Home General Chat
If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.

Speed Limit

2»

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Personally, I think that raising speed limits will encourage younger drivers, who aren't used to driving, and often their own car enough to be doing the speeds they do. Many break the speed limits as it is, raising them will encourage it more. My friend broke the speed limit after he'd passed his test constantly. Then, two weeks after he'd passed, he was speeding, didn't know the road, or his capabilities in the car, and lost control, with 4 passengers. Luckily we all lived, but I was half thrown through a window, half under a chair, the driver smashed into the windscreen, and my friend, who had crouched away from the window when she realised what was happening, was trapped between a chair and the dashboard. The other two were just bruised.

    I'm aware that this is a minority situation, but surely speed shouldn't be brought up any more when there are these risks? We were lucky that the road was empty, otherwise another car could of easily been involved, speeding or not as we flew off the road passing over the other lane.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Skive wrote:
    I'm sure most people 'average speed' is well below that, but that speed is dangerous on a motorway or a straight dual carrigeway which has the nation speed limit - too slow.

    I meant on the motorway, and it isn't dangerous because I stay in the inside line with all the lorries - I only overtake if for example they are going up a hill. I would say 55 is about the average speed when travelling in the inside lane, and would of course be dangerous if I was in the middle or outside lanes.
    Fiend_85 wrote:

    Middle-lane cruisers are very irritating. Lorries overtaking I also think are particularly dangerous.

    Tell me about it! Because my car is such a heap of crap I hate overtaking and wouldn't stick myself in the outside lane, but when two lorries going up a hill are trying to overtake each over and are both doing about 35mph - what are they thinking?!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm the same as olaola in that i tend to just floor it. And i have the same car as him, how weird is that haha.

    I think that maybe if they looked at the 'unofficial' system we've got now - Left lane for lorries, slow moving vehicles and cautious drivers, middle lane for overtaking and average speed traffic, and right lane being a higher speed lane, it might be possible to make a system where you pick which lane to go in, therefore take the risk. Could be open to abuse though.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The problem is a few things..

    First problem is not speed itself, but difference in speed. If two people are safely driving at 90 then there's no problem, but if one is doing 90 and someone else is doing 50 then you potentially have a serious issue. That's made more extreme if the upper limit is higher.

    The second issue is that people are not taught how to drive at higher speeds. No part of the driving test even covers going on the motorway. Therefore young mindless idiots in chavemobile GTIs think they can drive at 100+ the day after their test in complete safety. Likewise business drivers in their BMW moron series coming home after a stressed out day think that they can drive just as well as when they are perfectly alert. If there was some part of compulsary testing that covered off higher speed and motorway driving then maybe the roads would be a bit safer - people would be more confident (so certain cretins wouldn't drive too slowly), people would be more able (so the rest wouldn't drive so dangerously) and everyone would be more educated (so they would all go back to the left, not weave through traffic, leave suitable gaps, and plan ahead for exiting the roads).

    The third thing is that our roads are a bit shit, and can't really take addtional speed all the time. So yeah, I would favour variable limits that account for conditions, road usage, time, etc.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I always drove according to the conditions on motorways and the like.
    The M6 toll seems to have an unofficial minimum speed limit of 85, though. Splendid.
    And there's bugger all on it.

    Now I settle for trains that go even faster and make cool whirry noises.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    If oiot's safe for me to do 116 in a Golf in Germany, its safe over here.

    The problem is that British people cannot drive. Lane-hoggers should get fifty points on their license.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    You are correct Kermit.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Cor... this old chestnut! Nobody will ever be able to please everyone :). My views...

    The speed limit can be a joke. But... the standards of driving on the road today can be even more of a joke. I've owned some fast cars, and I now ride a motorcycle. I've done nearly 160mph in my Impreza, and well over 140mph on my motorcycle - both on very, very quiet motorways, and not very often at all.

    I don't speed in residential areas. I do 30-33mph in 30mph limits, and 40-44mph in 40mph limits. I often drop below the speed limit when passing parked cars, or groups of people - expect the unexpected and all that.

    To me, the biggest problem on the road in that there are many people out there who just don't have the ability to drive safely at *any* speed. Too many people think that 40mph is fine in a residential area. Too many people are incapable of giving the road the attention required to be a safe driver. They don't use their mirrors enough, they don't scan the road ahead - they look at the back of the car ahead of them.

