Motorists will clock up £283 in fines on average during their time in the driving seat, research revealed yesterday. The total punishment for offences by the nation’s drivers, including speeding and parking violations, works out at a staggering £10bn. Those in London rack up the highest lifetime tally, with an average of £680, while those in Northern Ireland tot up only £90. Motorists in the North-East recorded the second highest average at £352. Men lose the battle of the sexes as they are hit with £344 in fines during their driving careers compared to £210 for women. The survey suggests misdemeanours cost motorists £200m in total each year. If that figure is multiplied over a 50-year career at the wheel, then the nation’s total hits the £10bn mark. The research found that 34% of drivers have been fined for speeding at least once and 6% have been caught three or more times. Nearly four in ten have been slapped with at least one parking fine and one in 14 are serial offenders with three or more tickets. The survey of 1,017 motorists for the esure car insurance website found that more than a third of motorists are confused by the myriad of parking rules and regulations. Others admit they do not know many of the other highway laws which could lead to fines. More
(AD Remarks ~ There must be a good ammount of drivers who obey the rules and have never had any fines, so what does that say about some other drivers and their driving?)
Using “free” navigation abroad could cost over *20p per mile in roaming charges 185 mile Calais to Paris trip costs *£24 to £39 in roaming charges one way, *£52 to £78 return journey Garmin, global leaders in satellite navigation**, today revealed the cost of using “free” satellite navigation on your mobile phone abroad. Users can rack up a phone bill more expensive than the cost of their fuel used for the journey. The company found that using one of the most well known turn-by-turn navigation services on a mobile phone generated a bill of £36 in data roaming charges for a journey from Calais to Paris – some 185 miles – meaning a cost for navigation alone of over 20 pence per mile. Garmin’s Head of Communications, Anthony Chmarny said: “Using free satellite navigation isn’t as free as it would like to make out, especially when you are using your mobile phone abroad. Many of the well known navigation products use the mobile phone network to download maps as they go, meaning people could end up with a nasty shock when their mobile phone bills arrive – the costs could be double that of the fuel used for the journey they were navigating. “We tested the route from Calais to Paris four times and each time it came up with the same results: between 12-13 megabytes of data per journey. On a pay as you go mobile phone this meant £36 to £39 to get from Calais to Paris – some 185 miles on a contract plan the cost is a little less, but still equates to £24 to £26 per single journey.” More
(AD Remarks ~ High charges indeed! Buying the Sat-nav units them selves are less than some of the small journeys listed in the report.)
Many sports fans could be putting their lives at risk during the summer of sporting events by listening to important matches and races on the radio while driving. A new research study released today by Direct Line, commissioned with Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), reveals that motorists’ reaction times are 20 per cent slower when they are emotionally and mentally engaged in listening to sports commentary on the radio while behind the wheel. If travelling at a speed of 70mph, this distraction would add six metres to a motorist’s stopping distance. To put this into context, this increase in distance travelled is 10 per cent further than the additional stopping distance when driving with a blood alcohol level at the UK legal limit (80mg/100ml). During the testing, there were nearly 50 per cent more incidents of hard braking while motorists were listening to sports commentary on the radio, in comparison with driving without any distracting factors. This suggests that the motorists were not paying enough attention to the road and had to make late decisions to respond to the conditions and drivers on the road around them. Worryingly, motorists do not perceive. More
(AD Remarks ~ Anything that takes our attention from the roads is a big problem. If anyone has got a big wager on a race, they would be advised to drive slower while listening, or even stop for a few minutes.)
