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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to point out that the national speed limit on a dual carriageway is *70* and not *60*?

163 replies

LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 19:27

I am sure after the zillion AIBUs about drivers over Christmas this isn't necessary but WHY do some people not know the speed limit?

I know that the speed limit is a limit not a target; I'm fine with people driving at 60 if they think that's the appropriate speed for the road or the conditions. What I'm not fine with is pillocks who slam the breaks on every time they see a speed camera because they're doing 65 and think the limit is 60.

Moaning about this to friends at lunchtime, they did not know that the national speed limit on a dual carriageway is 70, not 60. They've passed their tests, btw, and have been driving for a while.

AIBU to think they're twats and so are the idiots I ended up behind today?

OP posts:
bulby · 29/12/2011 20:04

Laurie is correct it's only if it's got a central reservation that it's a dual carriageway and 70. Single carriageway no matter how many lanes it's 60. I think this is where people get confused thinking that 2 lanes per direction is a dual carriageway.

JarethTheGoblinKing · 29/12/2011 20:04

I get upset about people who can't be bothered to drive properly.

LunaticFringe · 29/12/2011 20:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

JarethTheGoblinKing · 29/12/2011 20:05

Laurie - x posts. Didn't know that about central reservations - interesting.

hippysair · 29/12/2011 20:07

This is not always true! Only if the carriages are separated by a verge, for example. If you could roll a ball across the road, I.e.all lanes, without it bumping into anything then the speed is still 60. Also depends on vehicle too. Single lane national speed limit is 60 unless separated by a verge, then it is 70.

But 'mono speeders' as I call them who do a constant speed regardless of the limit annoy me the most.

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:07

scurry - of course you're right it's best to simply drop back and stay safe. Obviously, since I am here posting and not smashed into a central reservation somewhere, that is what I did.

But seeing as there's a fair few people on this site it doesn't seem stupid or 'not worth it' to start a thread - I think there genuinely are people who don't know the limits and don't realize they're doing something dangerous., and it's not stupid to hope they'll see this and maybe think a bit about a refresher course or changing the way they drive.

OP posts:
MynameisnotEarl · 29/12/2011 20:08

Our dual carriageways (midlands) have variable speed limits - one near to my work is actually 40mph. But if you feel someone in front of you is going too slow for you OP, surely the point of a dual carriageway is that you can overtake safely.

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:09

hippy - as has been pointed out, you're not talking about dual carriageways there.

OP posts:
Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:11

myname - loads of roads have variable limits. But the national speed limit on dual carriage ways is not variable - it's 70.

As I said in my OP, I'm not fussed by the speed itself, but by the slammign on of brakes without warning and the lack of knowledge, which to me suggests someone who is not a safe driver in other ways, since knowing the national speed limit is a pretty basic bit of driving knowledge.

OP posts:
ChippingInLovesChristmasLights · 29/12/2011 20:11

I sometimes drive at 60 when I'm not sure because some of them are very hard to tell apart and I can't afford to lose my licence. More speed signs is the answer, no accusing people of being unsafe to drive simply because they are being cautious.

Insomnia11 · 29/12/2011 20:12

I think some people really don't know what the National Speed Limit sign means. Nor indeed what 30 means for that matter. I wonder if they can even see that far at times Confused Not that it is always appropriate to be anywhere near 60 on roads with a 60 limit, but for one near me it is certainly appropriate to being going at least 45mph in good conditions. But some drivers appear to be stuck at 35/40 - the bit that really annoys me though is when they carry on at 40 in the 30 limit part of the road later on...Oh and someone overtook me when I was doing 30 in the 30 zone, whizzing past at about 45 Angry

scurryfunge · 29/12/2011 20:15

It's fine to have a rant! I am not suggesting the thread is stupid or not worth it.
It's a great thread -I am all for people moderating their frustration though whilst on the road as it often translates into aggressive driving. I am a serious chilled driver and accept there are shoddy drivers around.

JarethTheGoblinKing · 29/12/2011 20:15

Insomnia11 I'm ashamed to say I wasn't sure what the national speed limit sign meant until a couple of years after I passed my test.

Read on here about those 40mph drivers that just fly through villages at the same speed regardless. Someone had suggested overtaking them just before it went to a 40mph limit, then slowing down to force them to 30mph. Possibly not the safest manouvre in the world, but it did make me Grin

ChippingInLovesChristmasLights · 29/12/2011 20:15

There is a dual carriage way near me, it has barriers in the middle - most of it is signed at 40. Then it's 30 then 40 - then nothing for miles... no one has any bloody idea what the legal limit is once it gets a bit more 'in the country' - a sign would be good.

