driving on country roads

[nsldriver]

I regularly drive on country roads with a variable limit from 30-40-NSL-50-40-30-NSL-50 along my regular route. It's a road with a lot of bends with digital warning signs to slow down to 30. Two bends have digital warning signs of 20 and 25.

I drive at the speed limit except when going through puddles of standing water which have been across the whole road at times recently. There are some 5-6 dips where this has been the case several times and cars in both directions drive through it along the middle of the road going very slowly. The road is also frequently used by horse riders and there are deer around - I've seen three run across this road in the last month.

I am often overtaken when going at the speed limit which is really pissing me off as it's so dangerous. AIBU?

No you’re not BU

You are driving at the limit which means those overtaking you are speeding.

Hitting a deer can write off your car. My neighbour hit one and her care was written off, she wasn’t speeding, a car coming the opposite way hit the deer, it bounced of his car and into her path, wrote off both cars, killed the deer, and shook up two families.

Also as it’s a bedy road, you ned to take care of what’s around the bend. Could be a horse rider and you need to pass them at a max of 15mph

So you are not BU

YANBU but you will find impatient dangerous drivers on most roads. I hate it too.

Nope you aren't being unreasonable.
I was beeped at yesterday for stopping at a zebra crossing and allowing school children to cross safely.
Can't believe some people would have something so important to get to that they wouldn't do that 🤷‍♀️

You're driving at the limit. Often on country roads even the speed limit is far too high (particularly NS roads where they haven't actually bothered to change the speed limit to something sensible. Country roads have a fairly high accident rate exactly because people take them too fast assuming there'll be nothing round the next bend. (Not to mention the dangerous overtaking of cyclists and horses I've seen - really pisses me off!).

To be honest anyone driving at the speed limit, is probably driving too fast.
Deer generally move at dawn and dusk. Having had a deer land on my car, suggest slowing down during twilight.
And obviously bikes and horses are vulnerable.
Anyone exceeding the speed limit is barking mad and likely to end up losing an argument with a tree as some point.

Sorry ...rant over

Anyone exceeding the speed limit is barking mad and likely to end up losing an argument with a tree as some point.

That's their problem to some extent. I feel more concerned about the cyclist or horse round the next corner or the car coming in the other direction.

Im rural, very rural. The road i live on is a single lane in many places and has many S bends. Yet its a 60 mph as its not a built up area. Good and careful drivers cannot even do 30 in places but you do have the odd fucking dick who thinks he or she is at Silverstone. Beggars belief why its a 60 road. Coming into the village from the previous village is a 40 and said dicks will overtake on it

A lot of country roads are 60 by default aren't they?

Yes but why?

I have to drive on rural roads quite a lot. Quite a few of them are National Speed Limit (so 60 mph) but bendy and sometimes single track. Doing 60 on them on most stretches would be very dangerous though. Anything much above 40 is usually too fast because of deer, horses and riders, people walking (no footpaths) and oncoming traffic with limited room to get past.

People tailgate others along them all the time. I got it the other day. It drives me round the bend.

Deer do most often move around at dawn or dusk, but not always. I have come across herds of them on the road during the middle of the day sometimes.

I was making my way to work a few weeks ago. I had to stop and wait on the single track road which leads to our office building because a number of deer were milling around right in front of me. I don't like to think what could have happened if one of those boy racers had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

I think it's because they're unassessed. Like no one has really looked to decide what the limit should be which is reasonable given that it should be fucking obvious to drive like there's a combine around the corner!

I drive on rural roads daily to and from work, for a significant time (90 minutes all in) and tend to find the biggest issue is those who go well over or well under the speed limit. There have been 3 fatal crashes on the road my workplace is on in 1 year. All of them caused by speeding. It's horrendous. Equally someone doing 20 mph on a 60 mph road irritates people and causes ridiculous overtaking and wastes time.

I also think it's because they are unassessed but that's a cop out given that 'they' have been out and put up the NSL signs. Maybe there should be a default of 40-50 but then maybe that'd end up with more people speeding.

