The Northern Distributer Road AKA Norwich Northern Bypass

[rightsaidfred]

Maybe its time the people of Norfolk learnt to drive, having used the Wroxham roundabout and the NDR numerous times there is no excuse other than bad driving.

Fred

[vanessan]

17 minutes ago, rightsaidfred said:

Maybe its time the people of Norfolk learnt to drive, having used the Wroxham roundabout and the NDR numerous times there is no excuse other than bad driving.

Fred

I have used the NDR a few times now and I am a ‘foreigner’ so don’t know it like many of you do. That, I believe, is the problem, there are many drivers on that road that don’t know it. I know how to use roundabouts etc and I don’t scare easily (neither do I drive slowly) but I can imagine how terrifying it could be to someone not used to that road. I came along there this evening around 5pm - going home time for many. I lost count of the number of aggressive drivers of large 4x4s, white vans and the like just barging their way through, tailgating slower vehicles and just behaving like utter p***s. It doesn’t take much to behave courteously to others on the roads but some of these peoples behaviour just beggars belief! I’m sure none of you regulars are like that are you?.............

[rightsaidfred]

59 minutes ago, vanessan said:

I have used the NDR a few times now and I am a ‘foreigner’ so don’t know it like many of you do. That, I believe, is the problem, there are many drivers on that road that don’t know it. I know how to use roundabouts etc and I don’t scare easily (neither do I drive slowly) but I can imagine how terrifying it could be to someone not used to that road. I came along there this evening around 5pm - going home time for many. I lost count of the number of aggressive drivers of large 4x4s, white vans and the like just barging their way through, tailgating slower vehicles and just behaving like utter p***s. It doesn’t take much to behave courteously to others on the roads but some of these peoples behaviour just beggars belief! I’m sure none of you regulars are like that are you?.............

Being a Londoner so am I but don't find it a problem using it or any other roads I am not familiar with, while there is no excuse for aggressive driving I find the general standards in Norfolk poor for example the number of drivers who don't know how to use the 2 mini roundabouts in Hoveton or driving at 30 mph on 50 mph roads causing tailbacks that then encourage frustration. 

Fred

[Timbo]

I used the NDR for the first time a couple of weeks back. It certainly saved me some time, I must say I think it was designed on the back of a beermat after a heavy session on the Wobbly Bob.

I'm with you on the Hoveton double mini roundabout Fred...and the 30 mph on the 50 mph roads and I will add another two that have been annoying on the last two trips down. There's the motorist travelling at 30 mph in the 50 mph limit that indicates a mile from the turning and then slows to 2 mph for 100 yards to negotiate the turn. These are increasing. And there's one that had quite a few motorists beeing the horns the last two weeks. The three people on mobility scooters using the road in a convoy between Stalham and the turn for North Walsham. Three times now I've been stuck behind these three.

[rightsaidfred]

I am not saying the NDR couldn't be better designed but part of the skill of driving is adapting to the conditions and there are many far worse roads across the country.

Fred

[vanessan]

10 hours ago, rightsaidfred said:

driving at 30 mph on 50 mph roads causing tailbacks that then encourage frustration. 

Fred

It’s the driving at 40mph in a 60mph limit that gets me, because it’s still 40 when they are in a 30 limit! 

[rightsaidfred]

13 minutes ago, vanessan said:

It’s the driving at 40mph in a 60mph limit that gets me, because it’s still 40 when they are in a 30 limit! 

Ad infinitum, 60mph in outside lane of motorways, can`t go through a gap 2` wider than their vehicle etc. problem is there are to many people holding driving licences who don't really have the aptitude or ability to do more than pass a test often after multiple attempts, driving is a skill not a right and that applies to all age groups and both sexes.

Fred

[Maxwellian]

18 minutes ago, rightsaidfred said:

Ad infinitum, 60mph in outside lane of motorways,

Yes that is most annoying, others in the BMW lane, shocking! 

[ranworthbreeze]

Sadly there are a lot of bad drivers, far too many without any patience and a lack of common courtesy, on the bright side at least they are building some new roads in Norfolk.

Regards

Alan 

[grendel]

its the ones in the middle lane on a 3 lane highway doing 40mph, technically you cant overtake down the inside (though many do) and the outside lane is congested because everyone is trying to overtake correctly.

Even worse sometimes on the M25 is the car that has a sign in the back - do not pass, weaving across all of the lanes at 20mph. dont you just hate the highways agency sometimes. 

[ChrisB]

9 minutes ago, ranworthbreeze said:

Sadly there are a lot of bad drivers, far too many without any patience and a lack of common courtesy, on the bright side at least they are building some new roads in Norfolk.

Regards

Alan 

There are a very large number of people who do not see a bright side in the new roads. Nothing changes an area like roads and there is a great danger of spoiling what is "Norfolk" 

The development planned along the NDR will have a profound effect on Broadland as will the development around towns like Holt, even the coastal towns like Blakeney, and Wells are not immune.

