News Archive

January 15th 2007

NASA announces the use of a single rational system of measurement when they return to the Moon

The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on 8 January 2007 that it has decided to use metric units for all operations on the lunar surface when it returns to the moon. See the NASA web site for the full story.

February 23rd 2006

Road signs to go metric
in 5 years?

Britain's road signs could easily and economically be converted to show metres and kilometres - according to UKMA's latest report "Metric signs ahead".

Lord (Neil) Kinnock (pictured below) provides a Foreword to the report, which is being sent to the Department for Transport, asking Ministers to name an early date for
	starting the changeover. If the recommendations are followed, says Lord Kinnock, Britain can be a metric country by the time that the all-metric Olympic Games open in London in 2012.

Published on 23 February, the report proposes a 5-year timetable that would enable the UK to join the modern world and convert our road signs to the system that is legal in every other advanced country in the world.

The report describes the benefits of completing the changeover (which was originally planned for 1973 but never implemented) and demonstrates that there are no plausible objections on grounds of practicality, or cost or safety.

UKMA acknowledges that there is some irresponsible opposition to making the change but believes that, as in other fields, the Government could gain credit for persevering with its modernisation and reform programme in the face of uninformed and irrational opposition.

(click here to order a copy of the full report)

January 21st 2005

Irish road sign change completed without incident

The speed limit sign change from mph to km/h has now been completed without any reported problems.

UKMA will continue to take an interest in the ensuing period for any signs of difficulty but, as widely expected there are so far no indications of the doomladen predictions of some press commentators.

A big publicity campaign began on 6 January, including a dedicated website www.gometric.ie, and every household to receive a leaflet and conversion chart (illustrated below) explaining the new speed limits. The Irish police vowed to enforce the new limits strictly and with no sympathy with motorists who claim that they mistook 50 km/h for 50 mph.

See our press release issued prior to the changeover for further details.

Comment: The Irish have shown that this simple change from obsolete imperial units to the international metric system is no big deal. However, the British Government claims that older British drivers would be “confused” by the change and would not be able to cope. The Irish experience shows that this is just a flimsy excuse for doing nothing. It is time for the British Department for Transport to announce an early date for Britain to catch up with the rest of the world and modernise our road signage. This could be as early as 2008.

January 15th 2005

Irish road sign change nears completion

The Irish changeover to speed limits in kilometres per hour (km/h) is now only hours away! Already most distance signage is in metres and kilometres, and the big change to km/h speed limits is due to take place on Thursday, 20 January. The plan is that highway authorities will be replacing old mph signs and installing new km/h signs (illustrated below) starting on Monday, 17 January, so that by midnight on 19 January, all speed limit signs will be in km/h. Indeed, reports suggest that many authorities have already started.

A big publicity campaign began on 6 January, including a dedicated website www.gometric.ie, and every household will receive a leaflet and conversion chart (illustrated below) explaining the new speed limits. The Irish police will enforce the new limits strictly and will have no sympathy with motorists who claim that they mistook 50 km/h for 50 mph. Further details can be viewed at our press release.

The Irish Government is confident that the changeover will go smoothly and does not even expect that the border with Northern Ireland will lead to confusion. The authorities on both sides of the border will be erecting signs explaining the change, and it is expected that drivers will quickly adapt (as both British and Irish drivers already do when they drive abroad).

Comment: The Irish have shown that this simple change from obsolete imperial units to the international metric system is no big deal. However, the British Government claims that older British drivers would be “confused” by the change and would not be able to cope. The Irish experience shows that this is just a flimsy excuse for doing nothing. It is time for the British Department for Transport to announce an early date for Britain to catch up with the rest of the world and modernise our road signage. This could be as early as 2008.

January 2005

A very British mess - now available in print

UKMA's report, A very British mess, which was launched by Lord Howe of Aberavon on 8 July 2004 is now available in an attractive hardcopy format. The report is printed as a 64 page paperback in full colour. The report draws attention to Britain's measurement unit mess caused by failing to complete the conversion from imperial to metric units. The report explains how Britain got into the mess, why it is important and how to get out of the mess.

The report can be ordered from your bookshop using ISBN 0750310146. The
recommended retail price is £12.50. For more information on the report and
how to order it click here

See an online preview of the Foreword by Lord Howe and the executive summary in PDF format