On Wed, 10 Dec 2003 17:41:04 +0000, Mark Fry wrote:

I don't agree the Dartford Crossing is plenty, if they just done away with
the toll booths. I watched this happen on more than one occasion, the car
arrives at the booth gives the crossing officer £5.00, simple, cars cost
£1.00 so should be £4.00 change, easy. Not so, the half wit in the booth
then checks the five pound note out under a U.V light, fair enough, then
he/she proceeds to count out £4.00 about 4 times, just to make sure that
they haven't paid too much change.....By which time there's quite a queue at
this booth and this isn't unique, it happens at all of them......


One time I used Dartford crossing, I think it was around 80p for crossing,
I arrived at a 'throw money in basket only' booth and started throwing
loose change out of my pocket into the basket.
I only had tens twos and fives and the meter had clocked up 79p when I
ran out of change apart from a £1 coin.
So I threw that in and it ignored it completely! leaving me to reverse out
of the lane and move to a manned booth to pay yet again.

Chris wrote:
Cast_Iron wrote:

By logical extension why should any of my taxes go on educating other
people kids?

Think of it more as paying retrospectively for your own education.

So, on that basis, those who went to fee-paying schools should pay less tax

Oliver Keating wrote:

Everyone considers their journey to be "important" or even
"essential". But the proof of the pudding is whether they are
prepared to pay for it.

I always assumed the selling point of the M6 Toll was similar to First Class
on the trains. You pay over and above the standard price to get a better
quality of service - in the case of the M6 Toll this is a less congested
route around the M5/M6 interchange and it's associated hassles. Those who
see this as something worth paying to avoid will do so, in just the same way
that certain people prefer to travel First Class on the trains...

The M6 Toll is nothing to so with congestion reduction per se, merely a
commercial venture allowing people a higher quality alternative to the
congested public route through Birmingham

wrote:

Everyone considers their journey to be "important" or even
"essential". But the proof of the pudding is whether they are
prepared to pay for it.

Tell us how it is possible - this side of a TWOCing - *not* to pay for it.

IOW, they *are* prepared to pay for it and always have been.

In fact, they already pay for it - and then some.

Mark Fry wrote:

The problem is that the Dartford Crossing is no longer enough. More
crossing capacity is needed. IMO retaining the tunnel and hypothecating
the revenue to fund more Thames Estuary bridges, tunnels and ferries is
the best solution.

I don't agree the Dartford Crossing is plenty, if they just done away with
the toll booths. I watched this happen on more than one occasion, the car
arrives at the booth gives the crossing officer £5.00, simple, cars cost
£1.00 so should be £4.00 change, easy. Not so, the half wit in the booth
then checks the five pound note out under a U.V light, fair enough, then
he/she proceeds to count out £4.00 about 4 times, just to make sure that
they haven't paid too much change.....By which time there's quite a queue at
this booth and this isn't unique, it happens at all of them......

But if they got rid of the toll, how long would it be until the extra
traffic on the road caused more congestion than the toll booths did?

Regarding funding, that would be true if the funding from the crossing went
to pay for more crossings, but this isn't the case. When the bridge was
constructed it a joint venture involving a company called Trafalgar House,
amongst others. Not too long ago the company controlling the crossing has
become a French company called Le Crossing, so do you think the revenue
generated by Le crossing will be funding more Le Crossings? I doubt it.

I think the government claim it will, and there are more plans for more
crossings further downstream. Meanwhile Ken Livingstone is trying to
persuade the government to use the Dartford toll revenue to help pay for
the Thames Gateway Bridge between Thamesmead (Eastern Way) and Beckton
(connecting to the North Circular where it joins the A13). This is
likely to reduce Dartford Crossing congestion much more than abolishing
toll booths ever would, and I strongly support it (although I oppose the
bus lane on it, as not building it would save nearly £40m).

Is anyone aware of a complete list of all and B roads starts and ends?

eg A34 Southampton-Manchester
Etc

Thanks

wrote:
Is anyone aware of a complete list of all and B roads starts and
ends?

eg A34 Southampton-Manchester

The A34 traditionally ended at Winchester, then carried on to Southampton as
A33.

But see: http://www.cbrd.co.uk/index.shtml

JNugent wrote:
wrote:
Is anyone aware of a complete list of all and B roads starts and
ends?

eg A34 Southampton-Manchester

The A34 traditionally ended at Winchester, then carried on to
Southampton as A33.

But see: http://www.cbrd.co.uk/index.shtml

And the other end of the A34 is Salford, not Manchester, according to the
Ordnance Survey. (There's a big chunk missing in the middle too, where it
has been replaced by M40/M42.)
--
Richard J.
(to e-mail me, swap uk and yon in address)

"Richard J." wrote in message
...
JNugent wrote:
wrote:
Is anyone aware of a complete list of all and B roads starts and
ends?

eg A34 Southampton-Manchester

The A34 traditionally ended at Winchester, then carried on to
Southampton as A33.

But see: http://www.cbrd.co.uk/index.shtml

And the other end of the A34 is Salford, not Manchester, according to the
Ordnance Survey. (There's a big chunk missing in the middle too, where it
has been replaced by M40/M42.)

And the A34 has even been redesignated north of Oxford: at one time it
deviated off the present route at Peartree roundabout and went up through
Woodstock to Straford-upon-Avon and beyond, whereas that road has now been
renumbered the A44 and the present A34 was once the A421.

"Richard J." wrote in message
...

And the other end of the A34 is Salford, not Manchester, according to the
Ordnance Survey. (There's a big chunk missing in the middle too, where it
has been replaced by M40/M42.)

Likewise the A41 (London - Birkenhead trunk road) which now becomes the
B4100 between Bicester and Birmingham, with the M40 being the preferred
route.