I’ve recently took a journey which took me quite a way southbound down the country. En route to my destination, I managed to have the misfortune of being in not one, but two average speed camera zones. If you’ve never been through one before, it’s a very simple setup.

There are cameras positioned along a route that monitor your progress. Should you exceed an average given speed (indicated at the start and throughout the route) then you’ll get a speeding ticket at the end. Quite commonly these average speed cameras are for 50mph roads.

I appreciate that these are the new ‘thing’ for the safety camera brigade, as they must vastly reduce the number of drivers that slow down just for the camera, only to speed up shortly afterwards when they are past a single one. However, they can be utterly infuriating to other motorists. Let me tell you why.

One of the average speed camera routes I took a journey on appeared to be set up because the road was not finished. I have been informed by someone else who regularly takes this route that this has been the case for approximately two years or more. So, an alteration to a road that takes three years plus, meaning that everyone (which is no doubt quite a large number of people) slowed an inconvenienced, despite the fact that no-one was working on the road either on my outward or return journey.

I am now thoroughly convinced that, short of there being a very good safety reason (is there such a thing as a bad safety reason), national speed limits should be moved to 80mph. Not only that, but any works project that involves major redesign of routes should be reanalysed to ensure that contractors are actually providing value for money as well as realistic timescales for work, given how much we all need to travel these days.

So, in answer to my own point, I really do hope that average speed camera routes are not coming to a road near you.

The Mail Online has ran an article that highlights a new speed camera that’s been erected at a set of lights at a 30mph stretch of a dual carriageway in Poole, Dorset, to catch motorists jumping red lights. The normal reason (or at least the justification) for a speed camera is that there are a number of accidents that have taken place in the area and the thought behind it is that a speed camera will serve to slow down traffic.

The debate on speed being the main cause of accidents aside, the suggestion is that this particular camera has managed to net in over £1 million to date, thanks to 1,843 motorists a month being caught. Further in the article, a spokesperson from the Dorset Safety Camera Partnership states that it is a ‘community concern site’, though apparently chosen for concern by the local council rather than the actual community.

In some cases, I’m actually for speed cameras if it slows traffic down in an area that can be proven to have had a problem with speeding motorists being involved in accidents. However, when a local council simply decides they are ‘concerned’, all this does is annoy residents, raise revenue and paint the police in a bad light.

Read the full article on the speed camera in question at The Mail Online.

How do you feel about the fact that there are perfectly good cars (some of which will no doubt have done fewer miles than you’d expect due to their age) up for scrap? The Mail Online is reporting that 400,000 vehicles have been scrapped through the government scrappage scheme and almost all of those are still roadworthy.

Shockingly, under the rules of the scheme, all cars must be scrapped, whether they be a Volvo, BMW or other any other brand that could be the pride and joy of an owner.

How does this make you feel? Well, for me, I understand the reason for the scrappage scheme. It encourages people to buy new cars – however, people can still lose more than £2,000 on depreciation anyway depending on the car, so it’s a bit of a false economy. More importantly, if the suggestion is that it’s better for the environment, then I think that someone should do the math and check that this is the case.

If my car for example is deemed an ‘older polluter’, but I only do 6,000 miles per year, exactly how many carbon emissions and how many resources are consumed by creating a new car which I then buy? Everything from the chemicals used in the production process through to shipping the car from abroad should be considered, but doesn’t seem to factor into the scheme.

I still believe that there should be a massive auction which involves every car put in for scrap that is still roadworthy (i.e. would pass an MOT). If this happened, people could go away with a smile on their face driving a new motor and the government could get some cash.

Ross Brawn

It has emerged that Formula 1 boss Ross Brawn has admitted a speeding offence of travelling over 100mph in Devon, which saw him escaping a driving ban despite already having 3 points on his license. His punishment comprised of a £700 fine (laughable for someone with the money of Brawn I’m sure) and his license will receive further endorsement for speeding.

I’ve no doubt that Brawn has a lot of driving experience, but travelling at over 100mph doesn’t just put him at risk – but all other road users too. Being late for an appointment isn’t much excuse and you’d think that someone who runs an F1 team would, given his status, try to be an exemplary driver on the road.

What are your thoughts? Should Ross Brawn have been banned from driving or was his punishment fair?

The Humberside Police IS-F

Humberside Police have taken delivery of a Lexus IS-F in order to make life more difficult than ever for those looking to travel to the region to commit crime.

Specially trained officers spent 12 months evaluating a number of high performance vehicles that are set to replace the current Subarus which have proved highly successful in enabling the Roads Crime Section to target organized criminals in the area. Following a stringent evaluation process the decision was taken to purchase the Lexus IS-F after the vehicle proved to be exceptionally capable of remaining stable in high speed operational policing environments, despite carrying the extra weight provided by the £30,000 worth of on-board computers and communications equipment.

