Observer II Posted September 14, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2018 Get my opinions based on TV news, of moaning commuters. Alas, we've moved a long way from the hard shoulder now ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 15, 2018 Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 Ask a selection of the public about any subject and you'll find a few moaners. Not exactly a scientific poll. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted September 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 Wasn't meant to be a "poll"; just an almost daily event reported during the recent timetable debacle ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 15, 2018 Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 And there you are proving my point. The recent timetable debacle caused by the nationalised Network Rail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted September 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 And here's me thinking it was franchise holders who couldn't organise a p$ up in a brewery ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 15, 2018 Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 6 hours ago, Observer II said: And here's me thinking it was franchise holders who couldn't organise a p$ up in a brewery ! Which just goes to show you don't know what you're talking about. Do a bit of research, but avoid the Guardian, BBC, Channel 4 etc like the plague. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted September 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 15, 2018 BBC, CH4 = fake news ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 16, 2018 Report Share Posted September 16, 2018 On 15/09/2018 at 11:33 PM, Observer II said: BBC, CH4 = fake news ! Which is what I said actually. Northern Rail isn't failing because of what it is doing, it is failing because RMT and Railtrack are conspiring against them being able to do. If Railtrack were to do their job, and the RMT were to progress beyond 1978, we might actually get somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted September 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2018 So it's now a conspiracy ? Seems the Gov have ordered a review of franchise model, so no doubt it will all come out in the wash. Meanwhile, I guess we can dismiss any BBC or CH4 news reports from commuters waiting hours for trains that they can't fit on ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 17, 2018 Report Share Posted September 17, 2018 Well you have to admit that Railtrack aren't fulfilling their duties in maintaining and upgrading the track, and the RMT aren't looking after the interests of the commuter (however much they claim to be doing) but looking after their own interests. As for dismissing BBC and Channel 4 news, well I do that anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted September 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted September 17, 2018 Think we can wait for the Government Review and see whether a Tory Gov agrees with you ! What's clearly the case is that Labour won't and if Jezz ever makes it to No 10, they'll Nationalise it; if of course we have left the EU first ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallard12 Posted September 17, 2018 Report Share Posted September 17, 2018 Welcome to the States Bill, hope you enjoy it. On travel, I can jump onto IH-10 in Beaumont ,Texas and drive several thousand miles to LA without stopping, or I can go the other way to Miami also without a stop (if I had a better bladder). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asperity Posted September 17, 2018 Report Share Posted September 17, 2018 14 minutes ago, Stallard12 said: Welcome to the States Bill, hope you enjoy it. On travel, I can jump onto IH-10 in Beaumont ,Texas and drive several thousand miles to LA without stopping, or I can go the other way to Miami also without a stop (if I had a better bladder). I don't want to throw a fly into your ointment here, but how many thousand miles to the gallon does your car go or, to put it another way, how many gallons does your gas tank hold? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Sid Posted September 18, 2018 Report Share Posted September 18, 2018 solar powered vehicle maybe? Hybrid vehicle? getting about 200 miles per gallon 10 gallon tank and there is a two thousand mile trip. It is all about MPG. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 19, 2018 Report Share Posted September 19, 2018 Well I'm back home now after 3 weeks of driving in the US where we covered just over 2k miles and in all that time, we only had one small hold up for road works due to a bridge repair on a minor road. It's difficult though to directly compare our motorways with those in the US as many of them are interstates covering long distances with few exits and not quite as much traffic. Get into the city areas though and they become much like the UK but the notable differences were. (1) The motorways were often just two lanes in each direction without any paved hard shoulder but with a wide central separation area without arm-co barriers. This allows for a broken down vehicle to pull off the road on either side of the carriageway and in the event of a major tailback, emergency vehicles don't get stuck in any queues. (2) Compared to the UK, the US seemed less obsessed with slowing the traffic down in roadworks. There were no miles of cones, concrete barriers and definitely no average speed cameras. Just a sign warning of the roadworks and that fines are double in that area. Often there were no speed restrictions and where there was, it was only a drop of about 10 mph. (3) I only saw a handful of cop cars over the entire journey but despite this, I didn't really see many going much faster than myself. Virtually everyone seemed to stick around the limit (probably using cruise control) so there wasn't any of the constant speed up then heavy breaking we have here. There was also quite a lot of big lorries but they didn't hang about either. I doubt they had limiters like ours because I never saw any of the side by side stuff we get far too often. