OV9

Not so much a "pointless speed limit" - more that the authority can't make their mind up.

I travelled this road recently and had to go to google maps later to confirm that I hadn't had a mental episode as I drove along. Nope - confirmed that it does indeed go from a 40 limit, into an NSL for all of (approximately) 125m before reverting back to a 40 limit. I declare this to be STOOPID!

Clicks

Edit: I've just realised this is the boundary line for East Dumbartonshire / North Lanarkshire councils. Wouldn't want to talk to each other eh guys?

I live on the border of South Yorkshire and North Derbyshire. The road between each was a single carriageway national speed limit. Derbyshire seem to love lowering these to 50mph but obviously didn’t consult S Yorks so ended up with 50mph one way and 60mph the other until you came across the first 50mph repeater.

Laughs in Welsh road.

All too often I find myself crossing the border to Wales and dropping into a 50 from 60, then it'll go 30>20 a mile away from anything residential, then they might allow you back up to 30 a mile out the other side, then 40..50, then back to 20. And then you'll doubtless find yourself outside another village and the process starts again.

Frankly laughable "planning".

mik wrote: Mon Sep 22, 2025 12:34 pm Edit: I've just realised this is the boundary line for East Dumbartonshire / North Lanarkshire councils. Wouldn't want to talk to each other eh guys?

I wonder if the boundary has moved, if it used to be where the nsl is? AIUI the process to change the limit costs a not insignificant amount so that's probably/possibly why there's that odd bit left unaltered.

I don’t really remember 20, 40, 50 signs being around when I started driving. Now it’s all over and in the SE where there’s a village every mile everything feels a bit much with 4 speed limit changes per mile being quite normal.

Still not as stupid as the M25 smart motorway which will have random 20 mph limits at night when there’s nothing going on. That’s a bit crazy as you get a mix of people respecting the limit and others still going 70+.
And last week the open motorway had a red X above every lane for 2 gantries…

I don’t think 20s existed when I passed, pretty sure I didn’t drive through any anyway. 40s definitely did. 50s seem a lot more common now, usually where there have been accidents on single carriageway NSLs. I.e all of the Suffolk part of the A140 got a blanket 50 on all the bits which used to be nsl. The Norfolk side is still 60 between the ever stretching out village areas.

Did some of these confusing, short-distance limits on approach to villages pop up during COVID or have I misremembered that? And did I also misremember that they were supposed to be coming back out post-COVID?