Monday, December 20, 2010

What are you, stupid?

Let me paint the current conditions on the roads around here. They still appear ungritted/unsalted. The passing traffic has created a double line of slush; it's still below zero out there; ergo slush-ice. As such may I make the following remarks.

1) You may think you can travel at 50mph along this stretch of road, I don't. As I'm the one in front of you suck it up. Sitting on my backside will not make me travel any faster. It will, in fact, make me travel slower so if (when?) you cause an accident it will be at low speeds.

2) Although I approve of leaving a larger degree of space between yourself and the car in front during these conditions this doesn't apply when you are a) in a non-moving queue or b) on a hill with that gap being the only level bit of the road. (Seriously on the bridge we ended up with one car on the downslope and the following car on the upslope with no-one on the flat between).

3) While polite to allow cars and pedestrians out particularly when you are travelling at such slow speeds; it is impolite to stop on a hill to do so. Particularly when said waiting vehicle/pedestrian are the ones on the level bit of road.

4) Those pretty yellow lights that can flash on the side of your vehicle are there for a reason, more so in these conditions.

5) You shouldn't be parked that close to corners anyway. Do you really think that it's a good idea to be doing so in this weather?

6) Pedestrians. Amazingly enough the brakes on vehicles aren't 100% effective in this weather; trying to cross the road should be done at the appropriate places; and no an appropriate place isn't 'when you want to'.

7) Council. While we appreciate you sanding the pavements perhaps it should be done a) after you've done the roads and b) not during the lunchtime traffic.

That is all (so far)

3 comments:

Phil Lench said...

I can also appreciate them wanting proles to work on a Sunday afternoon to make sure that the Civic Centre car park is clear of snow so the nice councillors and their PA's can park their 4x4's safely on Monday morning but wouldn't it be nice to let them do the pavements in town centres too.

www.harriers-online.co.uk/images/other/2010_12_19_228.jpg

Steve Severn said...

Amen to all those points. Especially about following so close behind. Pulled out of work in Bewdley Road by newsagents and traveled down towards town tonight, nothing in sight. By the time I got to Brintons Arms, there was an idiot up my **se all the way to the lights and down half the Gilgal untill he decided to overtake, as he had an appointment with the Reaper. Idiot.

FlipC said...

Well Phil they were sanding the pavements along the bridge just after 1pm hence the queue of traffic backed up all along the Dunley Road.

Still nothing salt or sand-wise on the roads as far as I can tell.

Steve I don't get it; I really, really don't. It's like the potential blot on the landscape that is the high-speed rail link - it'll cut journey times by half-an-hour; whoo frikkin' hoo.

Why do some people always seem in such a rush? I mean this morning I left early to make sure I got in roughly on time; which meant I could take it easy on the roads. Just plan accordingly yeesh.