There are some streets around here where I'm pretty sure you could get a car to leave the road if you drove down it at 30. If I bought an old banger and gave it a go would I be breaking any laws? Are there "due care and attention" laws that say you can't do 30 in a 30 zone if some idiotic council has put small mountains in the road?
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Life is complex; it has real and imaginary parts.
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IMHO one big problem with speed bumps is that you can damage your car by driving over them at the posted limit. This is clearly wrong.
Apply a bit of common sense! The posted limit is a maximum, not a target. I don't like humps or other so-called calming measures, but I drive at a speed governed by the prevailing conditions, which may be faster or slower than the posted limit.
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But the prevailing conditions here are created by the same people who set the limit. On one hand they say the limit is 30 and then they create road conditions that make it impossible to do that speed without breaking your car. Where's the common sense there?
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Life is complex; it has real and imaginary parts.
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But the prevailing conditions here are created by the same people who set the limit. On one hand they say the limit is 30 and then they create road conditions that make it impossible to do that speed without breaking your car. Where's the common sense there?
I don't think that argument will run - there are plenty of occasions when the posted speed limit is too fast - would you expect to be able to take every bend on a NSL road at 60?
A worthwhile point to me is that if the right answer is to keep traffic to 20mph, then set the limit accordingly and enforce it - don't introduce obstructions that can't be negotiated without accumulating tyre and suspension damage, create noise and delays, and distract drivers from what they should be looking at - i.e. other traffic, pedestrians, and hazards ahead.
Being driven by my son, who has just passed, reminded me that the biggest problem with inexperienced drivers (and some others sad to say) is that they don't look far enough ahead - the last thing any driver needs is to be concentrating on the speed cushion 10 feet ahead.
I have no argument with sticking to 30 or even 20 limits, but I truly hate and detest these things, whether outside my house or somebody else's.
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On one hand they say the limit is 30 and then they create road conditions that make it impossible to do that speed without breaking your car.
So what you're suggesting is that councils across the country each spend tens of thousands of council tax payers money lowing the speed limits in "bumped" areas and installing repeater signs where appropriate?
I'll iterate Adam's comments: it's a maximum speed limit. Go over bumps at 30mph if you want to. But in the same veinyou can't swoop around every tight country bend at 60 (and live yo tell the tail) just because the limit tells you you can.
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Mike Farrow
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Yeah, but there's a difference here. Make a road NSL and tell me to decide when it's safe to do that speed - fine. Make a road a 30 limit and then put (spend tens of thousands of council tax payers money on, if we're going to get into that argument) obstacles in my way to make it impossible for me to do the speed that you've set - not fine.
It's not the fact that I expect to be able to do 30 over the humps that's the problem here. I won't do 30 over the humps because it'll break my car.
The point is this: what is the purpose of humps? It's either (a) to make me stick to the 30 limit, or (b) to make me go slower than the 30 limit.
If the reason is (a) then the humps are too harsh because driving at 30 will destroy my car. The humps are overkill for their purpose... in fact they break my car at 5mph let alone 30.
If the reason is (b) then the humps are needless. The limit should be set to 20 and the humps removed. 20mph over a hump will destroy my car too. What are councils trying to achieve by putting humps in place? Cars going really slowly at very specific parts of a street before screeching away? Extra revenue for mechanics? I can't work it out. If you want me to go slower than 30, set a lower limit, don't break my car.
It's the same as saying "we're going to stop people stealing by chopping everyone's hands off". It will achieve it's aim, yes, but that the same time it becomes a huge inconvenience to everyone.
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Life is complex; it has real and imaginary parts.
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On one hand they say the limit is 30 and then they create road conditions that make it impossible to do that speed without breaking your car.
Sadly I had to call the council to repair one of the humps in my area. A pot hole appeared in the road at the base of one corner which unless you were aware of it made it feel as if something had broken.
I need the formal spec for humps.
There is a evil one on the B306 Queens Ride between the South Circular en route to Putney Bridge.
I want to talk to the council about it.
Exiting a mini roundabout and hitting it at 10mph is quite a jolt and I consider this to be an unacceptable installation of said hump.
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The Q&A I sent to the paper read:-
Getting the hump
I recently had a puncture in my nearside rear tyre and found to my horror that the inside wall had worn through to the metal casing. I then checked the offside tyre and that was also deteriorating on the inside. Although I regularly check the tread on my tyres, I now know I have to get down on my knees and inspect the inside walls as well. I presume that this has happened because one metre wide speed humps have been installed in my road and these are damaging the inside tyre walls.
P.G., via e-mail
Yes. Definitely. Check the inner shoulders of the fronts too. Best to try to drive one wheel over the humps, one on the flat. You get more of a shock and the springs suffer more but you are less likely to cause tyre and steering alignment damage. People who install these humps should be made liable for consequential damage to cars and for the deaths and serious injuries as a result of this damage that occur later in a car's journey. I am thinking of starting CASH (Campaign Against Speed Humps). CASH donations should be made to?..
What I am now doing is gauging response. Have had some very interesting e-mails, especially from a reader who is challenging the legality of speed humps.
But the question, "why can't you drive through a 30 limit at 30" is answered in The Highway Code where they say..."Rule 131: Traffic Calming Measures. On some roads there are features such as road humps, chicanes and narrowings which are intended to slow you down. When you approach these features reduce your speed.....Maintain a reduced speed along the whole stretch of road within the calming measures..."
