The 11 Key Issues, According to the RAC

[JohnG]

https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/news/motoring-news/rac-calls-on-government-to-address-11-key-issues-affecting-drivers/?cid=eml-AC058_CHUB_MEMBERS_RE-CHUB_M_RE_W1_20221102_192133&utm_medium=email&utm_source=AC058_CHUB_MEMBERS_RE&utm_campaign=CHUB_M_RE_W1_20221102_192133&omhide=true&contactURN=42603316&hasBreakdown=true

 

My questions are

- do you agree?

- what's missing?

- which of the 11 are not top 11?

[stillp]

Not a direct answer to your questions, but I've noticed a few new developments being built without parking spaces, allegedly to "encourage the use of alternative means of transport" but I can't help thinking it has more to do with not having to provide each dwelling with EV charging facilities.

Pete

[SuzanneH]

28 minutes ago, stillp said:

Not a direct answer to your questions, but I've noticed a few new developments being built without parking spaces, allegedly to "encourage the use of alternative means of transport" but I can't help thinking it has more to do with not having to provide each dwelling with EV charging facilities.

Pete

It’s been happening in our part of London for a good few years now. When questioning the planners they say that the people who will  live here ( close to The Elizabeth Line, used to be called Cross Rail ) will not have or need a car. ????????

Edited November 3, 2022 by SuzanneH

[JohnG]

1 hour ago, stillp said:

Not a direct answer to your questions, but I've noticed a few new developments being built without parking spaces, allegedly to "encourage the use of alternative means of transport" but I can't help thinking it has more to do with not having to provide each dwelling with EV charging facilities.

Pete

 

50 minutes ago, SuzanneH said:

It’s been happening in our part of London for a good few years now. When questioning the planners they say that the people who will  live here ( close to The Elizabeth Line, used to be called Cross Rail ) will not have or need a car. ????????

 

Yep, here as well

Here we have over 3,500 new houses and down the A12 5 miles away, another 1,500 houses all built on greenfield sites, all with I parking space.

How are we to feed ourslves with agricultural land going under buildings.

They are buliding a new railway station because the city staion and it's environs can't cope with current traffic.

 

Closer in to the city, there is a development of 68 luxury apartments (read flats), with no parking capacity . . .buyers will, apparently, be using public transport to go everywhere . . . Even where there is no public transport.

 

Close to us, 1,200 "dwellings" a mix of houses and flats, built with no parking spaces at the houses, but with car parking areas dotted around the site.

Guess where most home owners park.

 

Even simpler than EV charging Pete, is; if you build a garage or allocated parking at each dwelling, that is ground that does not have a house on it and as a result, reduces profit

Maximising profit drives everything

[RobH]

I was just reading in my paper today about a small girl who was killed by a lorry passing through the village where she lives.  Local people were saying that lorries should be banned but the road is the A338 which is the main link between Swindon and Salisbury.  What the village needs is a bypass, not a ban.  

In the district where I live the A339 main road between Basingstoke and Newbury is still single lane and is heavily used by artics as a link between the M3 and M4/A34. 

When on holiday in France it is noticeable that every sizeable settlement seems to be bypassed, and main arteries have been upgraded, which to me is common sense. 

Where is the call for more bypasses and upgrading of main roads in the RAC piece? A notable and major omission.

[james christie]

The experts at by-passing towns and villages are the Spanish!

james

[Ian Vincent]

When you drive in France, pretty much every town has seriously big speed humps on the through routes that deter lorries and reduce speeds to a crawl.

Rgds Ian

[Ian Vincent]

Having now read the RAC article, there are a few I’d take issue with, in particular the need to move to electric vehicles - yeah, all using batteries manufactured with rare earths and a limited life. And where is the electricity going to come from?

The key issue, and goodness knows how it can be addressed, is the mobility that we all demand as a right.  When I was a child my dad worked in a bank and every time he got a promotion we moved house to whatever town he was working in even if it was a move of only, what in today‘s terms was a few miles.  Nowadays (and I don’t know if frequent moves still happen) people would expect to commute - and mainly by car.

Removing parking facilities works in places like London with good public transport but how many places enjoy that kind of infrastructure? Not many.

I could go on ……

Rgds Ian

[Bleednipple]

They missed an issue. It's that we need better breakdown/recovery services than the RAC, which tries to push up its prices every year unless you say you're switching, and then if you do need them out on the road, are actually sh1t.

Nigel

[PodOne]

 

Usual elephant in the room there are simply too many people using the roads and everything else.

So in the meantime let's tax more and waste it anyway, change the law restrict peoples freedom of movement if you're not reasonably well off but we want to take that off you as well. Anymore of this and it will make working for a living a complete waste of time as another handout is made to support people to buy or even give them a car!

Reduce our numbers over the next 50-100 years and the majority of the issues will go away and quality electric transport of all types will evolve naturally.

Andy   

[Motorsport Mickey]

On 11/3/2022 at 5:58 PM, RobH said:

I was just reading in my paper today about a small girl who was killed by a lorry passing through the village where she lives.  Local people were saying that lorries should be banned but the road is the A338 which is the main link between Swindon and Salisbury.  What the village needs is a bypass, not a ban.  

 

That report Rob, for people who didn't see it was the unfortunate 5 year old child was riding on the road ! ! ! (accompanied by her mother on foot I believe). The child suddenly rode off in front and either got confused, flustered or just froze and it was she who actually ran into and under the truck who was proceeding through the village, but an inspection of the tachograph showed the trucks speed approaching the accident time was...12 mph ! I don't know how much more reasonable you can ask a driver to proceed, and the police agree apparently, the driver is facing no charges and is severely traumatised.

I don't know any other details but I'd guess ANY vehicle in that wrong place at the wrong time might have been involved in an accident with that child. Make no mistake, HGV drivers do NOT want to be taking large vehicles with restricted vision into conflict with pedestrians or other smaller vehicles, often any restriction on trunk roads or motorways (protester etc) will cause drivers to divert onto smaller roads which are not as well able to take that traffic. Bypasses definitely needed in many towns around the country. 

Mick Richards

Edited November 13, 2022 by Motorsport Mickey

[duncan]

Not the only parent allowing a 5 year old to cycle on the road.  What kind of parent does this ?  IMHO either a fanatic or a mentally deranged one.

 

Jeremy Vine sparks mass debate with video of five year old cycling on the road – but who is in the wrong? | Regit    

www.regit.cars/car-news/jeremy-vine-sparks-mass-debate-with-video-of-five-year-old-cycling-on-the-road-but-who-is-in-the-wrong-73393?utm_campaign=Content+08.11.22&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter