On getting the hump
We have so called “speed ramps” in the village.
I have no problem with them. Basically they installed a higher layer of road at the two main intersections, so there is a gentle bump as you drive over them. Seeing as only a complete twat would take those junctions at speed, they nicely sort out the complete twats from the rest of us who slow down anyway.
I mentioned I was going into Skobieville yesterday. The trip was actually painless in that traffic was light. But then I turned onto the road by the park which is the logical route for Skobieville North. That road by the park is a killer. It starts off with a wee hump in the middle of the junction as a sort of traffic island. No sweat. Then you enter the road itself.
The first thing you hit is a speed bump which is a gentle rise and fall over an inch or two. This hump is easy to traverse and its sole function is to lull you into a sense of security. You see the next hump a couple of yards further on. It looks like the first hump. It isn’t.
I don’t quite know how they did it, but they designed a hump that looks innocent but you hit it with a bone shattering bang that all but bottoms out the suspension. Anything loose in the car becomes weightless for an instant before crashing back and adding to the cacophony of protests from the chassis and the cloud of obscenities from the driver.
The bastards in the council have been quite clever here. They have mixed the numerous ramps on the road [which is quite long and straight] so you have no idea if you are going to experience a gentle lift or a bone shattering, teeth smashing bastard. Even worse, the road is long and they have installed the hump mix over virtually the entire length. I lost count of them but they seem to go on for ever.
I hate that road but the alternative involves a tricky junction which is hazardous to say the least [and also involves ramps]. I would be tempted to sue the council for damage to the suspension but their defense would be that damage could only be caused by speed. As far as those ramps are concerned, anything over 5 mph would constitute speed.
It’s just another reason I try to avoid going into Skobieville.
Hoverjets will sort the bumps issue.
Kent County Council are experts when it comes to hump design!
They make sure that their numerous potholes remain in place for anything up to a year, and when the road is eventually repaired, the drain covers are about an inch and a half below the surface, which is ideal for smashing bicycle wheels…
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/israel-d9r-bulldozers-1m-armoured-122833120.html
Funny…. I was thinking along those same lines myself!
KCC, as Scrobs says, have similar vile designs – a hump near me has been scraped so many times it’s been repaired yet again, with hard stone facings to ensure maximum damage to cars going over 5mph. No claim for damage is ever paid.
Councils are sued all the time and many win. Best go for a no win no fee lawyer if you can get one. Focus on the main one and get others to join in for a bigger payout.
As far as the ramps are concerned. It is like everything else people, like you, are OK with them because it sorts out the twats but you don’t realise that you are still a twat to them. They add more and more and now it inconveniences you. This is they way they do it.