Ronnie Cohen

City of London’s 15 mph plan was another missed opportunity to introduce km/h

Between 2019 and 2022, the City of London planned to become the first UK region with a 15-mph speed limit. This plan was blocked by the Department for Transport because speedometers are not accurate enough for low speeds. It meant that it was not technically possible. Like the mass rollout of the 20-mph speed limit, the plan for a 15-mph speed limit across the City of London was another missed opportunity to introduce km/h speed limits.

Proposed congestion charging per mile

The London Assembly Transport Committee recently held a Road User Charging public consultation between 9 February 2023 and 10 March 2023. Under these plans, drivers in London could be charged for every mile they drive. This anti-pollution measure is mile-based whereas emissions levels are kilometre-based.

Should the NHS do more to encourage patients to use metric?

Sometimes, the NHS needs to measure patients’ weight and height. The NHS records their weight and height internally in metric units but often tells the patients their weight and height in imperial units, which is preferred by the vast majority of Britons. This requires conversions. During the pandemic, the Government used metres exclusively for social distancing information. We use grams and kilograms for recipes, food purchases and the gym. We are all familiar with these units. So why does the NHS convert from metres to feet and inches and from kilograms to stones and pounds for its patients?

Major commercial broadcasters use cm only for snowfall

A few days ago, weather forecasters were warning the public about a period of freezing weather and snow. Major British commercial broadcasters’ websites have expressed the levels of snowfall exclusively in centimetres. There has been no use of inches for snowfall in their online weather reports.

Odd British Measurement Usage in the Transport Sector

Some aspects of measurement usage in the British transport sector appear to be uniquely British with no known parallel across the whole world. The British really are out of step with the modern world when it comes to transport measurements. The British transport sector is one of the last imperial bastions in the UK thanks to DfT policies.

British contributions to the metric system

The development of the metric system was a truly international effort. The British have made substantial contributions to its development. The metric is in effect an English invention. Metrication was first proposed by an Englishman, the Reverend John Wilkins in 1668. British scientists have been at the forefront of developing the metric system, and many have given their names to metric units, including Newton, Faraday, Joule, Kelvin and Watt.

UKWF issues warning about risks of REUL Bill

Yesterday, the UK Weighing Federation (UKWF) issued a briefing on the regulation of the UK weighing industry and the Retained EU Law Bill. This briefing emphasised the key role of weights and measures in all areas of industry and consumers’ everyday lives and also explained the serious consequences of lowering or complete removal of current regulatory standards.

ULEZ is all metric unlike UK road signs

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has expressed his commitment to expand the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) this year to make London’s air cleaner and improve public health. Transport for London (TfL) is planning to expand ULEZ across all London boroughs from 29 August 2023. As ULEZ expansion has been in the news recently, we take a look at the measurements that ULEZ is based on. Whatever happens to ULEZ, measurements play a central part in making it work. Unlike UK road signs, the measurements used in ULEZ are all metric.

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