Road speed limit cut to 50mph

Dear Steve,

May I assume that you consider that the current speed limits are too low, and also that you consider that are an excellent driver who could easily control a vehicle at faster speeds than are even currently allowed?

If so you are exactly the kind of driver I would happily see removed from the roads first of all! ;-)

ATB from George

The Department of Transport seems to think that over the limit speeding, is a minor contributory factor...

2006 report

Six out of ten listed, so by no means the least important!

We had better watch out for the speeders spinning out of control, methinks! ;-)

ATB from George

quote:

Originally posted by GFFJ:
Dear Steve,

May I assume that you consider that the current speed limits are too low, and also that you consider that are an excellent driver who could easily control a vehicle at faster speeds than are even currently allowed?

If so you are exactly the kind of driver I would happily see removed from the roads first of all! ;-)

ATB from George

LOL

Seriously though, yes, some of the speed limits are too low but on the other hand some are too high.

Education and raising driving standards I think is really important, especially as modern cars isolate you from speed so effectively.
Let's raise the bar on driving standards not introduce more driver's 'aids' after all driving is a privilege and not a right.

Cheers
Steve

quote:

out of control,

Quite.

Dear Steve [Guinnless],

I quite agree that the education of drivers needs to continue to improve.

I am glad I passed my test thrity years ago when the standards were lower and the test much easier to pass! Even though I freely admit that I am not the greatest driver on the road - I consider myself safe enough because I am always careful to apply one hundred per cent concentration - I am not a particular slow coach, though long since gave up regularly pushing over the speed limit as well.

I have had two minor accidents since 1978, and have had the same insurance company during the whole time and have a 150 GBP PA premium for my old Volvo 240. My insurance company clearly rate me as a reasonably safe risk ...

But the thing that perturbs me most on the road is idiocy of a very small proportion of other drivers, and it is for this aspect that one needs to be always alert. Sometimes it manifests in excessive speeds, sometimes in erractic lane changing, sometimes in bad temper and bad manners ... And so on.

I have enjoyed driving less and less with time. I still have an old car, doing less than 3K miles each years now, but I am seriously weighing up what I would be prepared to spend on any repair that might come with the old car. Too much and I would give up motoring altogether. Before I do I would like to take the old car to Poland and back, and also possibly down to Sapin and back, whetre the less full roads might allow for the kind of carefree motoring that used to exists before we had so many cars on the roads in the UK ...

I do a small amount of delivery driving for work, so my license is important in that repsect.

ATB from George

quote:

Originally posted by Guinnless:
Dumbing down driving with driver's aids merely pushes the standard of driving ever lower.

I suppose you are against the use of antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres.

Hopefully in the future technology will control the speed of cars in an intelligent manner. For example, cars passing a school will be limited to 20mph during selected times of the day. In poor weather conditions speed limit will be reduced.

quote:

speed limit will be reduced

I hope not, I sometimes find acceleration is more suited to preventing difficulty than braking - on/off slip roads, for example.

Dear Fatcat,

This is exactly the way things need to go, especially on our over-crowded roads in UK.

ATB from George

quote:

Originally posted by GFFJ:
Dear Steve,

I quite agree that the education of drivers needs to continue to improve.

Excellent. We agree

quote:

I am glad I passed my test thrity years ago when the standards were lower and the test much easier to pass! Even though I freely admit that I am not the greatest driver on the road - I consider myself safe enough because I am always careful to apply one hundred per cent concentration - I am not a particular slow coach, though long since gave up regularly pushing over the speed limit as well.

I have had two minor accidents since 1978, and have had the same insurance company during the whole time and have a 150 GBP PA premium for my old Volvo 240. My insurance company clearly rate me as a reasonably safe risk ...

Well my insurance depends on which vehicle...but if we're going to do old cars then I pay £88 for my 32 year old Granada My fast car costs a bit more but not much more than your Volvo :-p

quote:

But the thing that perturbs me most on the road is idiocy of a very small proportion of other drivers, and it is for this aspect that one needs to be always alert. Sometimes it manifests in excessive speeds, sometimes in erractic lane changing, sometimes in bad temper and bad manners ... And so on.

