Speed Limits
Rue
Join Date: 2002-10-21 Member: 1564Members
Join Date: 2002-10-21 Member: 1564Members
in Discussions
<div class="IPBDescription">at night</div> I was driving from glasgow to dundee (scotland) last night at about 11pm and I got this idea in my head
'Why can't they increase the speed limit at say 10pm - 4am to around about 90-100mph'
The reasoning behind this is that I went 60miles and only saw 6 cars going in my direction, in Germany I belive that the autobahn has no speed limits only suggested speeds. I wondered if anyone could tell me the rate of accidents on these roads compaired to the UK's 70mph limit
I belive that the speed limit should be in place to protect other drivers on the road but when your going in a straight line for 60miles with no-one else around it's just asking for you to break the limit <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Please feel free to throw fruit at me if I'm not making sense....
ps. the UK speed limit is 70mph <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif' /><!--endemo-->
'Why can't they increase the speed limit at say 10pm - 4am to around about 90-100mph'
The reasoning behind this is that I went 60miles and only saw 6 cars going in my direction, in Germany I belive that the autobahn has no speed limits only suggested speeds. I wondered if anyone could tell me the rate of accidents on these roads compaired to the UK's 70mph limit
I belive that the speed limit should be in place to protect other drivers on the road but when your going in a straight line for 60miles with no-one else around it's just asking for you to break the limit <!--emo&:(--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Please feel free to throw fruit at me if I'm not making sense....
ps. the UK speed limit is 70mph <!--emo&;)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='wink.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Comments
If you allow them to go 100 mph, who knows what kind of damage they could do?
Even Montana in the US (last I was aware) doesn't have a strict enforced speed limit during the day (I do understand you can be pulled over for going 'unreasonably' fast, but again my information could be way out of date), but at night there is a set speed limit there as well - their reasoning for the day is similar to yours, of going in a long straightaway at such slow speeds, but they too push for added safety at night.
Protecting other drivers is no good when you yourself can't even tell where you'll stop if you have to slam on the brakes. <!--emo&:)--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/smile.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='smile.gif' /><!--endemo-->
Of course, I still gladly fly down the interstate between lincoln and omaha at 75. I'd probably complain if they implemented the night speed limit here, but at least I'd probably be safer as a result.
Oh, and about the accident rate on the Autobahn: road accidents on the Autobahn make up about 10% of the national traffic fatalities, which is lower than the Interstates. One reason for this might be the strict driving regulations.
Also, contrary to popular belief, the Autobahn is not total freedom from speed limits. There are certain sections that do have enforced speed limits, such as sections near urban areas or frequently congested areas.
As verthandi already said, most parts of the Autobahn <i>do</i> have a speed limit, and they are not unreasonably high either. There are actually sections where you can go as fast as you want, but they are pretty rare.
come to Germany!
Here aren't traffic limits at the "Autobahn" :>
Last Tuesday I got a speeding ticket for going about 10mph over the speed limit. I had a feeling a cop was there and I was right. It sucked mostly because I was going downhill trying to pass somebody changing lanes. Grrr...my first speeding ticket due to passing somebody to get in a safe lane away from a damn wall.
Dude, you were over the speed limit, there was a cop there as well. You have absolutely no justification to complain about what happened. You broke the law, in full sight of a law enforcer, you got a ticket. If the guy in front of you was driving erratically, you pull back. Only when you can overtake safely without going 10mph over the speed limit do you do so. 10 mph may not seem like much, but it is the difference between obeing the law and breaking it.
If anything, you should get a ticket for driving without due care and attention as well.
I agree. Even though there is no one on the road late at night, what if you come across and animal crossing the road while you are going 100mph? Your first instinct is to hit the breaks and swerve out of the way, which at 100mph, can equal one bad crash. When I left my house for California at 2:00AM, I saw 1 car: a cop. That was it until
I got out of my small town into Philly.
The bottom line is that they are there for your safety as well.
If you allow them to go 100 mph, who knows what kind of damage they could do? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
If they are too drunk to drive, what chances in hell are they going to obey laws as well?
Speed limits are laws in place for those who obey laws. Criminals, drunkards; they don't count, because they won't follow laws.
Therefore, speed limits should be increased like 10 mph at late hours if anything, simply because there is nothing else to crash into that late at night.
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Nah. Even though you have less cars driving at night, drivers can be and often are tired. Also night = dark = visibility = bad. Bad visibility + tired driver + 100mph = dead people. These facts make up for the lessened traffic.<!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Bad visibility? High beams anyone? It's not like you are gonna blind someone with your bright lights at 1 AM with all the people around you... <!--emo&???--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/confused.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='confused.gif' /><!--endemo-->
The biggest detriment to night driving is if you are tired. But if you are tired, you shouldn't be driving around anyways. People driving that late at night, chances are they are wide alert as they have business at these hours.
However, the reason they don't allow that, is because of the question, "How do you determine if someone can do that?"
The fact of the matter is that you don't. Old folks if they tried to drive 150 miles per hour would slam into the back of of a tree or a car within the time it takes for them to drive at 150 miles per hour to the nearest tree or car. The rules have to be general. Thus, they set limits based on what they think most of the population can follow safely. At nighttime, I'm sure you could handle the extra speed, but think about all the others that couldn't.
Dude, you were over the speed limit, there was a cop there as well. You have absolutely no justification to complain about what happened. You broke the law, in full sight of a law enforcer, you got a ticket. If the guy in front of you was driving erratically, you pull back. Only when you can overtake safely without going 10mph over the speed limit do you do so. 10 mph may not seem like much, but it is the difference between obeing the law and breaking it.
