Empty Motorways

[Goofle]

For what it's worth I think that the idea of increasing the price of fuel and lowering speed limits to deter travel will hit the wrong people. Key workers such as the NHS, lorry drivers (train drivers too!), refuse collection workers, supermarket workers, all continue to work through this, often at unsociable hours going to out of the way locations that couldn't be accessed via public transport. I think the dip in fuel costs should be allowed to be treated by them as one small perk of this whole horrid situation, and perhaps give a small amount of thanks to those who continue to work through this, often in front of Joe Public sneezing and coughing all over them.
In the same vein I'm not sure lowering speed limits is the answer either. Slowing people either going to or from work and extending their working day seems silly in my opinion. By all means question people's journey if you must but certainly don't delay them through speed limit alterations.

 

[Deafdoggie]

So will the brands remain 8-10p per litre higher? I know supermarket fuel is of marginally lower quality, and some drivers of premium cars I know wouldn't fill up there, but surely the brands are going to lose out? I'm happy to pay 2p or even 3p per litre more, but not 10p since I don't own a premium car.

When I worked for ASDA, every Monday we had to ring all the petrol stations within 10 miles and ask their price. Only one wouldn’t say, so we arranged to drive past each week instead. We had to be at least the same as the lowest price one.
When I was there Esso supplied the fuel, I believe shell do now. It’s the same fuel as at their own brand stations, but people like to feel superior by not using supermarket own brand.
Prices will vary according to contracts. Franchise filling stations will have agreed a price, and depending where they are in the contract dictates their price. Supermarkets are on much shorter contracts.

 

[Meerkat]

Competitors ringing each other up to discuss prices would put them on pretty thin ice with the Competion authorities!

 

[Ianno87]

Competitors ringing each other up to discuss prices would put them on pretty thin ice with the Competion authorities!

As long as you don't *agree* on a price to charge it's legit. No different to driving to see what they are charging, or ringing up to check the price pretending you're a customer.

 

[Deafdoggie]

It’s information in the public domain. It’s not a secret. Agreeing to fix a price with them, that’s illegal, but just asking what they charge is perfectly fine. Equally they can say “not telling you” but it’s still easy enough to find out. People used to ring us and ask.

Competitors ringing each other up to discuss prices would put them on pretty thin ice with the Competion authorities!

 

[Meerkat]

As long as you don't *agree* on a price to charge it's legit. No different to driving to see what they are charging, or ringing up to check the price pretending you're a customer.

Sure, but then that’s what all the guilty say!
In the bank they took every precaution to avoid possible allegations. The regulator is going to think “one day they ask what the price is, the next day they ask whether the price is going down soon, the day after they agree to not put prices down”

 

[dvboy]

In the days before websites kept track of such things, we'd get a few calls a day asking how much our unleaded or diesel was priced at. We'd never know if it was a customer or competitor and what have you got to gain by refusing to say? It's on a great big sign outside anyway. The number for the garage was in the phone book and printed on our till receipts.

I can remember the day we were first asked to price over 99.9p which had been the going rate for quite sometime because there was reluctance all round to be the first to increase it. We had been sent instructions on how to amend the sign as it was wasn't designed for three digits (they were on individual blinds that had to be wound up or down). If I remember correctly we had to literally rip the decimal point off, squash up the digits as best we could and stick on a small ".9" that we'd been sent which meant until we got a digital sign (after I left) prices always had to be .9p (which of course they had been for as long as anyone could remember anyway)

 

[trebor79]

I still think an emergency speed limit is perhaps a better way of stopping people roaming further than they normally would.

That might be counterproductive. People would still travel, but stop more for a coffee and/or wee wee due to the longer journey time. So you have more people going into petrol stations, services etc which is the exact opposite of what you want right now.

 

[Jamesrob637]

That might be counterproductive. People would still travel, but stop more for a coffee and/or wee wee due to the longer journey time. So you have more people going into petrol stations, services etc which is the exact opposite of what you want right now.

Could we de-restrict speed limits away from urban areas to speed up journey times? Or place an arbitrary speed limit of 160kph/100miles an hour? People won't need to stop as often then, and journeys from London to parts of the Midlands and more southerly parts of the North could be done non-stop. However I guess you couldn't fully lift restrictions on the M6 near Stafford.

 

[AM9]

Could we de-restrict speed limits away from urban areas to speed up journey times? Or place an arbitrary speed limit of 160kph/100miles an hour? People won't need to stop as often then, and journeys from London to parts of the Midlands and more southerly parts of the North could be done non-stop. However I guess you couldn't fully lift restrictions on the M6 near Stafford.

Are you serious?

 

[Bletchleyite]

The Isle of Man has done the opposite, which might not be a bad idea to discourage travel - NSL reduced to 40mph.

 

[Ianno87]

Could we de-restrict speed limits away from urban areas to speed up journey times? Or place an arbitrary speed limit of 160kph/100miles an hour? People won't need to stop as often then, and journeys from London to parts of the Midlands and more southerly parts of the North could be done non-stop. However I guess you couldn't fully lift restrictions on the M6 near Stafford.

Are you serious?

What happened to that DfT idea of a few years back to increase to 80mph?

Going to 80mph on certain stretches of motorway at certain times of day in favourable weather conditions isn't necessarily a terrible idea in my book.

 

[scotrail158713]

The Isle of Man has done the opposite, which might not be a bad idea to discourage travel - NSL reduced to 40mph.

Don’t they have no motorway there though? I’d assume that makes it more practical.

