Speed limit

[wellhungjock]

The A.A wants to increase the speed limit to 80mph do you agree (isn't it already?) Most cars pass me over 80mph.

[rod]

No with a 70 speed limit most drivers do 75-80 anyway at 80 mph they would do 85-90 mph its bad if you get a crash at 70 mph if you get a motorway crash at 80 or 90 mph what a mess.

[smudge]

Whilst I agree with most of what rod has said, me & my car will be a very happy if they increase the speed limit to 80mph on motorways, especially if/when they are clear of other traffic at 2:00am, etc!

If one gets nicked doing 85mph then that's their problem! 

[acw]

I just wish someone would finally realise that speed is not the most important thing.  BREAKING DISTANCE is what is crucial.  So long as people stop driving in other peoples' boots like I so often see, a few extra mph shouldn't cause a problem.  THAT is what the cameras should detect - DISTANCE!!!

[smudge]

Well said acw!

[KebabMeister]

When the 70mph speed limit was introduced cars were far less safe; people didn't wear seat belts, tyres, brakes, crumple zones, were worse than modern cars.  They didn't have ABS, no airbags, no laminated windscreens, no padded steering wheels etc.  The list goes on.

In my opinion if 70mph was safe enough for a 1960s car then 80mph is safe enough for a modern car.  If you compare the two then it is safer to have an accident at 80mph than it was to have an accident at 40mph back in the 60s.

I say increase it for motorways (some countries have faster limits, some lower).

[Grunty]

Much has improved in modern cars, but not the thinking distance. 

As acw says, 80 would be fine if the distance between vehicles was enforced.  Some years ago, the police had on trial a device that measured the distance and compared it with the speed.

[wellhungjock]

The distance cameras I like that idea. I wish the police would crack down on drivers that don�t use their indicators.

[smudge]

Ggggrrrr - there are umpteen things l'd like to see monitored on the motorways & doing 80 mph isn't one of them!

It's the drivers who come speeding up behind you, flashing their lights for you to move over - when they can clearly see that you are already in the process of overtaking someone else in the overtaking lane & already doing doing 70mph. Morons!

[QmunkE]

Indeed, I was driven home along the motorways and the speedometer didn't dip below seventy for much of the way - the driving was perfectly safe since he kept well clear of the car in front, and paid good attention to his driving. So, and eighty MPH limit seems a perfectly good thing, or variable speed limits which are what I believe are being introduced at the moment.

I think I'm right in saying that the cause of most accidents on the motorway is a loss of concentration. That coupled with tailgating is a recipe for disaster.

[jno]

People speed because everyone else does. People tailgate because if they don't someone else will cut in front. Speed limits, including variable ones, are ignored by about one car in three on British motorways in my experience, much less on US ones. (Some US states don't have limits; not sure if Germany does these days or not.) Won't make much difference what the limits are if nobody enforces them, though; isn't that the problem?

[Ducati]

Personally, on motorways I'd like to see the limit abolished completely: I think people are by and large very sensible when it comes to speed and regulate themselves dependent upon the level of traffic, conditions etc... I had occassion recently where I was on the M26 at 1am on my bike coming back from a trip to France - it was a beautifully bright night, the road was bone dry and it was deserted, and at one point hit 140: I am confident in my abilities on a bike so wasn't overly taking a risk, and I know there will be people out there saying i was irresponsible, but where is the harm when the conditions are good.

 

At the very least I'd like to see the limit increased to 100mph - as someone has already said, comparing today's cars with those in the 60s is like comparing apples with oranges - the 70 limit is an anachronism.

 

Also, I've heard (not sure how true this is mind) that generally the police ignore you at anything up to 90 on motorways.

[Gevs1966]

As someone who has witnessed an horrific high speed crash on a motorway involving at least eight cars and where many died, I would disagree with nearly all of the above.

At a higher speed (even only 10mph faster) you have less time to think, less time to react and your reactions have to be far more proficient than what you would expect to avoid potentially fatal accidents in a manner which is safe to both you and other road users.

There is no way you could possible enforce a distance rule on drivers and the idea of distance cameras is totally impractical. People tailgate because there is a massive misconception that if you are going somewhere you have to get there as quickly as possible (a bi-product of today's lifestyles unfortunately) and because they are arrogant enough to think that they are a better driver and could stop in time if need be.

If people ignore the speed limits now they will ignore them if you raise them to 80mph so then what are you going to do? Raise it to 90 because nobody keeps to it anyway? Then what 100? 110? Completely illogical reason. If you raise the limit you will also be forcing people to drive faster than they may want to or may feel comfortable doing due to people trying to drive to the speed limits and not wanting to aggravate all the speed freaks that only care about themselves (these are the ones that normally cause the accidents and then disappear into the distance before you know it.

The argument about cars being safer these days is  extremely valid for say, town centre or low limit roads but in a high speed crash over 70mph the majority of people would still die, think about it.

[KebabMeister]

How about we reduce it to 40mph then?  All in favour say aye! (doesn't bother me, I don't have a car no more!!)

[ianess]

80 on a motorway seems reasonable if it was a LIMIT and enforced as such.  Most speed limits are OK for normal daytime driving but is breaking the limit at 2AM really a bookable offence?
What really gets me is the number of 20mph zones that are springing up, usually along with road humps and chicanes.......does this really contribute to safety or does it only cause more frustration?  I have a mate with a motorhome who has vowed never again to use our local signposted tourist route because of so called safety measures and potential damage to his vehicle.