Twisting through a rolling landscape of green and vivid yellow fields, the road swoops down into a tight bend then straightens again, allowing the driver to accelerate up through the gears. It is the English highway of car ads and films, the perfect spot to luxuriate in the exhilarating fun of the open road. This stretch of the A18 cuts through picture-postcard Lincolnshire countryside, skirting the edge of the Wolds, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a magnet for walkers, birdwatchers and devotees of wildflowers. Well away from the thunder of the motorways – there are none in Lincolnshire – everything, including the smell of freshly cut grass, combines to give a sense of tranquillity, rural isolation and, not least, safety. This could not be more deceptive. The Road Safety Foundation (RSF) has just published its detailed annual study, funded by the Department for Transport, into the safety of Britain’s roads. The report, the only one of its kind, collates the number of fatal and serious-injury collisions on 2,741 sections of road, and grades each section according to its level of risk. This short, 10-mile stretch of the A18 topped the list as the most dangerous length of road for car drivers anywhere in the country, when collisions involving motorcycles are excluded. More
(AD Remarks ~ A pretty looking road, but deadly in its own way. These roads need to be treated with respect, as lack of vision, can lead to problems happening very quickly, with not just oncoming vehicles, but drivers going off the road as well.)
The report lists the UK’s 10 persistently higher risk roads which have shown little or no change since the earlier report covering 2003-2005. Top of this year’s persistently higher risk roads is the A537 between Macclesfield and Buxton, known nationally as the Cat and Fiddle. A 50mph single carriageway, running through the Peak District National Park, the route has severe bends, steep falls from the carriageway and is edged by dry-stone walls or rock face for almost all of its length. It is popular with tourists, heavy goods vehicles and high-powered leisure motorcyclists. Fatal and serious collisions on this section have risen by 127% in the last 3 years rising from 15 in 2003-2005 to 34 in 2006-2008, with most crashes at weekends during the summer in dry, daylight conditions. Police records show that the vast majority of casualties were motorcyclists, from outside the local area, male, and with an average age of 35. More
(AD Comments ~ If you have to travel that stretch of road – take care!)
As many as 10% of Britain’s motorways and A-roads present an unacceptably high risk to drivers, a major report revealed today. Half of all crashes occur on just one tenth of Britain’s road network, the report from the Road Safety Foundation found. Most of the higher-risk roads are in north west England, Yorkshire and the Humber and the East Midlands, while Scotland has the highest risk rating of all the regions. The West Midlands is the safest region, while the most persistently dangerous road is the A537 between Macclesfield in Cheshire and Buxton in Derbyshire. The report, which covers 28,000 miles of roads, also found that one third of all fatal and serious crashes occur at junctions and that single carriageways offer six times the risk of danger to motorists than motorways and twice that of dual carriageways. Also drivers were seven times more at risk on major roads than on minor ones. More
(AD Comments ~ In this current climate of spending cuts, will their be money available to correct these problem roads?)
Motorists are eating up to a fifth of their daily calories by snacking behind the wheel on junk food and chocolate bars, a new survey says today. It says the average British driver consumes a whopping 3,960 calories each week at the wheel of their car – equivalent to two days of a woman’s recommended daily calorific intake. Figures released today find that nearly six out of ten of choco-guzzling motorists regularly tuck into their favourite snacks while driving, totting up an average of 410 calories on each journey. A high energy chocolate bar alone contains about 280 calories. According to the Korean car-maker Kia Motors ‘Spare Tyre report’, which analysed British driving habits, UK motorists make nine trips by car each week, grazing on food and drink on most occasions. The report says: ‘Chocolate, sweets and fizzy drinks were revealed as the snacks that most drivers eat at the wheel – the combined calories of a fizzy drink and bar of chocolate totalling 410 calories each time. ‘The combined in-car calories represent 21 per cent of the recommended daily intake for a woman and 16 per cent for a man.’ To work off the effects of their indulgence, the motorists would have to spend an hour on an exercise bike or 30 minutes on a tennis court. The recommended daily calorie intake is 2,500 calories for a man and 2,000 for a woman. When asked about their reasons for snacking at the wheel, the ‘Spare Tyre’ report found that nearly half of motorists eat and drink on the go because they don’t have time at home. Some 1 in 6 of drivers admitted to drinking their morning cup of tea or coffee in the car in order to extend their lie in, while 10 per cent said that they regularly juggle a sandwich with the steering wheel. More
(AD Comments ~ We all need to make time to eat properly, in this health sconcious world. Also remembering that eating and drinking while driving can impair driving skills, making you less safe on the roads!)