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallard12 Posted September 19, 2018 Report Share Posted September 19, 2018 It's only a little car Asp, 8 liter V8 Ford Expedition SUV, with three row seating and a 30 gall tank, does about 15 mpg on the highway, at just over a Pound a gall, the gas cost does add up. However the tank truck that follows me has in-flight refueling !!! A couple of things that I noticed were different between driving in the US (especially in Texas) and the UK. First we have the real estate so the lanes are wider and you can actually relax for long periods, rather than whiteknuckling it 2" from another vehicle. There are monster parking lots everywhere that very rarely get half full, so we don't have the hair raising pavement parking on both sides of a highway. There are very few traffic circles and if there happens to be one, it doesn't become a 'survival of the fittest' competition. In fact the average US driver drives fairly sedately. Most maintenance type construction on busy highways takes place between six pm and six am, with all obstructions removed daily. Finally, we have the greatest traffic rule ever - legal to turn right on red ! (providing the road is clear). Or in your case it would be left on red. Did I get my spelling right Asp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 19, 2018 Report Share Posted September 19, 2018 Quote Most maintenance type construction on busy highways takes place between six pm and six am, with all obstructions removed daily. In contrast, we take at least a year just setting up heavy duty security measures on huge stretches of tens of miles at a time during which speed restrictions are in place. I think we might also do the work in the night as nobody ever seems to be working during the day and it's not uncommon for this to continue for several years at a time. At least doing it this way doesn't encourage more people to use the motorways which may be part of the thinking. BTW petrol must be as cheap as water in Texas as we were paying between $3.30 to $4.25 in California. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallard12 Posted September 19, 2018 Report Share Posted September 19, 2018 Everything is cheap in Texas Bill, land, houses, food etc, especially compared to California. I usually pay between $60 and $80 for a decent hotel room (Holiday Inn or similar). $25.00 for a full steak meal (with wine) in a good restaurant. My buddy and his wife recently paid $700 for a room in San Francisco. I pay an average of $2.10 per gall with my Walmart discount card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 19, 2018 Report Share Posted September 19, 2018 Stallard That's a bit off the pound a gallon you mentioned earlier, when did you last check the exchange rate? Using today's rate, you're actually paying about £1.60 while we currently pay about £5.50 per gallon. But what the heck you all have plenty of money over there to fill up those big V8s Sadly that'll probably be this poor Brit's last road trip to the states unless the rates change dramatically or I win the lottery again so I can afford first class. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallard12 Posted September 21, 2018 Report Share Posted September 21, 2018 Been a while since I checked the exchange rate Bill, I defer to your knowledge. Hope you do make it back, maybe to Texas. Singapore Airlines fly Manchester / Houston and they are the best airline ever, their coach service almost equals business class on most other lines. Come in either May or November to miss the heat and the hurricanes ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted September 22, 2018 Report Share Posted September 22, 2018 Stallard Flying into Huston with Singapore looked quite good and we were thinking of doing that but for some reason the car hire deals there were unbelievably high compared to other states and cancelled out any flight savings. We ended up settling for flying to San Francisco and returning from Las Vegas as the most affordable option. As for costs, well I know California is one of the most expensive states but the exchange rate of $1.23 to the pound and the fact that we've had hyper low inflation for several years makes a US visit costly these days. But it's not just about costs, getting older makes the journey in baggage class tough and the jet lag seems to take longer to get over each time but who knows, maybe there's still time yet for just one more visit. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallard12 Posted September 23, 2018 Report Share Posted September 23, 2018 That surprises me Bill, rent cars are dirt cheap - last time I rented I got a compact for less than $30 a day. Agree about the travel, wearing pressure hose and being stiff all over. It's a 9 to 10 hr flight for us, I guess that California would be another 3 hrs. Walked past the Singapore 1st class on the way off - everyone had a cubicle with a bed and large tv with a pull curtain across the length !! If you use Singapore, be prepared to put on some weight, cos they serve sandwiches and deserts every 30 mins, plus full meals too big to fit on one tray table. I think Dizzy has my email if you ever need any information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted May 23, 2019 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2019 Seems the latest on this not so smart M/Way idea, is to fine cars who ignore the overhead lane closure sign - £100 a pop, plus three points on license; so motorists back to being a cash cow. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted June 12, 2019 Report Share Posted June 12, 2019 Seems reasonable enough to me because it's a critical safety instruction not an advisory and anyone who ignores it deserves to be fined. Bill:) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Observer II Posted June 12, 2019 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2019 Yes Bill, but it wouldn't be necessary if they had kept the hard shoulder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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