Hello National Highways

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

User avatar
Brenley Corner
Member
Posts: 3853
Joined: Fri Apr 12, 2002 19:28
Location: nr. Canterbury, Kent

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Brenley Corner »

As a civil servant, I see pointless rebranding and restructuring all the time at all levels and never understand why it keeps being done.

To me it is a complete and utter waste of public taxpayer money for absolutely no good reason.........yes, I AM a civil servant :roll: :lol:
Brenley Corner: congesting traffic since 1963; discussing roads since 2002
User avatar
c2R
SABRE Wiki admin
Posts: 11162
Joined: Fri Jul 05, 2002 11:01

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by c2R »

exiled wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 17:37
Bryn666 wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 16:17
Allegedly, it better fits the inability to stick to a basic concept though!
Not helped in that it leans back so the south is larger in comparison to the north, like the BBC weather map that gives the impression you are looking down on these islands from a geostationary orbit somewhere above the Loire Valley.
<pedant> It couldn't be geostationary above the Loire Valley, as geostationary satellites have to be in equatorial orbit. It could, however, be in geosynchronous orbit there.... </pedant>

[edit]10,000th post[/edit]
Is there a road improvement project going on near you? Help us to document it on the SABRE Wiki - help is available in the Digest forum.
Have you browsed SABRE Maps recently? Get involved! - see our guide to scanning and stitching maps
User avatar
ROAD ROVER
Member
Posts: 409
Joined: Thu Jul 19, 2007 07:48
Location: London

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by ROAD ROVER »

Brenley Corner wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 20:35 As a civil servant, I see pointless rebranding and restructuring all the time at all levels and never understand why it keeps being done.

To me it is a complete and utter waste of public taxpayer money for absolutely no good reason.........yes, I AM a civil servant :roll: :lol:

Come come, we have to keep the country's self-appointed consultants fully occupied at all times on comfortable pay rates, do we not? :roll:
User avatar
owen b
Member
Posts: 9861
Joined: Sun Mar 16, 2003 15:22
Location: Luton

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by owen b »

Nathan_A_RF wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 18:53 Am I the only one that thinks the Highways England logo is a very good design?
I agree with you. It looks vaguely like a zig-zagging road. It looks vaguely like a map of England. It's distinctive and I think quite clever and neat. I hope they keep it.

I don't see the value in changing the name though.
Owen
User avatar
Mark Hewitt
Member
Posts: 31412
Joined: Fri Dec 17, 2004 12:54
Location: Chester-le-Street

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Mark Hewitt »

owen b wrote:
Nathan_A_RF wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 18:53 Am I the only one that thinks the Highways England logo is a very good design?
I agree with you. It looks vaguely like a zig-zagging road. It looks vaguely like a map of England. It's distinctive and I think quite clever and neat. I hope they keep it.

I don't see the value in changing the name though.
Indeed they did keep it. But changed the name.
brummie_rob
Member
Posts: 1538
Joined: Sun May 08, 2005 00:16

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by brummie_rob »

Logo is fine but what a waste changing the name over. All that rebranding which they say will be phased but then once the new names been phased in fully they will get rebranded again!
deadly
Member
Posts: 72
Joined: Sun Aug 06, 2006 22:40
Location: Staffs

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by deadly »

Conekicker wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 18:59 If it is the new logo, I'd hazard a guess that the simple text change is an attempt to deflect the criticism that a totally new one, (doubtless developed at great expense), would generate.
I fear a branding agency will have been paid a substantial sum for the recommendation to keep the old logo. It's also likely to have been unnoticeably tweaked such that all existing logos still need to be replaced.
Glom
Member
Posts: 2827
Joined: Wed Jan 12, 2011 17:05
Location: Wiltshire

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Glom »


c2R wrote: <pedant> It couldn't be geostationary above the Loire Valley, as geostationary satellites have to be in equatorial orbit. It could, however, be in geosynchronous orbit there.... </pedant>
Also, geostationary altitude is actually very high, 36,000km. The weather map looks like it's maybe 1000km.
User avatar
RichardA35
Committee Member
Posts: 5705
Joined: Thu Jul 11, 2002 18:58
Location: Dorset

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by RichardA35 »

It all might make some sense if the much touted "Major Roads Network" was to come under this umbrella, but I guess the local authority routes and their improvement will continue to be "cinderella" schemes living on scraps....
User avatar
Chris5156
Deputy Treasurer
Posts: 16908
Joined: Thu Sep 06, 2001 21:50
Location: Hampshire
Contact:

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Chris5156 »

This is surely part of Boris's land-grab for Westminster power over the devolved Governments - see also "we'll build the new M4 around Newport" and "we'll build a bridge between Scotland and NI". The "National" bit of the new name apparently reflects HE's role in setting standards for the whole UK (er, yes, all the devolved governments participate in that too). Why take that as a pretext to emphasise a UK-wide role for the organisation in its new name?