The number of road deaths recorded on British roads fell to a record low last year, according to the latest Government figures. Released by the Department for Transport (DfT), the figures show that 2,222 people died in accidents last year – a drop of 12% from the 2,538 deaths reported in 2008. This represents the lowest annual total since records began in 1926, and a vast reduction on the post-war high of almost 8,000 recorded in 1966. Child deaths saw a particularly marked reduction – falling from 124 in 2008, to 81 last year. Meanwhile, there were 26,096 people killed or seriously injured (KSI), representing a fall of 6% over the previous year, and around 222,000 road casualties – around 4% fewer than 2008. More
(AD Comments ~ If the figures are to be believed this is a step in the right direction. Still more needs to be done though.)
Men and women may continue to argue about who are the better drivers, but one area where there is a clear difference between the sexes is the type of accidents they have in their cars. Research by women’s car insurance specialist, Diamond has found there are certain types of accidents women are more likely than men to be involved in. The list for women includes accidents in car parks, bumps on roundabouts and prangs at traffic lights. On the other hand, male motorists are more likely than female motorists to have a head on collision, drive their car up or down an embankment or hit a crash barrier. Diamond studied data from over two million accidents over five years and found a marked difference between the types of accidents men and women have. Sian Lewis, managing director of Diamond, said: “We hold a vast amount of data on accidents and wanted to see if there was a difference between the sexes. “It soon became clear that there was; women tend to be in more accidents at slower speeds, where cars are close together, while men have more high-speed accidents where it is easy to lose control. “Our research suggests the way men and women drive is different. Possibly men drive faster and more aggressively than women, while women are more easily distracted than men behind the wheel of car.” More
(AD Comments ~ So know we know!)
Black cars are up to 47 per cent more likely to be involved in crashes, research shows. A 20-year study revealed black cars to be the most dangerous – and white, gold and yellow to be the safest. The reason lies not in who is behind the wheel, but in the visibility of their vehicle, say the researchers. Black, grey, silver, red and blue fail to stand out against the background of the road, scenery and other traffic. The team, from Monash University in Australia scrutinise police data on 850,000 accidents for information on the car, they time of day and the type of prang. Commercial vehicles, including taxis and white vans, were excluded from the mix. After trying to take into account the possibility that drivers who take risks might be drawn more to some colours than others, they found black cars to be most accident prone. During daylight hours, they were up to 12 per cent more likely be in crashes than white vehicles, while at dawn and dusk, the figure rose to 47 per cent. More
(AD Comments ~ That`s a long study to work out what we all know, that brighter colours are easier to spot! But if everyone drove responsibly and observed the road, it shouldn`t matter what colour car you drive.)
The observational study compared the behaviour of motorists driving in their ‘normal’ style to their behaviour if they followed the Highway Code. At the same time it monitored the response of other motorists to the differing driving styles and behaviours. The results found that 93 per cent of the motorists under observation were tailgated by other road users when driving in accordance to the Highway Code, while just 47 per cent were tailgated when driving in their usual style. The study also revealed that 40 per cent of drivers following the Highway Code were either over or undertaken by other motorists. Worryingly it is motorists who drive safely by sticking to the speed limits, such as novice drivers and parents with small children, who are likely to be most vulnerable to bullying behaviour. The study showed an increased use of the rear-view mirror and raised heart rates by these drivers when tailgated, suggesting that many drivers become stressed and emotionally upset as a result, which in turn can lead to an increased risk of accidents. More
(AD Comments ~ Highlights what we already know that some drivers attitude needs to change. As always its the honest motorist that can suffer, through just following the rules and trying to do the right thing.)