If anything, you should get a ticket for driving without due care and attention as well. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
You know what sucks more? **** like you.
If you really like to speed, then spend a couple hundred, and get yourself a radar detector. Never again will the cops catch you off-guard.
i speed whenever i can on my bike... its a monster on wheels.. it isnt made for going slow. i race it at 2 am on abandoned or cordoned off roads.
it is what makes me know life is worth living.. it is what makes me lift weights.. so i can attempt to control her better in the high speed winds... it is what gets me to my gf in 2 hours instead of 4
it is a part of my life.
i speed whenever i can on my bike... its a monster on wheels.. it isnt made for going slow. i race it at 2 am on abandoned or cordoned off roads.
it is what makes me know life is worth living.. it is what makes me lift weights.. so i can attempt to control her better in the high speed winds... it is what gets me to my gf in 2 hours instead of 4
it is a part of my life. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
Fair enough at 2AM, but I can't abide speeders on a busy road.
Killing.
I can kill people if my handle is Hawkeye.
*kills Tequila*
What's a matter? Loosen up. You guys are so anal to think that was bad.
My point being, you can't just break the law when you feel like it. There are reasons why they are in place. Otherwise, you allow potential for any citizen to make judgement himself on what is right and wrong (which we all know some people have seriously lost a screw in their heads about).
hmm, lets see. how do I put this?
Yes.
I don't know about the US, but in the UK it is illegal to race on public roads, no matter what time or how busy they are.
Sorry, this bit made me laugh
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->just cos it is illegal i should be locked up for that? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
What do you want them to do? Give you a chocolate bar?
Comeon. The law is the law is the law. As Hawkeye said, if you are going to insist on getting away with speeding, I am gonna insist on getting away with murder. They are both breaking the law, so there is no difference there.
hmm, lets see. how do I put this?
Yes.
I don't know about the US, but in the UK it is illegal to race on public roads, no matter what time or how busy they are.
Sorry, this bit made me laugh
<!--QuoteBegin--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> </td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin-->just cos it is illegal i should be locked up for that? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
What do you want them to do? Give you a chocolate bar?
Comeon. The law is the law is the law. As Hawkeye said, if you are going to insist on getting away with speeding, I am gonna insist on getting away with murder. They are both breaking the law, so there is no difference there. <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
yeah but you are taking the ****..
its liks shoplifting vs bank robbery... both are wrong.. but on a much grander scale..
like when the roads are empty. it is wrong to throttle it? hell no.. but when you are angry its wrong to butcher someody.. yes.
you cant just take one rule.. and then take another one.. from the same subcontext and put them together it is just stupid.
speeding is nothing even equateable to murder.. and im quite offended u think so :/
i have never hurt nothing or nobody by speeding.. it is my personal choice.
What if there's a cat on the road? You just might kill it and in the process end up getting yourself paralyzed. Now how fun do you think it would be for your family to support you for the rest of your life, while all you can do is drool and crap your pants? Not very cool, I suspect.
You can break laws as much as you like, but it still doesn't change the fact that it's _wrong_.
Addition: Laws are not the just to protect others but to protect yourself too.
You're gambling with other people's lives as well as yours. At some point, someone <i>will</i> be coming round that cool bend that you do at 120 on the wrong side of the road. And that's when it'll happen. You'll swerve to avoid the car. The front tyre skids out and then catches resulting in a highside that flips you over and off the bike. You would have survived, but the bike comes after you. The handlebars go straight through your trunk. You bleed to death at the side of the road before the emergency services arrive at the scene. The car ploughs straight onto and over the grass verge. The car hits a tree on the left. The driver is killed outright through massive head injuries. The driver's spouse survives but is effectively brain dead. The family turn off the machines a few weeks later. The two kids in the back seat survive. One will never walk again due to leg injuries sustained. The other suffers short term memory loss and epilepsy because of the brain damage resulting from the head hitting the front seat. Of course, they're both orphans now too.
There are the excuses we will always hear: "I can handle it at this speed - I'm a good driver", "There's nobody else on the road - it's OK to drive faster". "It's only a short trip", "It's night, people expect to drive faster". When safety belts were introduced in the UK, people had a hissy fit over that. Ban on mobiles whilst driving ? More toys out the pram. Some people even drive while drinking and think its acceptable. And I'm sure they think they can handle it just like the people think that they can handle a car that's going faster than the limit dictates.
And I'm sure you can handle a bike going at speed most of the time. But its that time you make a mistake, or when there is someone coming the other way that you haven't seen, or when you're doing a bit faster that you'd normally, or when you're more tired than usual that it happens. If you're doing the speed limit, you're less likely to have a accident.
It's not about you - it's about other people.
*kills Tequila*
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Let us not forget young hot headed idiots that thinks they are King of The World and drives better than anyone. The cause for most traffic injuries where Im living is 18-24 males going too fast. Thats also why the insurance premium is stellar if you own a car as a male and is less than 25 years old.
Also there is the fact, that when your headlights are on full power, you can see about 300ms ahead. If you meet another car in the opposite direciton, you are obliged to dim the lights, and slam, your clear visibility is dropped to less than 100 meters. You are actually going way faster than you're allowed to then, but few people bother to slow down for the 5 seconds it takes before the other car has passed them, and they can turn on the long lights again. Thus, at night, speed limits should be lower, not higher. At least if you want to do a service to traffic safety and not satisfy the individual's desire to race ahead at their own leisure.