Pirbright Bends
Discussion
Meh. The limit's been dropped there for long enough and everyone knows there's rarely any enforcement so those that wanted to speed (excessively i'll add) or drive badly just carried on as they did before, which nearly always leads to a further, more permanent, enforcement somewhere down the line. Not massively surprising, plus average cams seem to be popping up quite a bit around this way now, A31 Guildford bound with plans for Farnham bound in '22, those then tie in with the A3 Guildford stretch, possibility of another set on the A331 to Aldershot once the roundabout at the Hog's Back gets rebuilt, and there's always been the suggestion they'd end up on the Blackwater Valley from The Meadows to M3 when they dropped to 50.
But it is interesting that they've referenced the fact the speed will be a constant 40 rather than seeing if they could push for a blanket 30 and also noting that some of the current 30 stretch will be raised to 40 (although some 30's will be slightly extended - tbh i'm not sure i've ever seen anyone trying to push 40+ round that tight bend at the barracks as claimed on the article). Shame about losing the remaining 60 on the stretch that runs past the ranges, but I'll be honest, i was always surprised they never dropped that to 40 at the same time as the rest all those years ago.
In any case, i doubt it will change driving much down there. The last few times i've driven the stretch from the barracks to the Brookwood / Pirbright railway tunnel during the day, i've usually been glad if i made it over a constant 30 seeing as how that stretch seems to have become a go to for learners both in liveried & parental cars.
One thing i did find interesting on the link above. They say it's to tackle dangerous driving, but seem to have made sure the photo op pic features a heavily modded car clearly in the background, quietly suggesting to anyone reading that's the root cause - even though most of the bad driving / speeding i've seen down there over my many years of driving since the late '90's is normally courtesy of all kinds of vehicles not just the performance / modified kind. One of my old college mates crashed his mums Corsa into a tree on the bends back in '97 - and that was a 1.1, whilst he was drunk, doing less than 40 back when it was a 60 limit - idiot.
But it is interesting that they've referenced the fact the speed will be a constant 40 rather than seeing if they could push for a blanket 30 and also noting that some of the current 30 stretch will be raised to 40 (although some 30's will be slightly extended - tbh i'm not sure i've ever seen anyone trying to push 40+ round that tight bend at the barracks as claimed on the article). Shame about losing the remaining 60 on the stretch that runs past the ranges, but I'll be honest, i was always surprised they never dropped that to 40 at the same time as the rest all those years ago.
In any case, i doubt it will change driving much down there. The last few times i've driven the stretch from the barracks to the Brookwood / Pirbright railway tunnel during the day, i've usually been glad if i made it over a constant 30 seeing as how that stretch seems to have become a go to for learners both in liveried & parental cars.
One thing i did find interesting on the link above. They say it's to tackle dangerous driving, but seem to have made sure the photo op pic features a heavily modded car clearly in the background, quietly suggesting to anyone reading that's the root cause - even though most of the bad driving / speeding i've seen down there over my many years of driving since the late '90's is normally courtesy of all kinds of vehicles not just the performance / modified kind. One of my old college mates crashed his mums Corsa into a tree on the bends back in '97 - and that was a 1.1, whilst he was drunk, doing less than 40 back when it was a 60 limit - idiot.
Edited by AlexRS2782 on Thursday 28th October 01:07
One fatal accident in 5 years, seems a tad OTT to me and presumably at significant (taxpayer?) expense.
TX.
Edit - revenue from SAC's, interesting!
"Having one limit throughout will allow enforcement through average speed cameras, to be installed within the next five months.
The £300,000 cameras are being funded by Surrey Police with revenue from speed awareness courses."
TX.
Edit - revenue from SAC's, interesting!
"Having one limit throughout will allow enforcement through average speed cameras, to be installed within the next five months.
The £300,000 cameras are being funded by Surrey Police with revenue from speed awareness courses."
