God's Own County

A couple of years ago we reported about our Yorkshire Roads Top Ten Problems. Nothing much has changed and the list remains pretty much the same with maintenance, speed bumps and minor niggles well to the fore.
Now is the time to look at Driver inflicted problems

Top Ten Complaints About Drivers

1. Poor and late signaling particularly prevalent at roundabouts.
2. Breaking the law by using mobile phones, texting or other distractions
3. Tail gating especially to try crash through traffic lights or to get the driver in front to speed up.
4. Inconsiderate parking near road junctions or adrift from the kerb.
5. Inconsiderate parking taking up two spaces.
6. Overtaking too close by lorries and buses
7. Not giving cyclists enough room or consideration.
8. Speeding and driving too fast for the local conditions.
9. Turning unannounced or pulling out wide for a turn.
10. Pushing-in rather than the Yorkshire way of waiting your turn and filtering alternately.

Photo Credits
Cutting into lane, ala bad driving skills by byte CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Aston Martin Bad Parking by sarflondondunc CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
I couldn’t find bad Yorkshire Drivers it must be all me.

Now the biggest road problem is abandoned yellow ‘Tour’ bikes it is time to get more serious.

Sometime ago the Yorkshire Post was reporting that ‘More than two-thirds (68%) of AA members using the region’s roads believed they have got worse over the past 10 years’. Seven thousand members reckoned road surfaces were much worse and I don’t think anything has improved.

Top Ten Complaints

1. Speed bumps that are poorly maintained and damage your tyres.
2. Road works  that  last too long and are badly organised. Have you been north on the A1 recently?
3. Street furniture that is badly placed, badly maintained or badly in need of replacement. (eg the traffic light control panel above)
4. Pot holes ( and I do not mean caves like Ingelton ….  Mmmm I’m not so sure now).
5. Utility road works that haven’t been reinstated correctly. ( some drivers swerve to avoid the patch work on roads).
6. Excess road markings in some areas and worn out markings where needed. (I have got my cats eyes on this one).
7. Minor infringements that are not policed, no lights on skips left at the side of roads, double parking causing obstructions, abuse of bus lanes etc.
8. Increase in the number of road closures to help construction when planning would keep them open.
9. Standing water and poor drainage during our summer rain (and in winter snow come to that).
10. Corrugated and badly surfaced roads, loose chippings and unintended skid pans.

The modern equivalent of the Cone Hot Line is  Fix my Street. com where you can put in your postcode and leave a complaint.

Take a lump of Tarmac into your pub and have a stiff drink plus one for the road.

Now read Top ten complaints about drivers

The Dalesman’s Litany is a folk song about industrial change and the problems of moving from the land to the industrially revolutionised Yorkshire towns.
The farmworker receives an ultimatum from the farmer, and he leaves the land to find work in the industries of Yorkshire. There was reason for this, on a farm cheap board went with the job, but there was no room for a wife and family. He is told bluntly ‘stay single, or leave with your lass.’ But the young farm hand didn’t want to lose his lass. So the young man leaves with his wife to be, and heads for the city. The story unfolds:

Dalesmans Litany
1
It’s hard when folks can’t find th’work
Weer they’ve been bred and born;
When I were young I allus thowt
I’d bide ’midst royits and corn.
But I’ve been forced to work in t’owns,
So here’s my litany:
From Hull and Halifax and Hell,
Good Lord deliver me.
2
When I were courtin’ Mary Jane, Continue reading →