Just watching TV news about Bromley "defying Ken" by refusing to take
speed cams on road by Biggin Hill. Leaving aside the usual
"personalised" tosh which goes with the London mayoral set-up, I dare
say motorheads will be up having their say on that.
But straying only slightly off-topic, I took advantage of my freedom
pass to go to Amersham on Easter Monday, and after walking down via
Parsonage wood, and the Martyrs field, to the Old Town, I then took a
public
footpath which emerged on the A413. I could see the sign for the path's
continuation across the road, but with cars and motorbikes zooming past
so fast, I didn't dare try and cross it. I had been thinking of
bringing a party of friends this way some time in the future, probably
with kids, but it's back to the map/drawing board. Are there, or should
there be any speed restrictions at places like that? I might have had
right of way legally, but I wasn't brave enough to test it.

woodman wrote:

But straying only slightly off-topic, I took advantage of my freedom
pass to go to Amersham on Easter Monday, and after walking down via
Parsonage wood, and the Martyrs field, to the Old Town, I then took
a public footpath which emerged on the A413. I could see the sign
for the path's continuation across the road, but with cars and
motorbikes zooming past so fast, I didn't dare try and cross it. I
had been thinking of bringing a party of friends this way some time
in the future, probably with kids, but it's back to the map/drawing
board. Are there, or should there be any speed restrictions at
places like that? I might have had right of way legally, but I
wasn't brave enough to test it.

Was that the path that runs west parallel to and south of the High
Street? There may be an alternative route across the A413 at the
junction just north-west of there.

In any case, you wouldn't have had a right of way with priority over
other traffic. You're in the same situation as the driver of a vehicle
emerging from a minor road. Surely you're not suggesting that speed
limits are imposed at every rural road junction?
--
Richard J.
(to e-mail me, swap uk and yon in address)

On 30 Mar 2005 05:08:55 -0800, "woodman"
wrote:

But straying only slightly off-topic, I took advantage of my freedom
pass to go to Amersham on Easter Monday, and after walking down via
Parsonage wood, and the Martyrs field, to the Old Town, I then took a
public
footpath which emerged on the A413. I could see the sign for the path's
continuation across the road, but with cars and motorbikes zooming past
so fast, I didn't dare try and cross it. I had been thinking of
bringing a party of friends this way some time in the future, probably
with kids, but it's back to the map/drawing board. Are there, or should
there be any speed restrictions at places like that? I might have had
right of way legally, but I wasn't brave enough to test it.

There's one near me on the A303 near Whitchurch (Hants), another right
of way crossing a very busy dual carriageway with nothing more than a
"! Pedestrians Crossing" sign a couple of hundred metres before the
supposed footpath crossing point.

If a fraction of the safety standards and regulations which apply to
railway companies were similarly enforced on the roads....well there
wouldn't be much traffic would there!