Leasedrive Velo Blog

Roddy Graham, Commercial Director

In our recently published white paper entitled ‘A vision of fleet management in 2015. Predictions on how the fleet industry could look in the future’, I predicted that we would see lower speed limits and a network of average speed cameras. Both seem to be coming closer to reality.

First, the controversial subject of lower speed limits. A recent online survey by car supermarket, Motorpoint, revealed that over 82 per cent of drivers would be against the permanent lowering of the national speed limit on sections of the UK motorway network from 70mph to 60mph. This comes after the Department for Transport admitted a lowering of the national speed limit could become reality with speed regulated by overhead average speed cameras, as found on the overhead gantries on the M25, and sensors placed in the road surface.

It may not be a surprise to learn that the vast majority of drivers are opposed to a lowering of speed limits but it might be to learn that the Police is opposed too! In this instance, it relates to proposals to reduce speed limits from 30mph to 20mph in urban areas. Thames Valley Police is against such a move unless it is accompanied by associated traffic calming measures such as speed bumps. The comments follow a proposal from Oxfordshire County Council to reduce the speed limit on at least 24 roads in and around Abingdon.

Merely changing a number according to the Police is not enough. It must be supported by proper traffic engineering to lower speed and should only be introduced where absolutely necessary, such as where children are most at risk. Simply changing the limit alone would only see an average 2mph drop in drivers’ speed.

Meanwhile, Transport for London is apparently trialling average speed cameras in east London between Canning Town and the Goresbrook interchange covering a whole road network section with multiple entrance and exit points. Fully operational by this summer, the road network will be monitored by 84 cameras at 37 different locations.

It’ll be expensive to roll-out but you can bet your bottom dollar that a national network of average speed cameras covering major traffic routes is just around the corner. It’ll prove a nice little earner for local councils and will reduce traffic speed further. At least, it should help save lives too.

Roddy Graham, Commercial Director

The black holes just got a whole lot bigger! And a lot more numerous.

As the country is swathed under even more snow as a result of yet another dump, you can be sure road surfaces up and down the country are cracking up.

I alluded to as much in last week’s blog.

Now it’s official. Councils are worried as hell as they face going over budget to try to stem the tide of crumbling roads. Neglected in the good times, they possibly cannot afford to repair them in the bad times.

Several councils have already tried to estimate the impact on their budgets. Buckinghamshire is already paying an extra £18,000 per week for repair teams while Harrow reckons the severe winter will cost them £2m.

ICE, not the blue or black stuff but the Institution of Civil Engineers, has warned the fluctuating weather, with periods of freezing and thawing, is contributing to the break-up of road surfaces. This is particularly pronounced on roads which have already been neglected. Pot holes will definitely be on the increase.

Water gets into the road cracks, freezes, and then expands the crack. It then becomes a vicious circle. The now wider crack draws in more water, which when it freezes, expands the crack further. Effectively, our roads are cracking up.

Government is responsible for motorways and major A roads, councils for the rest. Go figure it out. With councils having to prune spending in the current recessionary climate, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realise our already ‘third world’ roads in many parts of the country are going to get a whole lot worse. There just isn’t the money in local council coffers to address the problem.

So not only may drivers decide to opt for four-wheel-drive next time around to be able to cope with the increasing frequency and severity of snow and ice but they may be forced to do so in order to travel in some degree of comfort over a pock-marked road landscape.

It has been estimated that the cost to the UK economy of the worst winter so far in 30 years to be in the region of £14.5bn. You can bet your bottom dollar that the long-term cost in terms of damage to our main transport arteries will be considerably more. Let us hope that we don’t all suffer too much from a singular lack of investment in a 21st Century national road network.

Roddy Graham, Commercial Director

We’re heading for the worst winter in 30 years and it shows as UK plc is frozen in a white out. Whole swathes of the country are impassable, numerous schools are closed and many workers have had to stay at home.

Salt and grit shortages are nationwide and gas is even in short supply. Now that’s not what I call a good start to the New Year.

Unusually before Christmas, many parts of the country came to a halt when unforeseen snow caused grid-lock. My neck of the woods was particularly badly hit. It took me longer to cover the 20-minute journey home than it had done to drive down from Glasgow to Wokingham the previous Sunday!

Those living in the countryside are worst hit as priority is given to keeping motorways and major A-roads free. Apparently, the Government has forbidden councils from replenishing roadside grit boxes in order to keep the main road arteries of the country flowing. So people who don’t get their roads salted or gritted don’t even have the chance of doing it themselves!

They are well and truly stuck at home.

Why the sudden change in weather?

Last winter was bad and this winter is even worse. Some may say it is due to climate change but if I recall rightly we were supposed to have wetter not colder winters in this country. Whatever the reason, economically we cannot afford to standstill. We need to keep on the move to get the country back on its feet.

Government needs to look at what some of our fellow EU members do by way of contingency planning for colder winters. Like wet leaves on the line, we cannot use snowfall as an excuse not to work or study.

Meanwhile, those that managed to get to work or school will no doubt go home early, and do so with a struggle.

When the snow eventually does thaw, it will reveal even more pot-holed roads than we have been suffering before.

While Saab used car values may be plummeting due to the manufacturer’s imminent closure, despite the marque being designed for far colder winters, you can be sure that if Government and councils don’t start getting their acts together, sales of four-wheel-drive vehicles will start to climb. And that can’t be good for the environment either!