RTA, Road Works and witches hats!

Submitted: Friday, Dec 30, 2011 at 19:48
ThreadID: 90909 Views:3998 Replies:8 FollowUps:11
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A few times this year out on the hwys and local roads have encounted a few confusing moments on which way to go !,due to ordinary placing of the hats,its fine when they funnel you in, But when theres two bloody straight lines and the on coming traffic is on the outside of them, so you guess straight down the middle or hard left,Or just hope the bloke in front gets it right!..LOL.



HNY

Axle
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Reply By: SDG - Friday, Dec 30, 2011 at 23:05

Friday, Dec 30, 2011 at 23:05
Coming into Murrumbatmen a few weeks back I went over a rise and nearly slammed into the back of a car on the other side, stopped for road works. The roadwork warning sign was about a dozen cars in front of him. First thing I did was call up the truck coming up behind me that I had overtaken not long before.

I then had trouble following the witches hat. I just played follow the leader.

I think RTA, Council or whatever need to relearn where and how to place signs etc.
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Follow Up By: Member Andys Adventures - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 09:43

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 09:43
The RTA uses contractor's that do a course for traffic control. They are cheeked often by inspectors. They have set guidelines as to where to put the sign and what sign is to put there they are measured out not by foot but by tape measured. If the sign is in the wrong place they face fines and loss of contract. I have come across this several times, pulled over at the compound and asked to speak to the supervisor. After pointing out their mistake they make changes. One example, coming up to road works in a 100 klm zone, sign reduce speed 80 klm further up road reduce speed 60 klm then road works 40 klm. the road works finished in a 50 klm zone but the sign only said end of road works. Therefore the speed limit was made 100 klm as when you leave the road works you resume your speed back to what it was before the road works. The workers covered up the 50 klm so drivers though the limit was 100 klm. After tell the supervisor of the problem he said "I don't have a 50 klm sign" so I ask him to shut down the road works down until he got one, which he did after I rang his head office. I also reminded him of his obligation by law to have the correct signs before he starts work.
Drivers are like sheep follow the one in front, but if the one in front gets it wrong you have a problem.
Another example, I had blocked one lane off on a 2 lane road, I was working in the gutter lane and traffic using the outside lane, all was good until a little old lady drove into a driveway and the car behind followed her, that driver realising she was only going into the driveway continued to travel in the wrong lane heading straight for me, every car after that did the same, there were no signs diverting them into this lane, only they followed like sheep.

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Follow Up By: Hairy (WA) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 15:22

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 15:22
Gday,
I think you will find there are plenty of rules and regulation and they are generally follwed. If you come across a stuation what you think is dangerous.......stop and tell someone! If you are right, they will change it imediately as there job could be on the line. Generally......not all........but most near misses I see are purely people not concentrating. No amount of signs is going to help someone if they are not concentrating or abiding by them.
What if there was a truck broken down over the rise or cattle or something? Driving to the conditions mean if you cant see over the rise slow down anyway or be prepared to stop in a hurry,......not just if a sign says so.

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Follow Up By: Fred G NSW - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 22:56

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 22:56
Great response there Hairy.....couldn't agree more. How often do we hear, "I came over the crerst/around the bend...and there was ???? I couldn't avoid it.
If you can't see over the crest/around the bend, slow down and be prepared, just like fog, rain, smoke, approaching a pedestrian X'ing......but that's another story :-(
Some people are so quick to want to blame someone else for their stuff ups. But then it wasn't their stuff up, was it ?

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Reply By: Member - MUZBRY(Vic) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 09:10

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 09:10
Gday
We should get Lil Wes onto the job. He is a" Witches hat placement design engineer" for the freeways of Melbourne .


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Reply By: Steve M1 (NSW) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 10:29

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 10:29
Often very badly placed or not suffiicient. My pet hate is when going along a commonly used route only to find "road closed" with no prior warning and you have to re-trace your steps and go all the way around another route when a simple "Waratah St closed" sign and/or "no through route to Pacific Hwy" would save a lot of people a lot of turning back. I remember as a young fella driving into a manhole at night which had no sign over/before it. Being young and easily brushed off by authorities I ended up paying for the damage meself.
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Reply By: Alloy c/t - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:29

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:29
For a bit of light reading get yourself a copy of the MUTCD [ manual ,uniform traffic control devices] then those that wish to whinge and b about traffic control and how inconvenienced they are might just learn how difficult the actual job is ,,,,,,,,
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Follow Up By: Gramps - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:48

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:48
Far out Alloy c/t !!! I just did a Google and found 28 pdfs for the Qld version. Undoubtedly each State will have a totally different interpretation. That's the Lucky Country for ya :)

Regards
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Follow Up By: Hairy (WA) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 15:52

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 15:52
There is one good side to the job.........the occational thanks that you get.
We had a bloke pull up the other day with fresh crayfish sandwiches for us for lunch!!! And the farmer who rolls up with a carton on ice at the end of the day.
Its not all bad........ bleep boring...........but someones got to do it. Im just glad its not very often for me!

