Bumpy ride

SIR, — Re your story about a plan to install speed bumps in St Annes s Road, London Colney (Herts Advertiser, December 11). Speed bumps can kill. If an ambulance is slowed down by speed bumps, the delay can be fatal. This could result in Herts County Cou

SIR, - Re your story about a plan to install speed bumps in St Annes's Road, London Colney (Herts Advertiser, December 11).

Speed bumps can kill. If an ambulance is slowed down by speed bumps, the delay can be fatal. This could result in Herts County Council being sued for large sums of money in damages.

Chicanes, such as those used in Camp Road and at South Mimms are even more dangerous. Blocking off half of the road is asking for a car crash. It is the height of folly. It also generates traffic queues, extra pollution and delays.

When speed bumps are installed, they are considerably taller than necessary. They make traffic slow to about 10mph, which is 20mph below the legal limit of 30mph. It makes drivers angry that they have to go at such an excessively low speed in relation to the limit. One consequence is that some of them speed up or race to the next bump - or go faster than they otherwise would once they get past all the bumps. This causes high noise levels and excess pollution.

Let's hope that common sense is allowed to prevail for once and St Annes Road is left without bumps or chicanes, and that all roads in this area are cleared of both types of these old-fashioned, pollution-generating, counter-productive hazards.

DAVID KILPATRICK,

Boissy Close, St Albans.