I am a law-abiding driver. When the overhead alerts on motorway gantries started displaying a 50mph limit because of an obstruction, I heeded the warning. I backed off the throttle, slowed to the required pace and set the cruise control.
The next gantry reaffirmed the speed limit and reason. So did the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth. The overhead alerts went on and on. Finally, we gave up counting. We also gave up looking out for the so-called obstruction.
We had already covered several miles of the M6, near Birmingham, at 50mph. My wife and I could not work out why the speed limit was in force. Nor could Mrs R understand why we seemed to be the only vehicle sticking to the 50mph limit.
We finally came to some roadworks – you almost inevitably do on most motorways and trunk roads – with, you’ve guessed it, a 50mph speed limit. In contrast, the overhead alerts were still advising a 50mph speed limit due to that obstruction.
I think the reason no one paid any attention to the speed warning is because there was nothing obvious to justify it. It was miles before we actually came across the roadworks. I’m still not convinced they were the original ‘obstruction’ .
Overhead alerts more pie in the sky
Confusing overhead alerts are not a new experience for me. They’re often more pie in the sky than serving any practical purpose when it comes to road safety,
We were also using Waze, the world’s largest community-based traffic and navigation app. I find it very informative due to other drivers in the area sharing real-time traffic and road info. That makes it extremely up to date. Motorists are even warned of cars stranded on the hard shoulder with extraordinary accuracy, both time and exact location.
Surprise, surprise. All the time we were sticking to the 50mph limit, being passed by other motorists, there was no mention about any upcoming obstructions. Waze was clueless too!
In this fast-moving world of data and information, we have no way of knowing how long the overhead gantries had been displaying the obstruction warning. It was showing on at least a dozen, in contrast to the no show on the carriageway. That’s why many drivers assume it is out of date, irrelevant, and ignore it.
Make sure the information displayed is accurate and time sensitive but, most of all, relevant. There needs only to be a couple of overhead alerts on the gantries
ahead of an obstruction. Not a guessing game of when you will come across it… if ever.
Perhaps it’s a case of carriageway crying wolf. It seems, given past experiences and lack of visual proof, these warnings become worthless.
Overhead alerts serve no purpose if they are not relevant. If so, switch them off because drivers are switching off to their message.