Is driving no longer fun?

A recent survey conducted by sat- nav manufacturer Garmin revealed that half of drivers couldn’t name a road they enjoyed driving on. 

One in three people thought the M25 was the worst road to drive on and London was voted the worst city to drive in.

Top 10 worst roads in Britain
1. M25
2. M6
3. Spaghetti Junction in Birmingham
4. North Circular in London
5. Oxford Circus
6. M1
7. Hanger Lane Gyratory in London
8. South Circular in London
9. M62
10. M5

Top 10 best roads in Britain
1. A591 Keswick to Windermere
2. A82 Glasgow to Fort William
3. A38 Exeter to Plymouth
4. M48 across the Severn Bridge
5. A696 Newcastle-upon-Tyne to the Scottish Borders
6. A3 overlooking the Devil’s Punchbowl
7. A1 or A167 at the Angel of the North
8. A537 out of Macclesfield
9. A25 Dorking to Guildford
10. Oxford Street in London

Traffic jams, followed by accidents, boring scenery and confusing road signs were the reasons given for unpleasant and uninspiring driving; one of which the RAC Foundation believes can be easily remedied- less road signs! See our blog on our campaign against street clutter with the Commission for the Protection of Rural England.

Source: http://www.whatcar.co.uk/news-article.aspx?NA=228623

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Get ready for ‘Black Friday’ – our worst congestion of the year

Millions of motorists risk being caught in the worst traffic congestion of the year tonight, warn Trafficmaster and the RAC Foundation.

The warning is the key finding of the second Trafficmaster/ RAC Foundation UK Congestion Report, which reveals this Friday, October 19th, will be the worst day for travelling by car because of a peak in traffic congestion named ‘Black Friday’, by experts.

Traffic jams may be traditionally associated with Bank Holidays or Christmas, but a number of specific factors combine to make tonight’s rush hour longer and more congested than any of Britain’s regular public holidays. These factors include darker (and possibly wetter) weather encouraging more drivers to use major roads, a high level of commuting and commercial traffic and a rise in accidents.

Philip Hale, spokesman for Trafficmaster, said: “It seems odd to think a Friday in October is busier than Christmas or Easter, but the ‘Black Friday’ phenomenon is very real and one all drivers should be prepared for.” 

According to the Trafficmaster UK Congestion Report, if the current trend continues, this year’s congestion could be as much as 10 per cent* worse than 2003.

“The first steps in reducing the effect of congestion are identifying and avoiding it.  Just a minority of motorists re-planning their routes or the timing of their journeys could help make sure this Friday isn’t the worst of all”, said Hale.
Summary of Trafficmaster Congestion Alerts** on nine key UK routes:
Year    Easter getaway  August Bank Holiday     Black Friday    Christmas getaway
2003    5,842                   5,122                           7,344                   4,627
2004    6,059                   4,522                           6,631                   3,668
2005    5,615                   4,358                           7,860                   2,114
2006    5,253                   6,392                           8,237                   5,035
2007    5,769                   4,223                           ????  

Elsewhere in the report, the nation’s worst congestion hotspot is revealed. Up from second position six months ago, the Western sector of the M25 is officially the most congested stretch of road in Britain, replacing the M1 in Hertfordshire, where traffic has eased slightly thanks to a higher temporary speed limit.

The report also reveals the real traffic speed of the UK’s motorways. The average traffic flow speed of our motorways is a healthy 67.5 mph, although there are significant differences in their overall efficiency. Scotland can boast both the most efficient motorway – the A74(M), with an overall real average speed of  69.9mph – and the least – the M8, at only 53.4mph.

Trafficmaster and the RAC Foundation recommend more careful planning of car journeys, stressing that drivers should consider alternative routes before they travel. Simple proactive steps to avoid congestion can save time, fuel and even CO2.  the organisations also point out that only a minority of vehicles on our roads need to be diverted from congestion to allow traffic to flow freely.

Trafficmaster’s Philip Hale concluded: “We have to acknowledge that environmental efficiency is not just about what we drive, but also where and when.  In the case of congestion on our roads, literally one person can make a difference.”

