Thoughts on Excessive Speed

[MissChief]

You would cull the number of road users by at least 50%, probably more like 90%, if you made mechanical familiarity a requirement.

In the same way as if you made electrical engineering a requirement for using smartphones, nobody would have one.

There is so much in the modern world that we use every day, of which only enthusiasts actually understand the inner workings.

Sadly people get taught to pass their test, not how to drive.

 

[jpaul]

During the day we have a terrible 60 mph limit here for Nitrogen emmisions, it's literally sleep inducing, to the point I hate driving in NL before 1900 hrs and avoid long distance travel in NL like the plague. Whenever I go somewhere with mates ( e.g. festivals or other leisure) I usually make others drive these days

germany's trying to get rid of their unlimited autobahn speed zones - if nitrogen goes logarithmic at high car/engine speeds, along with consumption increase, then ecologically seems appropriate;
just need to live somewhere with lots of mountainous roads with switch-backs like S.France - who, really, wants to drive on a straight road, curves are so much more fun, even if you burn a lot more fuel, too.

 

[Diddums]

Sadly people get taught to pass their test, not how to drive.

Yep. The whole test needs reviewing, it's far too easy. I'm in Berlin atm and it just reminds me what an absolute shower the standards of driving are in the UK. Our roads are absolutely infested with people whose understanding of driving doesn't exceed "press pedal, car go".

 

[tonys]

Enforcement of the law is also questionable. The use of banning drivers is laughable, if they are jailed, the ban is inforce while they are in prison they can be straight back on the roads when they get out. The ban should be implemented to come into force just before release. I know a lot don't take any notice of bans, as they also ignore insurance and mot's.

 

[Haggisman]

So I drove from central Scotland to Bicester (Near Oxford) on Friday evening and back up again last night. I had my cruise control set to 70 on the way up the M6 and M74. At times, and I’d say the majority of the time here, I was the slowest thing on the road, save for coaches, trucks and the odd car. Very few other cars, SUV’s and even tiny Corsa’s and big Audi’s and Mercedes were slower, many much faster including some I reckon were doing over 90 the way they blew past. Also still plenty of middle lane morons. One guy got passed on both sides easily five or six times but still didn’t even twig he was the problem.

when we got into Glasgow the rain was horrendous, absolutely torrential with standing water across most lanes and my wipers going full speed and still had some difficulty. I was doing 50 at the most and people still blowing past at 60+, highly inappropriate speed. I’ve aquaplaned before, it’s a definite pucker moment, even if it was very brief, those going far too fast clearly haven’t as it’s a definite moment that clears the mind.

Was that 70 on the speedo or GPS? If the former then potentially you were only at 65 or so.

Still doesn't excuse people not driving to the conditions of course!

As always, still after 14 years of driving a car and 7 years of riding a motorbike, I think speed limits on motorways are aboslutely retarded and think people who think otherwise should not be on the road.
Speed doesn't cause accidents, it's idiots who cannot respect the right of way/yield when they should (like when changing lanes).

The problem on motorways isn't so much absolute speed as speed differential.
Given that there is a speed limit, most people driving at 70 don't expect a car in their rear view mirror to be closing on them at 50mph!
Then you also have the people who think it is perfectly safe to drive at 40-50 on a clear sunny day when everyone else around them is doing 70.
Absolutely agree with the rest of your post about driving standards though, and the emissions argument goes right out the window as more EVs replace ICE cars.

 

[SexyGreyFox]

The number of cyclists that go along my road at night in dark clothing and no lights is getting very normal.

Yes a motorist will get upset if they ever hit a cyclist (maybe) but at least the cyclist isn't going to kill anyone but themselves at EXCESSIVE SPEED on the road.
Yes there are about 3 a year but not sure of the actual incidents.

 

[Haggisman]

Yes a motorist will get upset if they ever hit a cyclist (maybe) but at least the cyclist isn't going to kill anyone but themselves at EXCESSIVE SPEED on the road.
Yes there are about 3 a year but not sure of the actual incidents.

So it's OK to potentially ruin someone else's life as long as you come off worse?

 

[tonys]

It all comes down to responsibility for your actions which seems to be almost non existent in most people nowadays.

 

[Tykey]

It's all well and good saying speed doesn't cause accidents (and when safe to do so i tend to agree), but it does effect rate of fatalities and serious injuries when crashes do occur.

 

[tonys]

On the speed awareness course they highlight that most accidents are on urban and rural roads with children, teenagers and old people being the highest casualties.

 

[Nasher]

Closest I've come to a crash on rural roads is when some idiot farmer left mud on a corner. Didn't put a sign up or clean it up like they are meant to. Then it rained.