I used to love that stretch of road especially when I had my 2.8i Capri back in the late 80s. Plenty of scope for some fun and in several years I was never close to leaving the road!
A shame it's getting dumbed down like so many roads in the area when cars are far more capable these days.
But I suppose it's because the drivers aren't!
A shame it's getting dumbed down like so many roads in the area when cars are far more capable these days.
But I suppose it's because the drivers aren't!
The data doesn't appear to back the cameras - what an odd place to put them, no properties along the road (until you get into the 30 zone at Brookwood end) and no pedestrians. Since the limits have dropped from national to 40/30, I've not seen any cars in the scenery, it was relatively common before.
I regularly cycle the road (as well as drive) and having average cameras is going to make for slow and more dangerous overtakes I think - especially as over a KM of it is double white lines.
I don't even think its a money spinner, it's not a super fast bit of road anyhow.
When there aren't even pedestrian crossings outside local schools (despite years of campaigning), but they can put average speed cameras on a deserted country road - you really do have to wonder if people in power have banged their heads, or simply don't care.
I regularly cycle the road (as well as drive) and having average cameras is going to make for slow and more dangerous overtakes I think - especially as over a KM of it is double white lines.
I don't even think its a money spinner, it's not a super fast bit of road anyhow.
When there aren't even pedestrian crossings outside local schools (despite years of campaigning), but they can put average speed cameras on a deserted country road - you really do have to wonder if people in power have banged their heads, or simply don't care.
Most of the cars I've seen in ditches have been fairly normal mundane cars not what you would consider an enthusiast type car. I drove those sections almost daily when I lived in Frimley and Farnborough. Ironically the only time I've come close to having a real incident was when I was on my moped and I thought I was carrying too much speed on the wet road on the bend by Deepcut and slithered off on the wet leaves and tipped over on the boggy side. I scratched my helmet but dusted myself down and picked up the moped and carried on my way to Guildford 
Not surprised tbh I witnessed two people leaving the road whilst approaching a bend , had I been further down the road it would have been a new bike time, to my mind it's the tightening radius bends which catch alot of people out certainly the first time I ever rode a motorbike on them they were..... surprisingly tight...
Slightly off topic.
I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car
Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.
I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car
Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.ARHarh said:
Slightly off topic.
I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.
Isn't that the plot of Memphis belle .......I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car
Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.ARHarh said:
Slightly off topic.
I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.
I used to drive those bends everyday on the way to work in the mid 80's. One icy morning I was following a nice shiny audio coupe thing round the bends, on an icy bit he slid off into the ditch and ended up almost upside down. I rushed over to see if he was OK. Took one look inside and it appeared to be carnage with blood everywhere. He said he was OK, but I was not convinced. Then he said he was fine but the pasta in tomato sauce his wife had prepared for his lunch and he had put on the passenger seat had wrecked the inside of the car
Gave him a lift to work, so he could sort it out in the warm.
When I did my motorbike intensive practical course in '97 I used a company based in that neck of woods, they used a lot of current and ex Army instructors who were doing it as a second job.
We got a big brick outhouse of a bloke turned up on the Saturday morning on a mint GSXR1110, great bike and a fantastic instructor, he was based at Pirbright barracks. On the Sunday he was unexpectedly replaced by an old chap on a shagged Honda CX500 that had done about a million miles.
"Where's yesterday's bloke?
"He binned his Suzuki on the Pirbright Bends going home from here last night so you've got me instead. I'll try to teach you how to stay on!"
We got a big brick outhouse of a bloke turned up on the Saturday morning on a mint GSXR1110, great bike and a fantastic instructor, he was based at Pirbright barracks. On the Sunday he was unexpectedly replaced by an old chap on a shagged Honda CX500 that had done about a million miles.
"Where's yesterday's bloke?
"He binned his Suzuki on the Pirbright Bends going home from here last night so you've got me instead. I'll try to teach you how to stay on!"
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