Our roads are falling apart...London...

[Eshrules]

ill pass comment on the ruddy potholes and dips, i live in stalybridge and loads of the roads around mine resemble more of a farmyard lane than a main road. to think i pay nearly £200 a year roadtax, i probably spend that in repairs and punctured tyres. whats even worse is some jumped up copper decided to pull me for erratic driving, when i tried to explain i had simply been avoiding the potholes, he shrugged his shoulders! figure that one out.....

[skymaster]

It's a sad state of affaires really. Our roads all over the country are comparible to that of 3rd world and communist countries. I guess it's fair to say that those the govern us hate the idea of us plebs actually driving a car so they are more than happy for our roads to sink into a desperate state of disrepair!

But the people of london should have expected worse when they elected commy Ken into power (twice). What were they thinking????

[adamss24]

It's a sad state of affaires really. Our roads all over the country are comparible to that of 3rd world and communist countries. I guess it's fair to say that those the govern us hate the idea of us plebs actually driving a car so they are more than happy for our roads to sink into a desperate state of disrepair!

But the people of london should have expected worse when they elected commy Ken into power (twice). What were they thinking????

These politicians should have predicted the demografic explosion long time ago, as the germans did some 50 years ago ! There's sooo much money that fill councils and government coffers but that wont make them spend taxpayers money on repairing and improving our roads...the standard of repairs are poor and the speed bumps and the other obstacles(read pietons refuge islands) make the traffic even more slower than its allready ! After that they hit you with the congestion charges and parking fines because all the available parking spaces have been transformed into "bus lanes" and these big, diesel guzzling, smoke belching busses run empty most of the times, apart from peak times ! Why they can do that ? Because off the fu@@ing Oyster cards and because people rush to pay their travelcards ...thus enabling the British transport do what they like and when they like ! I have lived in London for 8 years and i am fed up with it ! The street crime gone up, councils forces you to buy resident permits, all the parking spaces in front of the shops on main streets are putting even more money into their bank accounts and the Londoners have to pick up the bill for the olimpics as well !?! I am a van driver(carpenter by trade) and i have to haul my tools with me every time i go to a job. I have to put up with traffic lights on the motorways(Have you seen any in Europe ?), busy junctions, ignorant bikers and i end up refusing jobs in and arround central london, because of over zealous traffic wardens and inexistent parking spaces or verry expensive parking fees. You guys should wake up, as a matter of fact, i have never voted since i came here, merely because i am too busy to think about politics or watch any of the politicians talk shows ! I foresee that in few years they will charge us for breathing the bloody air as well ! Look around you and ask yourself why all those PC walk on the streets without doing **** all, while thiefs operate undisturbed. They wont get scared of uniforms...

[Captain Answer]

This is one of my biggest pet hates about driving (slightly under pork pie hat wearing middle lane drivers), where is the money for my road fund licence going? Because its not keeping tarmac under my tires thats for sure!

[gazza57]

The state of our roads in an absolute disgrace, this country is among the highest taxed in motoring terms in the world.
What do we have to show for it?
Crumbling roads, congested traffic due to councils introducing traffic calming measures which keep the traffic stationary.
I live in Southampton where bus stops are deliberately sited close to junctions which have been specially narrowed, this causes gridlock especially when the local bingo hall chucks out 40 or 50 punters, you can be sat there for 15 minutes while most of them fumble through their purses looking for bus passes or the correct change.
Road Accident figures for Hampshire have just been released revealing that despite the introduction of hundreds of new greed cameras, road injuries have actually risen by 5%!
You have softy touchy feely organisation titles like the Hampshire Road Safety Camera partnership. This suggests a caring partnership between Council and road users to reduce accidents and thereby save lives, very commendable but.. research has proved it doesn't work.
Eveyone including myself would agree that any measures which help to reduce injuries and deaths on our roads are welcomed.
The councils won't listen because removal of cameras and abolishing the Safety Camera partnership would 1) Remove a significant revenue stream from fines.
2) To admit it is a failure now would merely confirm what most of us know about speed cameras, they are a big con designed to extract as much cash as possible for the tiniest infraction of the rules, they take no account of circumstances and merely bludgeon everybody as hard as they legally can do so.
Road pricing is the next big step to abolish road freedom, they tell us that it's for our own good, we have to save the planet, CO2 emissions are too high. That of course is true but in order to have any effect on the global climate everybody, all countries must be persuaded to adhere to the same restrictions.
At present the US who are responsible for 25% of all global motoring pollution won't sign up to Kyoto, India and China who are rapidly expanding industrial players are hundreds of times larger than the UK are chucking 1000's of tons of CO2 from it's outdated industries.
It's like sitting in a rowing boat which is sinking from a 3ft hole in it's side and trying to bale the water out with an eggcup. You can work as hard as you like but you will sink!
Sign the anti road pricing petition

Gazza57

[NicholasP]

already signed it mate..think its being submitted soon no?

I totally agree with what you say....and im not going to go into a more that obvious point of where are money is really going...

I***...........

I pay £135/yr to park outside my house. Because my car has an engine greater than 1.5l, my new parking permit will cost £235.

Isn't my local council lucky that in my street NOT 1 CAR has an engine less than 1.5l

Furthermore, i pay over a hundred in road tax...its ridiculous.

Im getting to the point where next time i go pay my road tax, or my parking permit, im gonna drag one of their staff to 1 of the many potholes in my area and tell them they can have the money if they use it to fill up at least one hole!

If i had the time, i'd stick a bit of tarmac in it myself..how hard can it be?!