University Challenge Roads Questions

The study of British and Irish roads - their construction, numbering, history, mapping, past and future official roads proposals and general roads musings.

There is a separate forum for Street Furniture (traffic lights, street lights, road signs etc).

Registered users get access to other forums including discussions about other forms of transport, driving, fantasy roads and wishlists, and roads quizzes.

Moderator: Site Management Team

Post Reply
User avatar
the cheesecake man
Member
Posts: 2462
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 13:21
Location: Sheffield

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by the cheesecake man »

The answer given was 112.

Sadly no explanation was provided. For example do northbound and southbound services count separately, or as 1, or as 1 if and only if they're connected by a footbridge, or as 1 if they're opposite but not if they're staggered...?
User avatar
Big L
Deputy Site Manager
Posts: 7517
Joined: Sun Nov 14, 2010 20:36
Location: B5012

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Big L »

Sporcle quiz from 2014 wants 91 answers, and the comments section mentions Gloucester and Scotch Corner not being on there, and there must be some more additions.
Make poetry history.

Did you know there's more to SABRE than just the Forums?
Help with maps using the new online calibrator.
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki.
User avatar
trickstat
Member
Posts: 8738
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 14:06
Location: Letchworth Gdn City, Herts

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by trickstat »

A320Driver wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 12:13 Depends how “motorway services” is defined. I reckon for a mainline MSA it’s about half of that.
That's a valid point. Do you count something accessed via a roundabout off the mainline that was built when the road was still an A road?

Baldock is off the mainline but is adjacent to the northern end of the Herts A1(M) but the road was motorway for many years before the services opened.
User avatar
DavidB
Member
Posts: 1249
Joined: Sun Jun 09, 2002 20:32
Location: Berkshire

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by DavidB »

From 'Pointless' today on BBC1:

From the following list of Motorways, two are made up, four are real but only two of them are Pointless (i.e. nobody in the panel of 100 people gave them as answers):

M18, M24, M67, M83, M90, M898

Answers:
M24 & M83 are made up
M67 & M898 are Pointless
M18 scored 8, M90 scored 3

The two pairs of contestants went for M90 & M83. (The idea of this particular round is simply to guess the Pointless answers to add £250 for each one to the Jackpot total.)
User avatar
Bfivethousand
Member
Posts: 1387
Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2005 22:16
Location: Derbyshire

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Bfivethousand »

I think every last person on here that watched Only Connect last night would have scored 5 points when the first clue in a particular 'sequence' question appeared :lol:

Clue 1 was

4: Avonmouth
16 Sodium atoms walk into a bar
followed immediately by Batman
User avatar
the cheesecake man
Member
Posts: 2462
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 13:21
Location: Sheffield

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by the cheesecake man »

Bfivethousand wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 12:49 I think every last person on here that watched Only Connect last night would have scored 5 points when the first clue in a particular 'sequence' question appeared :lol:

Clue 1 was

4: Avonmouth

Of course. :lol: Six of the country's finest minds thought it was about ports and guessed Felixstowe and Southampton. :no:
tom1977
Member
Posts: 163
Joined: Fri Nov 30, 2012 11:36

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by tom1977 »

the cheesecake man wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 13:01
Bfivethousand wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 12:49 I think every last person on here that watched Only Connect last night would have scored 5 points when the first clue in a particular 'sequence' question appeared :lol:

Clue 1 was

4: Avonmouth

Of course. :lol: Six of the country's finest minds thought it was about ports and guessed Felixstowe and Southampton. :no:
Mea culpa. So did I. Of course, it was obvious!
User avatar
IAN
Member
Posts: 1494
Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2001 19:07

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by IAN »

tom1977 wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 13:14
the cheesecake man wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 13:01
Bfivethousand wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 12:49 I think every last person on here that watched Only Connect last night would have scored 5 points when the first clue in a particular 'sequence' question appeared :lol:

Clue 1 was

4: Avonmouth

Of course. :lol: Six of the country's finest minds thought it was about ports and guessed Felixstowe and Southampton. :no:
Mea culpa. So did I. Of course, it was obvious!
Pedant mode- You would need the second clue to be certain as the number sequence could be counting upwards, in 10s etc.
AKA M5 Driver
Bomag
Member
Posts: 948
Joined: Tue Jan 26, 2010 23:26

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Bomag »

Bfivethousand wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 12:49 I think every last person on here that watched Only Connect last night would have scored 5 points when the first clue in a particular 'sequence' question appeared :lol:

Clue 1 was

4: Avonmouth
I was having a nibble so only started thinking on the second clue. Being perverse I had 1: Felton - Having built Avonmouth Way in 1994 and provide support for Brexit signing on the A2/A3 at Portsmouth and Dover I had the last A1 scheme I provided advice on.