 

[tonys]

Not to do with speed but tonight going to pick the wife up from work I turned into the hospice car park, which is just a small one way square (like a b shape) and as I was going straight up across the junction a women came out from the right indicating right which is against the one way system. Needless to say she was quite surprised. This is with 2 give way marks, a left turning arrow on the road and a blue one way sign just on the junction. Very observant of her.

 

[Haggisman]

Not to do with speed but tonight going to pick the wife up from work I turned into the hospice car park, which is just a small one way square (like a b shape) and as I was going straight up across the junction a women came out from the right indicating right which is against the one way system. Needless to say she was quite surprised. This is with 2 give way marks, a left turning arrow on the road and a blue one way sign just on the junction. Very observant of her.

Our local retail park has a one way system, and probably 75% of people just completely ignore it

Had an interesting one yesterday, driving down a relatively narrow residential road towards a T junction where I'm turning left, big double-decker bus comes from the right, way too fast and turns into the road I'm driving down - being a bus this obviously means the front swings right out across my side of the road, causing me to have to slam on the brakes

What makes it interesting is that a couple of weeks ago there was a crash in exactly the same place involving a car which had clipped a bus, wonder if it was the same driver...

 

[Dis86]

Our local retail park has a one way system, and probably 75% of people just completely ignore it

I'd say it's the same for ours but tbh it only seems to be women that struggle with the no entry signs and 10ft arrows in the road.

 

[Rroff]

Not to do with speed but tonight going to pick the wife up from work I turned into the hospice car park, which is just a small one way square (like a b shape) and as I was going straight up across the junction a women came out from the right indicating right which is against the one way system. Needless to say she was quite surprised. This is with 2 give way marks, a left turning arrow on the road and a blue one way sign just on the junction. Very observant of her.

Similar here in a recent Ashley Neal video:

Driving Fail Viewers Edition #47 | Loads of Room | Is that a UFO?

Check if your car was damaged with carVertical - 10% off here https://www.carvertical.com/gb/landing/v3?utm_source=infl&a=AshleyNeal&b=38b26e3a&voucher=as...

youtu.be

 

[bigmike20vt]

Still and the emissions argument goes right out the window as more EVs replace ICE cars.

just a musing really but I was driving down the M6 a few weeks back and ther was a large section where the variable speed limit was up due to reducing emissions for air quality .
the motorway was not that busy and many were speeding. I wasn't (not for any morality reasons but because that road is littered with cameras and not sure how strict they are)

however I drive an EV. given the speed limit was only there to reduce emissions (it said as much on the digital signs) I woukd be interested to know what reason that speed limit should apply to me IF I had been going 70 and caught.

(yes it would be because the sign said 50 or what ever). but it does make a mockery of them claiming the speed limit is for reducing emissions. perhaps that could be another carrot for encouraging EV uptake. when limiting the speed for emissions they could keep the outside line for EVs only and allow 70 in that lane)

btw I love adaptive cruise control on a motorway...... it's so easy to sneak over the speed limit and not be aware, but set the cruise control to the speed limit*** and then let it do its own thing .. I love it!.

*** actually I tend to set it to 3 or 4 mph over the indicated speed limit.

 

[tonys]

I suppose we could have a whole new thread on drivers unawareness of the road (we all have at some point in our lives), it would be huge. I really should put the dash cam in the car though

 

[bigmike20vt]

I suppose we could have a whole new thread on drivers unawareness of the road (we all have at some point in our lives), it would be huge. I really should put the dash cam in the car though

I had a dash cam for years in my old car. I never had an accident but the amount of people I filmed cutting me up on roundabouts and a few v near misses justified having it

my new car indefinitely should get one but they do clutter the screen. it's a shame I am loving having nothing on my windscreen

I think if I do get one I will get it professionally installed. I wish the cars on board 360 degree cameras were suitable. I ignorantly assumed they would be ( they are in Tesla's so assumed it was the same in all modern cars)

 

[Deleted User 298457]

I had a dash cam for years in my old car. I never had an accident but the amount of people I filmed cutting me up on roundabouts and a few v near misses justified having it

my new car indefinitely should get one but they do clutter the screen. it's a shame I am loving having nothing on my windscreen

I think if I do get one I will get it professionally installed. I wish the cars on board 360 degree cameras were suitable. I ignorantly assumed they would be (I think they are in Tesla's so assumed it was the same in all modern cars)

Get a Thinkware wedge style camera...had mine almost 10 years and in 4 cars. Works a dream and totally hidden. Front and rear.

 

[squerble]

...and the emissions argument goes right out the window as more EVs replace ICE cars.

I'd definitely argue against this. Once an EV gets above somewhere around 25-30mph (depending on car) then efficiency drops and keeps dropping, becoming a case of "the faster you go, the more inefficient it is". Speed limits will still be in place for emissions reasons because if you allow EVs higher speeds, they use a lot more energy, energy which is still created by burning a lot of stuff, and thus indirectly pollutes more.