So to fight them it would seem to be better to work on the basis of metre-wide speed cushions damaging tyres, steering, suspension and sumps, and also causing severe discomfort to people with back problems AT WHATEVER SPEED they traverse the humps. I am particularly interested in any case where it can be proven that damage to a car's suspension, steering or tyres has been responsible for a death crash later in the car's journey. Any firm evidence of this could see all metre wide cushion type speed humps in the country removed within weeks for fear of liability suits from insurers.
Discuss speed humps here by all means. But any good stuff should be sent to so I can file it.
HJ
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The view of the Association of British Drivers:
www.abd.org.uk/speed_humps.htm
The official dimensions:
www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1990/Uksi_19900703_en_2.htm
My opinion: speed humps damage all vehicles crossing them at all speeds, if only a little at a time. This is damage that has been caused by the deliberate introduction of physical obstructions in the carriageway, not accidental damage attributable to the inexorable deterioration of the carriageway through constant use and the impact of the weather. The extra damage caused by speed humps generates extra maintenance and repair costs. It is ridiculous that the public authorities are free to act irresponsibly in causing such damage directly while having no equally direct liability under the law.
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Local Authority have recently resurfaced Bedford Road in Letchworth, Herts. A straight 1/2mile, stretch, with housing & a school.
Previously, the surface was weraing out badly, offering a more 'natural' control over speed. Plus some humps, which could be avoided with vehicles with a reasonable track (cars & emegency vehicles).
Added to this, the complete susface was raised, by the entire roads width, with a different rough & noisey material, at the school & crossing locations, thus creating a sensible, controled area.
NOW.... new tarmac, with sets of 3,2mtr long x 1mtr wide, what appear to be rubber block humps in centre & either side of the road, at intervals, which you can't miss, so you DO slow down to cross them.
Unfortunatly, the new surface has decreased the slope onto the aoremantioned sections at the school & crossings, so you can actually take advantage of the fresh road surface & INCREASE (if you were stupid enough to do so) over these more speed critical parts!!
VB
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The official dimensions: www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si1990/Uksi_19900703_en_2.htm
Thanks for that very useful info.
The full width humps in my area do not conform to that spec.
They all extend to the curb thus creating puddles on at laest two flanks.
Also in fashion are raised pedestrian crossings without any drainage provision.
I will take up the issue of what are probable illegal spec humps with Wandsworth Council.
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There's a hump infested village near me called Talke Pits. One of the humps is not possible for my car to traverse at any speed (I have tried going over at about 1 mph) without the underside being scraped. The village is now ruined by these things and chicanes have also been added. I dread to think how much extra pollution is being pumped into the place as people brake to go over the humps and accelerate over the other side. If they made the whole place 20 and got rid of them I'd ge quite happy to pootle through at 20 as it is a narrow road. My own village has had humps put on one of the roads so now all the traffic goes through the other roads. Coincidentally most of the councillors live on the road with humps. Villagers in the other roads in the village have had their quality of life seriously affected as 90% of the traffic now avoids the humped road.
I always go over humps as slowly as possible as I am damned if I have to ruin my suspension and risk a puncture because of moronic councils.
teabelly
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Does anybody follow the Highway Code with regard to not speeding up between speed humps?
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If I did that I'd have to go through some places at 1mph! The highway code also says one shouldn't be a selfish obstruction either :-) How many accidents are caused by people not stopping time due to defective suspension caused by these stupid humps? The condition of the UK's roads are appalling so you need all the suspension capability you can.
teabelly
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Probably not. SFAIK the Highway Code is mostly advice not law. If you didn't speed up between humps there could just be a lower limit and no humps (see earlier posts). If the limit is 30, the humps slow you down to 5 and they are 100 yards apart you not going to get much thanks from anybody for mainataining 5 along the affected road!
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At my local main dealer I was talking to one of the techies whilst he was working on my car, & we got on to speed bumps, or "Inverted potholes" as he called them. He told me that since councils started putting them everywhere like the were going out of fashion, the life of car suspensions had HALVED, and they did a roaring trade in shocks and springs and the bosses loved them, the humps, that is.
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I hate speed bumps but I must admit it makes me chuckle when I see boy racer in his souped up, spoiler clad Corsa edging over it slowly with his pal walking in front checking the clearance!
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Easy to chuckle at hooded chaps but just wait til you have to be driven in ambulance over few of those humps with your appendix bursting...
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No, it is not just boy racers who may have this problem. Last week I had to slow down dramatically as a Porsche GT coming the other way found that he had to approach one of these all-the-way-across humps at an angle to avoid grounding the car on the lurch that you get as you go over. Don't blame him...
On the other hand, Marston Green has a set of four metre-wide cushions (school along road) and if I dare drive across them at less than 20mph, I still get primeordial creations overtake me.
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I have, sat on my passenger seat, an invoice from the garage for supplying and fitting a new sump. That's over £300 gone thanks to a full width speed ramp taken at 5mph. My car isn't lowered, it isn't even on the Alfa Sportpack suspension or on 17" alloys. It's on standard 16" alloys and standard ride height. The hump in question is a mass of scars and oil stains. At the time the damage was done I planned to measure it but never got around to it. The bill has bought this sharply back into focus.
Luckily the sump only developed a small crack and didn't split completely, otherwise I'd probably be looking at a lot more work.
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