does anyone think the 40mph speed limit for hgvs on single carriageway roads is too slow?

Answer 1

The problem with speed-limits, as with all law, is the fact that they are entirely the brain-child of theorists and "safety experts," even though they are nothing of the sort.

In so far as HGV vehicles are concerned, there is a massive difference between the vehicles of to-day and those which used to be on the roads.

Most modern trucks have very powerful disc-brake systems on the tractor-unit and ABS (anti-lock) braking on the trailers. The modern DAF or Volvo (as examples) trucks handle extremely well, can stop quickly and safely and are very powerful.

However, things change when vehicles run fully laden with about 26 tons of cargo on-board. With that sort of load, the brakes and handling become less sharp, and the laws of physics tend to dictate the safest pace. It then comes down to the skill of the driver (at any speed), to ensure smooth and safe progress, because believe me, on a bend with adverse camber safe for 28mph, you don't want to be doing 29mph.

In fact, the blanket speed-limit has very little relevance in road-safety terms, because eveything depends on the load, the type of load, the actual physical height of the load and even the distribution of the load. Road tankers, full of bulk-liquid, have very different handling characteristics to solid-loads, and if roundabouts are negotiated without due care, they can very easily roll-over as the liquid first moves one way and then the other. Regular tanker drivers are aware of this, and prevent it from happening of course, but it remains a fact that such vehicles can end up on their side at speeds as low as 15mph.

It's only when you have driven large vehicles in all situations, that you can appreciate the blanket nonsense of speed-limits, which seem only to be there to pacify the general public and lull them into a false sense of security.

It is quite an educaton to follow a well-driven truck on the A65 between Skipton and Kendal during the night. With the advantage of height and good vision over the hedges and stone-walls, the HGV drivers tend to fairly hammer down this busy, narrow, twisting route to Scotland; perhaps AVERAGING 40mph on this 40 mile stretch of road. Daunting it may appear, but those guys seldom get it wrong, and the accident-rate is very, very low. There are no speed-cameras, save for one at a critical point entering a small town, and the police are rarely to be seen. It's been like this for decades, and yet those vehicles pass within a few inches of each other, with a combined approach-speed, head-on, of maybe 100mph.

The driver continue to stay alive because they have a high degree of skill and ability.

I'm not sure what this adds up to, except to suggest that the 40mph limit on single-carriageways is really just a nonsense, and an example of "lowest common denominator" thinking, where the "experts" attach too much importance to numbers, and too little to "appropriate speed" in the given circumstances.

The fact is, the conditions and traffic-volume absolutely dictate the safest speed, and there are many situations where the speed-limit says 30mph, but where my colleagues and I know that 20mph is way too fast to remain safe.

God help the world if truck-drivers drove UP to the limits, rather than down to them.

Answer 2

Unless otherwise marked - 40mph on single carriageways 50mph on dual carriageways (with a central reservation) 60mph on motorways (but any HGV newer than 1996 must be fitted with a speed limiter set at 90km/h or 56mph) There is actually a campaign to increase the maximum speed for HGVs, as the 40mph speed limit does cause a lot of congestion (I know, I drove artics for 15 years...)

Answer 3

The problem to me is that these roads vary a huge amount. On rural roads sometimes it's simply not physically possible to steer an artic round a bend without crossing the centre line if the carriageway is too narrow. Even in a flat clear straight line it's not much fun when another vehicle is coming the otherway especially if it's a truck or bus. In this situation believe me 40 mph is the absolute maximum you'd ever want to drive a truck. On the other hand there are some single carriageways that are pretty much dual carriageway specification with loads or room,good quality tarmac,clear well laid out line painting,they're well lit and have clear long distance visibilty. Having to stick to 40 mph on this type of road can seem pedestrian and even pulling over every few miles to let cars pass doesn't stop some idiots making such dangerous overtaking manouveres. The only solution as I see it would be to either reclassify some of these roads or allow a higher limit for trucks on the safer ones which of course would cost the Government precious money. I won't hold my breath!

Answer 4

I'm going to have a bit of a rant here, how come an HGV which is restriced to 40mph do 50mph (10 mph over limit)and not set off a speed camera, but if I do 65 on the same road (5mph over limit) the camera will go off......is this fair.

Answer 5

musonic.....what a good answer.

Personally I think that speed limits in general are only enforced as part of a money-making exercise by most local authorities. Why on earth are limits fixed at the same level for 24 hours per day?
I've got to say that the biggest cause for concern is the famous "white van man" who shows total disregard and contempt for other road users.

Answer 6

I have a class one HGV licence and yes, 40 is to slow. It was fine for the older lorries but most are now more technologically advanced than cars, for instance lorries had ESP before cars. You lot want to try and drive one for a day then you will appreciate what it takes to get nearly 60 feet and 44 tonnes of vehicle around our badly maintained roads. Our speed limit on motorways is 60mph so why do they restrict us to 56? (still theres ways around that one isn't there paddy with your coach diff and bigger wheels!)

Answer 7

Way too slow. It will lead to more accidents as more people will become frustrated being stuck behind a slow moving lorry and will try to overtake at inappropriate times.

Utter madness, IMHO. But if you think that that's mad, consider the lorrys on the German Autobahns at 48 MPH!

Answer 8

SPEED LIMITS...50 is the old 30 with braking systems of today, use that as a guide to my thoughts.

Answer 9

No. Having seen the way HGV drivers drive round here it's waaay too fast!

Answer 10

Yes - many police forces across the U.K. feel it should be raised 50 for safety reasons.
There is an active campaign to get the H.G.V. speed limit increased -