Sergeant Mike Peck of the Humberside Police Roads Crime Section said: “The purchase of the vehicle was far from an easy decision and involved research and advice from the force fleet manager, financial managers and a vehicle dynamics expert. The Lexus was tested during a 12 month period along with similar vehicles and proved itself to be ideally suited in providing a dynamically safe high performance chassis along with an electronically stable platform for the computer equipment. In the past this equipment has placed huge demands on vehicles but the Lexus IS-F easily met with our requirements. The final product provides a most formidable package and is undoubtedly one of the most advanced police vehicles in the world which in turn enables my officers to deal with the criminals who use the roads for serious and organized crime.”

The Lexus IS-F has a performance tuned 5.0-litre V8 engine capable of reaching 62mph in 4.8 seconds and a top speed electronically limited to 168 mph and was supplied by Steve Kelly, Centre Principal at Lexus Hull who has been working closely with the Humberside police regarding the sale.

Apparently, the police at the Nurburging have tightened regulations, which means that your car could be impounded (or possibly worse) if your car doesn’t meet the regulations.  Here’s the press release (with my emphasis attached):

A NEW crackdown has been launched by the RheinlandPfalz Police, in and around the Nürburgring region. Police are sending out a message to all Visitors that their vehicles will be seized and vehicles may be impounded (at additional cost to you, of course) if their owners do not have the correct “original” documentation. In addition, a range of many popular UK vehicle modifications has been identified and judged to be unsafe for driving around the Eifel area and also the Nürburgring.

Driving in Germany is normally a complete pleasure as the roads are in excellent condition and the German drivers are well-trained and cooperative. The German autobahns are famous for being some of the few public roads in the world without blanket speed limits for cars and motorcycles. Although, Visitors should also be aware that with the high alcohol content of German social beverages, it doesn’t take long to hit the low alcohol limit. Everything is fine – just as long as you follow the rules.

One very popular destination for us Brits is the Nürburgring, simply known as “The Ring” by enthusiasts. It can be classed as a normal road in Germany, or a motorsport race track, depending on whom you speak to. It is open to anyone with a road legal car or motorcycle and also a few euro in their pocket to pay for the road toll.

Nürburgmotorsport recognised the growth of English speaking visitors and so the new company was set up two years ago by British owner Ken Harris. The aim is to provide a wide range of support services to Visitors from the UK and all parts world, where speaking English is popular. As a well known local company regular meetings are held with all the main authorities in the area.

Ken Harris explains more, “I meet up today with Herr Linden – Polizeiinspektion Adenau (Chief Constable) as part of ongoing discussion for my project named Open Road (Projekt Freie Fahrt). This aims to promote “Best Practice” for Visitors to the Nurburgring. We discussed amongst other topics the New Ring Damage Insurance which my company offers and also the details of the accompanying mandatory, Visual Vehicle Inspection.

“I must say it was a bit of a shock to learn that the rules will be strictly applied and there is now a full collection of Police photographs showing items on vehicles which are judged to be dangerous. Not all, but many of which affect UK cars and the Police intend to enforce these rules starting in August and have asked me to inform the UK Press.

“So having your vehicle approved at a UK MOT centre may not now be enough to satisfy these much stricter locally applied rules and you need to keep with you the original car documentation, because any photocopies are not accepted,” continues Ken Harris – British owner of Nürburgmotorsport UG.

The Vehicle Inspection is now being hurriedly updated and will include advice and assistance so as to comply with the latest Police rules and regulations, as part of the Visitor Support only available from Nürburgmotorsport UG and other appointed approved garages.

By permission of the RheinlandPfalz Police the photographs pertaining to UK cars can be seen at the following website location:-

www.nurburgmotorsport.com

NürburgMotorsport can provide all the aspects needed for having an enjoyable and safe stay at the Nürburgring. From travel booking, Ring Insurance, airport pickups, accommodation, servicing and repair, Race Team Management, Race / Driver training, not to mention the cars i.e. store your own or rent a brand new one.

Whether you do 100 miles a year or 30,000, one thing you must do is ensure that you have a valid license for the type of vehicle which you drive. One aspect of the new style photocard license is that it actually has a renewal requirement built in. I’m not quite sure I understand why, but it’s probably because it has a photo on the card – and unfortunately we all change and age!

It is therefore extremely important that you check section 4b on the front of your driving license. This is the area that tells you when the renewal date is. The DVLA is meant to send you a pack 2 months prior to the date – however, if for whatever reason you do not receive this, it is your responsibility to arrange a new photograph and you can send form D1 away to update the picture.

Here’s the official information on the DirectGov site.