Eleven families across the UK have successfully demonstrated that making simple changes to day-to-day travel behaviour can help cut family fuel costs by 27 per cent in just six weeks. This equates to a potential annual saving of £310 on family petrol bills. The findings come from the Shell Smarter Drivers experiment – launched to better understand how fuel savings can be made by real families undertaking everyday journeys. Using cutting-edge in-car telemetry technology, participants’ journeys were monitored over a six week period. The results, out today, have been independently analysed by leading sustainability think tank, Forum for the Future. They show that by changing behaviour in two areas – driving in a fuel efficient manner and local journey planning – families can achieve significant savings on their petrol bills. One family showed that it was possible to reduce fuel bills by up to 62 per cent, the equivalent of saving £710 a year. The overall winners of the experiment based on the two criteria of improving fuel efficiency and local journey planning were the Choo family from Cardiff. The Choo family managed to reduce their fuel bills by a staggering 57 per cent, which equates to a potential saving of £654 a year. Amanda Choo from the Cardiff family said: “We were astonished to see how much we could save by making simple changes to the way we drive and travel. We have changed our behaviour without needing to revolutionise our lifestyle. We encourage other families to follow the Shell Smarter Drivers tips – they really do make a big difference and once you start doing things like driving more smoothly they become second nature.” More
(AD Comments ~ We all know that higher speeds and quicker acceleration can reduce economy, but its another thing to have the discipline to drive in a calm fuel efficient way at all times!)
The average motorist has the details of 200 of their journeys stored on the Government’s controversial vehicle surveillance database, new figures have shown. The records, which include photographs of private cars, can be secretly handed by ministers to the governments of other European countries or the United States. Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act disclosed that 7.6 billion entries are currently stored on the police automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) database. The database is constantly fed pictures and details of journeys by Britain’s 38 million motorists as they drive past thousands of cameras across the country. It was also disclosed that the records can be stored “for as long as is operationally necessary”. It was previously thought most were destroyed after a month and none was kept for more than five years. Civil liberties campaigners last night called for the system to be scaled back and for a one-month limit on storing records. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said it was “in discussions” with chief police officers over reducing the limit. However Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrats, who were sharply critical of the system before joining the Coalition government, declined to comment. ANPR was originally developed in the 1990s to monitor traffic and congestion charging. However under the Labour government it was gradually adapted for policing and anti-terrorism surveillance. More
(AD Comments ~ It is reassuring to know that we can monitor criminal activity with these cameras, but the downside is that it can feel like `big brother` is always watching you!)
A revamp of hospital car parking is needed, consumer watchdog Which? says after looking into the best and worst practices in England. The group found a wide variation in the frequency with which patients were clamped and fined for breaching rules. Using data from 126 Freedom Of Information requests, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust came top for clamping. Over a year the hospital clamped 1,671 cars and made nearly £2m profit. Leeds General Infirmary issued the most parking tickets – over 10,000, generating £142,000 profit. The Royal Derby was the target of the most criticism – it received 82 complaints in 2008-09. According to Which?, 70% of people have experienced problems with an NHS hospital car park and for nearly half, parking made what can be a very stressful time even worse. It is calling on NHS hospitals to improve car parking services by banning clamping and towing. It also wants “fairer” charging systems such as allowing patients to pay on departure rather than arrival, or reimbursing patients for additional parking fees when appointments are delayed. More
(AD Comments ~ If hospitals had more funding, or used their resources more effectively, motorists would not need the high expense of parking charges/fines, especially when their hospital visit may be difficult as it is.)
Drivers in the UK are throwing away more than £440 million pounds by driving with under-inflated tyres. The research, revealed by Michelin discovered that not only are motorists letting poor tyre pressure maintenance affect their bank balance, but more than 370 million litres of fuel are being wasted each year. This also contributes to an additional 1 million tonnes of CO2 being pumped into the atmosphere. Luckily, Michelin is coming to the rescue of drivers who are in the dark when it comes to tyre pressures. The Michelin Fill Up With Air team is taking to the road to offer free tyre checks to help improve safety and reduce vehicle CO2 emissions, while also helping motorists save cash. Michelin’s head of communications, Peter Snelling, said: ‘Based on the findings of Michelin’s 2009 campaign, if all of the cars in the UK were running on correctly inflated tyres then motorists would save a considerable amount of money and as a result, CO2 emissions would also be reduced. More
(AD Suggests ~ Tyres are often neglected by car owners, which can lead to safety issues. A great deal of fuel, can be wasted as show here, when quick checks can be made, so they you have correct tyre pressures. For those recently passed, one of the car safety questions covers tyre pressures, so new drivers can not say they didn`t know!)
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