[RumPunch]

Interestingly, since they did the work on the airport roundabout I've yet to see a car off there - and it was almost daily.

Article in the EDP on one driver who got it wrong on another NDR roundabout recently

http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/driver-calling-for-better-lighting-on-ndr-after-crashing-on-roundabout-1-5643471

some sympathy, but I was always taught to only drive as fast as you can see to stop - be that rain, fog or darkness....

[vanessan]

2 hours ago, RumPunch said:

but I was always taught to only drive as fast as you can see to stop - be that rain, fog or darkness....

And in normal daytime conditions too, that’s where a lot of drivers fail miserably. I am by no means a perfect driver (who is??) and I find I have to concentrate a lot harder as I get older. About 15 years ago I did an advanced driving course and that has stood me in good stead over the years, I would heartily recommend it to anyone wanting to brush up their driving skills. Helps to make you assertive not aggressive. 

[quo vadis]

Came along it tonight for the first time seemed very complicated and badly laid out to me maybe because it was wet 

[TheQ]

Just caught a glimpse of the car that went down  the embankment on the Eroxham road  /NDR roundabout, It's a large estate, possibly a Peugeot, not exactly the type of car you'd expect to be thrown around at roundabouts, I suspect he  /she lost the back end  and so oversteered...

[ZimbiIV]

This road would make more sense if we drove on the right.

Designed for a different country?

paul

[grendel]

I was curious and looked on google street view, now this doesnt show the NDR yet, but on several of the roundabouts i could see there was no signage indicating a roundabout ahead, no slow down now signs, no direction signs, and on several of the roundabouts I could see skid marks approaching the roundabout, so its not a new problem caused by the NDR, it was happening before the NDR was completed too. this leads me to believe that it is a combination of poor signage and bad driving (driving too fast) that is the primary cause. this is confirmed in my mind by witnessing first hand some of the driving in this area (a car overtaking me followed at a distance of a few feet by another, once past me the rear car tried to cut down the inside of the overtaking car, just when they were moving out of his way - the rear car then cut back to the outside, went past the first car and slammed his anchors on, causing me to have to brake sharply to avoid the pair of them). If this is considered normal behaviour in the area, then it doesnt surprise me that cars end up crossing the middle of the roundabouts.

[BroadAmbition]

Finally - I found it! - Took some doing and if it wasn't for JBX5 sending me written directions I probably still would not have found it.

I drove down to 'B.A' in the early hours of Monday morning the 3rd.  There was a lot of patchy fog, in places proper thick reducing me down to 20mph.  Finding the turn off for 'Lenwade' whilst on the A47 was not difficult, the next 3 1/2 miles were far from easy but it led me onto the western end of the NDR. Time was about 0315  I found the actual NDR easy enough (That was when I could actually see it) but the signpost system is terrible imho, plus the western end section of it near postwick was not on my TomTom (I'll update it soonest) However I managed to use it fine and was soon in Wroxham and onto Stalham.  Earlier today I came home in daylight with no fog, again I found the signage to be shall we say not the best but got mysen to Western Longville, the awkward 3 1/3 mile stretch was much easier in the daylight and soon onto the A47 westbound.  The roundabouts? - I just kept very aware, used mirrors, plenty of indicators (BMW indicators don't seem to work very often) and had no issues.  Using the NDR route to me seemed quicker in time and obviously less miles as well.  I'll take a note next time of how much shorter in distance it is.  I can see me using this route as my preferred choice in future.

Griff

[ChrisB]

I think that if they had left it as a dual carriageway going into the roundabouts and not gone into three lanes, and not had the raised separation bits near the eastern Postwick end it would be fine. When I have used it, twits, get into the third lane, when going straight over, which is obviously designed for those turning right, to try to steal an advantage over the rest going straight on.

[BrundallNavy]

I noticed yesterday that another sign has been “taken”out on the North Walsham roundabout.  Watching the News last night it seems it is not just the NDR that suffers but also the A11.

http://www.itv.com/news/anglia/

[grendel]

from the look of the video the car taking the pictures wasnt exactly going slowly either, I saw this video elsewhere last night without exactly realising this was in Norfolk, and thought to myself, this must be the sort of driving leading to all the roundabout incursions in Norfolk, having seen some of the driving on the A11 and the lack of consideration some of the drivers seem to show for other road users, it strikes me that some of the worst driving I have seen has been in the Norfolk area, and that is saying something when I daily travel on the M25 and cross the dartford crossing twice a day, where other drivers say they have seen some of the worst driving in the country, Norfolk beats that by a country mile, and I think that video footage just proves it.

[FairTmiddlin]

From the blurb on the Anglia news site I think the footage was taken from a motor bike

But at the end of the footage the strange thing is it looks like nobody stops to help

It looks like they all continue up the A11

 

[MauriceMynah]

Where can I find this 'footage' please?

[diesel falcon]

10 minutes ago, MauriceMynah said:

Where can I find this 'footage' please?

click  the link above?

[ChrisB]

It is also on BBC news Norfolk