In any event the answer was London, as that is the end for any right thinking person :D
User avatar
hoagy_ytfc
Member
Posts: 632
Joined: Sun May 23, 2010 00:10

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

IAN wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 14:50Pedant mode- You would need the second clue to be certain as the number sequence could be counting upwards, in 10s etc.
Not really, going up from 4 would be so rare for that programme that one would take the risk and assume it’s counting down.

Given that 7 and 8 aren’t “London to…” roads anyway, going up makes even less sense. Which end would be the answer?
User avatar
the cheesecake man
Member
Posts: 2462
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 13:21
Location: Sheffield

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by the cheesecake man »

hoagy_ytfc wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 22:00
IAN wrote: Tue Nov 23, 2021 14:50Pedant mode- You would need the second clue to be certain as the number sequence could be counting upwards, in 10s etc.
Not really, going up from 4 would be so rare for that programme that one would take the risk and assume it’s counting down.

Given that 7 and 8 aren’t “London to…” roads anyway, going up makes even less sense. Which end would be the answer?
Yes you would. In theory any sequence could be used but often obscure ones would be too nasty even for that programme. For example a sequence of international dialling codes starting at 41 was only ever going to be 41,42,43,44 and not 41,40,39,38 nor 41, 46,51,56 because realistically even on that programme the contestants can't fairly be expected to know any other than 1 and 44.

So in addition to the uncertainty over which is the "end" (they could just accept either end) how many ends could they fairly use? Eg this is a valid sequence 4: Avonmouth > 8: Glasgow > 16: Grimsby but would they really expect contestants to place the A32?
User avatar
Was92now625
Member
Posts: 848
Joined: Fri Jan 08, 2010 00:29
Location: near A625

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Was92now625 »

DavidB wrote: Fri Apr 30, 2021 18:33 From 'Pointless' today on BBC1:

From the following list of Motorways, two are made up, four are real but only two of them are Pointless (i.e. nobody in the panel of 100 people gave them as answers):

M18, M24, M67, M83, M90, M898

Answers:
M24 & M83 are made up
M67 & M898 are Pointless
M18 scored 8, M90 scored 3

The two pairs of contestants went for M90 & M83. (The idea of this particular round is simply to guess the Pointless answers to add £250 for each one to the Jackpot total.)
M83 would be some road !
User avatar
hoagy_ytfc
Member
Posts: 632
Joined: Sun May 23, 2010 00:10

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by hoagy_ytfc »

As a fan of the French electronic pop outfit of that name, I wouldn't have fallen for M83, I like to think :)
User avatar
the cheesecake man
Member
Posts: 2462
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 13:21
Location: Sheffield

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by the cheesecake man »

Another Pointless bonus booster round. Two answers score points, two are pointless and two are wrong. Which is which?

Motorway Service Stations
Hopwood Park
Armitage
Annandale Water
Leicester Forest West
Blackburn with Darwen
Woolley Edge

The contestants chose Armitage and Leicester Forest West.
User avatar
M4Simon
Elected Committee Member
Posts: 10121
Joined: Sun Mar 17, 2002 22:35
Location: WGC, Herts
Contact:

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by M4Simon »

the cheesecake man wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 13:45 Another Pointless bonus booster round. Two answers score points, two are pointless and two are wrong. Which is which?

Motorway Service Stations
Hopwood Park
Armitage
Annandale Water
Leicester Forest West
Blackburn with Darwen
Woolley Edge

The contestants chose Armitage and Leicester Forest West.
I'd go for Annandale Water and Blackburn with Darwen as pointless.

Simon
Did you know there's more to SABRE than just the Forums?
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!

Please contact me if you want to know more
User avatar
Helvellyn
Member
Posts: 24664
Joined: Tue Apr 04, 2006 22:31
Location: High Peak

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Helvellyn »

M4Simon wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 13:55
the cheesecake man wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 13:45 Another Pointless bonus booster round. Two answers score points, two are pointless and two are wrong. Which is which?