    Speed in itself isn't a bad thing. Inappropriate use of speed is very, very bad. 100mph+ on a motorway isn't too bad - everything is moving at speed, you don't - generally - have any problem with pedestrians, and you can generally see a long way in front. If people were able to drive properly, then I'd see no problem with raising the speed limit on motorways to 100mph - or even more.

    Too many people display poor lane discipline, inability to judge speed of other vehicles, total lack of attention of their surroundings, and the inability to judge the condition of the road and weather to drive at 70mph - let alone anything faster.

    Women tend to display a greater inability to judge spatial awareness than men. They seem to have more problems with driving at slower speeds than men, but the difference is less noticeable at speed as everything is spread out a little further. Not having a dig at anyone, it isn't anything personal - it's just a perception I've made after being on the road for a number of years.

    Men tend to be far more aggressive when behind the wheel. Everyone else is at fault. Women don't tend to display this - though it could be because they fail to notice as many mistakes? Pass. Just my thoughts :).

    Having vehicles that are capable of travelling quickly is a *good* thing. It leads to development of better road surfaces, and far better brakes. If all vehicles were only capable of doing 70-80mph, the brakes available today would be so much worse than they are - we'd still be using drums! We'd likely have no ABS or any forms of stability control. Modern vehicles are - generally - able to overtake swiftly and safely. The ability for the vehicle to move quickly is a safe thing - on the one hand, we need to be able to stop quickly to avoid an accident. On the other, there are instances where the power of the vehicle can be used to good effect when you don't feel you will be able to stop before having an accident.

    Vehicles and roads aren't the problem. It's the people using them.

    Oh, I've been driving for 8 or 9 years now. Never been caught speeding, never been involved in an accident. I came off my motorcycle at a low speed last year, but that was down to an unexpected change in road surface(went from grippy to no-grip whatsoever, it was dark and wet and I had no chance of avoiding it - front wheel lost traction whilst braking), but an investigation is taking place with the maintenance division of the local council.

    All in all, I feel I'm a good enough driver. I probably only average 18-22k per year these days, but there have been times in my life where I've been doing over 80k per year. I always try and give the road my complete attention - and some of the driving I see is truly, truly shocking.

    I wish we had faster speed limits on motorways and certain dual carriageways - but I really do feel that many of the people who use the roads just aren't capable of doing so safely. :(
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    You only have to look at the insurance market to see how stupid the system is over here. People get lower quotes if they drive infrequently. People can get a year of no claims by having a policy and keeping a car in the garage! You get no reduction for your driving experience (age is a factor, but for other reasons). For safer roads everything needs to change so that people are more educated in general.

    Also it would help if folk weren't allowed to drive around in unsuitable vehicles. Allowing people to drive performance cars the day after their test is stupid. Engine capacity or BHP should be restricted for new drivers, and insanely large MPVs should be restricted from all stupid people.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Have to agree that it's more to do with the misuse of speed than the actual speed itself. It really does annoy me when i hear people sat in the pub (9/10 times men i'm afraid) and they boast about reaching 120mph on a motorway or stretch of road between two villages. What does the annoying bit is that i've been in the car with one of these drivers and he is one of the worst drivers i know. He has a shite grasp on how far apart things are and distances and only just manages to scrape through by the seat of his pants with his overtaking. I've made it my lifelong rule never to get in a car with anyone like this as they seem to have no grasp on passenger carrying manners. If i have people in my car i drive to what is legal as i don't really want to scare the hell out of my mates or parents.

    I just feel that a lot of people doing the higher speeds don't understand their cars or how to drive at these higher speeds.

    And yes middle lane crawlers are about the only thing that get a burst of road rage out of me esp. when the left hand lane is completely free for about a mile infront of them.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    assuming all british drivers were safe, alert and legal, the variable speed limit mentioned would be a great idea.

    however, having just come home after being sat on the motorway for 3 hours, i don't think it would work here, because 90% of the people on our motorways pay absolutely no heed to the the rules of the road.

    there are roadworks on the M42 at the moment, and there are big signs everywhere telling people that for the stretch of road being worked on, the speed limit is 50 mph. is anyone actually doing 50? are they buggery.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    its always like that on parts of the M1 when i drive up to Leeds too... although surpirsingly most people do drop their speed.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    If oiot's safe for me to do 116 in a Golf in Germany, its safe over here.

    The problem is that British people cannot drive. Lane-hoggers should get fifty points on their license.
    The problem is that whilst on German motorways there are fewer accidents those that do occur tend to be more serious and more often fatal than accidents on British motorways.
Sign In or Register to comment.