Cheers and Happy New Year
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Follow Up By: Axle - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:26

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:26
Alloy CT,..I'm not Bitching about inconvenience, ..Just about blokes not doing their job ..Properly!!....I'm in Earthmoving ..So have met a lot of traffic controllers, ..If i dig a trench 200mm to deep, then it stuffs the job, If contracters don't control traffic the right way, it does the same thing, only there is a element of danger there as well.


Cheers Axle.
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Reply By: Hairy (WA) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:48

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:48
Gday,
Yeah, Ive seen cases of poor traffic management before, but Ive seen a lot more cases of drivers who just loose the plot as soon as traffic conditions change and common sense go's straight out of the window.
In my job I quite often work near roadworks and occationally have had to do the lollipop thing.

We had a car drive straight passed the stop sign the other day, completely through the work area dodging a loader, grader, trucks and backhoe. When he got to the other end he stopped because the back of the lollipop on the opposite side of the road was on stop!....LOL

Another one (grey nomad with caravan in tow and Mrs holding up the road map in the front) drove straight passed the stop sign....even waved......then stoped a couple hundred meters down the road and started to back up! After watching him jack knife half a dozen times we all got off the road, reopened it and waved him through.

And them there's the little old lady who has driven that road for 60 years and doesnt even see the roadworks.......you just got to get on the radio and warn everyone she's coming through and hope they can all get off the road in time.

And the smart arses who pull up while your having lunch and ask why the signs are still up! When you reply they are'nt all up, its just a speed restiction at the moment because the road is covered in dirt and rubbish, but if your comming back this way in half an hour we will make sure they are ALL up including the "prepare to stop" and the "STOP"......they shut up and take off.....its even better when they do have to come back....LOL

And the usuall......."Bloody hell, how long is this going to take" and you tell them it all depend on your attitude and they get really upset.........but not as upset as when they hear the loader driver come accross the radio asking if your holding traffic and need to reopen the road, and you reply "na, your right, this blokes in no hurry.....Hahahahaha

So yeah, I agree some traffic managment isnt perfect and could be done a bit better but I think in a lot of cases is because people dont think for themselves anymore.....if the GPS says go straight ahead and there is a sign saying detour, all hell breaks loose! LOL

Cheers
AnswerID: 473704

Follow Up By: Axle - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:33

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:33
G/Day Hairy, Know what your saying,...Its just some of these Blokes!!...(.Sigh..),,,,I'll just take Gramps advice ....LOL...LOL.

How"s WA.??...


Cheers Axle.
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Follow Up By: Hairy (WA) - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:48

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:48
Dont listen to Gramps! I think he was the bloke in the caravan....LOL
WA is great! absolutely loving it.....leaving Alice was the best thing we ever done.

Cheers
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Follow Up By: Fred G NSW - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 23:04

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 23:04
Luv it, Luv it......LOL LOL
I think I've seen all them drivers Hairy hahahahaha while negotiating a bus around this great land :-)))
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Reply By: Gramps - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:49

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 14:49
Simple Axle, do what your old footy coach used to tell ya "Up the guts !!!"

Regards
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Follow Up By: Axle - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:37

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 16:37
Thats it Gramps!, and don't stop for any frigen thing.

Hahahahaha.!

HNY

Axle.
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Reply By: rumpig - Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 22:55

Saturday, Dec 31, 2011 at 22:55
maybe all roadworks sites should be like the one we came across between Roper Bar and Mataranka this year, we had to wait for a road crew vehicle to pilot us through the roadworks. they were worried we would drive on their freshly laid bitumin, so we had to follow someone through. wasn't hard to work out where the new stuff was.....IT WAS BLACK AND SHINY!!! and the other sections completely different in colour....lol

not sure if you can make it out in the pic, but here we have my 3 mates in front of us, and leading the way is our roadcrew pilot vehicle taking us up to the roadworks....lol


AnswerID: 473732

Reply By: Member - Doug T (NT) - Sunday, Jan 01, 2012 at 10:01

Sunday, Jan 01, 2012 at 10:01
As a Truckie for 30 years and Pilot Escort for 5 you see some stupid things by car drivers, one I had a laugh about was the time the car behind a tipper in front of the cue at stop and go followed the tipper into the roadworks area.
The other very annoying thing is when cars line up at a stop and go they each have to hang out into the center of the road so they can see whats going on, as a Pilot Escort it took a lot of hand waving to try and get them to move over as far to the left as possible because of the 5m or 6m Oversize load that was going to come through, so always remember to go as far left as possible at road works traffic control,
In one of the post/replies I see someone mentioned loss of concentration, I believe at each end of roadworks and about 700m back they should install a portable speed bump, it does not have to be severe, just enough to make a vehicle shudder and jolt any daydreamer or micro-napper into reallity, I have seen the results of an accident like that on a few occasions .

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Follow Up By: Axle - Sunday, Jan 01, 2012 at 13:38

Sunday, Jan 01, 2012 at 13:38
Excellent idea Doug!,...But to sensible for to-days RTA & councils...LOL.



Cheers Axle.
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