Motorway Service Stations
Hopwood Park
Armitage
Annandale Water
Leicester Forest West
Blackburn with Darwen
Woolley Edge

The contestants chose Armitage and Leicester Forest West.
I'd go for Annandale Water and Blackburn with Darwen as pointless.
Hopwood Park and Armitage are the ones I wasn't really sure where they are. Annandale Water would surprise me but then I've driven that way quite often (including spending quite a bit of time sat in the cafe watching a kingfisher in the lake), so definitely a familiarity bias based on where I happen to have been.
User avatar
M4Simon
Elected Committee Member
Posts: 10121
Joined: Sun Mar 17, 2002 22:35
Location: WGC, Herts
Contact:

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by M4Simon »

Helvellyn wrote: Fri Aug 19, 2022 11:25
M4Simon wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 13:55
the cheesecake man wrote: Thu Aug 18, 2022 13:45 Another Pointless bonus booster round. Two answers score points, two are pointless and two are wrong. Which is which?

Motorway Service Stations
Hopwood Park
Armitage
Annandale Water
Leicester Forest West
Blackburn with Darwen
Woolley Edge

The contestants chose Armitage and Leicester Forest West.
I'd go for Annandale Water and Blackburn with Darwen as pointless.
Hopwood Park and Armitage are the ones I wasn't really sure where they are. Annandale Water would surprise me but then I've driven that way quite often (including spending quite a bit of time sat in the cafe watching a kingfisher in the lake), so definitely a familiarity bias based on where I happen to have been.
Hopwood Park is a regular stop for me, and is on the M42 on the south side of Birmingham. Therefore, I think it is well known and unlikely to be pointless. Armitage is one of the wrong answers and therefore on pointless would either give you a score of 100, or, in the case of this round, would not add any cash to the bonus pot.

The other wrong answer is Leicester Forest West (it should be East).

That left me with the choice of Annandale Water, Blackburn with Darwen and Woolley Edge to choose my two pointless answers from. I went for the first two because Woolley Edge is on the M1 near Barnsley and I assumed that more people would pass that than Annandale or Blackburn with Darwen.

It's a difficult one to call because I chose the ones I have passed or stopped at the least, but someone from further north, like yourself, may never have heard of Hopwood Park or not consider it to be a well known service area, but you are very familiar with Annandale Water. I guess it all depends on where the 100 people the Pointless team surveyed have come from.

Simon
Did you know there's more to SABRE than just the Forums?
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!

Please contact me if you want to know more
User avatar
the cheesecake man
Member
Posts: 2462
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 13:21
Location: Sheffield

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by the cheesecake man »

M4Simon wrote: Fri Aug 19, 2022 11:36 I guess it all depends on where the 100 people the Pointless team surveyed have come from.
Absolutely. To me Woolley Edge is immediately obvious and should score highly while Leicester Forest West is equally obviously fake, but I had to think for a few seconds about the others.

Hopwood Park and Blackburn with Darwen were pointless. Woolley Edge and Annandale Water scored 1. :o I guess the 100 people surveyed were in London?

I'm sure everyone here spotted the Leicester Forest East West trick.
Armitage is in Staffordshire, on the Trent & Mersey Canal near Rugeley. It has no motorway service station, but it does have a large toilet factory whose products provide a welcome break.
User avatar
Helvellyn
Member
Posts: 24664
Joined: Tue Apr 04, 2006 22:31
Location: High Peak

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by Helvellyn »

the cheesecake man wrote: Fri Aug 19, 2022 12:46 I'm sure everyone here spotted the Leicester Forest East West trick.
Sadly not :oops: I did say to myself "Thought it was East" and then moved on. I've not watched Pointless very often so didn't know they had trick ones in it to catch people out.
User avatar
M4Simon
Elected Committee Member
Posts: 10121
Joined: Sun Mar 17, 2002 22:35
Location: WGC, Herts
Contact:

Re: University Challenge Roads Questions

Post by M4Simon »

Helvellyn wrote: Fri Aug 19, 2022 12:57
the cheesecake man wrote: Fri Aug 19, 2022 12:46 I'm sure everyone here spotted the Leicester Forest East West trick.
Sadly not :oops: I did say to myself "Thought it was East" and then moved on. I've not watched Pointless very often so didn't know they had trick ones in it to catch people out.
They do on this bonus builder round, which is relatively new to the show.

I've done some of the Sporcle MSA quizzes so while I think I'd recognise all the MSA names in the UK, I don't think I'd be able to write a list of them all.

Simon
Did you know there's more to SABRE than just the Forums?
Add your roads knowledge to the SABRE Wiki today!
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Try getting involved!

Please contact me if you want to know more
Post Reply