 

[Tetchytyke]

The Isle of Man has done the opposite, which might not be a bad idea to discourage travel - NSL reduced to 40mph.

Being pedantic, but in usual times we don't have a national speed limit here- if there isn't a marked speed limit then there isn't a speed limit at all.

Whilst we don't have motorways and only have about 300 yards of dual carriageway, going from unlimited to 40mph is a much bigger deal than going from 70mph to 50mph (which would add 10 minutes to a 35 mile journey- hardly the end of the world).

I do agree that the effects are more limited here, as the island is only 30 miles long and 12 miles wide, but when you're used to being able to really deck it you notice.

The reason why the speed limit was applied is because some numpty went out drunk and had a massive off at the Bungalow. This is why we can't have nice things.

(FWIW I like driving without a speed limit and I completely agree with the limit they've brought in)

 

[Jamesrob637]

Are you serious?

Only in certain spots.

 

[Goofle]

Just done 170 miles on motorways and A roads - I can’t remember seeing the roads so empty, least of all on a Friday lunch!
I still think that an decrease in speed limits would be counter-productive. From what I saw the roads were predominantly used by HGVs, private cars were much less prevalent than before. I’d say the large publicity over unnecessary travel seems to be hitting home.

 

[Butts]

I can remember the day we were first asked to price over 99.9p

Are you talking about per litre or gallon ?

In the old days (80's) when fuel used to be hiked by quite a bit in budgets our tanks had to be dead full on Budget Day. Duty payable goes up at 6pm the day of the announcement and bang you sell it at the new price having paid the pre-budget price for it and make a killing. We used to have queues down the road and it was not uncommon for Police to close the garage.

These were the days when Garages sold Petrol, Oil, fags and sweets with a few accessories thrown in. Biggest pressure was to sell Oil with dodgy Free Gifts such as Screwdrivers that warped on impact.

I bet you never had to get up on top of the Tanker and dip the tanks to check they contained the correct amount !! Also changing the price in those days involved using a screwdriver ( not the crap free gifts) to manually change the price on each pump, change the stickers, and worst of all balance on a rickety ladder to alter the Main Sign on the Pole.

 

[MDB1images]

Just done 170 miles on motorways and A roads - I can’t remember seeing the roads so empty, least of all on a Friday lunch!
I still think that an decrease in speed limits would be counter-productive. From what I saw the roads were predominantly used by HGVs, private cars were much less prevalent than before. I’d say the large publicity over unnecessary travel seems to be hitting home.

Would agree with that.
On the bits the train runs level with next to the M6 and A74(M)I'd say it's 97% logistic HGVs on exceptionally quiet motorways.

 

[dvboy]

Are you talking about per litre or gallon ?

Litre, in 2003 or 2004

A price label had to be changed manually on the pump also, as well as on the till system.

 

[yorksrob]

The reason why the speed limit was applied is because some numpty went out drunk and had a massive off at the Bungalow. This is why we can't have nice things.

Funnily enough, we didn't have a motorway speed limit over here - until a racing driver tested his racing car on the (then comparatively new) M1 and it ended up in the press !

 

[Strat-tastic]

Low petrol prices, very light traffic. A silver lining in a very dark cloud. Why do some folk wish to remove it?

 

[AM9]

Funnily enough, we didn't have a motorway speed limit over here - until a racing driver tested his racing car on the (then comparatively new) M1 and it ended up in the press !

Yes, it was AC Cars testing cars at over 180mph in the small hours on the M1.

 

[Goofle]

Low petrol prices, very light traffic. A silver lining in a very dark cloud. Why do some folk wish to remove it?

I agree - it’s just a shame we’re not allowed to enjoy it!

 

[yorksrob]

Yes, it was AC Cars testing cars at over 180mph in the small hours on the M1.

Ah yes. It was on a very good programme called "The Secret Life of Motorways" I think.

 

[RichT54]

Yes, it was AC Cars testing cars at over 180mph in the small hours on the M1.

Is that not a myth?

AC’s test run has often been cited as the reason behind the 70mph speed limit on UK motorways, but that is a myth.

Sears explains: “The speed limit was introduced in July 1967, three years after the furore. Labour politician Barbara Castle was the Minister for Transport when the speed limits were introduced, but it had been a Conservative government at the time of the M1 test.

“Tony Martin saw Barbara Castle at an event several years after the limit had been introduced, and he asked her if the AC run had any influence on the law. She assured him it didn’t - so I am innocent of that one, despite what people might say.”

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/motorsport/day-jack-sears-hit-185mph-m1-motorway

 

[AM9]

Is that not a myth?



https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/motorsport/day-jack-sears-hit-185mph-m1-motorway

In truth, we'll never really know. Even then there were too many vested interests and reputations for me to be sure that rebuttals weren't lies.

 

[Ianno87]

Low petrol prices, very light traffic. A silver lining in a very dark cloud. Why do some folk wish to remove it?

I agree - it’s just a shame we’re not allowed to enjoy it!

Because we don't need more people hospitalised through reckless driving at this point in time.

If you think higher speeds are there for "enjoyment", perhaps you shouldn't be behind the wheel at all, ever.

 

[Strat-tastic]

Who mentioned reckless driving? You can very much enjoy driving well

 

[trebor79]

Wasn't the motorway speed limit brought in as a fuel saving measure during the 1970s oil price shock?

 

[Ianno87]

Who mentioned reckless driving? You can very much enjoy driving well

Given that a select group of motorists seem to be taking empty roads as a carte blanche signal to drive like twerps, what kind of message does removing speed limits send?!