Motorway speeding ticket for 80mph?

[Deleted member 6183]

Speeding, or something significantly discreditable?

You would love it to be the latter.

 

[rockits]

The speed limit is the.... well, limit. A driver should always drive at a speed suitable for the weather and road conditions. NSL is not a license to kill.........

Problem is I and other good drivers adjust our speed to the conditions. I drive at 30-40 down the bigger lane and 15-20 down my lane. The limit needs to be 50 max on the bigger lane and 30 max down my lane. I'll take a pic later and you can understand why.

 

[E55BOF]

You would love it to be the latter.

Not at all. You just left it open, that's all. I can resist anything but temptation...

 

[Rory]

doubt it, the 10%+2 is a guideline. You can't use it to get out of a NIP

You can use anything you like. It may or may not work! When the safety partnerships were in full swing they used to say they didn't prosecute below the guidlines.

There was a challenge running on Pistonheads for anyone to produce a below threshold NIP. I don't think anyone ever did.

I do have colleagues done bang on the threshold though - one at 46 in a 40 (M42 variable) and the other 79 on the M40.

 

[Lizn121]

Wish we had the same highway system as the Germans. Problem solved.

 

[BTB 500]

The limit is silly anyway.

A 3-4 Lane motorway 70mph??!! but a country lane with blind bends 60mph... hmmmm

And statistically motorways are our safest roads. Even though a large percentage of people exceed the 70 limit.

 

[clk320x]

Fingers crossed. Guess the next few weeks will give a definete answer

What happened?

 

[KeithJG]

My friend has just had a speed fine for doing 70mph in a VSL area which goes from 50mph up to 70mph!

As they are doing up the M20 etc. ready for Brexit! so roadworks....he was travelling by junc.6 for Chatham and the limit was 50mph which he observed........then the out the limit sign come up and he accelerated to 70mph at the same time the gantry above suddenly flashed on 60 and the Camera got him with 70mph and the 60mph gantry limit he had no time to adjust down his speed......he still has a fine coming through though.
The thing is he never speeds.

I have never known it safe to do 80mph all i do is use the 10% error in the speedo which it must be by law. So you are ok at 44......55.....66....and 77mph.

 

[BTB 500]

he accelerated to 70mph at the same time the gantry above suddenly flashed on 60 and the Camera got him with 70mph and the 60mph gantry limit he had no time to adjust down his speed

That's not possible - there's a 60 second delay between the limit changing and the gantry cameras using the new speed.

 

[KeithJG]

That's not possible - there's a 60 second delay between the limit changing and the gantry cameras using the new speed.

The picture of the offence online with the Police shows the camera before you get to the gantry from the grassy bank and not a camera shot behind the gantry after you have gone under it ....so it is possible as i have the picture and he has a fine.

 

[markjay]

Driving on the M1 I found it confusing to have VSL mixed with roadwords.

What often happened was a 50mph roadworks strech, terminated by an NSL sign which was placed 100 yards before a gantry saying 60mph.... so in theory you had a 100 yards or so in which you could accelerate from 50 to 70 and then slow back down to 60. The whole thing was very difficult to follow, even more so when it was dark and raining.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Dark and raining!

Ha!

 

[BTB 500]

The picture of the offence online with the Police shows the camera before you get to the gantry from the grassy bank and not a camera shot behind the gantry after you have gone under it

I don't really understand what you're saying there??

As mentioned, for obvious safety reasons there's a delay (60 seconds, AFAIK) before any reduced speed limit becomes active. Otherwise you'd have everyone standing on the brakes at 70 mph as soon as the limit changed, to avoid getting a ticket.

 

[BTB 500]

Driving on the M1 I found it confusing to have VSL mixed with roadwords.

What often happened was a 50mph roadworks strech, terminated by an NSL sign which was placed 100 yards before a gantry saying 60mph.... so in theory you had a 100 yards or so in which you could accelerate from 50 to 70 and then slow back down to 60. The whole thing was very difficult to follow, even more so when it was dark and raining.

Agreed, we did a day trip up to Nottingham a couple of weeks ago in appalling weather and darkness both ways.

If you drive on the autobahns the limit varies all the time (from 80 kph up to unrestricted) from one stretch to another, with just occasional small round signs at the roadside giving the current limit. Then you have VSL via overhead gantries as well on some stretches. Plus different speed limits depending on whether the surface is wet or dry. So you certainly have to pay attention there!

 

[BTB 500]

Confirmation from Highways England about when a new limit becomes effective here

Thank you for your enquiry, below, concerning variable speed limits. The information you have requested is information we make available to the public on a regular basis.

Your request has been handled under normal business practices and not in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act.

I can confirm that following a change in the speed displayed by signal(s) there is a 60 second ‘grace period’ before HADECS3 cameras start enforcement, giving time for drivers to adapt to the new mandatory speed limit. This is to prevent cars from braking sharply.

 

[400ixl]

Cambridgeshire / Norfolk / Suffolk and Essex police often do speed campaigns where they use 75 mph as the limit at which they will take action. Doing 80 mph you are definitely risking it.

 

[BTB 500]

Cambridgeshire / Norfolk / Suffolk and Essex police often do speed campaigns where they use 75 mph as the limit at which they will take action. Doing 80 mph you are definitely risking it.

On a lot of vehicles 80 mph indicated speed is 75-76 mph actual. It's worth checking your speedo against a GPS.

 

[Alfie]

I've seen a number of people getting 3 points (and then a ban under totting) for doing 67 in a 60, 76 in a 70 and 56 in a 50. the thing to remember is that if you have 9 points then as little as 1mph over the limit can get you a ban! The cameras can be set to flash at whatever speed is desired. All this chat about 10% +2mph really doesnt hold much weight. I used to when a police officer pulled you over and used his discretion. Not anymore.

My ex-wife was flashed and fined for 31mph in a 30mph zone along Brighton seafront many years ago. Before the days of speed awareness courses! But then Brighton is hugely motorist unfriendly!

 

[KeithJG]

Driving on the M1 I found it confusing to have VSL mixed with roadwords.

What often happened was a 50mph roadworks strech, terminated by an NSL sign which was placed 100 yards before a gantry saying 60mph.... so in theory you had a 100 yards or so in which you could accelerate from 50 to 70 and then slow back down to 60. The whole thing was very difficult to follow, even more so when it was dark and raining.

That was exactly the situation except within those 100yds the gantry 60mph limit came up suddenly.

To be clear "Not" photo`s from the Gantry but a photo at an angle showing the whole gantry with all the red 60`s on it together showing the 4 lanes and the side and rear of the vehicle.

The camera was on a bank next to the motorway and a slip road to get the shots supplied.

 

[markjay]

That was exactly the situation except within those 100yds the gantry 60mph limit came up suddenly.

To be clear "Not" photo`s from the Gantry but a photo at an angle showing the whole gantry with all the red 60`s on it together showing the 4 lanes and the side and rear of the vehicle.

The camera was on a bank next to the motorway and a slip road to get the shots supplied.

I can only guess that the 60mph sign did not come-up as quickly as your friend thinks it did?

On another note, 60 seconds delay seems fair, but it's nothing to do with safety, most likely it's the local authorities not wanting to deal with the appeals that will result.

This is because given that most drivers are apparently unaware of the 60 seconds rule, they WILL brake if they see the 60mph limit come-up right in front of them.