Edmund King, Executive Director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Today is named ‘Black Friday’ due to the expected extra congestion on the roads, but it could equally be ‘Black Friday’ for being the worst day of the week for fatalities and serious injuries on the road.  More car users are killed and injured between 4 and 6 pm on a Friday night than at any other time during the week. So to avoid ‘Black Friday’ becoming ‘Fatal Friday’, motorists should take extra care on the roads.”

ENDS

* Average congestion increase in previous two years on Black Friday were 7.03% and 12.16% on 2003 levels.

** Trafficmaster congestion alerts are received from Trafficmaster’s sensor network when speeds fall below 30mph on motorways and major inter-urban A-roads.

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Road Block for Road Pricing?

The Government appears to have hit a brick wall in trying to convince the public about road pricing, according to the director of the RAC Foundation in a key note speech at the National Transport Conference in London this week. He suggested that a voluntary scheme with rewards for early adopters, including cuts in fuel tax, might be the way ahead.

He reminded delegates that, driven by concern about how road pricing would affect their lives in the car-dependent UK, more than 1.8 million individuals signed the Downing Street petition opposing road pricing, King urged UK authorities to use the lessons learned from the voluntary road-pricing scheme piloted in Oregon, USA, to address UK motorists’ concerns.

Calling for an open dialogue with motorists, whose support is essential if pricing is to be implemented, King briefed delegates on the successful Oregon pilot scheme, where motorists who opted into the pay- as- you- go scheme received discounts on fuel duty at the pumps. The scheme successfully addresses privacy concerns, and places minimal costs on businesses and vehicle owners.

Royal Automobile Club Foundation research on the acceptability of road pricing schemes has consistently found that the majority of motorists (60%) accept the principle that it would be fairer to pay for the roads according to the time spent driving in congestion, but are worried about how this change would impact their lives. Support for the concept of charging has increased slightly over the last four years, but support for any specific application of congestion charging is starting to wane. UK motorists also believe that any road pricing scheme should be socially just, with 58% agreeing that there should be protection for those on low incomes. When asked where finances should be reinvested, over 50% of motorists believe that finances should be directed straight back into the road network itself and acceptability increases if there are equivalent reductions in other motoring taxes.

However, almost 80% of motorists are so anxious about the situation that they want an independent watchdog to stand up for their interests. Nine out of ten do not trust the government to deliver a fair system. Therefore one way ahead could be a voluntary system that gives motorists a package of benefits, which will make a real difference to their journeys.

A voluntary scheme, where motorists can opt to join what we have dubbed “UK Drive Time” would bring great benefits.  Scheme members could benefit from:

-  reduced fuel duty,
-  satellite navigation and congestion avoidance,
-  stolen vehicle tracking,
-  e-call emergency button to notify police or breakdown service in event of an accident,
-  discounts for greener cars,
-  parking availability,
-  location of favourite shops or restaurants and
-  cheaper insurance.

Even if only ten per cent of drivers sign up to such a voluntary scheme, significant congestion reduction will still be achieved. Having a meter in the car outlining the cost of each journey will lead to a reduction in journeys by highlighting the actual cost of the trip – RAC Foundation research has found that most motorists regard fuel, tax and insurance as “sunk costs” and do not relate them to individual journeys. In Oregon the “pay as you go” group showed a reduction in miles travelled even thought they were paying the same amount as those paying tax at the pumps. Where the charge varied at rush hour there was a 20% reduction in travel.

Motorists already pay £44 billion per year in motoring taxes. If the motorist is to accept road pricing, the RAC Foundation urges government to demonstrate that pricing will be part of the solution to their needs, along with more investment in transport, and not just another means to raise money and price them off the roads.

The RAC Foundation believes the government needs to change the way the debate is presented. Road pricing is not an end in itself but may, as a voluntary scheme, be one element of a package of measures required to give the UK a transport system fit for the 21st century.

