Speed limits

[Caligastia]

Should they be increased? It depends on where you live, of course, but in general speed limits seem to be too low.

I got a speeding ticket during my trip through NZ, but I don't think my speed was unsafe. The road was long and straight, and the weather was fine. The speed limit was 100 kph (about 62 mph) and I was doing 118 kph (about 73 mph). It seems to me that low speed limits are more of a revenue gathering exercise than anything to do with safety.

[Imran Siddiqui]

It seems to me that low speed limits are more of a revenue gathering exercise than anything to do with safety.

Yep. The same with tobacco taxes... its for money.

[OneFootInTheGrave]

How does Germany fare in the "most deaths on the road per capita"?

Does anyone have any statistics, as far as I know it is the only country in the world where you don't have limits on motorways if the conditions are right (no fog, snow, ice, no major traffic, etc... ) I would like the numbers to be low, as it cuts the travelling time in half.

[Jac de Molay]

73 mph is fast? Heck, if you're not doing 80-85 on the interstates here, you're holding up traffic. Speed enforcement in this state is almost non-existent, at least on freeways and highways.

[Inverse Icarus]

speed limits on quasi-major roadways on long island are from 40-55, and sidestreets 20-30. i'm always pushing 75 on the way home though

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by DetroitDave
73 mph is fast? Heck, if you're not doing 80-85 on the interstates here, you're holding up traffic. Speed enforcement in this state is almost non-existent, at least on freeways and highways.

I was going a lot faster before the cop caught me. Lucky for me, otherwise the fine would have been a lot more.

[ColdWizard]

Re: Speed limits

Originally posted by Caligastia
Should they be increased?

hell no, most people can't drive worth a **** anyway, let alone at high speeds

[Kramerman]

On normal streets and such, with intersections and the like, the speed limit is well set for a balance of safety adn convenience, in my opinion. However, I think the speed limit on the freeway and interstates should have no speed limit ( or at least be much higher), and function as they do in Germany.

The vast majority of accidents happen at intersections where cars are changing directions and accelerating, but freeways have no intersections. From driving on the freeway, I would be able to see little difference if all the cars travled 70 mph, or if they all travled 90 mph, as far as safety is concerned, but that extra 30 mph could shave a good few minutes off a commute to work.

By increaseing the speed limit, there would probably be a few more fatal accidents, but the effects of being able to more rapidly move goods to market and stuff like that could have positive effects on the economy, on top of just the higher degree of convenience of being able to get to where you are going quicker.

Kman

[rah]

Originally posted by Kramerman
By increaseing the speed limit, there would probably be a few more fatal accidents, but the effects of being able to more rapidly move goods to market and stuff like that could have positive effects on the economy, on top of just the higher degree of convenience of being able to get to where you are going quicker.
Kman

Just what we need. 18 Wheelers doing 90 MPH. NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Boris Godunov]

Originally posted by OneFootInTheGrave
How does Germany fare in the "most deaths on the road per capita"?

Does anyone have any statistics, as far as I know it is the only country in the world where you don't have limits on motorways if the conditions are right (no fog, snow, ice, no major traffic, etc... ) I would like the numbers to be low, as it cuts the travelling time in half.

This is only true on the Autobahn, and only on certain parts of it. Around major urban centers, one simply can't go fast, as traffic is rather dense. Plus, one has to get a special license now to drive on the Autobahn, which I believe costs something like $5,000 US (I'm not sure if this applies to everyone or just non-Germans).

At any rate, they have a noticeably lower accident fatality rate than major U.S. highways. However, Germans also treat driving in a different way than Americans, particularly on the Autobahn. There is much more focus and attention paid. Americans tend to view driving as just a means of travel, whereas Germans view it as a past time unto itself.

Germany also has some very strict laws regarding unsafe driving on the Autobahn. Cameras monitor distances between cars, and if you are driving too close to the car in front of you (I think something like 20 feet is the minimum in no traffic, but not sure), then you will be fined severely. Fines are based on the individual wealth of the infractor. A couple years ago they gave out a $10,000 fine to a wealthy driver for tailgating. Ouch.

All of this courtesy of the History Channel, thank you.

[chequita guevara]

Actually, there was a markedly noticable drop in highway fatalities when the national speed limit was dropped from 75 to 55 back in the 1970s. It only makes sense, at higher speeds you have less time to react to a dangerous situation. It also saves gasoline.

Anyway, a speed limit of 65 or 75 means that traffic is usually going 75 to 85 miles an hour. If you bump it up, then traffic will still be going faster than the limit, just at much more dangerous speeds.

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Actually, there was a markedly noticable drop in highway fatalities when the national speed limit was dropped from 75 to 55 back in the 1970s.

Back in the 70s in the US, everyone drove gas guzzling tanks that were difficult to stop. The cars of today handle a lot better.

[chequita guevara]

Yes, but people don't handle any better. The problem isn't so much the machine as the person driving the machine. We weren't designed to move at the speed, and we have problems reacting to things that quickly if we aren't specifically trained for it.

At 95 miles per hour, in the time it takes for your eyes to see something, your brain to register it as a threat, and send the impulse to your leg to lift off the gas and hit the brakes, and then for your muscles to actually respond, you've already moved quite some distance.

Given that many people on the highways tailgate, even at high speed, this organic lag time is often fatal.

[Traianvs]

Plus, one has to get a special license now to drive on the Autobahn, which I believe costs something like $5,000 US (I'm not sure if this applies to everyone or just non-Germans).

That must apply to germans only then
I recently went to Würzburg, Bayern and no special permission of $5000 was necessary... of course the borders are open and we were never checked for any documents

[Dauphin]

Rather than speed limits on motorways, minimum distance between you and the car in front (in seconds) should be enforced. Tailgaters and compulsive lane changers are more dangerous than fast drivers who keep their distance.