory photo ID scheme is a bit Orwellian sure, and raises privacy concerns. But that’s not what’s happening here.

is obfuscation a pre requisite for software code construction?

No but logic is.

You claim you don’t have a photo licence but somehow you regularly take part in activities that require one.

Something there doesn’t quite add up. 😕

You must have missed this

No no, I’m fully aware of the attempts to bring in compulsory ID cards.

In fact in previous threads I’ve specifically cited it as a good example of the Human Rights Act and the ECHR protecting us from over-zealous government.

But a photo driving licence is not a compulsory ID card any more than a passport, a paper licence, or a Costco membership card is.

You are not compelled to have one or carry it on your person.
You are not required to produce it to access government services.
It doesn’t contain your biometric information (unlike a passport).

The 56mph for HGVs comes about because there are two separate laws here. Firstly there is the law on NSLs where the maximum for an HGV on a motorway is 60mph. However HGVs are also required to be fitted with a speed limiter which must be set to 56mph. Therefore an HGV doing 60 on the motorway isn’t breaking the law regarding speed limits, but presumably is breaking the law regarding calibration of the speed limiter (I don’t know what tolerance is allowed).

The limiter only stops you from accelerating beyond 56 mph. A fully loaded HGV will “over run” the limiter down a steepish hill.

. thisisnotaspoon – Member
I was quite surprised driving home on the spacesaver from holiday last year (80km/h?) how high the MPG went, exceeded the manufacturers quoted figure by significant amount so I’m guessing their figures are still done at 56mph?

Was it on the drive axle of a 2wd car? Eg on the front of a fwd?

Wondering if the lower circumference would mess up the odometer reading as the differential would make the effective circumference the average of the wheels on the drive axle so you car thinks you have gone much further than you actually have making the mpg calc look better.

A spacesaver should be the same rolling diameter as the normal wheel.

Some cars with space savers have different size wheels front to back. 💡

On the old S2000, if you punctured a rear you would have to replace the rear wheel with a front wheel and then the front wheel with the space saver. 😕

Different rolling diameter, or just different width?

Just checked mine; if my maths is correct, the overall diameter of the space saver is 5mm smaller than the regular wheels.

Definitely seen a lot of space savers that are a bit smaller.

Reasons for having to swap tyres round could be to protect a differential (a lot of RWD cars may have limited slip, fancy diffs etc so running them with even a slight difference in diameter for any length of time can screw them) or due to fitting over brake calipers (front bigger) on some cars.

(I don’t know what tolerance is allowed).

85km/h + 10% IIRC. Certainly 91/92kmh is a pass at annual test, any higher and it’s a fail.

The limiter only stops you from accelerating beyond 56 mph. A fully loaded HGV will “over run” the limiter down a steepish hill.

It takes a very long hill and knocking anything reasonably modern into neutral to manage now. Plus it flags up on digital tacho records as an overspeed event which appears on reports the next time the tacho head is downloaded. Highest I’ve seen was 113kmh, which involved a very big hill and the driver using neutral. That driver didn’t last long once the transport manager seen the reports, worked out who it was, and had everything checked to make sure it wasn’t a faulty speed limiter.