Martin Underwood wrote:

For some reason, the instructions in the Mersey tunnel specifically say
"don't turn on your headlights" which seems strange to me - if you're
driving at night, are you actually expected to turn them off as you enter
the tunnel and remember to turn them back on when you leave? If the exit is
well-illuminated by street lights, it will be very easy to forget to turn
them back on...

Bizarre - since on most cars the instrument backlighting is linked to
the headlights, this would also mean you wouldn't be able to see your
speedometer properly. Marvellous.

back on topic I use sidelights or dipped headlights in the Blackwall
Tunnel for exactly that reason. /

On Thu, 23 Jun 2005 21:23:56 +0100, David Splett wrote:

What you really mean is that when you travel down a bus lane to undertake a
load of traffic

He said he drives a taxi. Most bus lanes are available to taxis as well.

--
http://gallery120232.fotopic.net/p13622558.html
(An emergency alert at London King's Cross, May 1999)

"Adrian" wrote in message
. 244.170...
Graham Harrison ) gurgled happily,
sounding much like they were saying :

I've driven in countries where headlights are the law and also in
parts of the USA where they are becoming the norm.

The US is a particularly entertaining case - they've legislated Daytime
Running Lights that come on with the ignition.

But only at the front.

So what they're finding, AIUI, is that more and more people are
"forgetting" to turn their proper lights on as dark approaches - no need,
their lights are on, they can see fine - but, of course, there's no REAR
lights on...

Only in 'merkinland.

Are the daytime running lights sidelights or headlights? I think in Sweden
they're just sidelights (certainly Volvos here only have their sidelights,
not headlights, on permanently). I hadn't realised that any countries
mandated headlights at all times. I wonder what the additional cost in extra
fuel consumption is - mind you, in America they think that gasoline "grows
on trees", don't they - limitless supply at cheap price.

I can't say I'm surprised about the situation in America: they don't require
cars to have front number plates (though many cars do have them) and they
allow cars to have flashing sidelights and tail lights rather than having
separate amber lights for indicators. My sister and her family were
rear-ended while waiting to turn left because the driver behind hadn't
noticed the flashing tail light in amongst all the other lights such as her
tail and brake lights. (I've always wondered what circuitry is required to
flash the side and tail lights while still allowing them to be switched on
and off normally: I checked her car because I was curious and it didn't have
dual-filiament bulbs: one for side light and another for indicator.)

Martin Underwood ) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they were saying :

The US is a particularly entertaining case - they've legislated
Daytime Running Lights that come on with the ignition.

snip

Only in 'merkinland.

Are the daytime running lights sidelights or headlights?

Not sure.

I think in
Sweden they're just sidelights (certainly Volvos here only have their
sidelights, not headlights, on permanently).

Scandi ones are brighter than sidies - sidies tend to be a 5w bulb, whereas
the Saab/Volvo daytime lights are 21w (or were on proper Saab 900s, IIRC) -
I think most tend to use dip beam now.

I wonder what the additional cost in extra fuel consumption is

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question424.htm

I can't say I'm surprised about the situation in America: they don't
require cars to have front number plates (though many cars do have
them)

Nor do they have MOTs.

"Adrian" wrote in message
. 244.170...
Martin Underwood ) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they were saying :

The US is a particularly entertaining case - they've legislated
Daytime Running Lights that come on with the ignition.

I think in
Sweden they're just sidelights (certainly Volvos here only have their
sidelights, not headlights, on permanently).

Scandi ones are brighter than sidies - sidies tend to be a 5w bulb,
whereas
the Saab/Volvo daytime lights are 21w (or were on proper Saab 900s,
IIRC) -
I think most tend to use dip beam now.

Ah! I'd assumed that the running lights were conventional 5W sidelight bulbs
rather 21W indicator/brake/fog light bulbs. I presume the sidelight part of
the cluster has a dual-filament bulb: 5W for night and 21W for day. Maybe UK
versions of Volvos etc have been modified so as to use 5W for both purposes.

I wonder what the additional cost in extra fuel consumption is

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question424.htm

A fascinating and well-reasoned article. Now someone needs to work out how
much extra American cars consume than European cars because almost all of
them are automatic transmission - though set against this is the fact that
US speed limits are lower so consumption will be less on that account.

I can't say I'm surprised about the situation in America: they don't
require cars to have front number plates (though many cars do have
them)

Nor do they have MOTs.

I didn't know that. So once you've bought a new car, is there no requirement
for periodic testing of brakes, suspension, body structure etc throughout
the car's life? Bloody hell!

