Average speed cameras

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Dark Knight
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Average speed cameras

Post by Dark Knight »

Some idiot has installed average speed cameras on the A85, the section between the Killin turn off and Tyndrum.
So what happens is you get a slow car or heavy truck doing 40 MPH and a long line of cars stuck behind on a 60 MPH road.
To pass the heavy truck and say half a dozen cars on those staights you have to accelerate up to about 100 MPH, I wonder what that would do to your average speed.
Maybe there is some device to calculate average speed on the fly.
daveuprite
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by daveuprite »

Well it's the law of averages. You can work it out as you go along, which should at the very least keep you awake...

As someone once said,

"Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that."
Dark Knight
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by Dark Knight »

The whole thing is just a money collection scam and very dangerous.
Just do the usual risk review, whats the chance of one of those car drivers, stuck behind the truck, becoming so frustrated, that he pulls out to overtake without looking and you run into him when speeding past the line of cars, I would say significant.
So we have an installation, purporting to reduce risk, actually increasing the risk of serious injury.
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mark vb
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by mark vb »

Average speed cameras are a good thing IMO, and should, in theory, stop folks speeding/braking hard at old-style cameras, which can lead to chaos. As said, it's all down to averages.... a fast overtake over, say, 15 seconds will be no problem if you then do the next mile or so at 55mph - which is a very civilised and responsible speed. If everyone stuck to the speed limit there would be no revenue and the cameras would eventually disappear - but I suppose that scenario is too sensible for most people.
garyboy
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by garyboy »

much safer to just to follow the convoy, grit your teeth, and wait it out ... it wont be as bad as you think.

on my previous fireblade i could have passed that convoy in about 5 seconds, but ended up doing about 140. .. a bit dangerous on that road, and little time to change tack or stop, from head on.
on my present NC750, i would take say 10 seconds, and ended up at about 90-110 .. it would take far too long a distance on that winding road. I would have had to pull in twice or more.. than wait each time for another good opportunity. By then the second camera would be coming up and no time to slow down .

So .. buy an extremely fast bike, overtake as fast as possible, then cut in front of the tractor and slow down to 15mph :lol:
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zimtim
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by zimtim »

I was under the impression that the cameras worked not by taking note of your speed at the camera as a normal speed camera does.
But rather measuring the time it has taken you to travel between the cameras then calculate whether the time taken was doable within the speed limit.

So blasting up to a 100in a 50 zone for bit would mean slowing down to 25 for the same distance to keep you with the in average.

Worth it 🤔🤔
Tonibe63
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by Tonibe63 »

You need to buy a Himalayan, it doesn't have the ability to blast passed in one move so you need to be constantly looking for your next point of entry back in to the line of moving traffic if you want to 'make progress'. The other alternative is to kick back and enjoy the ride instead of chasing the vanishing point.
It's not the camera that twists the throttle.
Open your eyes and you see what is in front of you, open your mind and you see a bigger picture but open your heart and you see a whole new World.
johnnyboxer
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by johnnyboxer »

Dark Knight wrote:The whole thing is just a money collection scam and very dangerous.
Just do the usual risk review, whats the chance of one of those car drivers, stuck behind the truck, becoming so frustrated, that he pulls out to overtake without looking and you run into him when speeding past the line of cars, I would say significant.
So we have an installation, purporting to reduce risk, actually increasing the risk of serious injury.
Just sit back, enjoy the views and chill out

40mph is adequate on that road - you used to get nutters trying to do 100mph on that road - that’s why they put in the cameras
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Elmer J Fudd
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by Elmer J Fudd »

I suppose they are rear facing, otherwise it wouldn't be an issue?

Some of the road already has a reduced speed limit down to 50, which everyone ignores.

It is a magnet for bikes in the summer and always has some nutters on it, in cars and bikes. I suppose we get this due to them.

Bubble gum and crisp packets will be back in fashion.
SteveR
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Re: Average speed cameras

Post by SteveR »

Dark Knight wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 7:08 pm Some idiot has installed average speed cameras on the A85, the section between the Killin turn off and Tyndrum.
I assume that they are rearward facing cameras? I knew of one set installed a few years ago that could happily be ignored.... until they wised up and turned them the other way round!
:lol:
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