Another thing about the road I live on is that it would be ideal for a Quiet Lane. However, Gloucestershire County Council are set against the formalities of Quiet Lanes, as they reckon the costs of consultation, etc aren’t balanced by the good done by the road’s new status.

It would be interesting to know if anyone has positive experience of Quiet Lanes, or whether it’s one of those government initiatives that sounds good but has been loaded with so much bureaucracy that it is better left alone.

Our lane is seriously ancient, having evolved to join the homes built along the spring line, when the valley was undrained marsh.

This stretch of road is theoretically 40mph (I’m surprised that people who take this at face value don’t come to a sticky end on one of the bends) and there’s another marked with ‘national speed limit’ signs. However, this having been pointed out to the County, they have agreed to rationalise the situation and take away the silliest signs, probably limiting the whole length to 30 mph.

The street-lighting situation also seems perverse. There are two within a few yards of this house and about another six outside the present 30mph area. They all seemed like a waste of electricity to me so, when the County initially suggested turning off some street lights from midnight until 5am, I consulted about turning the lot off. The response was mixed and I eventually left well alone, as the County wasn’t going to turn them off under the new regime.

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