To me seems a bit ominous as a statement of intent, though I doubt it'll come to anything more than another silly rebrand.
User avatar
hat
Member
Posts: 251
Joined: Tue Mar 09, 2010 11:25

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by hat »

I see British Rail is also making a comeback, also now as National Rail, complete with the same 1970s logo
BigBazz
Member
Posts: 98
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2013 17:02

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by BigBazz »

hat wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 23:01 I see British Rail is also making a comeback, also now as National Rail, complete with the same 1970s logo
The new body (yet to be setup) is supposed to be Great British Railways...How that works given "GB Railways Group Ltd" is already a thing (and is the direct parent company of Hull Trains) is left as an exercise for the reader!

National Rail, meanwhile, is a brand that's been used by Rail Delivery Group (formerly the Association of Train Operating Companies) since privatisation for marketing the passenger network as a whole.
User avatar
trickstat
Member
Posts: 8738
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 14:06
Location: Letchworth Gdn City, Herts

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by trickstat »

BigBazz wrote: Sun Aug 22, 2021 00:41
hat wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 23:01 I see British Rail is also making a comeback, also now as National Rail, complete with the same 1970s logo
The new body (yet to be setup) is supposed to be Great British Railways...How that works given "GB Railways Group Ltd" is already a thing (and is the direct parent company of Hull Trains) is left as an exercise for the reader!

National Rail, meanwhile, is a brand that's been used by Rail Delivery Group (formerly the Association of Train Operating Companies) since privatisation for marketing the passenger network as a whole.
National Rail is also used as a term by Tfl and possibly other local providers, as in "change here for National Rail services".
User avatar
Mark Hewitt
Member
Posts: 31412
Joined: Fri Dec 17, 2004 12:54
Location: Chester-le-Street

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Mark Hewitt »

hat wrote:I see British Rail is also making a comeback, also now as National Rail, complete with the same 1970s logo
The 'British Rail' logo has never been out of use of course. Still appearing on station signs and tickets.
User avatar
ManomayLR
Social Media Admin
Posts: 3331
Joined: Wed Aug 03, 2016 11:47
Location: London, UK

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by ManomayLR »

It sounds disgusting to be frank.

Doesn’t roll off the tongue at all.

I will be using HTO (Highway Traffic Officer) to avoid confusion.
Though roads may not put a smile on everyone's face, there is one road that always will: the road to home.
User avatar
haymansafc
Member
Posts: 4808
Joined: Sun Mar 19, 2006 16:52
Location: Ellesmere Port, Cheshire

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by haymansafc »

I can't be bothered to keep up with all of these name changes.

I don't know about anyone else, but I still refer to them as the Highways Agency.
The journey is never over until the arrival.
User avatar
skiddaw05
Member
Posts: 2036
Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 21:33
Location: Norwich

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by skiddaw05 »

Maybe the next change can be to the Agency for Road Stuff (England)
SteveA30
Member
Posts: 6018
Joined: Fri May 06, 2005 12:52
Location: Dorset

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by SteveA30 »

Agency for Road Stuff (England) my a***!
Roads and holidays in the west, before motorways.
http://trektothewest.shutterfly.com
http://holidayroads.webs.com/
User avatar
exiled
President
Posts: 24644
Joined: Sat Jan 27, 2007 17:36
Location: South Lanarkshire

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by exiled »

skiddaw05 wrote: Thu Sep 02, 2021 19:14 Maybe the next change can be to the Agency for Road Stuff (England)
It is not that unusual for placeholder names in official documents to have, he hem, interesting abbreviations. If you see a name that is awkward and difficult to abbreviate it is often due to either a shot gun marriage, or the new name was not adapted until the last minute.
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!
User avatar
Gareth Thomas
Member
Posts: 1718
Joined: Mon May 03, 2004 13:43
Location: Temple Ewell, Kent
Contact:

Re: Hello National Highways

Post by Gareth Thomas »

owen b wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 23:27
Nathan_A_RF wrote: Thu Aug 19, 2021 18:53 Am I the only one that thinks the Highways England logo is a very good design?
I agree with you. It looks vaguely like a zig-zagging road. It looks vaguely like a map of England. It's distinctive and I think quite clever and neat. I hope they keep it.
Same here. I recognised it as a rough shape of England straight away and rather like it.
My journey with testicular cancer!
https://garethishalfnuts.wordpress.com/

"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads..."
-Dr Emmett Brown
Post Reply