Lancashire County Council wants to impose a blanket speed restriction on all residential roads by 2013. The £9m plan aims to reduce the number of road deaths and injuries in the county.
But Diane Greenwood, 47, of Wolsey Close, Cleveleys, says the changes will damage her car – and the environment. She said: “My car is a two litre diesel BMW and is not designed to drive at 20mph in fourth gear which means I will have to drive in third gear.
“This will not only damage my car but will also affect the environment and cost me fortunes in extra fuel costs. If this happens I will have no alternative but to lodge a claim against Lancashire County Council for the damage to my vehicle and any extra costs incurred due to the new restrictions.”
9 comments:
Silly council, they should employ people with red flags to walk in front of the cars.
I don't know that much about cars. What the heck is she talking about? How does driving in 3rd gear ruin your car?
She could always change her car...
Blimey, that's the second time in a week Cleveleys has appeared in your blog, Kev. I can't cope!
Happy New Year, btw.
When Oxford council introduced 20mph zones it wasn't much fun for the buses. Apparently a lot of them are automatics and 20mph was around the point where they would shift from one gear to another, so they spent ages shifting up and down and up and.. ruining the gearbox and the fuel efficiency.
Having her there complaining about things while posing next to her flash car doesn't really endear her to me.
That said, a 20mph limit on all residential roads? Not just outside schools... but all roads? Is it to curb road deaths or rake up millions on speeding tickets as no one is actually going to do it?
Heh heh, I'd noticed that Nell!
A Happy New Year to you.
How does driving in 3rd gear ruin your car?
It doesn't. She's a self-entitled twit, without even a basic understanding of how gears and engines work. In point of fact, good drivers will over-ride their automatic transmissions; and drive in first, second, or third, as appropriate.
Those of us in snowy climes, such as Canada, use engine compression via downshifting instead of brakes to slow down to maintain traction and avoid skidding.
I suspect a far more effective way of improving safety would be to teach kids, from a very early age, that roads are dangerous, and there are ways to minimise that danger. Such as not running out without looking. Not allowing children to ride bikes or wheeled toys on the highway until they are old enough and experienced enough to understand the rules, and to know that they're extremely vulnerable.
I learned that at about age 7. I remember it well.
I ran out from behind a bus, and was hit by a car I had not seen, by a driver who could not see me until we were only a few feet apart.
I remember the impact even now.
I remember the silence.
The circle of faces.
The ceilings of the hospital as I was wheeled to the emergency room.
That was over fifty years ago. I still feel I want to apologise for that man I can see with tears pouring down his face.
I learned a lesson that day. That the stuff my parents and teachers kept saying might, just might, not be a set of arbitrary ways to curtail my freedom, it might instead be guidance to enable me to live longer than I might if I failed to heed it.
Just think a bit if you must go on the road. There's a set of rules in the highway code, if we all use those rules, then we're all pretty safe.
Pedestrians AND vehicle users.
So is she claiming that she drives around car parks at more than 20mph? If she does then she should be prosecuted for dangerous driving.
If she bothered to speak to BMW (or any other manufacturer) she would discover that driving at below 20mph will not harm her engine in any way. Even in top gear the engine would cope, although it might be a little jerky. But that's the thing about gearboxes you can always change down. And if you're not a competent enough driver to do that, might I suggest an automatic.
All she has done is call attention to herself as an incompetent driver who knows nothing about cars. How did she ever pass a test?
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