Commenting, Edmund King, executive director of the RAC Foundation, said:

” Economists have been talking about road pricing for more than 40 years and it always seems to be ten years away. If the Government is serious about changing the way we pay to travel then a fresh approach is needed. A voluntary scheme that gave motorists other benefits would be a step in the right direction.

“No-one is likely to buy “road pricing”, but they might be interested in subscribing to “UK DriveTime” as a package of solutions which incorporates services that motorists actually want.”

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20mph zones within urban areas…the way forward?

A new report out today from PACTS suggests that Government should look to introduce 20mph zones in all built up urban areas to reduce road accidents. No one would disagree with reducing road casualties, especially in the areas where children, cyclists and predestrians are most at risk, but this does appear to be quite a draconian measure, which the RAC Foundation believes, if implemented might do more harm than good.

20mph are already a feature in many towns and cities in areas, where they make sense, for instance outside schools, in town centres or near play parks. As a result the majority of drivers understand and respect these limits where they are in place, but if they were to be put in place across a whole town or city, compliance might be an issue and there will be problems with keeping ‘roads for movement’. 

Almost 70% of people admit to speeding and almost one quarter will say they will speed if they think the limit is too low (www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk). However, the new report suggests that average speed cameras can be used to get around this issue (i.e. similar to the ones seen on motorways, especially in and around roadworks).

In a 20mph zone a pedestrian has a 95% chance that they will live when involved in an accident, which emphasises the importance of 20mph zones, but they need to put into action in the right places to be truely effective and acceptable to the motorist. 

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Money for nothing – Reaction to the Pre-Budget and Comprehensive Spending Review

The RAC Foundation welcomes the commitment to an increase in transport spending but stresses that a greater proportion must be spent on roads as 93% of passenger journeys and the majority of freight are carried by road.

The total estimate to be spent on transport in 2007-8 is £20bn and this is forecast to increase to £23.7bn by 2010-11. However, the motorist is already paying double this amount in motoring taxes each year (£45bn in 2006) and it is unclear how much the motorist will be getting back in the coming years.

Commenting, Edmund King, executive director of the RAC Foundation said: “Whilst any increase in transport spending is welcome, we need to see a greater proportion spent on roads. The vast majority of trips are by road and the motorist already pays more than twice as much in motoring taxes each year than the total transport budget. The motorist will view the recent fuel duty increase and proposals for yet more increases over the next two years as money for nothing unless the road infrastructure is improved.”

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Are you in your car before the dawn chorus?

Americans are leaving earlier and earlier in the morning to avoid wrestling with congested commutes and 1 in 8 are reportedly leaving before 6am. Is the UK following suit?

Recent DfT statistics (NTS, 2007) certainly suggest this is the case, with 52% of all journeys being made before 7am being accounted for by commuting. This commuting creep, caused by increased congestion is having a profound impact on lifestyles in the US.

In the words of USA Today (14th september 2007);

” It affects everything from the breakfast-food industry to television viewership trends, from traffic-signal timing to newspaper delivery times, from carpooling patterns to personal fitness regimes”

This pattern is also sadly having an impact on workers’ relationships with their families. UK policy makers often talk of people altering their travel times to beat congestion. This is obviously an important way to free up capacity on the roads, but the secondary impacts of this pattern of working should also not be forgotten. All types of methods are needed to tackle the UK congestion problem, but we should be mindful of the impact such lifestyle changes are having over the pond.

  

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No need to drive?

Instead of driving to the shops or to work wouldn’t it make sense to have all amenities on your door step so that there would be no need to hop in your car?

This is the simple yet smart conclusion of a new report- Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change* which looks at past studies which assess the role of urban development in both contributing to and combatting climate change.

The key conclusion formed having analysed the various ways in which climate change can be tackled, or rather slowed down, is that ‘places’ should be built where people can easily get to without having to drive, thereby reducing vehicle emissions.

The RAC Foundation welcomes ideas to tackle climate change but would remind planners and developers that it is not feasible to expect people not to use their cars at all and that sufficient road networks are also required.

Source: CommuterPageBlog

* research sponsored by: Urban Land Institute, National Center for Smart Growth, Smart Growth America and the Center for Clean Air Policy

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