Another bit of road not far away has 40, 30, 40, 30 all in less than a mile, with 2 of the signs being about 20ft apart!! (Just completely outed myself to anyone living locally!! LOL).

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:16

chipping - driving at 60 steadily is fine though, surely? I assume if you are already doing 60 you don't slam your brakes on without warning? That is the opposite of cautious - and it is unsafe. It suggests both that they think it's ok to speed when there are no cameras, and that they don't know the national speed limit is 70 on the dual carriageway - since you always get a reminder sign along with the speed camera warning sign, I'm pretty sure they genuinely don't know it, rather than that tehy're momentarily unsure.

OP posts:
Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:18

scurry - thanks for saying that. Smile I wasn't sure what you thought of it - it just seemed that if I put the important bit in the title lots of people would see it.

I am not an aggressive driver (I don't think) and certainly don't get cross about people doing 60 - or much slower - when that's appropriate for the road. Today it was really windy and wet and 60 was plenty fast enough a lot of the time. It was the sudden reactions that were worrying.

OP posts:
FizzyChristmasFairyDust · 29/12/2011 20:21

I have a small car with poor acceleration, it's all I can afford.
We have a length of dual carriageway near our house and it's uphill all the way. When I join the dual carriageway (on the uphill section) it takes my poor little car over a mile to get up to 60 MPH and it only manages it on the downhill section at the end of the road.

Unfortunately the point at which I join it is about 100 yards before it gets to single carriageway, it's a 60mph limit (signs saying so) all along, I pootle along at 40mph and then 50mph and get people behind me flashing their lights because they think I am not going fast enough.

MynameisnotEarl · 29/12/2011 20:23

LRD - I don't understand why you think the speed limit on dual carriageways is 70mph - am I misunderstanding you? Some dual carriageways (as I gave an example) have different speed limits. One in my area is actually 40mph, so if you drive at 70 on that you could be done for speeding.

And as I also said, you can overtake on a dual carriageway if you want to go faster than the driver in front.

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:23
Confused

I really tried to write a clear OP ... obviously that failed.

OP posts:
FizzyChristmasFairyDust · 29/12/2011 20:24

Also, I am fairly sure it is only 70mph on a dual carriageway when there is a central barrier separating the two lanes? I think it is 60mph when there is no central barrier?
I think that a road is technically not a dual carriageway without the central barrier, though we'd probably all see it as such.

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:27

my name - I cross posted. But I have actually said this in my title and my OP. The national speed limit on a dual carriageway is 70. It is not variable.

The white, circular signs with black diagonal bars mean 'national speed limit'. On single carriageway roads, this is 60. But if you are on a dual carriageway, ie., a road with two or more lanes going the same way and separated from traffic coming the other way by a central reservation, the national speed limit is the same as on a moterway - 70.

What you are talking about is not the national speed limit. Sometimes, on all sorts of roads, variable speed limits apply. They are signed with round signs with numbers on them, or (in the case of 30 limits) by regularly spaced street lamps.

Otherwise, the only thing that affects national speed limit is the type of vehicle you drive, and whether or not you're towing. But assuming you are driving a normal car and not towing, the national speed limit on a dual carriageway is 70.

I don't want to overtake anyone - I want them to drive safely.

OP posts:
FizzyChristmasFairyDust · 29/12/2011 20:28

Chipping, we must live in the same area!

Through two villages beginning with T and O? lol

MynameisnotEarl · 29/12/2011 20:31

I see LRD - and agree that when the national speed limit applies on a dual carriageway, it is 70mph. But it's not always safe to drive at this maximum speed limit. Only the driver in front of you knows what is a safe speed for her/him to drive at.

Lynli · 29/12/2011 20:33

When I passed my test the national speed limit that applied was 60 on a dual carriageway and 70 on a motorway.

Not sure when that changed, or how long it was before I knew. They should just put numerical speed limits.

Original poster
LRDtheFeministDragon · 29/12/2011 20:34

Yes ... I said that in my OP too .. come on, give it a read, it's not that long!

I was trying really hard to explain it's not the speed that bothers me, it's that it's really disconcerting to find people (my mates) who didn't actually know something they should have known, and to see people slamming their brakes on. I will be totally happy to poddle along at a safe distance behind someone doing 50 or 60 if that's the speed they think is appropriate - they may well be right.

OP posts: