I posted your question on the BWMA site to see what kind of response it would get:
 
Here are two postings so far:
 
From Bryan Parry (anti-metric):
 
Don't know about the design, but:

*Roads are marked in yards and miles
*Bridge heights are marked in feet and inches
*Weight for bridges seems to be measures in both Imperial tons and Metric tonnes
 
 
From Martin (pro metric):
 
 
 
Metric units have been used for the design of British roads since the 1970's, but road signs that are in place for the benefit of motorists are still in Imperial units except for weight limits which are given in tonnes (prior to about 1980 they were either in cwt or tons and cwt) and bridge heights, some of which are in dual units.

Road markers on the sides of the road (which are impossible to read unless you are a passenger and the driver is in the "slow" lane) are in kilometres and tenths of a kilometre. I recall seeing some in miles and furlongs in about 1980, but they have disappeared.

The present situation then is that as far as road engineers are concerned everything is in metric, but as far as the ordinary driver is concerned, everything is in Imperial apart from weights (in tonnes) and bridge heights (dual units).
 
 
 
Notice how Bryan avoided the question but wanted you to know what was still imperial.  I'm sure he knows what is metric but like many imperialists ignores it and refuses to acknowledge it.
 
 
 
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Sunday, 2004-02-01 02:07
Subject: [USMA:28462] U K roads

Hi i know that U K roads are designed in metric.  Does anybody know when they stopped using FFU for road design?   

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