Agreed. It isn't just speeding, one nice chap in a small hatchback decided he couldn't see a pearlescent white, red & blue Honda CBR600, moved quickly out into my lane resulting in me taking evasive action. He wasn't speeding but that shouldn't have absolved him from checking that his intended path was clear.

quote:

I have enjoyed driving less and less with time. I still have an old car, doing less than 3K miles each years now, but I am seriously weighing up what I would be prepared to spend on any repair that might come with the old car. Too much and I would give up motoring altogether. Before I do I would like to take the old car to Poland and back, and also possibly down to Sapin and back, whetre the less full roads might allow for the kind of carefree motoring that used to exists before we had so many cars on the roads in the UK ...

I do a small amount of delivery driving for work, so my license is important in that repsect.

ATB from George

quote:

Originally posted by JamieWednesday:

quote:

speed limit will be reduced

I hope not, I sometimes find acceleration is more suited to preventing difficulty than braking - on/off slip roads, for example.

The control systems could be flexible. On motorways exceeding speed limits could be permitted for 30 seconds to allow for such manoeuvres.

quote:

Originally posted by fatcat:

quote:

Originally posted by Guinnless:
Dumbing down driving with driver's aids merely pushes the standard of driving ever lower.

I suppose you are against the use of antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres.

Hopefully in the future technology will control the speed of cars in an intelligent manner. For example, cars passing a school will be limited to 20mph during selected times of the day. In poor weather conditions speed limit will be reduced.

Not at all.
I've been driving my anti-lock brake equipped car for 14 years now, with proper assisted braking not a cheap vacuum servo setup. Variable ratio power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering too. I don't rely on the ABS though and I've only used it once in all that time on a cold, damp day in some back streets when a taxi decided to cut the corner at a junction, it allowed my to steer as well as brake to avoid him

Two of my cars are automatic and the other two are manual. Horses for courses, don't see how it's a safety issue though :-|

Cheers
Steve

Steve

You are against driving aids that lower the standard of driving.

Don’t you realise antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres lower the standard of driving.

Not only are cross-ply tyres great fun to drive on, I also think that crash [non-synchro] gearboxes are immense fun as well.

I would love to drive a 1930s vehicle with mechanical brakes, crash box, manual spark timing, cross-ply narrow tyres and so on!

It might not be as fast as a modern motor, but it would certainly be more entertaining to drive!

ATB from George

quote:

Originally posted by fatcat:
Steve

You are against driving aids that lower the standard of driving.

Don’t you realise antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres lower the standard of driving.

No, they don't because they do not take away control unlike "brake-assist" for example.

And I'm still don't understand how a auto 'box makes things safer :-|


Cheers
Steve

That could be the way to go. Ban syncromesh gearboxes. Double declutching would certainly slow down the majority of drivers.

quote:

Originally posted by Guinnless:

quote:

Originally posted by fatcat:
Steve

You are against driving aids that lower the standard of driving.

Don’t you realise antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres lower the standard of driving.

No, they don't because they do not take away control unlike "brake-assist" for example.

And I'm still don't understand how a auto 'box makes things safer :-|


Cheers
Steve

I didn’t say auto transmission made things safer. It is a driving aid that lowers the standard of driving. You do not approve of such things.

I haven’t commented on the safety aspects antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres, I am pointing out that their introduction lowered the standard of driving.

Remember your quote

“Dumbing down driving with driver's aids merely pushes the standard of driving ever lower”.

Something I occasionally try when driving on A roads.

When someone overtakes you, count how much advantage they gain every few minutes. When they pass a lamp post or gate, count in seconds (roughly) how long it is before you pass that point.

In general I find that for passing two or three lorries and a number of cars, the driver can gain a massive 30 seconds over five miles. I am sure they find that well worth the risks they take passing on two lane roads.

Obviously getting stuck behind a 30 mph tractor is something different, but having done a lot of driving on the A1 between Leeds and Edinburgh last year (1/3 two lane, 2/3 dual carriageway) I came to the conclusion that life is long enough to spend an extra couple of minutes on a journey, rather than risk not getting there at all.

