Kilmarnock: Portland Road to South Hamilton Street,
   The Ford (Irish Bridge).
   Irvine: New descriptions coming soon.

Portland Road to South Hamilton Street, Kilmarnock

Portland Road to South Hamilton Street

For this junction it is important to move into the correct position for turning right when approaching along Portland Road.

Note the position taken up by the red(1) car while waiting for a gap to turn. The diagram has lines added to show how to judge your position using the white lines of the oncoming lanes and the lanes to your right.

While in this position the red(1) car is not in the way of the oncoming cars that are turning to their right and not in the way of the oncoming cars that are traveling ahead.

Also, in this position the driver of the red(1) car can more easily see past the oncoming cars that are turning to their right therefore more able to assess when there will be a safe gap to turn.

This junction also has a green filter arrow which, only at certain times, illuminates after the green circle has been on for a designated period of time. When this happens, the oncoming traffic receive a red light therefore when they slow to stop the red(1) car should turn if the junction is now clear.

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The Ford, Irish Bridge, Dean Road, Beansburn, Kilmarnock

The Ford, Dean Road, Beansburn

Irish Bridge or Ford?

• A ford is a crossing where traffic always has to drive through the river, never over/above the river.
• An Irish Bridge is a crossing that becomes flooded whenever the river rises high enough.
• For consistancy, I will refer to the crossing as a ford since that is how it's signposted.

What makes the ford a two-way street and not only one side at a time?

• Firstly, on approach to the ford (from either side) there is a sign just before the traffic calming islands indicating that vehicles should give way to the traffic from the opposite direction i.e. to those coming off the ford. For traffic leaving the ford there is a sign just before the traffic calming islands indicating that they have priority over those approaching the ford. These signs are on either side of the islands and therefore only refer to the islands, not the ford.
• Secondly, the ford road has a centreline painted on it to enable two-way traffic.

The following can be used for safely driving across the ford.

• When approaching the ford, if you can travel through between the traffic calming islands and onto the ford without causing the traffic from the opposite direction to slow then you should continue. (If there is traffic coming from the opposite direction then you simply pass each other on the ford just like any other standard two-way street.)

What if the ford is flooded but still passable?

• In this situation it is usually safer and wiser to not cross with on-coming traffic.

You might be asking by now, why the islands?

• These are simply designed to slow traffic on approach and across the ford. With the steep down hill on approach to the ford, traffic could inadvertently (or otherwise) travel across the ford at too high a speed.

I regularly use the ford and on approach, if I see another driver at the other side I slow/wait to allow them to start moving towards the islands on their side of the ford and just as they move to do this I also move to pass through between the islands on my side of the ford (just as they have been designed for). On most occasions the on-coming driver simply continues across on their side of the ford road and while we pass on the ford they lift their hand in thanks for not keeping them waiting.

There are, unfortunately, a few drivers who are not so quick to understand. Some lift their hand(s!) and gesture in a far less pleasant manner. Some shout out their window (but I'll not repeat the words here). One or two have reversed their cars back. I have had one occasion, where an on-coming driver steered their car towards mine (probably because they incorrectly thought I was in the wrong) but how crazy are they to think that using their car as a weapon is the right thing to do! Worst of all, it was one of my learners that was driving at the time, but fortunately he was very savvy and handled the situation in the casual and calm manner that I teach.

This article will hopefully help people to understand the proper way to use the ford and therefore reduce the number of vehicles waiting when they don't need to, especially if only one or two vehicles approach from both sides because in these situations all the vehicles could cross at the same time. But most of all, let's hope it helps to prevent a reaction from that very minority of drivers who insist on road rage being an answer to their problems.

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