I slowed down for a deer standing in the road and the car behind swerved out round me rather than slow down.

Tractors/animals and what have you all have warning signs on the rural roads where I am.

By that I mean road signs warning of the possibility.

I live rurally and a lot of roads i drive are sometimes are in some places only wide enough for one car .Doesn't stop idiot's going to fast and then having to slam on the breaks and hope they can stop when they meet you .I learnt to drive on both main and rural roads .As the advert on the radio states you never know what is round the next corner if you meet a tractor or milk tanker and you can't stop well enough said .

YANBU we used to live out in the sticks, where the country lanes could just about squeeze 2 cars on, so if a car was oncoming you would have to move slightly on to the grass verge for both to pass.
My father collected me from school one day with a neck brace on, as a driver was speeding down the lanes, causing a crash.
The law of land states it's "knock for Knock" bloody ridiculous. Local bobbies were hopeless though anyway. Sorry I digress

YANBU - the limits are there for a reason, respect them, it's hard when riding and a speeding car flies pass, especially if you on a nervous horse who startles easy. They can do alot of damage.

In what way would you be UR OP?
I can't understand if you are unsure about driving within the legal limits on the roads or think people have a valid reason for speeding? So this just reads as goady.

I do not speed FWIW. I had a car accident as a teenager and still wear the scars thanks to being in a speeding car.

You shouldn't be driving at the speed limit on a country road.

I walk on them fairly regularly, and the number of drivers who have no idea how to pass a pedestrian safely is alarming.

I'd like to specially mention the person last week who drove round a blind corner far too fast, and nearly clipped me as I was stood waiting to cross from the inside to the outside to walk round it safely.

YANBU. The number of drivers who apparently believe they can psychically predict whether a car will be coming around the next corner is staggering.

It's not helpful to be pissed off. I'm leaning towards YABU if you are asking if being pissed off is U.

I get loads of people up my arse when I drive the speed limit (which I try hard to keep to). Oh well, their problem.

I live rurally and actually I love the freedom NSL gives to drive to the conditions of the road.

For example, in the lane going out of my village it’s only possible to do 15mph round a 180 bend on the cliff but further up the hill it’s 50/60 on a straight flat across the hilltop.

That same hilltop is however sometimes completely covered in sea fog, so it’ll be 20mph sometimes less at night.

It would be deeply annoying to have to stick to specific and constantly varying prescribed speed limits.

In fact I do find it annoying when i drive in urban areas. Some dick tailgating me in a 30 when I’m doing 20 to get over speed bumps, or doggedly insisting on driving at 70 on the city bypass when it’s heavy traffic and pissing down.

The real problem isn’t NSL on rural roads, it’s all the twats who can’t seem to drive to the conditions of the road, prescribed speed limit or not.

Chouetted while I agree that any driver should drive around a blind corner as if someone was there (I do, for the record), as a pedestrian, standing just past a blind corner to cross is spectacularly silly and dangerous. Everyone has a responsibility to keep roads safe, whether they're on wheels or not.

A lot of country roads are 60 by default aren't they?

No, they are not. They're 'national speed limit' which means 'up to 60 IF it's safe under current conditions. Like the ones with defined numbers, it's a limit not a target.

YANBU
I live the same reality.
Even when they recently changed a couple of roads from 50 to 40 people still tailgate and you feel the pressure.
I don't do 20 on a 30, I am doing 30 and still seeing I am one of the few.
In rain I go slower as you should. It is so bad.

In what way would you be UR OP?
I can't understand if you are unsure about driving within the legal limits on the roads or think people have a valid reason for speeding? So this just reads as goady.

Presumably the drivers of cars who overtake think I am unreasonable not to be speeding. On the sections of road where it is longer and straighter I will drive nearly at/at the speed limit and slow down before the dips where you can't see the bottom at the moment as several times they have been full of standing water, especially recently. Other times I'll slow down as I approach the dip as some have drives to/from farms and small lanes etc.