Councils and road transport continue to lower our speed limit in the name of safety, because it’s cheaper than fixing the roads
I totally agree with littleade, some roads near me that had the NSL are now a 30 MPH limit, the roads in question have no residential properties, no schools, care homes etc etc, just a lot of local farmers who deposit huge amounts of mud etc on the road.
Generally watch the Traffic Cops & Police Interceptor programmes and sit in stunned disbelief at how dangerous the roads are due to speeding drivers...by speeding I mean the likes of the 150mph pursuit as in the said mentioned case, but also all of the ones shown on the tele where the ‘target’ takes off with utter disregard for anyone else either on the road or the pavement... they only seem to show the chases where the people they crash into don’t get hurt, but in many cases totally innocent and law abiding folk end up either dead or seriously hurt with life changing injuries... all because some crack head (drug dealing seem to be the cause 99% of the time) is out on the road and will do anything not to be caught. I hope the Police are only so polite and well disposed towards the criminals they apprehend because they are on TV ...and that in real life they aren’t quite so reserved & understanding.
The US used to have a national speed limit of 55mph when I was a kid. It was repealed in '95 and left up to the states. It lasted about 20 years. IIRC it was implemented to "conserve fuel" which is probably politician contrived BS. Go 55 today and seems like you're absolutely crawling.
the 55 mph limit was indeed intended to conserve fuel. nixon implemented it to reduce consumption in the face of OPEC's first (and only) successful oil embargo. at that time the average four door sedan was getting about 13 mpg, and there was a sudden glut of them on the market as people traded for volkswagens and renaults. after the embargo was lifted, the 55 mph limit stayed in place because a) powerful lobbies claimed it saved lives, and b) local jurisdictions made money writing the tickets. i don't speed a whole lot, personally. i run 10 mph or so over the limits on the main highways, but lots of my travel is on country roads where 60 mph is as fast as i want to go anyway. i get speed out of my system a couple of times a year at the racetrack.
Personally I've been in enough close calls involving velocity that I'm quite content to just cruise right along and chill these days. As I'm steadily learning, my S-T is quite the contender on the road and just knowing that I can school much of the potential competition I run across is good enough.
Same feeling here. I've been caught years ago and should lost my driving licence twice (once 2X over the limit, once over 200 km/h). It's not worth the game. Now I just enjoy riding, if someone is faster and pass me I'm just happy for him.
Getting overtaken by "big rigs" on the freeway when we were sitting at 65mph was a new experience for us. Never knew they could belt along so fast.
Seen the same, a few years back I was driving from OKC to Florida on I20, I had the cruise set at 78 (GPS speed was much the same), I was amazed at the number of "big rigs" that passed me. Last year I had one creep pass me, and I was doing nearly 85.
I australia trucks are surpost to be speed limited to 100km (60mph). road trains to 95 km but you know when I was young you were running 250 to 300 horsepower ,and in Northern Territory running 70 to a 100 tonne road trains so you were lucky to get to 90km now days you have 700horse power pulling maby 60tonns on a double or 30tonns on a single they are lucky to drop 2 gears on a hill that's why they fly past you no speed limiter
I think that's Australia wide now. A lot of road rules and the fines or punishment for breaking them has been standardized through out OZ.
I have a good friend who is a Traffic Cop. The best way to maximise vehicle inspection time, document checking, tyre tread measuring is to utter the one phrase. "Do you know who I am?" Ha ha ha, kiss of death, you're going down!
this surprised me in the usa we went to Detroit to see our daughter and grandkids anyway went to the falls, and then to New York .the Harley riders sitting on 75mph on the freeways no helmets . helmets became law in the early sixties or there about in australia ,wouldn't feel that good with out a lid nowadays
I have just read the following from an IAM newsletter. It makes no mention of those of us that ride motorcycles (it appears we are more law abiding) There are more than 304,000 pensioners (over 65s) currently driving on UK roads with penalty points on their licence, nearly 25 times the number of young teenage drivers – of which there are just over 12,000 with penalty points. The findings, which came from a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the DVLA by the UK’s largest independent road safety charity – IAM RoadSmart – also revealed that the oldest person driving with points on their licence was 102 while there are more than 3,000 over the age of 90 currently driving with penalty points. Overall, there are more drivers in their 30s with penalty points than any other age range (575,029), closely followed by those in their 40s (572,238) and then by those in their 50s (568,511). The highest single age with the greatest number of people with points was 49 (63,248). Additional findings from the FOI discovered that there is up to 8,800 people still driving with more than 12 points – the amount at which you are disqualified – while the highest number of penalty points currently held by one individual is 68. The issue of people driving with more that 12 points on a licence is more complex than the IAM may realise, or wish to accept, personally I think it is ultimately for the Court's to decide.
12 points is not an automatic ban but can be mitigated by personal circumstances and good legal representation. Derbyshire implemented a county wide 50mph ban on unrestricted (60mph) roads a few years back along with the extension of many 40/30mph zones. Sheffield CC stuck a 20mph limit on many urban roads last year together with signage and road painting at who knows what expense. The emmisions brigade are now also jumping on the anti-speed bandwagon along with the safety wombles. I read recently a permanant 50mph limit is considered in motorways in S. Yorkshire in the name of air cleanliness.
New to the OKC area, GF works for DPS so I get regular lectures on my speeding. Oh BTW osu-okc is having some free advanced riding courses that normally cost $180.
Hi Pegscraper were will it all end, it's supposedly linked into climate change and road safety, yet there was a proposal to up the motorway limit from 70 to 80. I think as bikers we tend to pre plan routes that minimises contributing to the "cash cow system"
Iceman Probably when they hike up the ethanol in the fuel. Then the bike will just decay and stop working. They will have what they always wanted bikes of the road. Joe.
In the US moving violations are like 3 or 4 points and something like 9-12 points gets you a suspended license. Here's the thing though- all you do is lawyer up for around 100 bucks and then they take it to court and plea you down to a far lesser, often COMPLETELY UNRELATED offense that doesn't effect either your licence or insurance. Around my area reducing charges to "improper equipment" is extremely popular. Once that happens, you pay another 100 bucks(you PAY the COURT), and you pay the reduced fee. No points, no insurance rise. The judges and the court typically have some kind of back room deal with the law firms. Basically, it's legal bribery. Aw sh-t, that reminds me- I gotta get my lawyer paid.