Mind you, American road rules are very strange: they allow overtaking on
either side (it's quite common to get several lanes of an Interstate all
going at exactly 55 mph, with no relative motion, which makes it very
difficult to change lanes when joining or leaving the road), and cars change
their registration number (IIRC) every time the car is sold to a new owner,
which must make it very difficult to trace the car's history throughout its
life (eg for "has it ever been involved in any accidents" and "is there a
loan outstanding on this car" checks). And then of course there are those
"wonderful" (totally ludicrous) four-way stop junctions where priority is
determined by who arrived first (which different people could have different
opinions on) rather than being determined by position on the road (which is
unambiguous).

On the other hand, I like their concept of having part-time speed limits:
most schools have a reasonable speed limit outside them except at the
beginning and end of the school day when the limit is reduced. Over here
they'd slap on a blanket 30mph limit 24 hours a day :-(

Martin Underwood ) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they were saying :

Ah! I'd assumed that the running lights were conventional 5W sidelight
bulbs rather 21W indicator/brake/fog light bulbs. I presume the
sidelight part of the cluster has a dual-filament bulb: 5W for night
and 21W for day. Maybe UK versions of Volvos etc have been modified so
as to use 5W for both purposes.

On c900s, they were a dual filament - 5w for a switchable "park light"
which stayed on with ignition off, with the 21w coming on with ignition,
unless the fuse was pulled.

of Merkins

Nor do they have MOTs.

I didn't know that. So once you've bought a new car, is there no
requirement for periodic testing of brakes, suspension, body structure
etc throughout the car's life? Bloody hell!

Some states have emissions tests.

cars change their registration number (IIRC) every time the
car is sold to a new owner, which must make it very difficult to trace
the car's history throughout its life

We're actually the oddity in that respect. France has plates which change
whenever it's re-registered into a different department. Germany's similar.

And don't forget that they don't have breathalysers, either - you get
pulled, it's a case of seeing if you can walk down the line and touch your
nose...

"Chris Tolley" wrote in message
...
He said he drives a taxi. Most bus lanes are available to taxis as well.

I know that. Whether they *should* be is another matter, as is whether taxi
drivers use that privilege responsibly.

Martin Underwood wrote to uk.transport.london on Fri, 24 Jun 2005:

A fascinating and well-reasoned article. Now someone needs to work out how
much extra American cars consume than European cars because almost all of
them are automatic transmission - though set against this is the fact that
US speed limits are lower so consumption will be less on that account.

Are they? I mean, when we were in Kansas a couple of months ago, the
local speed limit seemed to be 35 miles on streets and 75 on the
motorway (Interstate). What threw us totally was that these limits were
*obeyed*.... presumably why they can be higher than ours!
--
"Mrs Redboots"
http://www.amsmyth.demon.co.uk/
Website updated 23 May 2005

Adrian wrote to uk.transport.london on Fri, 24 Jun 2005:

We're actually the oddity in that respect. France has plates which change
whenever it's re-registered into a different department. Germany's similar.

France's laws change in 2008, when they will no longer have regional
plates but a format of AA 123 AA, where AA are 2 letters & 123 are 3
numbers. I believe drivers who wish to do so *may* have a regional or
departmental indicator to the right of their number-plate; an "F" in
European stars to the left will be (I think) compulsory. No
personalisation will be possible - you will have to take what you get.

In Belgium, I'm told, the number-plate belongs to the driver, not the
car, and, like our system, personalisation within the limit of the
system is allowed. In the USA, though, some personalisations seemed to
bear no relation at all to the way cars were normally registered!
--
"Mrs Redboots"
http://www.amsmyth.demon.co.uk/
Website updated 23 May 2005

]
Mrs Redboots a écrit :

We're actually the oddity in that respect. France has plates which change
whenever it's re-registered into a different department. Germany's
similar.

France's laws change in 2008, when they will no longer have regional
plates but a format of AA 123 AA, where AA are 2 letters & 123 are 3
numbers. I believe drivers who wish to do so *may* have a regional or
departmental indicator to the right of their number-plate; an "F" in
European stars to the left will be (I think) compulsory. No
personalisation will be possible - you will have to take what you get.

Indeed. This is exactly what I intended to post, only you did it first and
put it better :-) .

I might just add that scooters are already registered with the new
numbering, and have been since January 2004 (their plates are of the form A
123 A [note the single letter at the beginning and the end], to be extended
if/when new plates are needed with the A 123 AA and A 123 AAA series).

--
JFD
www.metro-pole.net -- Unofficial home to Paris' public transport networks