It is also worth looking at the people who are so desperate to overtake every car in front of them, I do not think that logic is something that has much to do with their driving as much as an expression of their machismo through their driving.

Something else to consider, when you get behind the wheel of a car and drive at speed you are excerpting the same deadly force as if you fired a high power rifle along a road (between the cars). The speed may be less, but this is compensated for by the mass of the projectile/vehicle. The deadly force is broadly similar. How would those who drive recklessly view a marksman who shot off bullets into a street when there were no cars or pedestrians about, the marksman would probably be less likely to injure anyone than the reckless driver.

There is no need to fire a rifle in a public area, but then then there is no need to drive recklessly there either.

I must admit, that the idea of a 50mph limit on the majority of A roads sound like a good idea to me.

Surely the whole point of introducing average speed cameras is because some Government minister or advisor will benefit financially from such a move; this is usually why such things happen in this country. It is just like that Green nonsense - yet another con, I'm afraid.

I don't drive very fast so have no need for my taxes to be wasted stopping me doing something that I don't do in the first place. If people are driving too fast and causing accidents then target them not me.

Still please click here for a nice song to cheer everybody up and it's on thread too.

ATB Rotf

Why just cut the speed limit to 50 mph? Surely more lives would be saved by cutting it to 40 mph.

quote:

Originally posted by Bananahead:
Why just cut the speed limit to 50 mph? Surely more lives would be saved by cutting it to 40 mph.

Cue George to agree. Tell you what, let's just sit there in first at idle (8mph) and wrap ourselves up in cotton wool too.

quote:

Originally posted by fatcat:

quote:

Originally posted by Guinnless:

quote:

Originally posted by fatcat:
Steve

You are against driving aids that lower the standard of driving.

Don’t you realise antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres lower the standard of driving.

No, they don't because they do not take away control unlike "brake-assist" for example.

And I'm still don't understand how a auto 'box makes things safer :-|


Cheers
Steve

I didn’t say auto transmission made things safer. It is a driving aid that lowers the standard of driving. You do not approve of such things.

I haven’t commented on the safety aspects antilock breaking systems, power steering, automatic transmission and radial tyres, I am pointing out that their introduction lowered the standard of driving.

Remember your quote

“Dumbing down driving with driver's aids merely pushes the standard of driving ever lower”.

At this level of logic the steering wheel is a driver's aid!

Cheers
Steve

Let's just go back to 2 mph and someone walking in frnot witha red flag. We will then have no road fatalities but the country will grind to a halt!

Whatever happened to acceptable risk.

There are some country lanes I would not drive down faster than 20mph but on my work travels I see so much discrepancy between speed limits for similar roads it makes me laugh.

I think it is more about money raising (again). My automatic has various "dribving aids" and they help me concentrate on avoiding pillocks on bikes who think they are indestructible.

Just as well I don't have the Bentley with the in car Naim system as there would be dead bikers and pedestrians everywhere!

quote:

Let's just go back to 2 mph and someone walking in front with a red flag. We will then have no road fatalities but the country will grind to a halt!

Should speed things up in London.

quote:

Originally posted by GrahamFinch:
Let's just go back to 2 mph and someone walking in frnot witha red flag. We will then have no road fatalities but the country will grind to a halt!

Whatever happened to acceptable risk.

There are some country lanes I would not drive down faster than 20mph but on my work travels I see so much discrepancy between speed limits for similar roads it makes me laugh.

I think it is more about money raising (again). My automatic has various "dribving aids" and they help me concentrate on avoiding pillocks on bikes who think they are indestructible.

Just as well I don't have the Bentley with the in car Naim system as there would be dead bikers and pedestrians everywhere!

When a cyclist rides like a pillock he is taking an acceptable risk, which apparently you approve of. The thing to appreciate is, he is risking his OWN safety.

When a moronic car driver exceeds the speed limit, he is taking an acceptable risk. But the risk is not to himself, the risk is to others, sensible car users, sensible cyclists and pedestrians.