Variable Speed Limit - M6 - Speeding…

ontheroad1970

caprikid1 said:

I have to admit these variable speed camera's are challenging. I go through Bristol M4 regularly and have got caught. The limits often have no reflection on the road or the conditions. The limit also changes on sections and drops from 60 - 50 - 40.

It is very easy in busy traffic to not notice the quite high overhead gantry has changed from 60 to 50.

Sometimes there appears to be only moderately heavy traffic rather than an actual queue because the system is doing its job.  What proportion that would be true for, I have no idea.

user1977

caprikid1 said:

The limits often have no reflection on the road or the conditions. The limit also changes on sections and drops from 60 - 50 - 40.

That's what they're meant to do, rather than everybody slamming on the brakes to get from 70 to 40. As soon as you hit one for 60 you should assume it's likely to be lowering at the next gantries.

My experience is that the limits generally make sense for the prevailing traffic.

Ozmond78

user1977 said:

caprikid1 said:

The limits often have no reflection on the road or the conditions. The limit also changes on sections and drops from 60 - 50 - 40.

That's what they're meant to do, rather than everybody slamming on the brakes to get from 70 to 40. As soon as you hit one for 60 you should assume it's likely to be lowering at the next gantries.

My experience is that the limits generally make sense for the prevailing traffic.

I do agree with you on this, it’s just that in this case my attention was on the prevailing traffic (there wasn’t really any!) & not what the signs had told me. 

As I said above it’s a hard lesson to learn but learn it I shall. 

Ozmond78

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

Ozmond78

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Wow, you sound like a lovely person. But you know what? If that does happen I’ll take it all on the chin & pay it because I know what I did was wrong, I don’t need unpleasant, sanctimonious people like you to tell me that.  

Amazing that you leap to a conclusion that I was somehow driving recklessly though. Possibly from racing karts as youngster (or the fact I now tow a caravan!) I don’t nor have I ever felt the need to exceed speed limits on the road although as we can see here, sometimes it happens. 

Just FYI - to put your overactive imagination to rest - I was in perfectly free flowing traffic on the M6 on a clear day, wasn’t ‘flying past’ rows of cars & missed a sign that had been activated just 3 minutes before I got to it, which was for a queue building approx 5 miles up the road. My clocked speed was 68mph which you may recognise as being under the national speed limit. The only lives at risk would’ve been any insects that hit my windscreen. 

As for your driving record, just because you’ve not been caught doesn’t mean you’ve never done anything. The fact you expect anyone to believe that in 350-400k miles over 20 years you’ve never put a foot wrong is frankly ridiculous. It’s ok to make mistakes my friend, sometimes we even get caught & punished  for them. 

Now go & ball up your socks & keep an eye on that cream, ya maniac. 

Ozmond78

Car_54 said:

Ozmond78 said:

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Just FYI - to put your overactive imagination to rest - I was in perfectly free flowing traffic on the M6 on a clear day, wasn’t ‘flying past’ rows of cars & missed a sign that had been activated just 3 minutes before I got to it, which was for a queue building approx 5 miles up the road. My clocked speed was 68mph which you may recognise as being under the national speed limit. The only lives at risk would’ve been any insects that hit my windscreen. 

In your OP you said " I’m not sure when the speed dropped to 40mph ...", but now you say the sign "had been activated just 3 minutes before I got to it ...". Which is it?

At three minutes you'd have been over three miles away, and the sign would probably have been visible for half a mile, and half a minute. How could you possibly have missed it?

I’ve since noticed the timestamp of the speed camera setting is on the images sent to me as part of the charge. Ultimately it could 3 mins or 3 hours; it still changed & was visible as you say, hence me being in the situation I’m in. 

My only defence (& I don’t mean this in any kind of legal way or as an attempt for justification) is that I was probably focusing too much on the road & not what I was being told about it. There were 2 cars quite close behind me at the time (clearly visible on the pictures) & it’s possible I was paying a bit of attention to them but without pinpointing exactly where the camera was & trying to recall the entire journey it’s hard to say. 

Not that it matters anyway - it happened & I just need to wait & see what I end up with. 

Grey_Critic

**There were 2 cars quite close behind me at the time (clearly visible on the pictures) & it’s possible I was paying a bit of attention to them but without pinpointing exactly where the camera was**

Would not use that as a defence - I was always told you drive your car not the others. The variable limits are a pain but knowing that they are also linked to cameras I take notice even if there are few cars around.

Ozmond78

DB1904 said:

Ozmond78 said:

Car_54 said:

Ozmond78 said:

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Advocado said:

Ozmond78 said:

Care to show me the bit where I’m ‘trying to get out’ of my situation? My query was whether an appearance in person can help keep the punishment to a minimum or not. 

As I’ve said before, we all make mistakes (even those that swear blind they don’t).  I face a fairly significant impact both financially & in case of a disqualification from making a mistake so it’s great I have the ability to speak to others before it all happens. 

If you don’t agree with any of it or have nothing of any value to add then please, just keep scrolling. 

As a fellow road user, I hope you do get disqualified and a hefty fine.  

I pay attention and do no more than the limit.  I also drive many miles a year (probably approaching 20k) and have done for twenty years, but I've never had a ticket or any points, so don't make it sound like we all do it.

We all make mistakes, but my mistakes involve over-whisking some cream or wearing odd socks.  They don't involve driving in a manner that risks other people's lives.

Just FYI - to put your overactive imagination to rest - I was in perfectly free flowing traffic on the M6 on a clear day, wasn’t ‘flying past’ rows of cars & missed a sign that had been activated just 3 minutes before I got to it, which was for a queue building approx 5 miles up the road. My clocked speed was 68mph which you may recognise as being under the national speed limit. The only lives at risk would’ve been any insects that hit my windscreen. 

In your OP you said " I’m not sure when the speed dropped to 40mph ...", but now you say the sign "had been activated just 3 minutes before I got to it ...". Which is it?

At three minutes you'd have been over three miles away, and the sign would probably have been visible for half a mile, and half a minute. How could you possibly have missed it?

I’ve since noticed the timestamp of the speed camera setting is on the images sent to me as part of the charge. Ultimately it could 3 mins or 3 hours; it still changed & was visible as you say, hence me being in the situation I’m in. 

My only defence (& I don’t mean this in any kind of legal way or as an attempt for justification) is that f & not what I was being told about it. There were 2 cars quite close behind me at the time (clearly visible on the pictures) & it’s possible I was paying a bit of attention to them but without pinpointing exactly where the camera was & trying to recall the entire journey it’s hard to say. 

Not that it matters anyway - it happened & I just need to wait & see what I end up with. 

More like in a world of your own. 

To a certain extent that’s fair I’d say. There’s certainly an element of it or else I’d have noticed the signs & reduced my speed…

Ozmond78

Grey_Critic said:

**There were 2 cars quite close behind me at the time (clearly visible on the pictures) & it’s possible I was paying a bit of attention to them but without pinpointing exactly where the camera was**

Would not use that as a defence - I was always told you drive your car not the others. The variable limits are a pain but knowing that they are also linked to cameras I take notice even if there are few cars around.

Completely agree. It’s on me, not anyone else’s fault & I wouldn’t mention it all in any official capacity. 

TooManyPoints

Would not use that as a defence -

As I get the distinct impression that he intends to plead guilty, the OP will not require a defence.